When you start exploring cloud computing, it's really important to understand how pricing works. This way, you can manage your budget better. Here are the main pricing models you should know about:

1. Pay-as-You-Go (PAYG):

   • This model charges you based on how much you actually use.
   • It’s like your electricity bill—if you use less power, you pay less money.
   • For example, if you use 100 hours of a virtual machine, you only pay for those hours. You won’t pay a flat rate.

2. Reserved Instances:

   • In this model, you pay upfront for a certain amount of resources for a longer time, usually between one and three years.
   • This can help you save a lot of money.
   • For example, if you usually pay $500 a month for a server, you might only pay$300 a month if you reserve it ahead of time.

3. Spot Instances:

   • These instances are often much cheaper.
   • However, they can be interrupted by the provider if there’s a lot of demand.
   • It’s like bidding for computing resources—you could save up to 90%, but there's a chance your resources could disappear suddenly.

4. Tiered Pricing:

   • In this model, you pay different prices based on how much you use.
   • For instance, the first 100 GB of storage might cost $0.02 for each GB, but if you use more than 1 TB, the price could drop to$0.01 for each GB.

By understanding these pricing models, you can better manage what you spend on cloud services. This way, you’ll only pay for what you really need and avoid any surprise costs!