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Torch Log Service

Billing examples

Billing examples based on pay-by-feature mode

This topic introduces the billing examples for pay-by-feature billing mode of Torch Log Service (TLS).

TLS pay-by-feature billing mode provides flexible billing by measuring and charging separately for features such as data ingestion, indexing, storage, query, data transformation, and log shipping. Its core value is to help you accurately calculate the costs of each feature module for refined cost management. This mode is suitable for scenarios with complex log processing pipelines and diverse feature usage.

Notice

For illustrative purpose, all data is calculated for a complete billing cycle. Billing case results are for reference only. For details, see the actual bill.

The data volume conversion rule is 1 TiB = 1024 GiB.

Use cases

Case information

In the China 2 (Beijing) region, a pay-by-feature log topic is created to collect logs from Website A. Five TiB (5120 GiB) of uncompressed raw logs is written into this log daily. Details are as follows:

Shards: A total of 102 active read/write shards (including 2 free daily read/write shards, i.e., the billing shards count is 100).

Data writing: Assuming a raw log compression rate of 20% (write traffic/storage volume calculated based on compressed data volume, i.e., 1024 GiB generated per day).

Index: Index enabled for all fields (index traffic and storage calculated based on uncompressed data volume, generating 5120 GiB daily).

API calls: 8.5 billion (8500 million) chargeable API requests daily via LogCollector, Open API, or SDK.

Unit price

For demonstration only. Actual prices are subject to official website pricing, orders, and bills.

Billing item	Sample unit price	Unit
Write traffic	0.18	CNY/GiB
Index traffic	0.35	CNY/GiB
Standard log storage, standard index storage	0.0115	CNY/GiB/day
Low-frequency log storage, low-frequency index storage	0.005	CNY/GiB/day
Archive log storage, archive index storage	0.0025	CNY/GiB/day
Private network read traffic	0.18	CNY/GiB
Public network read traffic	0.8	CNY/GiB
Data transformation traffic	0.15	CNY/GiB
Basic log shipping traffic	0.05	CNY/GiB
Advanced log shipping traffic	0.2	CNY/GiB
Cross-region data transmission traffic	0.8	CNY/GiB
API calls	0.12	CNY/ per million requests
Number of log shards	0.04	CNY/shard/day

Billing rules

Billing types	Billing item	Measurement standard	Billing rules description
Storage space	Standard log/index storage	Logs billed by compressed size Indexes billed by uncompressed size	Data is stored in the standard storage tier. Billed based on the average value of storage at each full hour of the day.
			Infrequent access log/index storage		Data is transferred to infrequent access storage tier after the standard storage duration is exceeded.
			Archive log/index storage		Data is transferred to archive storage tier after infrequent access storage retention is exceeded.
Traffic	Write traffic	Compressed data volume	Collect or upload logs. Both private and public network write operations use the same write traffic billing item.
		Index traffic	Uncompressed index field volume	Create indexes for newly written data or rebuild indexes for historical data. Fields overlapping between full-text and key-value indexes are counted only once.
		Private network read traffic	Actual compressed private network downstream traffic	Download via private network domain name or program consumes logs.
		Public network read traffic	Actual compressed public network downstream traffic	Download via public network domain name or program consumes logs.
		Data transformation traffic	Actual uncompressed transformation volume	Enable data transformation tasks. No monthly free quota.
		Cross-region data transmission traffic	Actual compressed cross-region transfer volume	The source and target log topics for processing are not located in the same region. Billed separately from data transformation traffic.
		Log shipping traffic	Actual shipping volume	Basic edition: Ship data to TOS in JSON, JSONL, or CSV format. Ship data to Kafka. Advanced edition: Ship data to TOS in Parquet format.
Other billing items	API calls	Daily read/write request count	Successful and failed read/write requests from LogCollector / Open API / SDK. Calls triggered by console operations are not counted.
Other billing items		Number of log shards	Read/write shard count	Number of log shards for read/write after deducting the free quota from promotions. Read-only shards are not counted.

Use case details

The following cases display the daily cost of one log topic at different stages (not the sum of five days). Each use case adds a new feature based on the previous one.

Use case	Description of use case fee changes	Daily cost example
Case 1 Collect logs	Covers write traffic, index traffic, standard storage, number of shards, and API call fees.	CNY 3070.98
Case 2 Store logs	Based on Case 1, stable tiered storage is established, and data storage fees are increased. Includes 10 days of standard storage, 25 days of infrequent access storage, and 40 days of archive storage (total storage exceeds 75 days)	CNY 5089.28
Case 3 Consume logs	Based on Case 2, data retrieval fees are added.	CNY 7235.20
Case 4 Data transformation logs	Add data transformation and cross-region transmission fees based on Case 3.	CNY 9350.40
Case 5 Data shipping logs	Add log shipping fees based on Case 4.	CNY 11398.40

Case 1 Collect logs

Website A writes 5 TiB of raw logs in one day, builds indexes for all fields, initiates 8.5 billion billing requests, and configures 102 read/write shards.

Billing types	Billing item	Daily measurement	Computing process	Costs
Collection costs	Write traffic	1024 GiB (compressed)	1024 × 0.18	CNY 184.32
Collection costs		Index traffic	5120 GiB (uncompressed)	5120 × 0.35	CNY 1,792.00
Storage fee	Standard log storage	1024 GiB	1024 × 0.0115	CNY 11.78
Storage fee		Standard index storage	5120 GiB	5120 × 0.0115	CNY 58.88
Other fees	API calls	8,500 million times	8500 × 0.12	CNY 1,020.00
Other fees		Number of log shards	Configured: 102, billed: 100	max(0, 102 − 2) × 0.04	CNY 4.00
Total cost for the day	-	-	-	CNY 3070.98

Case 2 Store logs

Website A continuously writes 5 TiB of raw logs daily. The log topic is retained for 75 days, with the most recent 10 days in standard storage, days 11–35 in infrequent storage, and days 36–75 in archive storage.

Once reaching a steady state, such as on day 76, the daily costs are as follows (each day, 1024 GiB of logs enter storage—after compression, index size is 5120 GiB—uncompressed):

Billing types	Billing item	Steady-state daily storage volume	Computing process	Costs
Storage fee	Standard log storage	1024 × 10 = 10240 GiB	10240 × 0.0115	CNY 117.76
		Infrequent access log storage	1024 × 25 = 25600 GiB	25600 × 0.005	CNY 128.00
		Archive log storage	1024 × 40 = 40960 GiB	40960 × 0.0025	CNY 102.40
		Standard index storage	5120 × 10 = 51200 GiB	51200 × 0.0115	CNY 588.80
		Infrequent access index storage	5120 × 25 = 128000 GiB	128000 × 0.005	CNY 640.00
		Archive index storage	5120 × 40 = 204800 GiB	204800 × 0.0025	CNY 512.00
Collection costs	Write traffic	1024 GiB (compressed)	1024 × 0.18	CNY 184.32
Collection costs		Index traffic	5120 GiB (uncompressed)	5120 × 0.35	CNY 1,792.00
Other fees	API calls	8,500 million times	8500 × 0.12	CNY 1,020.00
Other fees		Number of log shards	Configured: 102, billed: 100	max(0, 102 − 2) × 0.04	CNY 4.00
Total cost for the day	-	-	-	CNY 5089.28

Notice

If all 75 days of data are stored in standard storage, the storage cost will be CNY 5299.20 per day. If you use the lifecycle above, the cost will be CNY 2089.96 per day.

This comparison only shows the difference in unit price between storage tiers and does not include potential limitations and recovery requirements when using infrequent access or archived data.

Case 3 Consume logs

Based on Case 2, 6144 GiB (6 TiB) of data is consumed over the internal network, and 1300 GiB (about 1.27 TiB) is consumed over the public network on that day.

Billing types	Billing item	Daily measurement	Computing process	Costs
Consumption costs	Private network read traffic	6144 GiB	6144 × 0.18	CNY 1105.92
Consumption costs		Public network read traffic	1300 GiB	1300 × 0.8	CNY 1,040.00
Case 2 Fee	-	-	-	CNY 5089.28
Total cost for the day	-	-	-	CNY 7235.20

Notice

The data in this case represents down‑link metered values actually collected by TLS. Traffic is counted repeatedly when the same set of data is consumed multiple times.

For example, when consumption requests are already included in the fixed daily 8.5 billion billing requests, no additional API fee is charged.

Internal and external network read traffic is determined by the access domain and network path, and the same outbound traffic will not be billed simultaneously.

Queries via the console or query-and-analysis API queries do not generate read traffic. Corresponding read traffic is generated only when you download logs over internal/external networks or consume logs via programs.

Case 4 Data transformation logs

Building on Case 3, for the log topic located in China 2 (Beijing), 7168 GiB (7 TiB) of uncompressed logs were processed that day, and the result was written into another pay-by-feature log topic in China 2 (Shanghai). TLS reported a compressed cross-region transfer volume of 1300 GiB for the source log topic.

Billing types	Billing item	Daily measurement	Computing process	Costs
Data transformation costs	Data transformation traffic	7168 GiB	7168 × 0.15	CNY 1075.20
Data transformation costs		Cross-region data transmission traffic	1300 GiB	1300 × 0.8	CNY 1,040.00
Case 3 Fees	-	-	-	CNY 7235.20
Total cost for the day	-	-	-	CNY 9350.40

Notice

In pay-by-feature mode, data transformation traffic is calculated based on the actual volume processed and does not qualify for the 100 TiB monthly quota.

This case does not include the costs incurred by the target log topic, such as write traffic, indexing traffic, log and index storage costs.

Case 5 Data shipping logs

Building on Case 4, Website A shipped 20480 GiB (20 TiB) of data in JSON format or to Kafka via the basic edition, and 5120 GiB (5 TiB) of data in Parquet format via the advanced edition on the same day. Neither of the shipping tasks enabled file compression.

Billing types	Billing item	Daily measurement	Computing process	Costs
Log shipping costs	Basic log shipping traffic	20480 GiB	20480 × 0.05	CNY 1,024.00
Log shipping costs		Advanced log shipping traffic	5120 GiB	5120 × 0.2	CNY 1,024.00
Case 4 Fees	-	-	-	CNY 9350.40
Total cost for the day	-	-	-	CNY 11398.40

Notice

For pay-by-feature mode, basic log shipping does not receive the 100 TiB monthly quota, and advanced log shipping does not receive the 10 TiB monthly quota. Both types are billed based on actual usage.

This case does not include the cost of target products, such as storage, request, or traffic fees after shipping to targets like TOS or Kafka.

Common misconceptions

Common misconceptions	Correct understandings
Only the write fee for 5 TiB is charged when writing 5 TiB.	Write traffic is billed based on the amount of compressed data. Creating indexes, storing data, calling the API, or using shard will each generate separate billing items.
Pay-by-feature billing mode also includes free storage for the first 30 days	Pay-by-feature billing mode does not offer free storage. The actual daily storage of logs and indexes on the standard / infrequent access / archive layer is billed at the corresponding unit price.
Write traffic and index traffic are identical in value	Write traffic is calculated based on compressed raw volume. The index traffic is measured by the uncompressed index field amount and is usually several times the write traffic (for example, with a compression rate of 20%, it's five times larger).
Query and analysis log queries generate inbound and outbound read traffic	Console or query and analysis API queries do not produce read traffic, but Open API or SDK requests may count toward API call totals. Read traffic only occurs when logs are downloaded or consumed by applications.
Only one charge is applied for data transformation or cross-region transfers.	These are measured independently. Transformation is calculated based on the uncompressed amount, while cross-region transfers are measured by the actual compressed volume transferred.
Functional billing also supports monthly quotas for transformation, shipping, and consumption	The quota of 100 TiB for transformation/basic shipping/intranet consumption and 10 TiB for advanced shipping follows the billing model based on data write volume; functional-based billing does not apply.
Basic and advanced shipping only differ in format and they are not billed separately	JSON / JSONL / CSV / Kafka are billed as basic delivery items. Parquet is billed as an advanced delivery item.
A total of 102 read-write shards will be billed as 102 units	Each log topic includes 2 free read-write shards per day under the current campaign rules. Charges are calculated according to the actual rules if the campaign rules change. Read-only shards are not counted.
Once TLS has collected the delivery fee, the target product will not charge again.	TLS delivery fees and target product fees are independent. Targets such as TOS and Kafka may charge for storage, requests, or traffic according to their own rules.