# DynamoDB ## AWS DynamoDB — commitment brief > **Data sourced**: March 2026. Verify current figures at the [AWS Pricing Calculator](https://calculator.aws/pricing/2/home). ### 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 | Capacity Type | Reserved Capacity | 1-yr (Partial Upfront) | 3-yr (Partial Upfront) | Notes | | --------------------------------------- | ----------------- | ---------------------- | ---------------------- | ------------------------------------------------------------------- | | 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](https://aws.amazon.com/ec2/pricing/) 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** * [Amazon DynamoDB pricing for reserved capacity](https://aws.amazon.com/dynamodb/pricing/reserved-capacity/) * [DynamoDB reserved capacity](https://docs.aws.amazon.com/amazondynamodb/latest/developerguide/reserved-capacity.html) * [Calculate Amazon DynamoDB reserved capacity recommendations to optimize costs](https://aws.amazon.com/blogs/database/calculate-amazon-dynamodb-reserved-capacity-recommendations-to-optimize-costs/) * [AWS Cost Management purchase recommendations for Amazon DynamoDB reserved capacity](https://aws.amazon.com/about-aws/whats-new/2024/09/aws-cost-management-purchase-recommendations-amazon-dynamodb-reserved-capacity/) ⚠️ Discount percentages are approximate. DynamoDB Reserved Capacity requires provisioned capacity mode. 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