AWS Load Balancer Cost Calculator (ALB/NLB)

Estimate load balancer cost with a simple model: fixed hourly LB fees + capacity-unit hours (LCU for ALB or NLCU for NLB). Use hours/day x days/month to normalize uptime and compare baseline vs peak traffic.

Inputs

Load balancers
Hours/day
Days/month
Use 30.4 for an average month.
Monthly hours: 730
Price ($ / LB-hour)
Approx $16.42 per LB-month.
Capacity units (avg per hour)
Use LCU-hours (ALB) or NLCU-hours (NLB) as your capacity unit. Enter the average units per hour.
Price ($ / capacity unit-hour)
Capacity unit type
New connections / sec
Active connections
Processed GB / hour
Avg Mbps
Use average throughput over the hour.
Est 54 GB/hour.
Rule evaluations / sec
Est 1.6 units/hour.
Scenario presets

Results

Estimated monthly total
$62.02
Fixed hourly (LB-hours)
$32.83
Capacity units
$29.18
Capacity unit-hours
3,648
Usage share
47.1%

How to get your inputs

  • Load balancers: count active ALBs/NLBs (idle LBs still bill).
  • Capacity units: use average LCU/NLCU per hour from metrics, not monthly totals.
  • Schedule: hours/day and days/month should match actual uptime.
  • Pricing: use region-specific LB-hour and LCU/NLCU-hour rates.

Result interpretation

  • If usage share is high, focus on reducing LCU/NLCU drivers (connections, bytes, rule evals).
  • If fixed costs dominate, review the number of active load balancers.

Common mistakes

  • Using a single average and ignoring peak/incident scenarios.
  • Double-counting or missing adjacent line items (transfer, logs, retries).
  • Entering LCU-hours/month as LCU per hour (overstates costs).
  • Ignoring idle LBs that stay billed even with no traffic.

Scenario planning

Scenario LB count Capacity units Notes
Baseline Current Average Normal traffic
Peak Current High Launch or incident

Validate after changes

  • Compare your estimate to the first real bill and adjust assumptions.
  • Track the primary driver metric (requests/GB/count) over time.
  • Compare LB-hours and LCU/NLCU-hours with billing line items.

Next steps

Guides All calculators Guide: load balancer costs (pitfalls) Guide: LCU/NLCU explained Guide: estimate LCU from metrics Guide: ALB vs NLB cost
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Example scenario

  • 2 load balancers running 24 hours/day for 30 days, averaging 5 capacity units/hour - estimate fixed + usage components.
  • Peak 220% scenario helps budget for marketing bursts.

Included

  • Fixed cost from load balancers x hours/day x days/month x $/LB-hour.
  • Usage cost from capacity unit-hours x $ per unit-hour (LCU/NLCU) using hours/day x days/month.
  • Optional capacity unit estimator from connections, bytes, and rule evaluations.
  • Optional Mbps estimator for processed GB/hour.
  • Baseline vs peak scenario table for capacity spikes.

Not included

  • Data transfer/egress beyond what is included in your provider's capacity unit definition.
  • Downstream service costs (instances, NAT, logs, etc).

How we calculate

  • Fixed cost = load balancers x (hours/day x days/month) x $ per LB-hour.
  • Capacity unit-hours = avg capacity units per hour x (hours/day x days/month).
  • Usage cost = capacity unit-hours x $ per capacity unit-hour.
  • Total = fixed cost + usage cost.

FAQ

What should I enter as "capacity units per hour"?
Use your measured LCU-hours (ALB) or NLCU-hours (NLB) and enter the average units per hour. If you only have peak values, model both typical and peak scenarios.
Does this include cross-zone or internet egress charges?
Not explicitly. Some architectures have separate transfer fees. Model transfer separately if it's meaningful for your workload.
How do I reduce load balancer cost?
Reduce the number of LBs, reduce capacity units (requests/connections/bytes), and avoid architectures that create excessive east-west traffic.

Related tools

Guide: load balancer costs (pitfalls) Guide: LCU/NLCU explained Guide: estimate LCU from metrics Guide: ALB vs NLB cost ALB LCU / NLB NLCU calculator Guide: load balancer cost optimization NAT gateway cost

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Disclaimer

Educational use only. Not legal, financial, or professional advice. Results are estimates based on the inputs and assumptions shown on this page. Verify pricing and limits with your providers and documentation.

Last updated: 2026-01-28