How do you know what you’re paying for in AWS

“AWS billing visibility is atrocious” (but there’s hope!)

Let's face it, deciphering your AWS bill can feel like trying to navigate a financial labyrinth. Terms like "EC2 instances," "on-demand pricing," and "reserved instances" swirl around, leaving you wondering: what exactly am I paying for?

Some background information if AWS is a black box

AWS, or Amazon Web Services’ cloud computing platform provides on-demand access to various resources, storage options, databases, networking tools, and more. Think of it as a giant virtual toolbox where businesses can rent the tools and services they need to run their applications and websites.

That said, the power and flexibility of AWS come at a cost. Unlike traditional IT infrastructure, where you pay upfront for hardware and software, AWS follows a pay-as-you-go model. While this offers incredible scalability and cost-efficiency in theory, it can also lead to unexpected bills if left unchecked.

So, what are we trying to solve here? We're on a mission to demystify your AWS bill. We want to help you understand exactly what you're paying for and how to avoid those unexpected surprises.

Why should you care? Because understanding AWS pricing isn't just about saving money; it's about making the most of your cloud investment. By knowing what you're paying for, you can optimize your resources, avoid overspending, and ensure your business is running smoothly.

And who should care:

• CFOs and Business Leaders: Gaining control of cloud expenses is vital for responsible financial management.
• IT Managers and Cloud Architects: Optimizing resource allocation and avoiding overspending are key optimization goals.
• Developers and Project Managers: Understanding costs allows for better project budgeting and resource planning.

In other words, it’s a struggle for a lot of businesses to understand the intricacies of AWS pricing.

Which is why by the time you’re done with this blog post, you’ll be able to find out what you’re paying AWS for in nitty, gritty detail, including:

• How to find out what you’re for in AWS daily by service
• How to create a report to accurately see your AWS costs
• How to find out which AWS services are costing you the most money
• How to use the AWS EC2 instance pricing calculators

Let’s dive into giving you control of your cloud expenses to make sure you’re getting the most out of your cloud investment.

How to find out what you’re paying for in AWS daily by service

1. Access Cost Explorer:

• Log in to your AWS Management Console.
• Locate "Cost Explorer" in the left-hand navigation pane and click on it.

2. Create a New Report:

Click on the "Create Report" button.

3. Set the Time Period:

Choose the desired time period for your report. For example, select the last seven days.

4. Customize the Report:

• Select "Daily costs" as the grouping metric to view your costs on a daily basis.
• If applicable, filter out credits to get a more accurate representation of your actual costs.
• Set the granularity to "Services" to see a breakdown of costs per service.

5. Analyze the Report:

• Review the report to identify your top-spending services and understand the breakdown of costs within each service.
• Look for any unexpected charges or areas where you can potentially optimize costs.

6. Save the Report:

Save this report so you can refer back to it later.

How to find out which AWS services that are costing you the most money

1. Analyze Cost Explorer Data:

• In Cost Explorer, review the report you created in the previous tutorial.
• Identify the services with the highest costs by sorting the report accordingly.

2. Investigate Top-Spending Services:

• Focus on the services that are consuming the most of your budget.
• Determine the average monthly or yearly spending on each service.

3. Drill Down into Specific Services:

• Return to the "Bills" section of the AWS Management Console.
• Filter the bills to focus on the top-spending services.
• Examine the detailed breakdown of costs within each service.

4. Understand Pricing Models:

• Recognize that different AWS services have different pricing models.
• For example, EC2 instances are priced based on CPU usage, while S3 storage is priced based on data storage and retrieval.

5. Identify Specific Cost Drivers:

• Within each service, identify the specific factors contributing to your costs.
• This might include instance types, data transfer volumes, database usage, or other relevant metrics.

So that's how you can get a breakdown in the pricing.

How to use the AWS Pricing Calculator

1. Access the AWS Pricing Calculator:

• Log in to your AWS Management Console.
• Search for "Pricing Calculator" in the search bar or navigate to the "Tools" section.

2. Create a New Estimate:

• Click on the "Create New Estimate" button.

3. Select Services:

• Choose the services in the AWS pricing calculator you want to include in your estimate. For example, select "Compute" to include EC2 instances or "Storage" to include S3 buckets.

4. Configure Services:

• Provide the necessary details for each service, such as instance type, storage capacity, data transfer volumes, and region.
• The calculator will guide you through the configuration process.

5. Review Your Estimate:

• Once you've configured the services, review the estimated costs.
• The calculator will provide a breakdown of costs for each service and the total estimated cost.

6. Adjust and Refine:

• Experiment with different configurations to see how changes affect the estimated costs.
• Consider factors like instance types, storage options, and data transfer volumes.

That's how you find out what's running up your bill and in detail level be able to see what's going on.

The problem? The AWS pricing calculator can be complex to use (so many fields to fill in), may not always provide accurate results (god help you if you make any typos), and has a confusing interface that does it no favors!

Conclusion

AWS pricing is a pain and the AWS pricing calculator doesn’t really work—but your charges don’t have to be a mystery. With a little detective work and the right tools, you can crack the code and understand your bill like a pro.

Remember, the goal isn't to eliminate all costs, but to optimize your spending and get the most bang for your buck.