Background

Pricing and Calculator

Transparent pricing system designed to stay simple for small projects and scalable for larger deployments

Pay-as-You-Go

Æthernet offers simple pricing model, ensuring cost-effective scalability for all users

Data Transfer*

$0.20

per 1 GB

Zero-touch provisioning

$0.001

per request

UID** Leasing***

$0.50 for the 1st UID

$0.02 for UIDs from 2nd to 100th

$0.0002 for UIDs over 100th

per UID per month

*
  • Only the UDP/TCP payload is billed. TLS, DTLS, HTTP, and WebSocket overhead is not included
  • Traffic is metered per byte and includes your application data plus Æthernet protocol headers
  • Both inbound and outbound traffic is billed

** UID (Unique Identifier) is an addressable identity in Æthernet used for routing and access control. A physical device typically uses one UID, but a device can hold multiple UIDs when you separate roles or data layers

*** UID leasing means you rent UIDs from the infrastructure and are billed per active UID per month. When a UID is released or deactivated, the leasing charge stops for that UID

Use Æthernet for free

Every new self-provisioned client account starts with $0 balance and a credit limit of $10. This allows to test Æthernet services for free and to use them within this limit as if your balance were above $0.

Every 24 hours after client creation, the account is automatically credited with $0.03, up to a maximum balance of $0. This ensures continuous access to connected devices within the free tier.

If a client (along with all associated child clients) remains offline for over 30 days, auto-refilling is disabled.

Pricing Calculator

Enter a few basic parameters to estimate your monthly costs on Æthernet.
For real-world usage scenarios check the pricing examples below.

Monthly traffic per device
Number of devices
UIDs on each device *
* Typically, the default configuration is one UID per device. In more complex deployments, a device can have multiple UIDs, with each UID acting as a node at a different data layer and mapped to different systems.

Examples

These pricing examples include only billable items on Æthernet: Data Transfer, Zero-touch provisioning, and UID Leasing. Cases are interactive and you can update any highlighted number in-place to see the math recalculate instantly.

Example 1: DIY Smart Greenhouse Controller

A fully automated climate control system designed for private greenhouses or indoor hydroponic setups. The system continuously monitors environmental parameters such as soil moisture, temperature, and light intensity. Based on this telemetry, it automatically triggers irrigation pumps, ventilation fans, or heating units to maintain a specific microclimate without human intervention. The solution also provides a remote dashboard for manual overrides and status checks

System architecture

  • Edge node: an ESP32-based controller connected to sensors (temperature, humidity, soil moisture, light) and actuators (pumps, fans, heaters) via relays.
  • Operator node: a mobile app / web dashboard used for monitoring, alerts, and manual overrides.
  • Data flow: the controller sends telemetry to the dashboard (and optionally to a small home server / cloud backend), while the operator can send short command packets back. All packets go through the same encrypted messaging channel.
  • Active devices per month:
  • Average message size:
  • Each active device sends one message every

Monthly charges

  • UID Leasing =
  • Data Transfer charges =
Total recurring charges =
Provisioning charges =
Estimated first period with provisioning =

Expenses for such small projects can be covered by our credit policy and these solutions can be deployed essentially for free as long as they stay inside the limits.

Example 2: Small Business Local Delivery Fleet

A last-mile logistics solution for a regional courier service operating a fleet of electric scooters and light vans. The system is designed to track vehicle locations in real-time within dense urban environments ("urban canyons") where cellular signal is often intermittent. Beyond coordinates, the system collects telemetry on battery health, speed, and potential theft attempts (geofencing breaches), transmitting this data to a central dispatch software for route optimization

System architecture

  • Vehicle trackers: each scooter/van has a GPS tracker (or a small telematics unit) that sends location, battery health, and safety events.
  • Dispatch backend: a single always-online service ingests telemetry, computes routes, and pushes short downlink updates (jobs, pings, configuration).
  • Typical topology: many devices to one backend node. Every device keeps its own identity (UID) and exchanges small packets with the dispatch service.
  • Active devices per month:
  • Average message size:
  • Each active device sends one message every

Monthly charges

  • UID Leasing =
  • Data Transfer charges =
Total recurring charges =
Provisioning charges =
Estimated first period with provisioning =

Example 3: Corporate Smart Business Center

A unified facility management ecosystem for a multi-tenant Class-A office building. The solution integrates disparate building systems into a single secure network to manage physical access and energy efficiency. It controls magnetic door locks based on employee digital keys and regulates HVAC systems based on real-time room occupancy and CO2 levels. The system ensures that sensitive access data remains within a closed, encrypted loop

System architecture

  • Endpoints: door locks, HVAC controllers, room sensors, and safety systems. Most endpoints are low-power devices that emit frequent, small packets.
  • Facility services: a small set of always-online apps (access control, HVAC automation, incident response) that aggregate events and send control commands.
  • Message patterns: high-volume telemetry (sensors) plus bursty events (doors, badges, actuators). Downlink is typically a fraction of uplink (commands, acks, configuration).
  • Active devices per month:
  • Average message size:
  • Each active device sends one message every

Monthly charges

  • UID Leasing =
  • Data Transfer charges =
Total recurring charges =
Provisioning charges =
Estimated first period with provisioning =

Example 4: Enterprise Global Messaging Infrastructure

A backend signaling backbone for a cross-platform communication service (messenger or collaboration tool) with a global user base. The infrastructure is responsible for the instant routing of data packets, managing user presence states (online/offline/typing), and delivering push notifications. Unlike a database that stores history, this layer ensures the real-time transport of messages and commands between millions of concurrent clients with minimal latency

System architecture

  • Clients: mobile and desktop apps that exchange signaling packets (presence, typing, call setup, short control messages) in real time.
  • Backend: a thin routing layer (plus optional business logic) that receives packets, applies access rules, and forwards them to recipients.
  • Traffic profile: very high packet rate, small payloads. This layer is not a chat history database, it is the real-time transport and presence backbone.
  • Active devices per month:
  • Average message size:
  • Each active device sends one message every

Monthly charges

  • UID Leasing =
  • Data Transfer charges =
Total recurring charges =
Provisioning charges =
Estimated first period with provisioning =