# Cloud Cost Optimization Tools for Startups, 2026
> Free native tools first, then vendors with published prices, then quote-only ones. What each costs a startup and what it does for your cloud bill in 2026.
Source: https://zop.dev/best/cloud-cost-optimization-tools-startups
Published: 2026-09-25 · Author: avinash-gaurav · Tags: zopnight, buyers-guide, startups
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AWS, Azure and Google Cloud each ship a cost tool in the console at no extra charge. This list starts there, then moves to vendors that publish a price, then to those that quote.
## How this list was built
For a startup the first question about a cost tool is what it costs, so this list is sorted by **how you pay**, not by features. There are three tiers: tools that come with your cloud at no extra charge, vendors that publish a price on their site, and vendors that quote. Inside each tier, tools are in alphabetical order. ZopNight, which publishes this page, is in the published-price tier because its prices are on [zop.dev/pricing](https://zop.dev/pricing). Being listed later is not a verdict.
Every price below was read on the vendor's or provider's own pricing page on 25 September 2026. Prices change, so check the linked page before you budget.
## Price and scope, side by side
| Tool | Price as published | Changes resources for you? |
|---|---|---|
| AWS Cost Explorer and Budgets | Console free; API $0.01 per request; 2 action-enabled budgets free, then $0.10 a day each | Budget actions can apply IAM, SCP and resource controls |
| AWS Compute Optimizer | No additional charge; enhanced metrics about $0.25 per resource-month | Two EBS actions only |
| Google Cloud Recommender | Most recommendations free; Firewall Insights premium | You apply them |
| Microsoft Cost Management and Azure Advisor | No additional cost for Azure spend | Budgets do not stop consumption |
| IBM Kubecost | Free tier up to 250 cores | Request sizing, namespace turndown |
| Cloud Toggle | $49, $99, $249 a month by server count | Stops and starts VMs |
| Infracost | Free; $250 a month; $1,000 a month; Enterprise | Works on code before deploy |
| Vantage | Free to $2,500 tracked spend; $30 and $200 a month tiers | Buys AWS Savings Plans; agent remediation |
| ZopNight | Starter free under $2,000 a month of cloud spend; Pro 5% of cloud spend from $2,000 to $50,000 a month; Enterprise custom above $50,000 | Schedules, remediation with approval |
| CAST AI | Custom quote; free trial | Kubernetes autoscaling and rightsizing |
| nOps | Fixed fee by spend; share of savings for rate optimization | Buys commitments; schedules via EventBridge |
| Zesty | Based on usage and realized savings | Commitments, pods, disks |
## Tier 1: comes with your cloud
### AWS Cost Explorer and AWS Budgets
AWS says you can view costs "using the Cost Explorer user interface free of charge", while each paginated API request costs $0.01, and data goes back 13 months ([Cost Explorer guide](https://docs.aws.amazon.com/cost-management/latest/userguide/ce-what-is.html)). AWS Budgets lets you "monitor and receive notifications on your budgets free of charge". Budgets with actions attached are free for the first two, then "$0.10 daily" each ([Budgets pricing](https://aws.amazon.com/aws-cost-management/aws-budgets/pricing/)).
- **Good fit if** you are on AWS and have not yet set a budget alert. Start here before buying anything.
- **Not a fit if** you need per-team attribution without tagging discipline, or you want anything switched off.
### AWS Compute Optimizer
"There is no additional charge for AWS Compute Optimizer." Enhanced infrastructure metrics are extra, about $0.25 for a resource running a full 31-day month ([pricing](https://aws.amazon.com/compute-optimizer/pricing/)). It finds rightsizing and idle candidates; its automation is limited to two EBS volume actions: snapshot and delete unattached volumes, and upgrade previous-generation volume types ([recommended actions](https://docs.aws.amazon.com/compute-optimizer/latest/ug/automation-rec.html)). See Compute Optimizer compared.
- **Good fit if** you want a free second look at oversized EC2, RDS and Lambda.
- **Not a fit if** you want the fix applied, or you run outside AWS.
### Google Cloud Recommender
Google "generates most recommendations and insights for free to all customers"; Firewall Insights is the premium one ([pricing](https://cloud.google.com/recommender/pricing)). Budgets are worth setting too, but Google warns that an alerts-only budget "doesn't automatically cap Google Cloud or Google Maps Platform usage or spending" ([budgets](https://cloud.google.com/billing/docs/how-to/budgets)). See Google's recommenders compared.
- **Good fit if** you are on GCP and want idle VM, rightsizing and idle disk findings at no cost.
- **Not a fit if** you expected a budget to stop spending by itself.
### Microsoft Cost Management and Azure Advisor
Cost Management "is available to Azure customers and managed service providers at no additional cost", with reporting, tag grouping, budgets, alerts and idle and rightsizing recommendations ([pricing](https://azure.microsoft.com/en-us/pricing/details/cost-management/)). "Azure Advisor is available at no additional cost" ([Advisor](https://azure.microsoft.com/en-us/products/advisor)). An Azure budget is a warning, not a brake: "Resources aren't affected, and your consumption isn't stopped" ([budgets tutorial](https://learn.microsoft.com/en-us/azure/cost-management-billing/costs/tutorial-acm-create-budgets)). More on the Azure tools page.
- **Good fit if** you run on Azure; turn both on before anything else.
- **Not a fit if** you need one view across Azure and another cloud.
## Tier 2: published prices
### IBM Kubecost
"Kubecost is free to install". Its Foundations tier is listed as "Always free" for unlimited clusters up to 250 cores, with 15-day metric retention, on EKS, AKS, GKE and on-prem. The same page lists automated actions such as "automated request sizing or namespace turndown" ([IBM Apptio](https://www.apptio.com/products/kubecost/)). See Kubecost compared.
- **Good fit if** Kubernetes is where most of your spend sits and you want per-namespace cost at no licence cost.
- **Not a fit if** most of your bill is outside Kubernetes.
### Cloud Toggle
Three plans on its homepage: $49 a month for 15 servers (30-day free trial), $99 for 50 and $249 for 200, for AWS and Azure ([cloudtoggle.com](https://www.cloudtoggle.com/)). See Cloud Toggle compared.
- **Good fit if** your main waste is dev VMs left on overnight and you want a fixed monthly price.
- **Not a fit if** you run on GCP or want cost reporting in the same tool.
### Infracost
Infracost prices Terraform, CloudFormation and CDK changes in pull requests. The Free tier includes 1,000 runs a month, Starter is $250 a month and Cloud is $1,000 a month ([pricing](https://www.infracost.io/pricing/)). See Infracost compared.
- **Good fit if** your team ships infrastructure through pull requests and wants cost shown before merge.
- **Not a fit if** your waste is in resources that already exist; a PR check does not see them.
### Vantage
Vantage's Starter plan is free up to $2,500 of cloud spend. Pro, which Vantage pitches "for small startups starting to grow", is $30 a month for $7,500 of spend, and Business is $200 a month for $20,000 ([pricing](https://www.vantage.sh/pricing)). See Vantage compared.
- **Good fit if** you want reporting across clouds and SaaS vendors with a published price that scales with spend.
- **Not a fit if** you need resources scheduled; we did not find start/stop scheduling in its docs.
### ZopNight
ZopNight connects AWS, GCP and Azure accounts, prices discovered resources from provider pricing APIs, and switches to billed cost once billing sync is set up. It raises idle, rightsizing, schedule, orphan and discount recommendations, runs remediation through a wizard with an admin approval step for destructive actions, and schedules resources on cron in your timezone. It also attributes cost by team and tag, tracks budgets and flags anomalies. A read-only connection gives discovery and recommendations without letting ZopNight change anything. The Starter plan is free under $2,000 a month of cloud spend, Pro is 5% of cloud spend from $2,000 to $50,000 a month, and Enterprise is custom above $50,000 ([pricing](https://zop.dev/pricing)). See reducing dev environment costs.
- **Good fit if** you run on more than one cloud, or you want findings acted on (scheduled, stopped, resized) rather than only listed.
- **Not a fit if** a free native tool already covers what you need.
## Tier 3: priced by quote or by savings
### CAST AI
Kubernetes automation for EKS, AKS and GKE: pod rightsizing, node autoscaling and spot ([cast.ai](https://cast.ai/)). The homepage offers a free trial; pricing needs a conversation ([pricing](https://cast.ai/pricing/)). See CAST AI compared.
- **Good fit if** node spend dominates your bill.
- **Not a fit if** you need a price before the first call.
### nOps
nOps charges a "fixed fee based on your cloud spend" for visibility, and for rate optimization "you pay only a percentage of savings realized" ([pricing](https://www.nops.io/pricing/)). It buys commitments across AWS, Azure and GCP. See nOps compared.
- **Good fit if** you have steady usage worth committing to and prefer paying from savings.
- **Not a fit if** your usage is still changing month to month.
### Zesty
Pricing is "based on actual usage and realized savings" ([pricing](https://zesty.co/pricing/)). Products cover AWS and Azure commitments, Kubernetes rightsizing and disk autoscaling ([zesty.co](https://zesty.co/)). See Zesty compared.
- **Good fit if** you run steady production load on AWS or Azure.
- **Not a fit if** you run on GCP; the pages we read name AWS and Azure.
## When not to pick ZopNight
- **One cloud and a small bill.** The native tools in tier 1 cost nothing extra. Use them until they stop answering your questions.
- **You want commitments bought for you.** ZopNight's remediation actions (stop, pause, resize, delete, lifecycle policy, manifest edit) do not include buying reservations or savings plans. nOps, Zesty and Vantage's Autopilot do.
- **Your cost question is about pull requests.** Infracost covers more IaC formats and CI systems.
## Frequently asked questions
### Is AWS Cost Explorer free?
The console is. AWS says you can use the Cost Explorer user interface free of charge; each paginated API request costs $0.01.
### Do cloud budgets stop spending when I hit the limit?
Not by default. Microsoft says an Azure budget does not affect resources or stop consumption, and Google says an alerts-only budget does not cap usage. AWS Budgets can run actions, and the first two action-enabled budgets are free.
### Which vendor tools have a free plan?
Of the tools on this page, as of 25 September 2026: Vantage (up to $2,500 of tracked spend), Infracost (1,000 runs a month), IBM Kubecost (free to install) and ZopNight (a free Starter plan under $2,000 a month of cloud spend). Cloud Toggle offers a 30-day free trial and CAST AI a free trial.
### Can I try ZopNight without giving it write access?
Yes. With a read-only connection ZopNight discovers resources, reads billing data and raises recommendations, but it will not start, stop or remediate anything.