> ## Documentation Index
> Fetch the complete documentation index at: https://docs.monocle.sh/llms.txt
> Use this file to discover all available pages before exploring further.

# Pricing & Limits

> Plans, usage limits, data retention, and how billing works

## Plans

Pick a plan that fits your needs. Both plans include all features — the difference is data volume and retention.

<Tabs>
  <Tab title="Monthly">
    |                    | **Starter** | **Business** |
    | ------------------ | ----------- | ------------ |
    | **Price**          | €25/mo      | €79/mo       |
    | **Data included**  | 50 GB       | 200 GB       |
    | **Data retention** | 30 days     | 90 days      |
    | **Overage**        | €0.35/GB    | €0.30/GB     |
  </Tab>

  <Tab title="Yearly">
    |                    | **Starter** | **Business** |
    | ------------------ | ----------- | ------------ |
    | **Price**          | €250/yr     | €790/yr      |
    | **Data included**  | 50 GB       | 200 GB       |
    | **Data retention** | 30 days     | 90 days      |
    | **Overage**        | €0.35/GB    | €0.30/GB     |
  </Tab>
</Tabs>

All plans include:

* Unlimited applications and environments
* Unlimited team members
* Unlimited uptime monitors
* Monocle Studio (local DevTools)
* All features (tracing, logs, metrics, exceptions, AI monitoring, etc.)

## How Usage Is Calculated

Usage is measured by the **total size of data ingested** (in GB) during your billing period. This includes all telemetry signals:

* **Traces** — spans from distributed tracing
* **Logs** — log events
* **Metrics** — data points (counters, gauges, histograms)

The total size is the sum of estimated bytes across all signals, converted to GB. You can view your current usage and breakdown by application in the **Billing** section of your organization settings.

### Billing Period

Your billing period is tied to your subscription start date. For example, if you subscribed on March 15, your billing period runs from the 15th of each month to the 15th of the next month. Usage resets at the start of each billing period.

## Overages

Paid plans (Starter and Business) use **soft limits** — your data ingestion is never blocked when you exceed your plan's included data.

When you go over your plan's data limit:

1. Monocle continues to ingest all your data normally
2. The overage amount is calculated as the difference between your actual usage and your plan's included data, rounded up to the nearest GB
3. Overage charges are reported daily and billed automatically at the end of your billing period

<Note>
  Overages are billed per GB at the rate specified in your plan (€0.35/GB for Starter, €0.30/GB for Business).
</Note>

### Usage Alerts

Monocle sends email notifications to all organization members when your usage reaches certain thresholds:

| Threshold                          | Alert                                   |
| ---------------------------------- | --------------------------------------- |
| **80%** of your plan's data limit  | Warning — you're approaching your limit |
| **100%** of your plan's data limit | Over limit — overage charges will apply |

These alerts are sent once per billing period per threshold, so you won't be spammed.

## Data Retention

Data retention determines how long your telemetry data is stored and queryable in Monocle:

| Plan     | Retention |
| -------- | --------- |
| Starter  | 30 days   |
| Business | 90 days   |

After the retention period, data is automatically deleted. This applies to all signal types (traces, logs, metrics).

## Tracking Your Usage

Head to your **Organization Settings → Billing** to monitor your usage in real time. You'll see:

* **Overall usage** — how much data you've ingested this billing period, and what percentage of your plan's limit you've reached
* **Breakdown by application** — which app is sending the most data, in GB
* **Breakdown by environment** — drill down to see usage per environment within each app

This helps you identify which applications or environments are driving your data volume, so you can optimize instrumentation or plan upgrades accordingly.

## Managing Your Subscription

From the same **Billing** section, you can also:

* Upgrade or downgrade your plan
* Update your payment method
* Access your invoices through the Stripe billing portal

## FAQ

<AccordionGroup>
  <Accordion title="Can I try Monocle before subscribing?">
    Yes. Every new organization gets a 14-day trial with full access to all features.
  </Accordion>

  <Accordion title="Can I exceed my data limit?">
    Yes. Paid plans use soft limits — your data is never blocked. You'll be charged for overage at your plan's per-GB rate. Free/trial plans do not have overage charges, but data ingestion may be limited.
  </Accordion>

  <Accordion title="How is data size measured?">
    Data size is based on the estimated bytes of all ingested telemetry (traces, logs, and metrics). This is the actual payload size of your OpenTelemetry data as stored in Monocle.
  </Accordion>

  <Accordion title="Can I switch plans mid-billing period?">
    Yes. Plan changes take effect immediately. If you upgrade, you get access to the higher data limit and longer retention right away.
  </Accordion>

  <Accordion title="Do you offer custom plans?">
    If you need higher limits or custom retention periods, contact us to discuss enterprise options.
  </Accordion>
</AccordionGroup>