Introduction
Google Cloud Platform is a public cloud vendor like Amazon Web Services (AWS) and Microsoft Azure. Customers can use GCP and other cloud providers to gain free or pay-per-use access to computer resources hosted in Google's data centres across the world.
GCP provides a spectrum of computing services ranging from GCP cost management to data management to web and video delivery via the web to AI and machine learning capabilities. A cloud billing account is one of the services offered by GCP, which specifies who is responsible for paying for a specific set of Google Cloud resources. Furthermore, in this article, we will be discussing Google Cloud Billing and managing bills for projects in GCP.
Google Cloud Billing
A Cloud Billing account specifies who pays for a certain set of Google Cloud services and can be associated with one or more Google Cloud projects. The associated Cloud Billing account is charged for your project usage.
Your Cloud Billing account can be one of two sorts, depending on how and when you pay for Google Cloud services and use Google Maps Platform APIs:
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Invoiced billing
When you use invoiced billing, you first incur charges and then receive a monthly invoice. You pay your bill by check or bank transfer. An invoice for a certain month should be accessible by the fifth business day of the next month
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Self-serve billing
If you have a self-service billing account, your expenses are automatically invoiced in one of two ways:
A consistent monthly cycle (monthly billing)
When your account has accumulated a specific number of charges (threshold billing)
How the charging cycle is set
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You normally receive one invoice each month for invoiced Cloud Billing accounts, and the time you have to pay your invoice (your payment terms) is dictated by the agreement you signed with Google.
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When you create a self-service Cloud Billing account, your charge cycle is automatically allocated. You do not get to pick your charging cycle, and you cannot modify it.
View your Cloud Billing charging cycle
View the payment summary for your Cloud Billing account to see your Cloud Billing cycle and how and when you are charged:
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In the Google Cloud interface, sign in to your Cloud Billing account.
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Access your Cloud Billing account.
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Select the Cloud Billing account for which you want to examine your charge cycle at the prompt. The Billing Overview page for the specified billing account appears.
- Click the Payment Overview tab on the Payment Overview page. Find your billing cycle, as well as your current outstanding balance and the date and amount of your most recent payment:
Invoicing (terms): This is an invoiced Cloud Billing account, which means you incur charges first and then receive a monthly invoice. These expenses are paid for via a cheque or a bank transfer. By the fifth business day of the next month, an invoice for a certain month should be accessible. The payment conditions, including the number of days you have to pay your invoice, are shown in parenthesis (for example, Net 30 days). According to the terms and conditions, you must pay your invoice within the timeframe agreed upon with Google.
Monthly automatic payments: This Cloud Billing account has a monthly billing cycle, and the attached payment instrument (such as a credit card or bank account) will be automatically charged for charges incurred during the previous month on the second day of each month.
Automatic payments: The associated payment instrument (such as a credit card or bank account) will be charged automatically when the expenses accumulated meet the threshold amount or thirty days after your previous bill, whichever comes first.
End of month (EOM): This Cloud Billing account has a threshold billing cycle, and the attached payment instrument (such as a credit card or bank account) is automatically charged when the expenses accrued to reach the threshold amount. Furthermore, the remainder of the costs incurred by the end of the month will be automatically charged to the associated payment instrument on the first day of the following month.
About threshold billing
Threshold billing is a Cloud Billing account that is automatically paid using an automatically determined payment threshold. A threshold is a set amount of expenditure that, when reached, results in a charge to your principal payment method (such as a credit card or bank account).
For a certain duration, the threshold begins at a predetermined quantity. The timeframe is either 30 days (Automatic payments cycle) or monthly (End of month cycle).
How your threshold amount is determined
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When you create a self-service Cloud Billing account for the first time, you are immediately assigned a beginning payment threshold amount. You do not get to pick your threshold amount, and you cannot directly alter it.
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If your cumulative expenses trigger a threshold payment on your Cloud Billing account, your threshold amount is immediately raised. This modification may occur many times until your account reaches a final threshold amount.
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Threshold quantities vary according to your account, country, and currency.
- When your Cloud Billing threshold increases, you will not be contacted or informed, but you may see your current threshold amount at any time by navigating to your billing pages in the Google Cloud console.
Find your payment threshold amount.
View the payment summary for your Cloud Billing account to determine your payment threshold:
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In the Google Cloud interface, sign in to your Cloud Billing account.
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Select the Cloud Billing account for which you want to see your payment threshold at the popup. The Billing Overview page for the specified billing account appears.
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Select the Payment Overview tab from the Billing Overview page.
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Your assigned threshold amount, as well as your charging cycle, are shown on the Your balance card.
For example, if your Cloud Billing threshold is $100.00 and you have yet to incur any charges for the month, you may get a notice stating, "Your complete $100.00 payment threshold is accessible."
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