Quick Answer
Last verified:

AWS Elastic Load Balancing (ALB/NLB) pricing varies by team size and features, ranging from $0.0225 to $0.0225 per per month (varies by usage) in 2026. Your actual cost depends on the tier you choose, contract length, and negotiated discounts.

Use the interactive pricing calculator to estimate your exact cost based on team size and requirements.

  • Free tier: No free tier available
  • Billing: Monthly and annual (save 15-20%)
  • Hidden costs: Add ~35% for implementation, support, and training

AWS Elastic Load Balancing (ALB/NLB) offers 4 pricing tiers: Application Load Balancer (ALB), Network Load Balancer (NLB), Gateway Load Balancer (GWLB), Classic Load Balancer. The Network Load Balancer (NLB) plan is high-performance tcp/udp workloads.

Compared to other load balancers software, AWS Elastic Load Balancing (ALB/NLB) is positioned at the budget-friendly price point.

Last verified: February 2026 | Sources: 1 pricing pages and reviews

All AWS Elastic Load Balancing (ALB/NLB) Plans & Pricing

Plan Monthly Annual Best For
Application Load Balancer (ALB) Contact Contact HTTP/HTTPS applications with advanced routing
Network Load Balancer (NLB) Contact Contact High-performance TCP/UDP workloads
Gateway Load Balancer (GWLB) Contact Contact Deploying third-party network appliances
Classic Load Balancer Contact Contact Legacy applications (migration to ALB/NLB recommended)
View all features by plan

Application Load Balancer (ALB)

  • $0.0225 per ALB-hour (~$16.20/month) in US East
  • $0.008 per LCU-hour
  • Layer 7 load balancing (HTTP/HTTPS)
  • Path-based and host-based routing
  • WebSocket and HTTP/2 support
  • AWS WAF integration
  • Native container support (ECS, EKS)
  • Lambda function targets
  • gRPC support

Network Load Balancer (NLB)

  • $0.0225 per NLB-hour (~$16.20/month) in US East
  • $0.006 per NLCU-hour
  • Layer 4 load balancing (TCP/UDP/TLS)
  • Ultra-low latency (<100 microseconds)
  • Millions of requests per second
  • Static IP per Availability Zone
  • Elastic IP support
  • Preserve source IP
  • PrivateLink support

Gateway Load Balancer (GWLB)

  • $0.0125 per GWLB-hour (~$9/month) in US East
  • $0.004 per GLCU-hour
  • Layer 3 gateway + Layer 4 load balancing
  • Deploy virtual appliances (firewalls, IDS/IPS)
  • GENEVE protocol encapsulation
  • Gateway Load Balancer Endpoints
  • Transparent network traffic flow
  • High availability for security appliances

Classic Load Balancer

  • $0.025 per CLB-hour (~$18/month) in US East
  • $0.008 per GB of data processed
  • Layer 4 and Layer 7 load balancing
  • Basic HTTP/HTTPS and TCP load balancing
  • EC2-Classic support (deprecated)
  • Legacy option - not recommended for new apps
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Hidden Costs to Budget For

Watch for 9 hidden costs
  • Load Balancer Capacity Units (LCU) charged per dimension: new connections, active connections, processed bytes, rule evaluations
  • LCU costs vary by region (typically $0.008 per LCU-hour in US regions)
  • Data transfer charges for traffic processed through load balancer
  • Cross-AZ data transfer fees ($0.01/GB in most regions)
  • Public IPv4 address charges ($0.005 per hour per IP in 2026)
  • CloudWatch metrics and logging incur separate charges
  • AWS WAF integration adds $5/month + $1 per million requests
  • Higher LCU costs for Lambda targets vs EC2 targets (0.4 GB vs 1 GB per LCU)
  • Mutual TLS reduces active connections per LCU from 3,000 to 1,500
Tip

Ask your AWS Elastic Load Balancing (ALB/NLB) sales rep about these costs upfront. Getting them in writing before signing can save you from surprise charges later.

Full hidden costs breakdown →

Frequently Asked Questions

01 How are ALB and NLB costs calculated?

You pay an hourly rate (approximately $0.0225/hour or $16.20/month) plus usage-based charges per Load Balancer Capacity Unit (LCU). LCUs measure new connections, active connections, processed bytes, and rule evaluations. You're charged for the dimension with the highest usage each hour.

02 What's included in the AWS Free Tier for load balancers?

Starting July 15, 2025, new AWS customers receive up to $200 in Free Tier credits for 6 months, applicable to ELB and other services. Credits must be used within 12 months of account creation. Regular usage charges apply after credits are exhausted.

03 When should I use ALB vs NLB?

Use ALB for HTTP/HTTPS traffic requiring Layer 7 features like path-based routing, host headers, or Lambda targets. Use NLB for ultra-low latency, static IPs, TCP/UDP traffic, or handling millions of requests per second. NLB preserves source IPs and offers higher performance.

04 What additional AWS charges should I expect?

Beyond ELB charges, expect data transfer costs (especially cross-AZ at $0.01/GB), public IPv4 address charges ($0.005/hour per IP), CloudWatch metrics/logging, and potential WAF costs. Data transfer charges can significantly exceed base ELB costs for high-traffic applications.

05 Can I reduce my ELB costs?

Yes, strategies include: consolidating multiple ALBs using path-based routing, minimizing cross-AZ traffic, optimizing rule evaluations, using IPv6 to avoid IPv4 charges, right-sizing capacity by monitoring LCU usage, and deleting unused load balancers. Region selection also impacts costs.