specification: FinOps Framework
specificationVersion: '1.0'
schema: https://www.finops.org/framework/
provider: Propel
providerId: propel-data
created: '2026-06-20'
modified: '2026-06-20'
reconciled: false
tags:
- Analytics
- GraphQL
- Data Warehouse
- Metrics
- Customer Facing Analytics
- FinOps
- Cost Management
- FOCUS
description: >-
  FinOps view of Propel spend. Propel bills a customer-facing analytics platform
  whose cost drivers are query volume against the GraphQL API, Data Pool storage
  synced from the warehouse, and the compute size (Propeller) assigned to each
  Application, with tiered Free / Growth / Enterprise plans. Per-unit rates are
  largely quote-based, so this artifact is not reconciled.
notes: >-
  Per-unit and per-Propeller rates are quote-based and subject to change; verify
  against the Propel pricing page and your agreement during reconciliation.
sources:
- https://www.propeldata.com/pricing
- https://www.propeldata.com/docs
- 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: Propel
serviceCategory: Analytics
billingModel:
  pricingCategory: Usage-Based
  billingFrequency: Monthly
  billingCurrency: USD
  chargeCategories:
  - Usage
  - Purchase
  - Adjustment
focusColumns:
  ServiceName: Propel
  ServiceCategory: Analytics
  ProviderName: Propel
  PublisherName: Propel
  InvoiceIssuerName: Propel
  BillingCurrency: USD
  ChargeCategory: Usage
  PricingCategory: Usage-Based
meters:
- name: query_volume
  description: Counter / Time Series / Leaderboard GraphQL queries executed against Metrics.
  unit: queries
  aggregation: sum
  dimensions:
  - account
  - application
  - metric
- name: data_pool_storage
  description: Storage held in Data Pools synced from the warehouse, billed per GB.
  unit: gb
  aggregation: max
  dimensions:
  - account
  - data_pool
- name: compute_propeller
  description: Compute assigned to an Application via its Propeller size.
  unit: propeller_hours
  aggregation: sum
  dimensions:
  - account
  - application
- name: applications
  description: Number of provisioned Applications (OAuth2 clients).
  unit: applications
  aggregation: max
  dimensions:
  - account
principles:
- name: Visibility
  description: Track query volume, Data Pool storage, and Propeller compute per Application; export usage from the Propel console.
- name: Allocation
  description: Map each Application and Policy to an end-customer tenant or internal team to attribute analytics cost.
- name: Optimization
  description: Right-size Propellers, batch multiple GraphQL queries per request, prune unused Data Pools/columns, and cache repeated query results to cut spend.
- name: Accountability
  description: Assign owners per Application and review query and storage growth monthly against budget.
maintainers:
- FN: Kin Lane
  email: kin@apievangelist.com