The differentiation between AWS Cognito User Pools and AWS Cognito Identity Pools can sometimes be confusing. Here is a simple summary for each of them:
AWS Cognito User Pools
Is an Identity provider, it stores usernames and passwords and allows users to sign in and get back a token (JWT). This token can then be used to call services on API Gateway.
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Using AWS Cognito User Pool to get a JWT
AWS Cogito Identity Pools
Most AWS Services aside from API Gateway require an IAM role with the required permissions to perform actions, Identity pools provide a way to exchange the JWT for an access key and secret for this role.
Using AWS Cognito Identity Pool to access an AWS Service
