Seeking Guidance on Reducing SES and SNS Costs in AWS Account

Hi Adit,

Amazon SES and Amazon SNS both have pricing models that can vary based on usage, region, and specific services used. Understanding these pricing models can help identify potential causes for increased costs.

Amazon SES Pricing:

• Sending Emails: SES charges based on the number of emails sent and the amount of data transferred. The cost per email can vary depending on the region and whether you're using a dedicated IP address.
• Receiving Emails: SES also charges for emails received, which includes processing and storage fees.
• Data Transfer: Additional charges apply for data transfer out of SES to the internet.

Possible Causes for Increased SES Costs:

• Higher volume of sent or received emails than anticipated.
• Use of dedicated IP addresses, which come with additional costs.
• Increased data transfer fees due to large email attachments or high volume.

Using EC2 can lead to additional data transfer charges, which could increase your overall costs.

Amazon SNS Pricing:

• SMS Messages: SNS charges for sending SMS messages based on the destination country, message type (standard or promotional), and carrier fees. Toll-free numbers have higher carrier fees.
• Other Notifications: SNS also charges for other types of notifications, such as email, HTTP/S, or Lambda function deliveries, but these costs are generally lower than SMS.

Possible Causes for Increased SNS Costs:

• High volume of outbound SMS messages, especially to or from toll-free numbers.
• International SMS messages, which can have higher rates depending on the destination.
• Use of premium message types or features that incur additional fees.

To accurately assess your expenses and gain insights into what you are being charged for, consider utilizing the AWS pricing calculator to simulate your specific scenario with your own data.