Introducing simplified pricing, lower rates, and $50 to get you started

Two years ago, we shifted to a usage-based pricing model with tiers designed for teams of different sizes.

At the time, that was a big step forward. We moved away from per-device pricing and toward something that better reflected how IoT devices actually behaved. You only paid for what you used, which made things like efficient, low-power devices much easier to support.

But it still wasn’t simple enough.

Over the past couple of years, we’ve worked with teams building real products. Fleets in production. Devices on cellular. Systems that actually have to run reliably for years.

And we kept hearing the same things:

“Pricing is too complicated.”
“It’s hard to predict my costs”
“Too expensive. My device sends gigabytes of data.”

So we simplified it. And while we were at it, we made it cheaper.

What changed

At a high level, Golioth pricing now maps directly to how your IoT fleet operates.

You pay for connections when devices securely connect. You pay for fleet operations when you deliver updates. And you pay for data routing when you move data through the system.

Pricing

And for application services:

Customers receive free data retention by default:

• Logs: 14 days
  
• LightDB Stream: 30 days
  
• Longer retention available as a part of annual contract agreements

These prices are designed to scale with real-world usage, whether you’re sending kilobytes or gigabytes of data 

We also removed platform tiers entirely. Everything that used to live behind plans like Teams is now available by default. Collaboration, multiple projects, access control –  these are now available to every user and organization.

Pricing should work at both ends of the spectrum

When we first introduced usage-based pricing, most IoT products running on Golioth looked similar. Small payloads, low bandwidth, large fleets. And that’s still true for a lot of deployments, but it’s no longer the only pattern.

We’re seeing more systems that look very different. Devices sending significantly more data. Edge AI workloads generating richer outputs. Fleets that behave more like distributed compute systems than simple sensors. The gap between a “sensor” and a “system” is shrinking.

Pricing should not force tradeoffs here. It should not require teams to spend time optimizing around pricing constraints instead of real ones like power, reliability, or performance. Models that work for kilobytes often break down when devices start sending megabytes or gigabytes, and that creates the wrong incentives.

We believe pricing should hold up as your system evolves. From low-power sensors that check in a few times a day to high-bandwidth systems like AI-powered drones and edge compute devices, the model should scale with you, not work against you.

Simpler, modular, and predictable

Under the hood, this aligns with how we think about the platform itself.

Golioth is built around a few core capabilities: identity and secure connectivity, fleet management, and data routing. These are the fundamental building blocks of most IoT systems.

On top of that, we offer application services like Logs, LightDB Stream (timeseries data), and Location.

Each of these areas is priced independently. You can use what you need, ignore what you don’t, and plug in your own systems wherever it makes sense.

Application services, optional by design

We also simplified how we think about application services.

• Logs store your device logs.
• LightDB Stream stores your time-series data.
• Location turns network data into positioning data.

Each is optional. Each is priced independently. Each can be replaced with your own infrastructure if you already have something in place.

The intent is not to lock you in. It’s to give you a faster path when you don’t want to build everything yourself.

Getting started should still be easy

We’re keeping the barrier to entry low. Every new account includes $50 in usage credits so you can get up and running without worrying about cost on day one. Existing accounts will receive the same credit in their next billing cycle.

Based on our analysis of typical usage, this goes a long way. For a simple prototype, one device streaming a few megabytes per month should last you around 48 months. A handful of devices with a small team should comfortably get you to at least a year before you even have to think about pricing.

Built for scale

For larger fleets and existing customers, overall costs are generally lower under the new model. On average, customers on annual contracts are seeing savings of 50%–80% compared to previous pricing.

We’ve reduced key usage costs and simplified how billing works, so as your fleet grows, your costs scale more predictably with actual usage.

These pricing changes will take effect starting with the April billing cycle. Existing customers will receive direct communication from their account manager. If you have questions, want help thinking through your usage, or want to discuss an annual contract with volume discounts, reach out:
[email protected]

Frequently Asked Questions

What is the relationship between Golioth and Canonical? Golioth has recently joined the Canonical family. This pricing update is part of that next chapter together.

What is changing with Golioth’s pricing starting April 1, 2026? Golioth is moving from fixed platform tiers to a purely usage-based, modular model. You only pay for the specific infrastructure and application services you use, and costs scale naturally with your fleet size.

Is team collaboration still a paid feature? No, it’s now free for everyone. Fixed-fee tiers like Teams and Enterprise are being retired, and all users now get team collaboration features. This includes the ability to manage multiple projects from a single Organization, with pre-built permission roles covering read-only, collaborator, and administrator access.

What are the specific new pricing rates? The new usage-based rates are:

• Connect (device connections): $0.25 per unique device connection per month
• Fleet Management (OTA updates): $0.0095 per megabyte of OTA
• Pipelines (data routing): $0.0080 per megabyte
• Logs (long-term storage beyond 14 days): $0.001 per megabyte
• LightDB Stream (long-term storage beyond 30 days): $0.001 per megabyte
• Location (network-based positioning): $0.005 per API call

How does device connection pricing work exactly? The $0.25 connection fee is charged per unique device that establishes a secure Golioth connection within a given month. Importantly, the fee only applies in months where a connection is actually made — so dormant devices don’t accrue charges.

How is OTA/Fleet Management pricing calculated? Fleet Mangement costs are calculated at the organizational level based on total monthly OTA data volume.  Total OTA data volume is a function of update frequency, update size and total number of devices receiving updates.

What about Settings, RPCs, and LightDB State?
Settings, RPCs, and LightDB State remain included as part of fleet management nd have no additional usage cost.

Do Logs and LightDB Stream include any free data retention? Yes. Logs include 14 days of free data retention, and LightDB Stream includes 30 days. Extended storage beyond those windows is available as an opt-in, billed per-service at the organizational level.

What is the $50 usage credit? Every customer receives $50 in usage credits, which can be applied toward usage and connection fees. This can be used to cover the costs during development and prototyping efforts over several months. 

Are device connection fees changing immediately? The new pricing takes effect April 1, 2026, but device connection fees are fully waived for the month of April as a one-time offer. Connection fees will begin applying from the May 2026 billing cycle onward. Existing platform subscriptions like Teams will not renew at the end of their current billing cycle.

Will my existing setup be affected during the transition? No. Core services, device APIs, secure device-to-cloud and cloud-to-cloud connections, the web console, management APIs, and your organization/project hierarchy all remain unchanged. Support via the Developer Forum is also unaffected.

Do I need to do anything regarding billing? Yes. Golioth is migrating to Canonical’s billing system, so you will need to re-add your payment information. A separate email with step-by-step instructions will follow to all current paying customers.

Where can I get more details or ask questions? Reach the team at [email protected] or through the Golioth Developer Forum.