Memorystore Pricing Explained for Redis, Redis Cluster and Valkey

Memorystore pricing for Redis starts at about $35.77 per month for a 1 GiB Basic instance in Iowa, using USD on-demand pricing and 730 hours. Redis Cluster and Valkey charge per node, including replicas. Production costs depend on capacity, availability requirements and applicable networking, managed backup and AOF persistence charges.

Technical Content Writer, FinOps

Aman Singh

Technical Content Writer, FinOps

October 29, 2026

17 min read

Key takeaways

Redis Basic provides a standalone cache, while Standard includes high availability (HA). Redis Cluster and Valkey use separate node-based pricing.

A lightly used cache still incurs provisioned capacity charges. Less stored data alone does not lower the bill, and replicas add capacity costs.

Commitments offer 20% discounts for one year or 40% for three years on eligible usage, but unused commitments remain payable.

Memorystore pricing can look straightforward until you add the redundancy and spare capacity a production cache needs. This guide separates Redis, Redis Cluster and Valkey through three illustrative configurations, then explains replica costs, unused capacity, networking and data protection. It also shows where commitments can reduce eligible baseline spend.

Choose the right Memorystore product

Choose the service around your compatibility, availability and scaling requirements, then compare its Memorystore pricing model.

Product	Deployment distinction	Instance billing basis
Redis	Basic standalone or Standard high availability	Provisioned GiB and capacity tier; node count when read replicas are enabled
Redis Cluster	Data distributed across shards, with optional replicas	Every primary and replica node
Valkey	Cluster Mode Enabled or Cluster Mode Disabled	Every primary and replica node
Memcached	Managed Memcached service, now deprecated	Provisioned vCPUs and memory across nodes

A shard holds part of the dataset; its replicas hold copies. Replication therefore does not multiply the unique dataset capacity.

For existing deployments, Memcached pricing remains relevant. In Iowa, on-demand charges are $0.05/vCPU-hour plus $0.0044/GiB-hour for nodes up to 4 GiB, or $0.0089/GiB-hour above 4 GiB.

Memorystore for Memcached is deprecated: after February 1, 2027, new projects cannot create instances unless they already have them, and the service is scheduled to shut down on January 31, 2029. The three estimates below therefore focus on Redis, Redis Cluster, and Valkey.

How Memorystore pricing works

The tables below use Iowa (us-central1), USD on-demand rates, checked October 23, 2026. They exclude negotiated discounts, commitments and promotional credits. Billing uses second-level increments; 730 hours is a monthly estimating convention.

Redis tiers and capacity

For Redis instances without read replicas, multiply provisioned GiB by the applicable rate and hours.

Capacity tier	Provisioned size	Basic per GiB-hour	Standard per GiB-hour
M1	1–4 GiB	$0.049	$0.064
M2	5–10 GiB	$0.027	$0.054
M3	11–35 GiB	$0.023	$0.046
M4	36–100 GiB	$0.019	$0.035
M5	Above 100 GiB	$0.016	$0.030

Standard already includes cross-zone replication and automatic failover. Do not double this table’s Standard rate for its included HA replica. Enabling read replicas uses a different rate table, calculated as GiB per node × node rate × total nodes × hours.

Redis Cluster and Valkey nodes

Memorystore pricing for these products follows node type and count. These selected Redis Cluster rates and Valkey rates cover the worked examples; other node types have separate prices.

Product	Node type	Total memory per node	USD per node-hour
Redis Cluster	`redis-standard-small`	6.5 GB	$0.1425
Redis Cluster	`redis-highmem-medium`	13 GB	$0.1923
Valkey	`standard-small`	6.5 GB	$0.1425
Valkey	`highmem-medium`	13 GB	$0.1923

For clustered deployments, nodes = shards × (1 + replicas per shard). For Memorystore pricing comparisons, 1 GiB is approximately 1.074 GB; the units are not interchangeable. Node memory also includes reserved overhead; the writable keyspace is smaller.

Three Memorystore pricing examples

These are modeled instance estimates, using 730 hours in Iowa. They exclude networking, managed backups, AOF, taxes and platform fees. No promotional credits or CUDs are applied. They illustrate different configurations, not equivalent performance or measured production results.

Calculate Memorystore pricing from the worksheets below and each product’s published rates. Use the Google Cloud Pricing Calculator where your product and configuration are available.

Redis Standard with 20 GiB

Consider a cache requiring HA without a read-scaling endpoint.

Worksheet input	Selected configuration
Product	Memorystore for Redis
Tier and capacity	Standard M3, 20 GiB
Read replicas	Disabled; ordinary Standard HA included
Billing SKU	E825-7EFE-2FC9
Rate	$0.046/GiB-hour
Monthly calculation	20 × $0.046 × 730
Instance estimate	$671.60/month

Suppose only 8 of the 20 provisioned GiB are used. The bill remains $671.60. Allocating the charge proportionally assigns $402.96 to the unused 12 GiB: 12 × $0.046 × 730. That is not a realizable savings estimate. Google’s memory-management guidance explains why peak demand, overhead and recovery still require headroom.

Redis Cluster with three shards

This configuration distributes data across three primaries and maintains one replica per shard.

Worksheet input	Selected configuration
Product and node	Redis Cluster, `redis-standard-small`
Topology	3 shards × 2 nodes = 6 nodes
Billing SKU	02F6-0CB2-BDE1
Rate	$0.1425/node-hour
Monthly calculation	6 × $0.1425 × 730
Instance estimate	$624.15/month

Each primary has 5.2 GB of default writable keyspace, giving 15.6 GB across three shards. Six nodes do not provide 31.2 GB of unique keyspace because half are replicas, as the cluster node specifications clarify.

Valkey with two shards

This Cluster Mode Enabled instance uses larger nodes and fewer shards.

Worksheet input	Selected configuration
Product and node	Valkey, `highmem-medium`
Topology	2 shards × 2 nodes = 4 nodes
Billing SKU	37DF-F99E-DB1B
Rate	$0.1923/node-hour
Monthly calculation	4 × $0.1923 × 730
Instance estimate	$561.52/month

Its default writable keyspace is 20.8 GB across the two primaries. The lower modeled bill does not establish better performance or suitability; these examples have different capacity and topology.

What an additional replica costs

Adding one replica per shard to the Redis Cluster example adds three billable nodes:

3 × $0.1425 × 730 = $312.08 extra per month.

The nine-node total is $936.23/month, rounded after calculation. Unique writable keyspace remains 15.6 GB. This is why a replica request needs a topology check before its cost is approved.

Networking, backups and persistence charges

A complete Memorystore pricing estimate also accounts for the client location and data-protection settings.

For Redis, same-region access carries no Memorystore ingress or egress charge, although the client service may charge cross-zone egress. Different-region access adds applicable transfer charges.

Redis Cluster and Valkey use Private Service Connect. Their endpoints have no hourly charge, and same-zone consumer data processing is free. Cross-zone consumer data processing is charged in both directions, starting at $0.01/GiB for the first 1 PiB per month; lower rates apply at higher volumes.

Inter-region paths need separate checking. For example, 1,000 GiB of billable cross-zone processing adds $10.

Protection option	Budget treatment
Internal RDB recovery snapshots for Redis, Redis Cluster and Valkey	No additional instance-billing charge; not manually restorable backups
Manually exported Redis backups	RDB files in Cloud Storage; storage, operations and applicable transfer charges can apply
Managed backups for Redis Cluster or Valkey	Separate storage charges based on backup size, region and retention; minimum 24-hour charge per backup
Append-only file (AOF) persistence for Redis Cluster or Valkey	Additional charge based on total provisioned instance GB and enabled duration

For Redis, internal snapshots support recovery; manual backups export RDB files to Cloud Storage, where storage, operations and transfer charges can apply.

In Iowa, both products list $0.00054795/GB-hour for AOF and $0.00011111/GB-hour for backups. Enabling AOF on the six-node Redis Cluster example adds approximately $15.60/month: 6 × 6.5 GB × $0.00054795 × 730.

RDB and AOF cannot be enabled together on Redis Cluster or Valkey. Retained managed backups can continue costing money after the instance is deleted.

Memorystore commitment eligibility and exclusions

Committed use discounts lower eligible Memorystore pricing by 20% for one year or 40% for three years. These are spend-based commitments, fungible across eligible Memorystore services, regions and projects within the purchasing billing account.

Check the resource before applying a discount:

Redis M1 instances below 5 GiB are excluded, for both Basic and Standard tiers.

Valkey custom-pico, custom-micro and custom-mini are excluded, according to its node specifications.

Match the exact SKU and consumption model against Google's eligible-SKU list.

Budget backup, persistence and transfer charges separately. Confirm CUD coverage for the exact SKU and consumption model before applying a discount.

Under the new CUD model, the commitment amount is discounted hourly spend; legacy commitments use on-demand-equivalent spend. For a fully utilized $1/hour eligible on-demand baseline, the new-model amount is $0.80/hour for one year or $0.60/hour for three years.

If eligible usage falls below the commitment, the unused amount remains payable, and the CUD cannot be canceled after purchase.

Our GCP committed use discounts guide explains the broader commitment choices.

A practical Memorystore cost checklist

Before approving a Memorystore pricing estimate:

Record the product, region, tier or node type and billing SKU.

Count primaries and replicas separately.

Check writable keyspace, peak memory, CPU and latency requirements.

Separate instance cost from network, backup and AOF charges.

Model planned resizing or migration before sizing commitments.

Review existing coverage and the eligible hourly spend you expect to sustain.

Keep operational headroom justified by workload requirements; unused capacity is a reason to investigate, not proof that downsizing is safe.

Also read: Our GCP cost optimization best practices place sizing and commitment decisions within a broader cost-review process.

How we help with Memorystore commitments

Once your Memorystore pricing estimate is clear, we can help review the spend that existing commitments do not cover. Our GCP cost optimization platform supports Memorystore commitment management.

Our read-only Savings Test reviews billing, usage and existing coverage; purchasing requires separate authorization and permissions.

Google’s three-year Memorystore CUD provides a 40% discount on eligible usage. Whether a commitment qualifies for our Flex Insured Commitment program depends on the applicable program requirements and agreement.

If an eligible Flex Commitment costs more than equivalent pay-as-you-go usage, we provide Cashback protection for the qualifying difference, subject to your agreement and program terms. Our protection does not cancel the underlying commitment, and we do not automatically protect existing customer-owned commitments as Flex Commitments.

We charge an agreed percentage of realized savings, so the fee applies when verified savings are generated.

Conclusion

To estimate Memorystore pricing, start with an exact deployment and a calculation you can reproduce. Add the costs outside the instance, preserve the capacity your workload needs, and assess commitments against sustainable eligible spend. The lowest modeled total becomes meaningful only when the configuration meets your operational requirements.

Once your configuration and eligible baseline are clear, our read-only Savings Test can help assess existing coverage and additional commitment opportunities.

GCP COMMITMENT EVALUATION

Evaluate BigQuery Commitments

Review eligible baseline spend and existing coverage with a read-only Savings Test.

Run a Savings Test

Frequently asked questions

How much does Memorystore for Redis cost monthly?

At Iowa on-demand rates, a 1 GiB Basic instance is about $35.77 for 730 hours; a 1 GiB Standard instance is $46.72. Larger instances use their applicable capacity-tier rate, so these are not universal per-GiB prices.

Is Redis free on Google Cloud?

Running a Memorystore for Redis instance incurs provisioned capacity charges. Any applicable promotional credits offset eligible charges; they do not make the managed service permanently free.

Can I pause Memorystore for Redis to stop charges?

No. Redis has no user-controlled stop/start billing mode in its instance-management API. Removing application traffic does not stop provisioned capacity billing.

Does Valkey always cost less than Redis?

No. The selected Redis Cluster and Valkey node pairs above have matching hourly rates. The monthly total depends on topology, node choice and additional charges; a cheaper example is not a performance comparison.

See cloud commitment management in action.