Avoiding Cloud Shock: How to Set Up AWS Budgets for Predictable Expenses

Hello, 👋 Dev Community!

Worried about unexpected AWS bills?
Today I'm going to show you how to set up a budget and an alarm in AWS in order for us not to spend any money or too much money using AWS services.
Follow along so that you know how to setup your budget.

What Are AWS Budgets?

AWS Budgets is a free tool that helps you monitor and control your AWS spending.It allows you to set custom alerts and thresholds based on your budgetary needs.

Setting Up AWS Budgets

Let's walk through the process of setting up a budget:
1. Access the Billing Console

• Go to the AWS Management Console and search for Billing and Cost Management

• Or click on the top right of your screen and click on the Billing and Cost Management

2.Navigate to the Billing and Cost Management Home:

• This page provides a comprehensive view of your cost information.

• You can see your cost summary and breakdown by month or per year, charges by each service or account, and how you are billed for a service—you name it.

3.Explore the Free Tier section:

• You can go into the Free Tier section on the left-hand side panel.

• You are going to see whether you are eligible for using the free tier

• Monitor your current usage against the free tier limits.

• If the forecasted amount goes into red, you are going to be billed; therefore, make sure to turn off what is potentially costing you money
  

4.On the left-hand side, click on Budgets
You will create a budget that will alert you whenever you reach your thresholds.

5.Create your budget

• Use the simplified template. The first is a zero-spend budget, and you will receive an alert when you exceed $0.01.

• Provide a descriptive name for your budget.

• Specify the email recipients you want to notify when the threshold has been exceeded.
  
  You can also use another template for a monthly cost budget for your budgeted amount, for example $10
  You will be notified when
  1) your actual spend reaches 85%
  2) your actual spend reaches 100%
  3) if your forecasted spend is expected to reach 100%.

• If your budget exceeds, you will receive notifications. These notifications can be sent via email or through integration with Amazon Simple Notification Service.
  

Setting up AWS budgets is a crucial step in managing your cloud spending effectively. By following these steps, you've taken an important first step towards controlling costs and avoiding unexpected charges. Remember to:

1. Regularly review your budget performance

2. Adjust thresholds as needed based on usage patterns

3. Use budget actions to automatically manage costs when thresholds are exceeded

4. Leverage AWS Cost Explorer for deeper cost analysis

Stay vigilant, monitor closely, and adjust as necessary to optimize your AWS usage and costs. Happy cloud cost management!