Azure AKS Pricing (2026)
Managed Kubernetes services handle the control plane, upgrades, and scaling of Kubernetes clusters. Focus on deploying your containers while the provider manages the underlying infrastructure. AKS offers a free control plane; you pay only for worker nodes and optional add-ons. Starting from $0.0073/hr ($5.34/mo) for Automatic - Automatic High Performance Compute.
Key Features
- ✓Fully managed control plane with automatic upgrades
- ✓Integration with cloud IAM, networking, and storage
- ✓Node auto-scaling and auto-repair
- ✓Support for GPU and ARM-based node pools
- ✓Multi-cluster management and service mesh options
Common Use Cases
Microservices Platform
Run complex microservice architectures with service discovery, load balancing, and rolling deployments.
CI/CD Pipelines
Build and deploy applications using Kubernetes-native CI/CD workflows.
ML Training
Schedule distributed ML training jobs across GPU node pools with auto-scaling.
On-Demand Pricing
Pay-as-you-go pricing with no upfront commitment. You are billed per hour of usage and can start or stop at any time. Hourly rates start at $0.0073/hr ($5.34/mo) for Automatic - Automatic High Performance Compute.
| Instance | Price/hr | Price/mo |
|---|---|---|
| Standard - Standard Uptime SLA | $0.1000 | $73.00 |
| Automatic - Automatic High Performance Compute | $0.0073 | $5.34 |
| Automatic - Automatic General Purpose | $0.0078 | $5.72 |
| Automatic - Automatic GPU Accelerated | $0.0360 | $26.24 |
| Automatic - Automatic Confidential Compute | $0.0121 | $8.85 |
| Automatic - Automatic Memory Optimized | $0.0124 | $9.07 |
| Automatic - Automatic Hosted Control Plane | $0.1600 | $116.80 |
| Standard - Standard Long Term Support | $0.6000 | $438.00 |
| Automatic - Automatic Storage Optimized | $0.0145 | $10.58 |
| Automatic - Automatic Compute Optimized | $0.0122 | $8.90 |
Reserved Instance & Savings Plans Pricing
Commit to 1 or 3 years for lower hourly rates.
| Instance | Price/hr | Price/mo | 1yr RI/hr | 3yr RI/hr |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Standard - Standard Uptime SLA | $0.1000 | $73.00 | - | - |
| Automatic - Automatic High Performance Compute | $0.0073 | $5.34 | - | - |
| Automatic - Automatic General Purpose | $0.0078 | $5.72 | - | - |
| Automatic - Automatic GPU Accelerated | $0.0360 | $26.24 | - | - |
| Automatic - Automatic Confidential Compute | $0.0121 | $8.85 | - | - |
| Automatic - Automatic Memory Optimized | $0.0124 | $9.07 | - | - |
| Automatic - Automatic Hosted Control Plane | $0.1600 | $116.80 | - | - |
| Standard - Standard Long Term Support | $0.6000 | $438.00 | - | - |
| Automatic - Automatic Storage Optimized | $0.0145 | $10.58 | - | - |
| Automatic - Automatic Compute Optimized | $0.0122 | $8.90 | - | - |
How AKS Pricing Works
On-Demand
Pay per hour with no long-term commitment. Ideal for variable workloads and development environments.
Reserved / Committed Use
Commit to 1 or 3 years for significant discounts.
Spot / Preemptible
Use spare capacity at steep discounts. Best for fault-tolerant, batch, and stateless workloads.
Monthly Cost Examples
Azure AKS Free Tier
Free limit: Free (pay for nodes only). This free tier never expires and renews monthly.
Frequently Asked Questions
What is Azure AKS?
Azure AKS is a cloud service offered by Microsoft Azure. It provides various configurations (10 pricing tiers available) with pay-as-you-go and committed-use pricing options.
How much does Azure AKS cost per month?
Prices range from $5.34/month for Automatic - Automatic High Performance Compute to $438.00/month for Standard - Standard Long Term Support on On-Demand pricing in eastus.
Does Azure AKS have a free tier?
Azure offers various free tier options. Check the official Azure pricing page for the most current free tier details for AKS.
How many Azure AKS pricing tiers are available?
There are 10 pricing tiers available for Azure AKS. These range from entry-level configurations to high-performance options for enterprise workloads.
What pricing models does Azure AKS offer?
Azure AKS offers On-Demand (pay-per-hour, no commitment), Reserved/Committed Use (1-3 year commitments for significant discounts), and in some cases Spot/Preemptible pricing for interruptible workloads at the lowest cost.
What are the cost differences between managed Kubernetes and serverless containers?
Managed Kubernetes (EKS, AKS, GKE) charges a cluster management fee plus worker node costs, giving you full control over resource allocation. Serverless containers (Fargate, Cloud Run, Container Apps) charge per vCPU-second and GB-second with no cluster fee, making them cheaper for variable workloads but more expensive at sustained high utilization.