How to Avoid 8 Hidden Cloud Fees

Many companies are gravitating toward cloud computing since it simplifies IT management without requiring large upfront investments. However, as the field grew more advanced with different technologies, organizations started inflating their bills without notice.

It’s paramount for businesses, especially startups with lower capital, to be vigilant about these hidden costs to avoid a negative financial position. At the same time, different figures need to be mixed and matched to configure the ideal cloud system.

1. Uncover the Unit Costs

Many IT companies struggle with the lack of visibility on what comes out of their cloud bill. This has reached the point where more than 20% have little to no idea how much different aspects of their business cost, whether it’s the development teams, product features or something else.

Getting a breakdown of these bills through a report chart can offer clarity on which aspects are causing the most expenses. It would kick-start an analysis of why it’s necessary and other potential business decisions related to it.

2. Understand Data Egress Charges

Data egress fees are another prominent expense that many professionals are starting to get wary about. These will typically occur when information is transferred out of the cloud when running different applications and more.

To avoid these fees, it’s paramount to check and manage data usage. Downloading and uploading information needs more intent and thought, like compressing it to avoid unnecessary transfers and charges.

3. Monitor Idle and Underutilized Resources

Some IT companies may have parts of cloud services, like virtual machine space, that remain unused or underutilized. It can help to backtrack on the plan and set alerts for future evaluation instead. Autoscaling is also viable for increasing and decreasing resources as needed.

Companies may also not maximize cloud storage, which means paying for more than they really need. A downgrade in the cloud plan can be more financially viable, or they could diversify with on-premise storage instead. While the hardware has upfront costs, the firm would see lower monthly expenses compared to cloud solutions in the long run.

4. Check Transaction-Based Additions

Transaction-based additions like APIs can raise the overall price. However, they may be necessary to enable cross-communication and create a smooth data exchange. Most of the time, providers charge an additional fee to boost the bottom line.

Monitoring the API is one way to minimize transfers. Another compromise is to set up usage thresholds and encourage professionals to practice more discipline. Review and optimize the code for inefficiencies.

5. Beware of Premium Support

The most premium plans can have support tiers and extra features that can seem attractive at first. However, it’s critical to review these contracts and deduce what add-on services are truly necessary.

For example, some people may offer support in the form of flexible financing and packages. That’s because paying for cloud usage per amount of data or hours can be costly for IT professionals, especially for large-scale users. As a result, they may offer pay-later schemes and installment plans. Unfortunately, these may have invisible interest when falling behind on payments. 

6. Factor in Multiregional and Cross-Zone Traffic

Multiregional deployments might be necessary, especially for bigger establishments with large amounts of data. However, these can get pricey, especially when cross-zone traffic costs increase due to large amounts of data.

Tracking the network traffic can identify the most costly data transfers between regions and allow for more targeted optimization efforts. IT professionals should also take advantage of intra-zone traffic instead, since it’s generally free or heavily discounted.

7. Weigh Marketplace and Third-Party Integrations

Another integration that could affect the overall cloud bill is the addition of third-party tools and marketplace solutions to operations. If they’ve already been deployed, review their impact and see whether they are worth keeping on the roster.

If it’s still in the early stages, audit these extra marketplace solutions and compare costs. Perhaps there are native services from an existing provider that could fulfill the same duties and generate cost savings.

8. Leverage Cost Management and Visibility Tools

Avoiding hidden cloud fees can be challenging, considering how often the calculations change. IT teams need to collaborate to conduct cost reviews regularly. Efficient money management affects how strategic business choices are made and applied in the long run.

Work with a reputable service provider that offers visibility tools and dashboards for easy analysis and cloud spending. Third-party and financial operations platforms may also have these kinds of comprehensive tools, and they may very well be worth the investment for a better understanding of the company’s cloud bill.

Be Proactive on Cloud Costs

Vigilance over cloud fees is a must, considering how much they’ve inflated over the past years, especially for smaller companies. Analyze where the money is going and its impact to narrow down what’s truly needed.

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ABOUT THE AUTHOR

Zac writes for ReHack as the Features Editor and covers cybersecurity, IT, and business tech. His work has been featured on publications like AllBusiness, CyberTalk, and BLR. For more of his writing, follow him on Twitter or LinkedIn.