name: Pixelfed FinOps
description: >
  Pixelfed is free, open-source software (AGPL-3.0). There are no API call
  fees, per-seat charges, or token-based billing from the upstream project.
  All financial considerations arise from infrastructure choices made by the
  operator or the end user.
cost_model: infrastructure-only
api_call_cost: 0
cost_drivers:
  - category: Compute
    description: >
      PHP/Laravel application server. A small personal instance runs
      comfortably on a 2-vCPU / 2 GB RAM VPS (~$6–$12/month at commodity
      cloud providers). Larger community instances require horizontal scaling.
  - category: Storage
    description: >
      Photo and video storage is the dominant cost driver. Images are stored
      locally or on S3-compatible object storage. Expect 50–200 GB per 1,000
      active users depending on upload frequency.
  - category: Bandwidth / CDN
    description: >
      ActivityPub federation generates outbound HTTP traffic for every
      federated event. The project has infrastructure sponsorship from Fastly
      and DigitalOcean for the flagship pixelfed.social instance.
  - category: Database
    description: >
      MySQL or PostgreSQL. Redis is required for queues and caching. Both are
      lightweight for small-to-medium instances.
  - category: Managed hosting
    description: >
      Third-party managed-hosting providers bundle all of the above into a
      monthly fee starting around $0.99/month for personal use.
optimization_tips:
  - Use S3-compatible object storage with a CDN in front to minimize egress costs.
  - Enable lazy-loading and image compression in the Pixelfed admin panel.
  - Tune queue workers to process federation jobs off-peak when on shared hosting.
  - Limit federation scope (defederate high-volume instances) to reduce inbound storage.
funding:
  - source: Patreon
    url: https://www.patreon.com/dansup
  - source: Open Collective
    url: https://opencollective.com/pixelfed
  - source: NLnet Foundation / NGI0 Discovery grant