Amazon Neptune Pricing 2026
Plans, hidden costs, and cheaper alternatives compared
Is Amazon Neptune worth the price?
Amazon Neptune's pricing is fair, especially with the On-Demand tier starting at $0.1 per db.r5.large hour, offering a predictable cost for consistent usage.
The Serverless option provides flexibility for variable workloads, though its usage-based pricing requires careful monitoring. It's best for businesses needing a fully managed, scalable graph database without significant upfront investment.
Pricing Plans
Free TrialOn-Demand
$0.1/per db.r5.large hour
Pay-as-you-go
- Graph database
- Auto-scaling
- High availability
- All features
Serverless
Usage-based
Auto-scaling
- NCU-based pricing
- Scale to zero
- No capacity planning
Hidden Costs & Gotchas
Data transfer out of AWS regions
I/O operations beyond free tier
Backup storage costs
Additional AWS services integration fees
Which Plan Do You Need?
Startups needing scalable graph databases
Enterprises with fluctuating graph workloads
Developers prioritizing managed services
How Amazon Neptune Compares to Competitors
Compared to self-hosting graph databases like Neo4j, Neptune's On-Demand pricing at $0.1 per db.r5.large hour can be more expensive for continuous, high-utilization workloads due to managed service overhead. However, it significantly reduces operational costs and complexity compared to managing infrastructure and scaling manually, which can be a substantial hidden cost for alternatives.
Amazon Neptune Pricing FAQ
How much does Amazon Neptune cost?
Amazon Neptune uses custom pricing. Contact Amazon Neptune directly for a quote based on your team size and requirements.
Does Amazon Neptune have a free plan?
Yes. Amazon Neptune offers a free plan called "On-Demand". It includes: Graph database, Auto-scaling, High availability.
Does Amazon Neptune offer a free trial?
Yes, Amazon Neptune offers a free trial. No credit card is typically required to start the trial, though this may vary.
Is there a cheaper alternative to Amazon Neptune?
Yes. Popular alternatives to Amazon Neptune include Neo4j, TigerGraph, ArangoDB, JanusGraph. Free alternatives include Neo4j, TigerGraph, JanusGraph. Compare them side-by-side on Toolradar.
Cheaper alternatives to Amazon Neptune
4 of 5 direct competitors below offer a free plan. Per-seat pricing varies up to 60% across this set.