Pay-as-you-go billing charges you based on actual resource usage, settled hourly. This billing method suits testing, short-term workloads, and scenarios with unpredictable traffic peaks. Resources are allocated immediately and billed even when idle.
What you pay for
| Billable item | Required | Description |
|---|---|---|
| Traffic specification | No | The compute and processing capacity of your cluster, measured by elastic network interface (ENI) throughput. |
| Disk capacity | Yes | Storage for messages and replicas. Supports ultra disks and SSDs. |
| Partitions | Yes | The basic storage unit within a topic. Each traffic specification includes free partitions. |
| Internet traffic | No | Bandwidth for Internet access. Applies only to Internet- and VPC-connected instances. |
Not charged: API calls are free regardless of volume.
After purchase, you are billed for allocated resources whether or not the instance processes messages. To stop charges, release the instance.
How costs are calculated
Total cost depends on your instance type.
Internet- and VPC-connected instances:
Total fees = (Internet traffic price + Traffic specification price + Disk unit price x Disk capacity / 100 + Partition price x Purchased partitions) x HoursVPC-connected instances:
Total fees = (Traffic specification price + Disk unit price x Disk capacity / 100 + Partition price x Purchased partitions) x HoursIf you purchased an instance based on the legacy topic specification, replace the partition component with Topic price x Number of additional topics.Pricing example
A VPC-connected Professional Edition (High Write) instance in Region group 1 with the following configuration:
| Component | Configuration | Hourly unit price |
|---|---|---|
| Traffic specification | alikafka.hw.6xlarge | $1.34 |
| Disk capacity | 600 GB SSD | $0.03 per 100 GB |
| Additional partitions | 200 | $0.000444 per partition |
Hourly cost:
| Item | Calculation | Cost |
|---|---|---|
| Traffic specification | -- | $1.34 |
| Disk capacity | $0.03 x 600 / 100 | $0.18 |
| Partitions | $0.000444 x 200 | $0.09 |
| Total per hour | $1.61 | |
| Estimated monthly cost | $1.61 x 24 x 30 | $1,159.20 |
Settlement rules
Billing cycle: Hourly. Any partial hour is rounded up to a full hour.
Bill generation: Every 24 hours. The previous day's fees are deducted from your Alibaba Cloud account balance.
Idle instances: Charged at the same rate as active instances. Release unused instances to stop charges.
To view billing details, see View billing details.
Billable item details
Traffic specification
The traffic specification determines your cluster's compute and processing capacity, measured by ENI throughput:
ENI traffic = Business traffic + Replication trafficBusiness traffic: The actual messaging throughput generated by producers and consumers.
Replication traffic: The throughput consumed by data replication across the default 3 replicas.
Read/write ratios by edition:
| Edition | Read : Write ratio |
|---|---|
| Standard Edition (High Write) | 1:1 |
| Professional Edition (High Write) | 1:1 |
| Professional Edition (High Read) | 5:1 |
To choose the right traffic specification, compare the peak values of read and write traffic, then select a specification based on the higher value. Purchase approximately 130% of the peak value to create a buffer for traffic spikes.
For supported traffic specifications per edition, see Instance editions.
Disk capacity
Disk capacity stores your messages and their replicas.
Minimum capacity: Varies by traffic specification to balance performance and cost.
Disk types: Ultra disks and SSDs. SSDs deliver better performance.
Irreversible choice: The disk type cannot be changed after purchase.
3 replicas by default: All data is stored in 3 replicas.
Usable storage by edition:
| Edition | Purchased capacity | Usable capacity | Backup storage |
|---|---|---|---|
| Standard Edition | 300 GB | 100 GB | 200 GB (included in purchased capacity) |
| Professional Edition | 300 GB | 300 GB | 600 GB (provided free of charge) |
Free backup storage for Professional Edition is only available for topics that use cloud storage as the storage engine. For details, see Comparison between storage engines.
The disk cost of a Professional Edition instance with 3 replicas is approximately 60% lower than a self-managed Apache Kafka cluster.
Manage disk usage: Adjust the Message Retention Period parameter to control how long messages are kept. The default retention is 72 hours, configurable from 24 to 480 hours. When disk usage reaches 85%, the system automatically deletes the oldest messages to maintain availability. For details, see Modify message configurations. For more information about message deletion, see When are historical messages deleted from ApsaraMQ for Kafka?
Partitions
Partitions are the basic storage unit within a topic. Each traffic specification includes a set of free partitions.
How partition counts work:
Total partitions = Free partitions (from traffic specification) + Purchased partitions
Available topics = Total partitions
Available groups = Total partitions x 2Example: With the alikafka.hw.2xlarge traffic specification (1,000 free partitions) and 50 purchased partitions:
Total partitions: 1,050
Available topics: 1,050
Available groups: 2,100
For the number of partitions by instance type, see Instance editions.
Topic-based purchasing is no longer available. Existing instances purchased by topic specification have been automatically converted to partition-based specifications. The number of partitions after conversion is based on the number of topics that you purchased.
Internet traffic
Internet traffic is billed only for Internet- and VPC-connected instances. Pricing is based on elastic IP address (EIP) bandwidth using BGP (Multi-ISP) lines. Calculation results are rounded to three decimal places.
Pricing reference
The prices listed below are for reference only. Actual prices on the buy page prevail.
Internet traffic pricing
| Region | 1 Mbit/s | 2 Mbit/s | 3 Mbit/s | 4 Mbit/s | 5 Mbit/s | 6 Mbit/s and higher (n = bandwidth) |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| All regions except SAU (Riyadh - Partner Region) | 0.01 | 0.02 | 0.03 | 0.04 | 0.05 | 0.05 + (n - 5) x 0.03 |
| SAU (Riyadh - Partner Region) | 0.012 | 0.024 | 0.036 | 0.048 | 0.06 | 0.06 + (n - 5) x 0.036 |
Unit: USD per hour.
Traffic specification pricing
Prices vary by instance edition and region group. For region group definitions, see Region groups.
For traffic specifications supported by instances purchased based on the topic specification, see Free topics and partitions for topic-based instances.
Standard Edition (High Write)
| Traffic specification | Max read ENI (MB/s) | Max write ENI (MB/s) | Free partitions | Region group 1 | Region group 2 | Region group 3 | SAU (Riyadh - Partner Region) |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| alikafka.hw.2xlarge | 3 x 20 | 3 x 20 | 1,000 | 0.335 | 0.470 | 0.420 | 0.564 |
| alikafka.hw.3xlarge | 3 x 30 | 3 x 30 | 1,000 | 0.475 | 0.650 | 0.590 | 0.780 |
| alikafka.hw.6xlarge | 3 x 60 | 3 x 60 | 1,000 | 0.655 | 0.880 | 0.790 | 1.056 |
| alikafka.hw.9xlarge | 3 x 90 | 3 x 90 | 1,000 | 0.800 | 1.050 | 0.930 | 1.260 |
| alikafka.hw.12xlarge | 3 x 120 | 3 x 120 | 1,000 | 0.960 | 1.250 | 1.100 | 1.500 |
Unit: USD per hour.
Professional Edition (High Write)
| Traffic specification | Max read ENI (MB/s) | Max write ENI (MB/s) | Free partitions | Region group 1 | Region group 2 | Region group 3 | SAU (Riyadh - Partner Region) |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| alikafka.hw.2xlarge | 3 x 20 | 3 x 20 | 1,000 | 0.80 | 1.17 | 1.06 | 1.404 |
| alikafka.hw.3xlarge | 3 x 30 | 3 x 30 | 1,000 | 0.99 | 1.45 | 1.31 | 1.740 |
| alikafka.hw.6xlarge | 3 x 60 | 3 x 60 | 1,000 | 1.34 | 1.980 | 1.77 | 2.376 |
| alikafka.hw.9xlarge | 3 x 90 | 3 x 90 | 1,000 | 1.59 | 2.37 | 2.11 | 2.844 |
| alikafka.hw.12xlarge | 3 x 120 | 3 x 120 | 1,000 | 1.88 | 2.82 | 2.50 | 3.384 |
| alikafka.hw.16xlarge | 3 x 160 | 3 x 160 | 2,000 | 2.09 | 3.16 | 2.78 | 3.792 |
| alikafka.hw.20xlarge | 3 x 200 | 3 x 200 | 2,000 | 3.25 | 4.87 | 4.32 | 5.844 |
| alikafka.hw.25xlarge | 3 x 250 | 3 x 250 | 2,000 | 3.67 | 5.51 | 4.88 | 6.612 |
| alikafka.hw.30xlarge | 3 x 300 | 3 x 300 | 2,000 | 4.00 | 6.03 | 5.31 | 7.236 |
| alikafka.hw.60xlarge | 3 x 600 | 3 x 600 | 2,000 | 4.25 | 6.62 | 5.64 | 7.944 |
| alikafka.hw.80xlarge | 3 x 800 | 3 x 800 | 2,000 | 4.41 | 7.00 | 5.85 | 8.400 |
| alikafka.hw.100xlarge | 3 x 1,000 | 3 x 1,000 | 3,000 | 4.56 | 7.39 | 6.04 | 8.868 |
| alikafka.hw.120xlarge | 3 x 1,200 | 3 x 1,200 | 3,000 | 4.69 | 7.71 | 6.21 | 9.252 |
| alikafka.hw.150xlarge | 3 x 1,500 | 3 x 1,500 | 3,000 | 4.94 | 8.30 | 6.54 | 9.960 |
| alikafka.hw.180xlarge | 3 x 1,800 | 3 x 1,800 | 3,000 | 5.16 | 8.84 | 6.83 | 10.608 |
| alikafka.hw.200xlarge | 3 x 2,000 | 3 x 2,000 | 3,000 | 5.34 | 9.29 | 7.05 | 11.148 |
Unit: USD per hour.
Professional Edition (High Read)
| Traffic specification | Max read ENI (MB/s) | Max write ENI (MB/s) | Free partitions | Region group 1 | Region group 2 | Region group 3 | SAU (Riyadh - Partner Region) |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| alikafka.hr.2xlarge | 50 + 2 x 10 | 10 + 2 x 10 | 1,000 | 0.80 | 1.17 | 1.06 | 1.404 |
| alikafka.hr.3xlarge | 75 + 2 x 15 | 15 + 2 x 15 | 1,000 | 0.99 | 1.45 | 1.31 | 1.740 |
| alikafka.hr.6xlarge | 150 + 2 x 30 | 30 + 2 x 30 | 1,000 | 1.34 | 1.98 | 1.77 | 2.376 |
| alikafka.hr.9xlarge | 180 + 2 x 45 | 45 + 2 x 45 | 1,000 | 1.59 | 2.37 | 2.11 | 2.844 |
| alikafka.hr.12xlarge | 240 + 2 x 60 | 60 + 2 x 60 | 1,000 | 1.88 | 2.82 | 2.50 | 3.384 |
| alikafka.hr.16xlarge | 240 + 2 x 80 | 80 + 2 x 80 | 2,000 | 2.09 | 3.160 | 2.780 | 3.792 |
| alikafka.hr.20xlarge | 300 + 2 x 100 | 100 + 2 x 100 | 2,000 | 3.25 | 4.87 | 4.32 | 5.844 |
| alikafka.hr.25xlarge | 375 + 2 x 125 | 125 + 2 x 125 | 2,000 | 3.67 | 5.51 | 4.88 | 6.612 |
| alikafka.hr.30xlarge | 450 + 2 x 150 | 150 + 2 x 150 | 2,000 | 4.00 | 6.03 | 5.31 | 7.236 |
| alikafka.hr.60xlarge | 900 + 2 x 300 | 300 + 2 x 300 | 2,000 | 4.25 | 6.62 | 5.64 | 7.944 |
| alikafka.hr.80xlarge | 1,200 + 2 x 400 | 400 + 2 x 400 | 2,000 | 4.41 | 7.00 | 5.85 | 8.400 |
| alikafka.hr.100xlarge | 1,500 + 2 x 500 | 500 + 2 x 500 | 3,000 | 4.56 | 7.39 | 6.04 | 8.868 |
| alikafka.hr.120xlarge | 1,800 + 2 x 600 | 600 + 2 x 600 | 3,000 | 4.69 | 7.71 | 6.21 | 9.252 |
| alikafka.hr.150xlarge | 2,250 + 2 x 750 | 750 + 2 x 750 | 3,000 | 4.94 | 8.30 | 6.54 | 9.960 |
| alikafka.hr.180xlarge | 2,700 + 2 x 900 | 900 + 2 x 900 | 3,000 | 5.16 | 8.84 | 6.83 | 10.608 |
| alikafka.hr.200xlarge | 3,000 + 2 x 1,000 | 1,000 + 2 x 1,000 | 3,000 | 5.34 | 9.29 | 7.05 | 11.148 |
Unit: USD per hour.
Disk capacity pricing
Prices vary by disk type and region group. For region group definitions, see Region groups.
| Disk type | Disk size (GB) | Region group 1 | Region group 2 | Region group 3 | SAU (Riyadh - Partner Region) |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Ultra disk | 100 | 0.01 | 0.02 | 0.02 | 0.024 |
| SSD | 100 | 0.03 | 0.04 | 0.04 | 0.048 |
Unit: USD per hour.
The disk cost of a Professional Edition instance with 3 replicas is approximately 60% lower than a self-managed open source Apache Kafka cluster.
Partition pricing
If the free partitions included in your traffic specification are not enough, purchase additional partitions. Prices vary by region group.
| Billable item | Region group 1 | Region group 2 | Region group 3 | SAU (Riyadh - Partner Region) |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Partitions | 0.000444 | 0.000639 | 0.000583 | 0.000767 |
Unit: USD per partition-hour.
For partition limits by instance type, see Instance editions.
Region groups
| Region group | Regions |
|---|---|
| Region group 1 | China (Hangzhou), China (Shanghai), China (Qingdao), China (Beijing), China (Zhangjiakou), China (Hohhot), China (Ulanqab), China (Shenzhen), China (Heyuan), China (Guangzhou), China (Chengdu), China (Fuzhou - Local Region) (Closing Down) |
| Region group 2 | China (Hong Kong), Singapore, Japan (Tokyo), South Korea (Seoul), US (Virginia), US (Silicon Valley), Germany (Frankfurt), UK (London) |
| Region group 3 | Malaysia (Kuala Lumpur), Indonesia (Jakarta), Philippines (Manila), Thailand (Bangkok) |