specification: FinOps Framework
specificationVersion: '1.0'
schema: https://www.finops.org/framework/
provider: Estuary
providerId: estuary
created: '2026-07-01'
modified: '2026-07-01'
reconciled: true
tags:
- Data Integration
- Streaming ETL
- Change Data Capture
- CDC
- Real-Time Data
- Data Pipelines
- FinOps
- Cost Management
- FOCUS
description: >-
  FinOps view of Estuary Flow spend. Estuary bills two usage dimensions: the
  volume of data moved through Flow, metered in GB at a per-GB rate, and the
  number of active connector instances, charged as a flat monthly rate per
  instance (with a lower rate above the first six). A perpetual Free tier
  covers 10 GB/month and 2 connectors. Because source and target data is
  counted once, fan-out to additional destinations does not multiply the
  data-movement charge.
notes: >-
  Per-GB and per-connector rates are subject to change; verify against the
  Estuary pricing page and the tenant billing report during reconciliation.
sources:
- https://estuary.dev/pricing/
- https://docs.estuary.dev/getting-started/pricing/
- https://focus.finops.org/focus-specification/v1-3/
alignedWith:
  framework: FinOps Foundation Framework
  frameworkUrl: https://www.finops.org/framework/
  dataSpec: FOCUS
  dataSpecVersion: '1.3'
  dataSpecUrl: https://focus.finops.org/focus-specification/v1-3/
publisherName: Estuary
serviceCategory: Analytics
billingModel:
  pricingCategory: Usage-Based
  billingFrequency: Monthly
  billingCurrency: USD
  chargeCategories:
  - Usage
  - Purchase
  - Adjustment
focusColumns:
  ServiceName: Estuary Flow
  ServiceCategory: Analytics
  ProviderName: Estuary
  PublisherName: Estuary
  InvoiceIssuerName: Estuary
  BillingCurrency: USD
  ChargeCategory: Usage
  PricingCategory: Usage-Based
meters:
- name: data_moved_gb
  description: Gigabytes of data moved into and out of Flow, billed per GB (source and target counted once).
  unit: gigabytes
  aggregation: sum
  dimensions:
  - tenant
  - catalog_name
  - task_type
- name: connector_instances
  description: Active capture/materialization connector instances, billed at a flat monthly rate each (first 6 vs. additional).
  unit: instances
  aggregation: max
  dimensions:
  - tenant
  - task_type
- name: docs_processed
  description: Document counts captured and materialized per catalog entity (from catalog_stats), used for visibility not direct billing.
  unit: documents
  aggregation: sum
  dimensions:
  - tenant
  - catalog_name
principles:
- name: Visibility
  description: Pull catalog_stats and the tenant billing_report to see per-catalog GB moved and connector-instance line items.
- name: Allocation
  description: Organize captures, collections, and materializations under tenant/team catalog prefixes to map spend to cost centers.
- name: Optimization
  description: Consolidate destinations to exploit once-counted source data, retire idle connector instances, and stay under Free-tier limits where possible.
- name: Accountability
  description: Assign owners per catalog prefix and review monthly GB-moved and connector-instance charges against budget.
maintainers:
- FN: Kin Lane
  email: kin@apievangelist.com