Understanding Google Cloud Platform Pricing
If your business heavily relies on a certain service, the product-specific pricing model works best. For instance, Cloud Firestore’s document-based pricing suits you if you’re creating a mobile application that uses it broadly.
Free Tier
GCP provides a free tier for many services, letting you test them without any fees. However, it has some restrictions like limited storage size or bandwidth. But it’s enough for trial and development work.
How to Save on Your Cloud Expenses
You’ve now learned about GCP’s various pricing approaches. Here’s how you can save on your cloud expenses:
Select the Best Pricing Plan
Select a pricing plan that matches your business requirements. The pay-as-you-go model might work best for fluctuating workloads or unpredictable usage. Opt for the product-specific pricing model if you heavily use a certain service.
Keep an Eye on Your Usage
Keep a routine check on your GCP services use to prevent exceeding your budget. For usage tracking and report generation, you can use the GCP Console.
Pre-booked Instances
For predictable workloads, consider pre-booked instances for Compute Engine and Cloud SQL. These offer sizable discounts compared to on-demand instances.
Long-term Use Discounts
Dedicated user price cuts can provide up to 5% off on some GCP services like Cloud Storage and Cloud SQL. These discounts require a promise to use a particular amount of resources for one year.
Make the Most Out of Resources
Use your resources wisely to avoid unnecessary expenses. For instance, shutting down or erasing unused instances, databases, or storage buckets can save a lot.
Wrap Up
Knowing how GCP pricing works is crucial for businesses to manage their cloud expenditure and dodge unforeseen expenses. GCP has adaptable pricing arrangements such as pay-as-you-go, product-specific fees, and a free tier. Choosing an appropriate pricing setup, monitoring your usage, utilizing reserved instances, benefiting from dedicated use discounts, and optimizing resources can trim down your cloud expenses and augment your ROI.
