DynamoDB
AWS DynamoDB — commitment brief
Data sourced: March 2026. Verify current figures at the AWS Pricing Calculator.
Coverage summary
Amazon DynamoDB offers Reserved Capacity (not called "RI" — the instrument is specifically "reserved read/write capacity units") for tables running in provisioned capacity mode. Reserved Capacity provides approximately 54% savings for a 1-year term and approximately 77% savings for a 3-year term versus on-demand provisioned pricing. Payment combines a one-time upfront fee plus a discounted hourly rate throughout the term. On-demand capacity mode (pay-per-request) is not eligible for Reserved Capacity — tables must use provisioned capacity mode.
What is covered: DynamoDB provisioned read capacity units (RCUs) and write capacity units (WCUs) for tables in provisioned capacity mode. Reserved Capacity is purchased in units of 100 RCUs or 100 WCUs per month.
What is not covered: DynamoDB on-demand capacity mode requests (pay-per-request pricing; not reservable), DynamoDB Streams, global table replication charges (cross-region replication writes billed separately), DynamoDB Accelerator (DAX — a separate in-memory cache service with its own pricing), backup and restore charges, data transfer, and DynamoDB export to S3 charges.
RI types
DynamoDB uses Reserved Capacity (Partial Upfront only — a one-time upfront fee plus a discounted hourly rate for the term duration). There is no All Upfront or No Upfront option for DynamoDB Reserved Capacity. Terms available: 1-year (~54% savings) and 3-year (~77% savings). Reserved Capacity applies only to provisioned capacity mode tables; on-demand mode is excluded.
Instance / node / tier coverage
Provisioned Read Capacity Units (RCUs)
✅ Yes
~54%
~77%
Purchased in 100 RCU/month blocks
Provisioned Write Capacity Units (WCUs)
✅ Yes
~54%
~77%
Purchased in 100 WCU/month blocks
Auto Scaling (provisioned mode)
✅ Yes
~54%
~77%
Reserved Capacity applies to auto-scaled tables in provisioned mode
DynamoDB On-Demand capacity mode
❌ No
—
—
Pay-per-request; not eligible for Reserved Capacity
DynamoDB Accelerator (DAX)
❌ No
—
—
Separate service; own EC2-based node pricing; covered via EC2 RIs
DynamoDB Streams
❌ No
—
—
Billed per read request; not reservable
Global Tables replication
❌ No
—
—
Cross-region replication writes billed at on-demand rate
Regional availability
Commitment scope: Regional — Reserved Capacity is purchased for a specific AWS region and applies only to provisioned-capacity usage in that region; it cannot be transferred to another region.
The 1-year term is available in all AWS commercial regions where DynamoDB provisioned capacity is offered. The 3-year term is available in select regions only — check the DynamoDB Reserved Capacity pricing page or the AWS console for your target region to confirm 3-year availability.
Partition notes: Reserved Capacity purchase recommendations from AWS Cost Management are not available in GovCloud (us-gov-) or China (cn-) regions. GovCloud regions support DynamoDB on-demand and provisioned capacity, but Reserved Capacity itself may have limited offering availability there — verify via the console or AWS CLI (describe-reserved-capacity-offerings) before purchasing.
⚠️ Regional and partition availability varies by instance type. Always verify at the AWS Pricing Console before purchasing.
Archera
Amazon DynamoDB is a core service within Archera's commitment management scope. Archera can automate Reserved Capacity purchases for DynamoDB provisioned tables, monitor RCU/WCU utilization and right-size reservation quantities, and wrap commitments in a GRI/GSP — eliminating downside risk on over-reservation while preserving the full Reserved Capacity discount. Archera manages DynamoDB reservations at the capacity-unit level, separate from EC2 or RDS RI management.
Sources
⚠️ Discount percentages are approximate. DynamoDB Reserved Capacity requires provisioned capacity mode. Always verify with the AWS Pricing Calculator.
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