After you configure a static public IP address for an ECS instance, Alibaba Cloud charges you only for outbound traffic. Inbound traffic is free of charge. Outbound traffic is data that flows out of an ECS instance, such as when it provides external access or responds to user file download requests.
This topic describes only the two billing methods for static public IPv4 addresses. If your instance accesses the internet through other methods, such as IPv6, an EIP, or a NAT Gateway, refer to the billing documentation for those products.
Billing methods
When you purchase an ECS instance and select Assign public IPv4 address, the system automatically assigns a static public IP address for the instance to access the internet. A static public IP address supports the pay-by-bandwidth and pay-by-traffic billing methods.
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Billing method |
Description |
Recommended use cases |
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pay-by-bandwidth |
Fees are based on your selected bandwidth and the billing duration. |
Your business requires stable traffic and high bandwidth reliability. |
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pay-by-traffic |
Fees are calculated based on the actual outbound traffic generated by the ECS instance and the unit price for the outbound traffic. |
Your business has unpredictable traffic with frequent or sudden peaks and troughs. |
Billing rules
Pay-by-bandwidth
Billing formula
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Parameter |
Description |
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Bandwidth unit price |
The configured bandwidth value is the upper limit for outbound traffic and will not be exceeded. The price for a static public IP address is tiered, and the unit price of bandwidth varies by region. For more information, see Bandwidth price on the ECS Pricing page. |
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Usage duration |
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Billing example
Assume that you need to build an official website for a large-scale promotional event and the website must run for 30 days. You want to create an ECS instance in the China (Hangzhou) region and use the pay-by-bandwidth billing method. Based on your business evaluation, you set the bandwidth value to 10 Mbps. The public bandwidth fees for subscription, pay-as-you-go, and spot instances are calculated as follows:
The prices in this example are for reference only. For actual pricing, see the ECS Pricing page.
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Billing method |
Parameters and unit price |
Fee calculation |
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subscription |
Bandwidth value: 10 Mbps Usage duration: 1 month Bandwidth unit price: 525 CNY/month For more information, see How is the unit price for different bandwidth values calculated? |
Public bandwidth fee: 525 * 1 = 525 CNY |
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pay-as-you-go and spot instances |
Bandwidth value: 10 Mbps Usage duration: 1 month (720 hours) Bandwidth unit price: 1.5625 CNY/hour For more information, see How is the unit price for different bandwidth values calculated? |
Public bandwidth fee: 1.5625 * 720 = 1,125 CNY |
Pay-by-traffic
For subscription, pay-as-you-go, and spot instances, the pay-by-traffic method bills you based on the actual outbound traffic used. You can set a peak bandwidth to limit the maximum outbound traffic rate.
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The peak bandwidth for the pay-by-traffic billing method is an upper limit, not a guaranteed rate. When network resources are busy and contention occurs, the actual bandwidth may be limited. For high bandwidth stability, select the pay-by-bandwidth billing method.
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BGP (Multi-ISP) Pro in the China (Hong Kong) region does not support the pay-by-traffic billing method.
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If you select this billing method for a subscription instance, pay-as-you-go fees are generated in each billing cycle. You must monitor your account balance to prevent service disruptions due to overdue payments.
Billing formula
|
Parameter |
Description |
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Outbound traffic |
This is the actual outbound traffic from an ECS instance. You can view the public network traffic of an ECS instance by billing cycle. The usage is measured in bytes and then converted to gigabytes for billing. The value is rounded, so the final amount is based on your bill. |
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Unit price per GB |
The unit price per GB of traffic varies by region. For more information, see the Bandwidth price tab on the ECS Pricing page. |
Billing example
Assume that your company creates an ECS instance for a short-term promotional event and the instance is released or not renewed after the event ends. The ECS instance for the website is created in the China (Hangzhou) region. A query shows that the instance used 15.5 GB of outbound traffic during its lifecycle. By using the billing formula, the public bandwidth fee for the instance is calculated as follows:
The prices in this example are for reference only. For actual pricing, see the ECS Pricing page.
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Parameters and unit price |
Fee calculation |
|
Outbound traffic: 15.5 GB Unit price per GB: 0.8 CNY/GB |
Public bandwidth fee: 15.5 * 0.8 = 12.4 CNY |
Cost optimization
For the pay-by-traffic method, you can purchase or enable other products to reduce your traffic costs.
For the pay-by-bandwidth method, you can save costs by periodically monitoring your network bandwidth and flexibly adjusting the bandwidth based on your business needs.
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Billing method |
Cost optimization plan |
Benefits and use cases |
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pay-by-traffic |
Enable CDT After you upgrade to CDT, filter your bills by the product name Cloud Data Transfer. |
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You can settle traffic fees for multiple instances, regions, and products at a lower unit price per GB. |
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pay-by-bandwidth |
If you have a large amount of idle bandwidth, downgrade the public bandwidth |
If the actual peak bandwidth of your services is consistently lower than the purchased bandwidth value, you can downgrade the bandwidth to reduce costs and avoid paying for idle resources. |
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Use temporary upgrades instead of long-term upgrades to meet bandwidth upgrade requirements This plan is applicable only to subscription instances. |
For predictable, short-term increases in bandwidth demand, you can temporarily upgrade the fixed public bandwidth. After the upgrade period, the bandwidth automatically reverts to the original value. This helps you avoid paying for idle resources. To perform temporary upgrades on a regular basis, you can use OOS. |
Switching billing methods
Periodically monitor your network bandwidth as your business needs change. You can evaluate whether the current billing method is still suitable for your business based on the recommended use cases. If you determine that you need to switch the billing method, see Change the bandwidth billing method of a static public IP address.
Bills and usage
Detailed bills
You can view the bills and consumption details of your public bandwidth in the User Center to understand your spending.
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Log on to the expenses and costs console.
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In the left-side navigation pane, choose .
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Select the appropriate tab, and filter by product name ECS to view your public traffic bills.
If you have upgraded to CDT, filter by the product name Cloud Data Transfer.
Outbound traffic
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Log on to the expenses and costs console.
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In the left-side navigation pane, choose , and then click View Usage Details.
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Select a time range. You can query and export data only for a single calendar month at a time. Set Product Name to Pay-as-you-go ECS Instance or Subscription ECS Instance, and set Billing Item to Outbound Traffic.
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Click Export CSV. On the Export Record page that appears, wait until the status of the exported file changes to Export Successful, and then click Download in the Actions column. After the download is complete, you can view the public network traffic usage of your ECS instance in the CSV file.
You can query the outbound traffic only for ECS instances that have a static public IP address and use the pay-by-traffic billing method. You cannot use this method to query outbound traffic for instances that use the pay-by-bandwidth method.
Stopping billing
If you no longer need public bandwidth, you can set the bandwidth value to 0 Mbit/s. This releases the static public IP address and stops billing for public bandwidth. For more information, see Modify the public bandwidth.
When you unsubscribe from the pay-by-bandwidth public bandwidth of a subscription instance, you may be eligible for a refund. The refund amount includes only the cash portion of your payment and excludes deductions from coupons or vouchers. For more information about how refunds are calculated, see Refund rules.
Overdue payments
If the available credit of your Alibaba Cloud account (including the account balance, vouchers, and credit limit) is less than the amount of an outstanding bill, your account has an overdue payment.
After your account has an overdue payment:
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Subscription instances: You can continue to use your existing subscription ECS resources but cannot perform operations that incur fees, such as purchasing, upgrading, or renewing instances.
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Pay-as-you-go instances: The static public IP address is retained for 15 days after a payment becomes overdue, after which it is released. If economical mode is enabled for the instance before it is stopped, the public IP address may be reclaimed after the instance is stopped due to the overdue payment. After you restart the instance, the public IP address may change.
An overdue payment causes your pay-as-you-go ECS instances to be stopped. To avoid service disruptions, pay your overdue bills promptly. For more information, see Top up your account.
FAQ
Billing for IPv6, EIP, and NAT Gateway
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Using an IPv6 address: See IPv6 billing.
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Bound with an EIP: See EIP billing overview.
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Using a NAT Gateway: See NAT Gateway billing.
Non-billable traffic scenarios
Examples include accessing RDS, SLB, or OSS products within the same VPC by using a private IP address, transferring data over the intranet, and uploading files to an ECS instance over the internet.
If you download files from other Alibaba Cloud products to an ECS instance over a public IP address, you may be charged for outbound traffic by those products. Read the billing rules of the related products carefully.
Extra fees for subscription instances
When you assign a static public IP address that uses the pay-by-traffic billing method to a subscription instance, you are charged for the actual outbound traffic generated by the instance. The following list describes how you are billed:
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Subscription instances: You do not need to pay upfront fees for the static public IP address when you purchase the instance. However, fees are incurred in each billing cycle in which outbound traffic is generated.
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Pay-as-you-go and spot instances: Bills are generated in each billing cycle along with the fees for other instance configurations. Fees are incurred in each billing cycle in which outbound traffic is generated.