specification: FinOps Framework
specificationVersion: '1.0'
schema: https://www.finops.org/framework/
provider: IOTA
providerId: iota
created: '2026-06-14'
modified: '2026-06-14'
reconciled: true
tags:
  - Blockchain
  - Distributed Ledger
  - Web3
  - RPC
  - FinOps
  - FOCUS
description: >-
  FOCUS-aligned FinOps for IOTA blockchain infrastructure. IOTA's public RPC endpoints carry no
  direct monetary cost but impose unspecified rate limits that create operational risk for production
  applications. Production cost is incurred via self-hosted IOTA full nodes (infrastructure spend)
  or commercial RPC provider subscriptions (third-party SaaS). On-chain transaction gas fees
  denominated in IOTA tokens are the primary cost metric for applications submitting transactions.
  The platform's design goal of feeless microtransactions means gas costs are intended to be minimal,
  but gas budgets must still be managed for high-volume on-chain operations.
sources:
  - https://docs.iota.org/developer/network-overview
  - https://docs.iota.org/iota-api-ref
  - 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: IOTA Foundation
serviceCategory: Blockchain Infrastructure
billingModel:
  pricingCategory: Usage
  billingFrequency: Per-transaction (on-chain gas) + subscription (RPC provider or infrastructure)
  billingCurrency: IOTA Token (on-chain) / USD (RPC providers)
  chargeCategories:
    - Usage
    - Purchase
    - Adjustment
focusColumns:
  ServiceName: IOTA RPC
  ServiceCategory: Blockchain Infrastructure
  ProviderName: IOTA Foundation
  PublisherName: IOTA Foundation
  InvoiceIssuerName: IOTA Foundation
  BillingCurrency: IOTA / USD
  ChargeCategory: Usage
  PricingCategory: Usage
  PricingUnit: transaction / request
meters:
  - name: transaction_gas_fee
    description: >-
      Gas fee in IOTA tokens charged per transaction executed on the IOTA network. Gas budget
      must be specified when constructing transactions via the Transaction Builder API. The
      reference gas price can be obtained via iotax_getReferenceGasPrice.
    unit: IOTA token (MIST subunit)
    aggregation: sum
    dimensions:
      - network
      - transaction_type
      - gas_budget
      - gas_used
  - name: rpc_requests
    description: >-
      Total JSON-RPC HTTP requests and GraphQL queries made against public or private IOTA
      endpoints. Free on public endpoints (rate-limited); metered by commercial providers.
    unit: request
    aggregation: sum
    dimensions:
      - network
      - method
      - endpoint_type
  - name: indexer_requests
    description: >-
      Extended API (iotax_*) requests made against IOTA indexer endpoints. These are served by
      separate indexer infrastructure and may be metered differently by commercial providers.
    unit: request
    aggregation: sum
    dimensions:
      - network
      - method
  - name: rpc_provider_spend
    description: >-
      Monthly or usage-based spend to a commercial IOTA RPC provider (Tatum, Ankr, Monochain,
      GetBlock, etc.) for dedicated RPC access beyond the public rate-limited endpoints.
    unit: USD
    aggregation: sum
    dimensions:
      - provider
      - plan_tier
      - billing_period
  - name: node_infrastructure_spend
    description: >-
      Monthly infrastructure cost for self-hosted IOTA full nodes or indexers, including
      compute, storage, and network egress.
    unit: USD
    aggregation: sum
    dimensions:
      - cloud_provider
      - node_type
      - region
principles:
  - name: Visibility
    description: >-
      Instrument every RPC call with method-level tagging to distinguish lightweight read calls
      (iota_getObject, iotax_getBalance) from complex aggregate queries (iotax_getDynamicFields,
      iotax_getAllEpochAddressMetrics). Track on-chain gas fees using the gasUsed field in
      transaction effects returned by iota_executeTransactionBlock and iota_getTransactionBlock.
      Use iotax_getReferenceGasPrice to monitor network gas price trends.
  - name: Allocation
    description: >-
      Tag RPC usage by application component (wallet, analytics pipeline, indexer, dApp backend).
      For on-chain gas costs, attribute IOTA token spend to the signing account and transaction
      type using the gas object and gasUsed fields in transaction metadata. Allocate RPC provider
      subscription costs to product teams by endpoint usage.
  - name: Optimization
    description: >-
      Use iota_multiGetObjects and iota_multiGetTransactionBlocks to batch read calls instead of
      individual object lookups. Replace polling with GraphQL subscriptions or indexer queries
      for event-driven architectures. Use cursor-based pagination to limit response sizes.
      Call iota_dryRunTransactionBlock before submitting to optimize gas budgets and avoid
      failed transactions that still consume gas.
  - name: Accountability
    description: >-
      Set per-team RPC request budgets and alert on 429 error rate spikes as a proxy for
      infrastructure overspend or inefficient query patterns. Review gas expenditure weekly
      for high-volume transaction submitters. Designate an infrastructure owner for RPC
      provider contract renewals and full node capacity planning.
maintainers:
  - FN: Kin Lane
    email: kin@apievangelist.com