Billing misunderstand

Question

I'm new to AWS and I'm using the free tier for less than two weeks, suddenly I get an email notification saying that I have passed a limit on one service, so I checked it out to be surprised that I have been billed with 4.48 dollars for nothing, I was only testing EC2 in the first week then I left nothing running on my console, I just want to know what mistake from me led to this situation

re:Post Agent · Answer

As a new AWS user experiencing unexpected charges, it's important to understand that even when using the free tier, certain actions can lead to billable usage. Here's what might have happened in your situation:

1. Free Tier Limits: While you're within the 12-month free tier period, there are still limits to what's covered. For EC2, you get 750 hours per month of a t2.micro instance (or equivalent). If you exceeded this, you could be charged.

2. Stopped vs. Terminated Instances: If you simply stopped your EC2 instance instead of terminating it, you might still be charged for the associated EBS (Elastic Block Store) volumes. These continue to incur costs even when the instance is stopped.

3. Elastic IP Addresses: If you allocated an Elastic IP address and didn't release it when you were done, this could result in charges.

4. Other Associated Resources: Services launched alongside your EC2 instance, such as load balancers or additional storage, might not be covered by the free tier.

5. Region-specific Usage: Ensure you're not running resources in multiple regions, as free tier limits apply per region.

To address this:

1. Check your billing dashboard to see exactly what services are generating charges.
2. Terminate (not just stop) any EC2 instances you're not using.
3. Delete any unnecessary EBS volumes or snapshots.
4. Release any unattached Elastic IP addresses.
5. Review and remove any other resources you might have created during your testing.

For future protection, consider setting up AWS Budgets or Free Tier usage alerts. These can notify you when you're approaching or exceeding free tier limits, helping you avoid unexpected charges.

Remember, while AWS offers a generous free tier, it's crucial to monitor your usage and understand which actions might lead to billable services.
      
**Sources**  
[Understanding unexpected charges - AWS Billing](https://docs.aws.amazon.com/awsaccountbilling/latest/aboutv2/checklistforunwantedcharges.html)  
[Being charged, but have no services running? | AWS re:Post](https://repost.aws/questions/QUJxo54UH3QTePc4o3iiJpkQ/being-charged-but-have-no-services-running)  
[Tracking your AWS Free Tier usage - AWS Billing](https://docs.aws.amazon.com/awsaccountbilling/latest/aboutv2/tracking-free-tier-usage.html)  
[Charged for AWS despite using Free tier | AWS re:Post](https://repost.aws/questions/QUAzfwlMf3Qi6fMukKHh_U3w/charged-for-aws-despite-using-free-tier)

Billing misunderstand

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