Reserved Capacity Break Even Calculator

Work out reserved capacity break even instantly with clear inputs, formula shown and shareable results.

About Reserved Capacity Break Even Calculator

A partial-upfront reservation breaks even once the accumulated hourly saving covers the upfront payment. Expressing that as a utilisation percentage of the term is the useful form: if break-even needs 45 percent utilisation and the instance runs continuously, the reservation is clearly right; if it runs eight hours a day, it is not.

Formula

Reservation break-even

hourly saving = on-demand - reserved hourly; break-even hours = upfront / hourly saving; break-even utilisation = break-even hours / term hours

Worked example

With the default values below, Reserved Capacity Break Even Calculator returns Hours of use to break even of 5,417. Change any input above and every figure here is recalculated in your browser.

Inputs used

On-demand hourly rateminimum 0: 0.192
Reserved instance upfront paymentminimum 0: 780
Reserved hourly rateminimum 0: 0.048
Reservation termaccepts 1–60 months: 12 months

Results

Hours of use to break even: 5,417 h
Utilisation needed to break even: 61.8%
Saving over the full term at 100 percent use: $481.44
Effective discount: 28.6%

Step by step

1Values used
2Reservation break-even
3Hours of use to break even= 5,417 h
4Utilisation needed to break even= 61.8
5Saving over the full term at 100 percent use= 481.44
6Effective discount= 28.6

Assumptions and limits

The result is derived only from the 4 inputs listed above. Anything not among them is not part of the calculation.
In particular, this calculator does not take inflation, fees or charges or compounding frequency into account.
Figures are rounded for display to 2 decimal places, so totals built from several rounded parts can differ slightly from the unrounded arithmetic.

How these calculators are built and tested is described on the Methodology page. If a figure looks wrong, please report it.

Frequently Asked Questions

What if the workload changes mid-term?

Convertible reservations can be exchanged for a different family at a smaller discount, and savings plans apply across families. Standard reservations can only be sold on the marketplace where one exists.

Should reservations or savings plans be preferred?

Savings plans are more flexible and usually the default choice. Reservations still win where capacity reservation in a specific zone is needed as well as the discount.