Certificate Manager Payment Inquiries

I understand your concern about the unexpected $164 charge related to AWS Certificate Manager. Based on your description, it sounds like you may have created an exportable public certificate or possibly a private certificate authority (CA).

Here's what you should know:

1. While standard public SSL/TLS certificates from AWS Certificate Manager are free, there are two types that incur charges:

• Exportable public certificates cost $149 per wildcard name
• Private Certificate Authorities cost around $400 per month

2. Unfortunately, once these certificates are issued, the charges apply immediately and cannot be reversed, even if you haven't actively used them.

3. If you've already deleted the certificate but are still seeing charges, it's important to verify that you've properly deleted all associated resources. If you created a Private CA, you need to follow a specific deletion process for that resource.

For immediate action, I recommend:

1. Check your AWS Billing console to identify exactly which certificate service incurred the charges
2. Delete any remaining certificate resources to prevent future charges
3. Contact AWS Support directly through the AWS Support Center under the "Account and Billing Support" category
4. Explain your situation as a student learning AWS and request assistance with the billing issue

For future reference, consider setting up billing alerts to notify you before unexpected charges accumulate. As a student, you might also want to explore if you're eligible for AWS Educate or other student programs that provide credits.
Sources
Cancel public exportable certificate | AWS re:Post
AWS Certificate Manager Billings | AWS re:Post
Request for Review of Charges for Unused AWS Service | AWS re:Post
Deleted certificate and still getting billed for it? | AWS re:Post

If you want to see exactly why you were charged, you can either check the billing breakdown in your AWS Billing dashboard, or go to the Cost Explorer and filter the report by Usage Type under Dimensions and Certificate Manager under Service.