Create Cost Categories

Overview

AWS Cost Categories is a feature within AWS Cost Management product suite that enables you to group cost and usage information into meaningful categories based on your needs. You can create custom categories and map your cost and usage information into these categories based on the rules defined by you using various dimensions such as account, tag, service, charge type, and even other cost categories. Once cost categories are set up and enabled, you will be able to view your cost and usage information by these categories starting at the beginning of the month in AWS Cost Explorer, AWS Budgets, and AWS Cost and Usage Report (CUR).

You can create cost categories to organize your cost and usage information. Member account and the management account in AWS Organizations have default access to create cost categories. Rules are not mutually exclusive, and you can control the order that the rules apply in.

Console:

1. If you are already in Billing Service, proceed to step-2, else search for billing in AWS console and select Billing from Services.

2. In the navigation pane on the left, choose Cost categories.

3. At the top of the page, choose Create cost category.

   Note: For current lab purposes, we will create two cost categories for simplification and better understanding of the service. Refer here if you want to create complex cost categories.

4. Under Cost category details, enter the name of your cost category as cost by team. Your cost category name must be unique within your account. Keep rest of the fields with default values and click Next

5. In Define category rules, Under New category rule choose Inherited value as Rule type, choose Cost Allocation Tag as Dimension and TeamName as Tag Key, click Next.

6. Skip Define split charges for this lab. Choose Create cost category.

   Note : For more information on split charges please visit https://docs.aws.amazon.com/awsaccountbilling/latest/aboutv2/splitcharge-cost-categories.html

7. Repeat step-3 for creating second cost category. Under Cost category details, enter the name of your cost category as cost by department and click Next.

8. In Define category rules, select Inherited value as Rule type, choose Cost Allocation Tag as Dimension and Department as Tag key, click on Add rule and select Inherited value as Rule type, choose Cost Allocation Tag as Dimension and CostCentre as Tag key. click on Next.

9. Skip Define split charges for this lab. Click on Create cost category.

10. The status will be shown as Processing as follows and wait until it is shown as Applied before you start the next lab:

Congratulations!

You have completed this section of the lab. In this section you created two cost categories using Cost Categories under AWS Billing service.

Click on Next Step to continue to the next section.