specification: API Commons Plans
specificationVersion: '0.1'
schema: https://raw.githubusercontent.com/api-evangelist/interface-research/main/schema/api-commons.yml#/$defs/Plans
provider: IBM MQ
providerId: ibm-mq
created: '2026-05-04'
# Provenance stamped 2026-08-11: this artifact was written by the API Evangelist
# bulk sweep dated 2026-05-04, not harvested from the provider. See roadmap#35.
method: generated
modified: '2026-05-05'
reconciled: false
tags:
  - Async
  - Enterprise
  - Integration
  - Messaging
  - Middleware
  - Queue
description: IBM MQ is offered both as on-premises licensed software (PVU/RVU-based) and as a managed
  service on IBM Cloud (IBM MQ on Cloud) with Lite, Standard (Reserved Capacity), and dedicated tiers.
  Public per-unit prices for the Cloud offering are not consistently published outside the IBM Cloud
  catalog, and on-premises licensing is sold through IBM Sales / Passport Advantage. Plans below describe
  the shape of the offering; specific prices are quoted as 'see vendor pricing' rather than fabricated.
notes: Public IBM Cloud pricing pages were not directly reachable during reconciliation; specific dollar
  amounts deliberately omitted. Update once https://cloud.ibm.com/catalog/services/mq is fetched.
sources:
  - https://www.ibm.com/products/mq
  - https://cloud.ibm.com/catalog/services/mq
plans:
  - id: ibm-mq-cloud-lite
    name: IBM MQ on Cloud — Lite
    type: freemium
    description: Free tier of IBM MQ on Cloud for evaluation and low-volume integration testing. Single
      queue manager with capped throughput.
    entries:
      - label: Queue manager
        description: One Lite-tier queue manager
        name: queue_manager
        type: quota
        metric: instance
        limit: 1
        timeFrame: month
        geo: global
        domains:
          - https://{host}:{port}/ibmmq/rest/v2
          - https://{host}:{port}/ibmmq/rest/v2/messaging
        unit: 1
        price: '0.00'
        userMultiplied: false
    elements:
      - name: Single queue manager
      - name: Limited throughput
      - name: Community support
      - name: IBM MQ REST API
      - name: IBM MQ Messaging REST API
  - id: ibm-mq-cloud-standard
    name: IBM MQ on Cloud — Standard (Reserved Capacity)
    type: subscription
    description: Reserved-capacity managed MQ tiers (Small / Medium / Large) on IBM Cloud, billed monthly
      per deployment with included throughput.
    entries:
      - label: Reserved capacity deployment
        description: Monthly subscription for a managed MQ deployment (Small / Medium / Large sizes)
        name: reserved_capacity
        type: subscription
        metric: month
        limit: -1
        timeFrame: month
        geo: global
        domains:
          - https://{host}:{port}/ibmmq/rest/v2
          - https://{host}:{port}/ibmmq/rest/v2/messaging
        unit: 1
        price: see https://cloud.ibm.com/catalog/services/mq
        userMultiplied: false
    elements:
      - name: Managed queue managers
      - name: HA across availability zones
      - name: REST and JMS access
      - name: 24/7 support
      - name: IBM MQ REST API
      - name: IBM MQ Messaging REST API
      - name: IBM MQ JMS API
      - name: IBM MQ Native API
  - id: ibm-mq-onprem
    name: IBM MQ (on-premises)
    type: enterprise
    description: Traditional licensed IBM MQ for on-premises deployment, sold via IBM Passport Advantage
      with PVU or VPC-based metrics. Pricing negotiated through IBM Sales.
    entries:
      - label: License
        description: Per-PVU or per-VPC licensing
        name: license
        type: subscription
        metric: contract
        limit: -1
        timeFrame: year
        geo: global
        domains:
          - https://{host}:{port}/ibmmq/rest/v2
          - https://{host}:{port}/ibmmq/rest/v2/messaging
        unit: 1
        price: contact sales
        userMultiplied: false
    elements:
      - name: Self-hosted queue managers
      - name: Multi-platform support
      - name: IBM Software Subscription & Support
      - name: IBM MQ REST API
      - name: IBM MQ Messaging REST API
      - name: IBM MQ JMS API
      - name: IBM MQ Native API
maintainers:
  - FN: Kin Lane
    email: kin@apievangelist.com
x-canonical:
  generated: '2026-10-08'
  vocabulary: all/0-working/economics/plans-canonical.yml
  models:
  - free
  - subscription
  units:
  - compute
  - negotiated
  - period
  plans:
  - name: IBM MQ on Cloud — Lite
    access: freemium
    model: free
    model_how: derived
    units:
    - compute
    periods:
    - month
  - name: IBM MQ on Cloud — Standard (Reserved Capacity)
    access: other
    model: subscription
    model_how: stated
    units:
    - period
    periods:
    - month
  - name: IBM MQ (on-premises)
    access: enterprise
    model: subscription
    model_how: derived
    units:
    - negotiated
    periods:
    - year