specification: FinOps Framework
specificationVersion: '1.0'
schema: https://www.finops.org/framework/
provider: Grid Status
providerId: gridstatus
created: '2026-07-11'
modified: '2026-07-11'
reconciled: false
tags:
- Day-Ahead Prices
- Electricity
- Grid Data
- Energy Markets
- FinOps
- Cost Management
- FOCUS
description: >-
  FinOps view of Grid Status spend. The open-source gridstatus Python library is
  free (BSD-3-Clause) - in that model your cost is your own compute and the
  operational burden of scraping raw ISO/RTO sources yourself. The hosted Grid
  Status API is metered on rows returned per month above a free allowance
  (documented at 500,000 rows per month on the free plan), with paid plans that
  raise row and rate limits and can be scoped to just the ISOs/RTOs you need.
  Daily peak reports and other premium surfaces require a paid plan. Enterprise
  arrangements, including data delivery in Snowflake, are negotiated directly.
notes: >-
  Paid per-unit rates are not reconciled here; verify on the Grid Status pricing
  page. The dominant cost driver is rows returned - real-time price datasets
  consume allowance very quickly, so bound every query with limit, select only
  needed columns, resample to coarser frequencies where possible, and use bulk
  CSV exports for large historical backfills.
sources:
- https://www.gridstatus.io/pricing
- https://www.gridstatus.io/products/api
- https://github.com/gridstatus/gridstatusio
- 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: Grid Status
serviceCategory: Analytics and Data
billingModel:
  pricingCategory: Usage-Based
  billingFrequency: Monthly
  billingCurrency: USD
  chargeCategories:
  - Usage
  - Purchase
  - Adjustment
focusColumns:
  ServiceName: Grid Status API
  ServiceCategory: Analytics and Data
  ProviderName: Grid Status
  PublisherName: Grid Status
  InvoiceIssuerName: Grid Status
  BillingCurrency: USD
  ChargeCategory: Usage
  PricingCategory: Usage-Based
meters:
- name: api_rows_returned
  description: Rows returned by dataset query responses; the primary metered unit against the monthly plan allowance.
  unit: rows
  aggregation: sum
  dimensions:
  - account
  - dataset
  - iso
- name: api_requests
  description: API requests made in the billing period, tracked against the plan requests limit.
  unit: requests
  aggregation: sum
  dimensions:
  - account
  - endpoint
- name: bulk_csv_downloads
  description: Per-day bulk CSV export files downloaded via presigned S3 URLs.
  unit: files
  aggregation: sum
  dimensions:
  - account
  - dataset
- name: open_source_compute
  description: Your own compute and maintenance cost when pulling raw ISO/RTO data with the free gridstatus library (no Grid Status invoice).
  unit: hours
  aggregation: sum
  dimensions:
  - deployment
principles:
- name: Visibility
  description: Poll GET /api_usage to track rows returned and requests against plan limits during the current billing period; alert before the allowance is exhausted.
- name: Allocation
  description: Issue separate API keys per team or workload where possible, and tag internal consumers by dataset and ISO so row consumption maps to cost centers.
- name: Optimization
  description: Bound every query with limit, request only needed columns, resample to the coarsest frequency the use case allows, poll dataset-updates before re-querying, and prefer bulk CSV exports for historical backfills; scope paid plans to only the ISOs/RTOs you need.
- name: Accountability
  description: Assign an owner per API key; review monthly rows-returned consumption against the plan allowance and decide between plan changes and shifting bulk work to exports or the open-source library.
maintainers:
- FN: Kin Lane
  email: kin@apievangelist.com