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Savings Plans

AWS Savings Plans offer significant discounts (up to 72%) on compute usage in exchange for a commitment to a consistent amount of usage (measured in dollars per hour) over a one- or three-year term. Guardian Pro analyses your historical usage patterns and recommends the optimal Savings Plan configuration to maximise your savings while minimising commitment risk.

What Are AWS Savings Plans?​

Savings Plans are a flexible pricing model that provides lower prices on AWS compute usage. Unlike Reserved Instances, which are tied to specific instance configurations, Savings Plans offer broader flexibility:

Plan TypeFlexibilityDiscount Level
Compute Savings PlansAny EC2 instance family, size, OS, tenancy, and region. Also applies to Fargate and Lambda.Moderate (up to ~66%)
EC2 Instance Savings PlansSpecific instance family in a specific region (any size, OS, tenancy within that family)Higher (up to ~72%)
SageMaker Savings PlansSageMaker ML instance usageSimilar to Compute SP
info

Compute Savings Plans are the most flexible option and are generally recommended unless you have a very stable workload on a specific instance family. They automatically apply to EC2, Fargate, and Lambda usage across all regions.

How Guardian Pro Analyses Your Usage​

Guardian Pro's Savings Plan advisor examines your compute usage history to determine the optimal commitment level:

  1. Usage baseline -- Analyses your recent compute usage to establish a stable baseline of consistent, predictable spend.
  2. Scenario modelling -- Generates multiple commitment scenarios at different levels to show the trade-off between commitment and savings.
  3. Coverage analysis -- Determines what percentage of your compute usage would be covered at each commitment level.
  4. Risk assessment -- Evaluates the risk of over-commitment based on your usage variability.

Viewing Recommendations​

Navigate to Cost Analysis > Financial Advisory > Savings Plans to view Savings Plan recommendations.

Recommendation Summary​

The summary view shows:

FieldDescription
Current Monthly On-Demand SpendYour total compute spend at on-demand rates
Recommended CommitmentThe hourly commitment amount Guardian Pro recommends
Estimated Monthly SavingsProjected savings from adopting the recommendation
Estimated Savings PercentagePercentage reduction in compute costs
Plan TypeThe recommended Savings Plan type
TermRecommended commitment term (1-year or 3-year)
Payment OptionAll Upfront, Partial Upfront, or No Upfront

Scenario Comparison​

Guardian Pro presents multiple commitment scenarios so you can choose the level that matches your risk tolerance:

ScenarioDescription
ConservativeLower commitment, lower savings, minimal risk of over-committing
ModerateBalanced commitment based on your stable baseline usage
AggressiveHigher commitment, maximum savings, some risk if usage decreases

Each scenario shows:

  • The hourly commitment amount
  • Estimated monthly savings
  • Coverage percentage (what portion of your usage is covered)
  • Effective hourly rate vs. on-demand
  • Break-even analysis (how much your usage can drop before savings are negated)
tip

If you are new to Savings Plans, start with a conservative commitment. You can always purchase additional Savings Plans later to cover more usage. Over-committing means paying for capacity you do not use.

Understanding Coverage​

Savings Plan coverage indicates what percentage of your compute usage falls under the discounted rate:

  • 100% coverage means all your compute usage is covered by Savings Plans (this typically means you are over-committed on some hours)
  • 70-85% coverage is a common sweet spot -- your baseline usage is covered, while variable peaks pay on-demand rates
  • Below 50% coverage suggests significant savings opportunities remain

The optimal coverage level depends on your usage variability. Steady workloads benefit from higher coverage; highly variable workloads should target lower coverage to avoid waste.

Savings Plan Types Explained​

Compute Savings Plans​

Best for organisations that value flexibility:

  • Applies automatically to EC2, Fargate, and Lambda usage
  • No region, instance family, or size restrictions
  • Lower discount than EC2 Instance SP, but maximum flexibility
  • Ideal if you expect to change instance types, regions, or compute services over the commitment term

EC2 Instance Savings Plans​

Best for stable workloads on known instance families:

  • Tied to a specific instance family (e.g., m5) in a specific region
  • Any size within the family is covered (e.g., m5.large through m5.24xlarge)
  • Higher discount than Compute SP
  • Ideal for production workloads on established instance types

When to Choose Each​

ScenarioRecommended Plan
Using multiple compute services (EC2 + Lambda + Fargate)Compute Savings Plan
Planning to migrate instance types in the next 1-3 yearsCompute Savings Plan
Stable production workload on a known instance familyEC2 Instance Savings Plan
Uncertain about future compute needsCompute Savings Plan (conservative commitment)

Payment Options​

OptionDiscountCash Flow Impact
All UpfrontHighest discountLarge upfront payment, no monthly charges
Partial UpfrontModerate discountUpfront payment plus reduced monthly charges
No UpfrontLowest discountNo upfront payment, monthly charges only

All Upfront provides the deepest discount but requires capital. No Upfront preserves cash flow at the expense of a smaller discount. For most organisations, Partial Upfront offers a good balance.

Before Purchasing Savings Plans​

warning

Rightsize before you commit. Savings Plans lock in a commitment for 1-3 years. If you purchase a Savings Plan based on current usage and then rightsize, your commitment may exceed your actual usage, resulting in waste. Always implement Rightsizing and Waste Detection recommendations before purchasing commitment-based discounts.

Pre-Purchase Checklist​

  1. Complete rightsizing -- Ensure resources are appropriately sized before committing.
  2. Eliminate waste -- Remove idle and unused resources.
  3. Review growth plans -- Factor in planned infrastructure changes.
  4. Check existing commitments -- Review current Reserved Instances and Savings Plans to avoid overlap.
  5. Understand cancellation terms -- Savings Plans cannot be cancelled or modified after purchase.

Purchasing Savings Plans​

Guardian Pro provides recommendations, but Savings Plans are purchased directly through the AWS Console:

  1. Review the Guardian Pro recommendation.
  2. Navigate to the AWS Cost Management Console > Savings Plans.
  3. Click Purchase Savings Plans.
  4. Configure the plan type, commitment amount, term, and payment option based on the Guardian Pro recommendation.
  5. Review and confirm the purchase.
note

Guardian Pro does not purchase Savings Plans on your behalf. The purchase is made through the AWS Console to ensure you have full control over financial commitments.

Monitoring Savings Plan Utilisation​

After purchasing Savings Plans, monitor their utilisation through:

  • Guardian Pro's Savings Tracker -- See Savings Tracker for realised savings tracking.
  • Coverage reports -- Regular updates on how much of your compute usage is covered.
  • Utilisation alerts -- Notifications when Savings Plan utilisation drops below expected levels.

Savings Plans vs. Reserved Instances​

DimensionSavings PlansReserved Instances
FlexibilityHigh (Compute SP covers any instance type)Low (locked to specific instance type and region)
Discount depthUp to ~72%Up to ~72%
Applies toEC2, Fargate, LambdaEC2, RDS, ElastiCache, etc.
Management overheadLow (automatic application)Higher (manual matching, capacity planning)

For new commitments, AWS generally recommends Savings Plans over Reserved Instances for EC2 due to the flexibility advantage. For RDS and ElastiCache, Reserved Instances remain the only commitment-based discount option. See Reserved Instances for RI management.

Next Steps​