If the billing method for network usage of an Elastic Compute Service (ECS) instance that uses an auto-assigned public IP address does not meet your business requirements, you can change the billing method.

Prerequisites

Before you change the billing method for network usage of a subscription instance from pay-by-bandwidth to pay-by-traffic, make sure that your account has the permission to perform the configuration downgrades.
Note You can click Privileges & Quotas on the Overview page in the ECS console to go to the Privileges & Quota Management page, and then check whether your account has the permission to perform configuration downgrades.

Background information

The billing methods available for network usage are pay-by-bandwidth and pay-by-traffic. You can change the billing method based on your needs.
  • Pay-by-bandwidth: You are charged based on the bandwidth that you specify. The actual outbound bandwidth will not exceed the specified bandwidth.
  • Pay-by-traffic: a pay-as-you-go billing method. You are charged based on the actual traffic volume. You must configure a maximum bandwidth for outbound traffic to prevent unexpected fees caused by bursts in traffic.
    Important When the pay-by-traffic billing method is used for network usage, the maximum inbound and outbound bandwidths are used as the upper limits of bandwidths instead of guaranteed performance specifications. In scenarios where demand outstrips resource supplies, these maximum bandwidths may be limited. If you want guaranteed bandwidths for your instance, use the pay-by-bandwidth billing method for network usage.
This topic describes how to change the billing method for network usage of an instance that uses an auto-assigned public IP address.

Change from pay-by-bandwidth to pay-by-traffic

Important After you change the billing method for network usage of an instance that uses an auto-assigned public IP address from pay-by-bandwidth to pay-by-traffic, you are charged for the network usage of the instance based on the amount of traffic. If you convert the auto-assigned public IP address to an EIP by performing the operations described in Convert the public IP address of an instance in a VPC to an EIP and then change the billing method of the EIP from pay-as-you-go to subscription by performing the operations described in Switch from pay-as-you-go to subscription, a price difference may be present. Proceed with caution. For information about the price difference, see the "Why does a price difference occur after I change the billing method for network usage from pay-by-bandwidth to pay-by-traffic for an auto-assigned public IP address, convert the auto-assigned public IP address to an EIP, and then change the billing method of the EIP from pay-as-you-go to Subscription?" question in Billing FAQ .
The following section describes how to change the billing method for network usage of an instance from pay-by-bandwidth to pay-by-traffic.
  1. Log on to the ECS console.
  2. In the left-side navigation pane, choose Instances & Images > Instances.
  3. In the top navigation bar, select a region.
  4. Find the instances for which you want to change the billing method for network usage. Then, perform a suitable operation to go to the configuration page based on the billing method of the instance.
    • Subscription instances

      Find the subscription instances for which you want to change the billing method for network usage. Click Upgrade/Downgrade in the Actions column. In the Upgrade/Downgrade Wizard dialog box, choose Downgrade > Bandwidth Configuration and then click Continue.

      Important If you have performed a temporary bandwidth upgrade on the instance, the change of the billing method from pay-by-bandwidth to pay-by-traffic will cancel all temporary bandwidth upgrade orders for the instance, including the orders that took effect and pending orders. You are refunded for the canceled temporary bandwidth upgrade orders.
    • Pay-as-you-go instances
      • To change the billing method for network usage of a single pay-as-you-go instance, find the instance and choose More > Configuration Change > Change Pay-as-you-go Instance Bandwidth in the Actions column.
      • To change the billing method for network usage of multiple pay-as-you-go instances at a time, select the instances. In the lower part of the page, choose More > Configuration Change > Change Pay-as-you-go Instance Bandwidth.
  5. Find the Bandwidth section, select Pay-By-Traffic, and then set a peak bandwidth value.
  6. Read the notes and terms of service. Select ECS Service Terms.
  7. Confirm the configuration costs, click Confirm in the lower part of the page, and then follow the on-screen instructions to perform the subsequent operations.
    The new configurations immediately take effect after you change the billing method for network usage.

Change from pay-by-traffic to pay-by-bandwidth

The following section describes how to change the billing method for network usage of an instance from pay-by-traffic to pay-by-bandwidth.
  1. Log on to the ECS console.
  2. In the left-side navigation pane, choose Instances & Images > Instances.
  3. In the top navigation bar, select a region.
  4. Find the instances for which you want to change the billing method for network usage. Then, perform a suitable operation to go to the configuration page based on the billing method of the instance.
    • Subscription instances
      • To change the billing method for network usage of a single subscription instance, find the instance and click Upgrade/Downgrade in the Actions column. In the Upgrade/Downgrade Wizard dialog box, select Upgrade and click Continue.
      • To change the billing method for network usage of multiple subscription instances at a time, select the instances. In the lower part of the page, choose More > Configuration Change > Change Subscription Instance Bandwidth. In the dialog box that appears, select Modify Peak Bandwidth Value and click Continue.
    • Pay-as-you-go instances
      • To change the billing method for network usage of a single pay-as-you-go instance, find the instance and choose More > Configuration Change > Change Pay-as-you-go Instance Bandwidth in the Actions column.
      • To change the billing method for network usage of multiple pay-as-you-go instances at a time, select the instances. In the lower part of the page, choose More > Configuration Change > Change Pay-as-you-go Instance Bandwidth.
  5. Find the Bandwidth section, select Pay-By-Bandwidth, and then set a bandwidth value.
  6. Read the notes and terms of service. Select ECS Service Terms.
  7. Confirm the configuration costs, click Confirm in the lower part of the page, and then follow the on-screen instructions to perform the subsequent operations.
    The new configurations immediately take effect after you change the billing method for network usage.