Alibaba Cloud CDN charges for outbound data transfer from points of presence (POPs). Two metering methods are available: pay-by-data-transfer (default) and pay-by-peak-bandwidth. This topic describes both methods, their billing rules, and how burst bandwidth is handled.
Billed data transfer is slightly higher than the volume recorded in access logs. Logs reflect application-layer (Layer 7) traffic, but the actual billed amount includes TCP/IP packet header overhead and TCP retransmission bytes. For details, see Why is the traffic amount in monitoring and usage analytics different from the logged traffic amount?.
If your monthly CDN service fee is less than CNY 100,000, or if your traffic pattern does not meet the requirements of the monthly billing model (for example, the monthly 95th percentile billing model cannot be used in scenarios with abnormal burst bandwidth), Alibaba Cloud CDN reserves the right to switch the monthly billing model to the pay-by-data-transfer billing method.
If your monthly CDN service fee exceeds CNY 100,000, Alibaba Cloud CDN can provide you with more flexible and cost-effective monthly billing methods. Contact your account manager or contact us by other means for consultation.
Choose a metering method
| Pay-by-data-transfer | Pay-by-peak-bandwidth | |
|---|---|---|
| Best for | Spiky or unpredictable traffic — video-on-demand, software distribution, seasonal campaigns | Steady, high-utilization traffic — live streaming, gaming acceleration, real-time APIs |
| Rule of thumb | Daily bandwidth utilization below 30% | Daily bandwidth utilization exceeds 30% |
| Billable item | Data transfer (GB) | Peak bandwidth (Gbit/s) |
| Billing cycle | Hourly | Daily |
| Billing method | Pay-as-you-go or subscription | Pay-as-you-go only |
| Availability | Default; available to all accounts | Requires peak bandwidth > 5 Gbit/s over the previous 30 days; contact your account manager to enable |
Pay-by-data-transfer
Monthly outbound data transfer from POPs is billed in arrears using tiered pricing. The pricing tier is determined by the cumulative monthly data transfer at the time each hourly billing cycle closes. In most cases, bills are generated approximately 3–4 hours after each billing cycle ends. The time when bills are generated is determined by the system.
Pricing
The prices below are for reference only. Actual prices on the Alibaba Cloud CDN pricing page prevail.
| Pricing tier (USD/GB) | Chinese mainland-CN | North America-NA | Europe-EU | Asia Pacific 1-AP1 | Asia Pacific 2-AP2 | Asia Pacific 3-AP3 | Middle East & Africa-MEAA | South America-SA |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 0 TB–50 TB (inclusive) | 0.04 | 0.07 | 0.07 | 0.081 | 0.108 | 0.096 | 0.105 | 0.105 |
| 50 TB–100 TB (inclusive) | 0.03 | 0.06 | 0.06 | 0.062 | 0.094 | 0.083 | 0.085 | 0.085 |
| 100 TB–1 PB (inclusive) | 0.03 | 0.03 | 0.03 | 0.053 | 0.079 | 0.070 | 0.07 | 0.07 |
| > 1 PB | 0.02 | 0.025 | 0.025 | 0.048 | 0.072 | 0.064 | 0.06 | 0.06 |
Billing example
This example shows how tiered pricing applies as monthly data transfer accumulates (Chinese mainland).
May 1–15: Cumulative data transfer reaches 51,200 GB, falling within the 0–50 TB tier at USD 0.04/GB.
Bill for May 1–15: 51,200 GB x USD 0.04 = USD 2,048
May 16, 00:00–01:00: An additional 1,000 GB is consumed, bringing the monthly total to 52,200 GB. This pushes the total into the 50–100 TB tier, so this hour is billed at USD 0.03/GB.
Bill for May 16, 00:00–01:00: 1,000 GB x USD 0.03 = USD 30
Total bill (May 1–May 16, 01:00): USD 2,048 + USD 30 = USD 2,078
Billing example
The following table lists the official pricing on a pay-by-data-transfer basis:
NoteThe following prices are for reference only. The actual prices on the official website prevail.
Price tier (CNY/GB)
Chinese mainland-CN
North America-NA
Europe-EU
Asia Pacific 1-AP1
Asia Pacific 2-AP2
Asia Pacific 3-AP3
Middle East & Africa-MEAA
South America-SA
0GB-10TB (inclusive)
0.24
0.46
0.46
0.58
0.78
0.69
1.31
1.31
10TB-50TB (inclusive)
0.23
0.46
0.46
0.58
0.78
0.69
1.31
1.31
50TB-100TB (inclusive)
0.21
0.39
0.39
0.45
0.67
0.60
1.18
1.18
100TB-1PB (inclusive)
0.18
0.20
0.20
0.38
0.57
0.51
0.98
0.92
Greater than 1PB
0.15
0.16
0.16
0.35
0.52
0.46
0.92
0.85
Sample scenario (using data transfer fees in the Chinese mainland as an example):
From 00:00:00 on March 1 to 23:59:59 on March 9, the accumulated data transfer is 10,200 GB. From 00:00:00 to 01:00:00 on March 10, the data transfer is 90 GB. The monthly accumulated data transfer is 10,290 GB. Of the 90 GB used from 00:00:00 to 01:00:00 on March 10, 40 GB falls within the 0 GB-10 TB price tier with a unit price of CNY 0.24/GB, and the remaining 50 GB falls within the 10 TB-50 TB price tier with a unit price of CNY 0.23/GB.
Billing:
Note10 TB = 10,240 GB.
The bill amount from 00:00:00 on March 1 to 23:59:59 on March 9 is: 10,200 GB × CNY 0.24/GB = CNY 2,448.
The bill amount from 00:00:00 to 01:00:00 on March 10 is: 40 GB × CNY 0.24/GB + 50 GB × CNY 0.23/GB = CNY 21.1.
The total bill amount from 00:00:00 on March 1 to 01:00:00 on March 10 is: (10,200 GB + 40 GB) × CNY 0.24/GB + 50 GB × CNY 0.23/GB = CNY 2,469.1.
Pay-by-peak-bandwidth
To switch to pay-by-peak-bandwidth, contact your account manager or contact Alibaba Cloud. This metering method is available only when peak bandwidth over the previous 30 days exceeds 5 Gbit/s.
Bandwidth is sampled every 5 minutes — 288 samples per day. The highest sample value is the daily peak bandwidth, which is the billable quantity for that day. The bills of a day are generated and the amount due is deducted after 00:00 on the following day. The time when bills are generated is determined by the system.
Billing example
The following table lists the official pricing on a pay-by-peak-bandwidth basis:
NoteThe following prices are for reference only. The actual prices on the official website prevail.
Price tier (CNY/Mbps/day)
Chinese mainland-CN
North America-NA
Europe-EU
Asia Pacific 1-AP1
Asia Pacific 2-AP2
Asia Pacific 3-AP3
Middle East & Africa-MEAA
South America-SA
0-500Mbps (inclusive)
0.6
1.64
1.64
2.86
3.81
3.94
5.91
5.32
500Mbps-5Gbps (inclusive)
0.58
1.51
1.51
2.52
3.43
3.76
5.77
5.18
5Gbps-20Gbps (inclusive)
0.56
1.38
1.38
2.21
3.05
3.47
5.64
5.05
Greater than 20Gbps
0.54
1.31
1.31
1.91
2.67
3.17
5.58
4.99
Sample scenario and billing calculation (using peak bandwidth fees in the Chinese mainland as an example):
On March 9, 2020, User A's peak bandwidth in the Chinese mainland is 400 Mbps. The bandwidth fee = 400 Mbps × CNY 0.6/Mbps/day = CNY 240.
On March 10, 2020, User A's peak bandwidth in the Chinese mainland is 1 Gbps. The bandwidth fee = 1,000 Mbps × CNY 0.58/Mbps/day = CNY 580.
Monthly 95th percentile bandwidth
To use the monthly 95th percentile bandwidth metering method, contact your account manager or contact us by other means.
Scenario | Billing rule |
Websites that have high traffic volumes and unpredictable traffic peaks, or websites whose monthly service fee exceeds CNY 100,000. |
|
Billing example
Sample scenario:
Assume that a month has 30 days, the number of valid days in the current month is 26, the monthly 95th percentile bandwidth value in the Chinese mainland is 900 Mbps, the unit price is CNY 15/Mbps/month (this is not the actual price, please refer to the price provided by Alibaba Cloud Business), and the peak bandwidth in other countries and regions is 0 Mbps.
NoteFor the specific unit price of the monthly 95th percentile bandwidth, contact your account manager or contact us by other means.
Billing:
Monthly 95th percentile bandwidth fee for the Chinese mainland: Monthly 95th percentile bandwidth value of the region (900 Mbps) × Unit price of the monthly 95th percentile bandwidth for the region (CNY 15/Mbps/month) × Validity factor (26 ÷ 30) = CNY 11,700.
Monthly 95th percentile bandwidth fee for other countries and regions: CNY 0.
Total monthly 95th percentile bandwidth fee: CNY 11,700 (monthly 95th percentile bandwidth fee for the Chinese mainland) + CNY 0 (monthly 95th percentile bandwidth fee for other countries and regions) = CNY 11,700.
Burst bandwidth
Burst bandwidth is a sudden, large increase in bandwidth beyond normal usage patterns. The criteria differ by metering method.
Pay-by-peak-bandwidth — any of the following qualifies as burst bandwidth for a single account:
Current month bandwidth exceeds the previous month by more than 500 Gbit/s
The previous month's peak bandwidth was 0, and the current month's total increase exceeds 200 Gbit/s
The current month's total peak bandwidth is 1.3 times the billable bandwidth of the previous month
Pay-by-data-transfer — a single domain's peak bandwidth exceeds 100 Gbit/s within a calendar month.10
Apply for burst bandwidth
If you anticipate a traffic spike, apply for burst bandwidth before the event:
Standard events: Apply at least 3 business days in advance.
Major events (such as the Spring Festival Gala or Double 11 Global Shopping Festival): Apply at least 1 month in advance.
To apply, contact your account manager or contact Alibaba Cloud.
If your application is approved, service availability is guaranteed up to the agreed burst level, and you are billed at the newly agreed price. If you do not apply or the application is rejected, you are billed at the current rate. Alibaba Cloud reserves the right to take measures such as bandwidth throttling to ensure service-level stability for other Alibaba Cloud customers and is not liable for availability reductions caused by such measures. Final fees are determined by Alibaba Cloud CDN bills.
Any specific agreements with Alibaba Cloud take precedence over the general burst bandwidth rules described above.