ACK managed clusters and ACK dedicated clusters incur fees in three categories: cluster management fees, cloud resource fees, and Lingjun node management fees. For details, see Cluster management fees, Cloud resource fees, and Lingjun node management. The following table shows which categories apply to each cluster type.
| Cluster type | Cluster management fees | Cloud resource fees | Lingjun node management fees |
|---|---|---|---|
| ACK managed Pro cluster | Applies | Applies | Applies only when a Lingjun node pool is configured |
| ACK managed Basic cluster | Not applicable | Applies | Not applicable |
| ACK dedicated cluster | Not applicable | Applies | Not applicable |
Cluster management fees
Only ACK managed Pro clusters incur cluster management fees. Fees are calculated per cluster per hour of usage.
Billing method
Pay-as-you-go: USD 0.09 per cluster per hour. Prices may vary by region. Your actual bill reflects the final charge.
Billing cycle
Billing is hourly, aligned to the top of each hour (for example, 10:00–11:00). The first billing cycle after cluster creation and the last cycle before cluster release are not charged. Bills appear 10–30 minutes after the end of each cycle.
For a billing example, see Billing cycle for cluster management fees.
Cluster management fees apply when the cluster is in the Running, Upgrading, Draining, Removing, or Configuring state.
Cloud resource fees
ACK clusters use other Alibaba Cloud services, each billed under its own pricing rules. For details, see Cloud resource fees. The following table lists the common services involved.
| Resource | Purpose | Billing details |
|---|---|---|
| Elastic Compute Service (ECS) | Cluster nodes. Managed clusters charge for worker nodes only; dedicated clusters charge for both master and worker nodes. | ECS billing overview |
| Server Load Balancer (SLB) | A Classic Load Balancer (CLB) instance is required for the API server — deleting it makes the cluster unavailable. CLB or Network Load Balancer (NLB) is used for LoadBalancer-type Services. An Application Load Balancer (ALB) instance is used for ALB Ingress. | CLB billing, NLB billing, ALB billing |
| NAT Gateway | Internet access for the cluster, such as pulling public container images | NAT Gateway billing |
| Elastic IP Address (EIP) | Public network access for the API server or NAT gateway | EIP billing overview |
| Storage | Cloud disks, File Storage NAS, and Object Storage Service (OSS) for persistent storage | Cloud disk billing, NAS billing, OSS billing |
| Observability | Simple Log Service (SLS) for log collection; Managed Service for Prometheus for cluster monitoring | SLS billing, Container monitoring billing |
| Container Registry | Container image management and distribution | ACR billing |
The table above covers common services. Actual charges depend on the services you enable and use. Use the pricing calculator to estimate costs.
View billing details
Use the Cost Insights feature in the cost management suite to view cluster-associated costs and identify optimization opportunities. For a detailed bill breakdown, go to Expenses and CostsExpenses and Costs. For steps, see Query bills.
Overdue payments
Impact of overdue payments
An account is considered overdue when the available balance — including the Alibaba Cloud account balance and vouchers — falls below the amount due.
The following table describes the impact for each cluster type.
| Time since overdue | ACK managed Pro cluster | ACK managed Basic cluster and ACK dedicated cluster |
|---|---|---|
| Day 0–15 | Cluster enters the Inactive state. The API server is inaccessible. Pay-as-you-go cloud resources may be stopped or released. | Cluster status is unchanged. Pay-as-you-go cloud resources may be stopped or released. |
| After 15 days | Cluster is deleted. | Cluster is deleted. |
To recharge your account and settle overdue bills, go to Expenses and CostsExpenses and Costs. For more information, see Overdue payments.
Unsubscribing and refunds
To stop billing, delete the cluster and its associated cloud resources.
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Cluster management fees: Not refunded (charged based on actual usage).
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Cloud resource fees: Refund policies vary by service. See the billing documentation for each service.
For more information, see Unsubscription and refund policies.