Google overhauls its AI pricing tiers

Google introduced a new $100 AI plan, cut its top-tier price to $200, and shifted to a compute-based metering model.

Google has restructured its AI platform pricing, introducing a new $100 per month AI Ultra plan. This new offering is positioned between its existing $20 and $200 plans. In another significant change, the company reduced the price of its highest-tier plan from $250 down to $200. Alongside these pricing adjustments, Google is moving away from a model based on prompt limits for its AI tools. It is now adopting a "compute-used" metering system, which means customers will be billed based on the computational resources they consume rather than the number of prompts they submit.

These changes are important for any organization using or considering Google's AI services, particularly for developers, CTOs, and IT teams responsible for budgeting. The move to a compute-based model offers more transparent and predictable billing for intensive AI workloads. Furthermore, the new pricing structure, with tiers at approximately $20, $100, and $200, mirrors the offerings from other major AI providers. This alignment suggests the emergence of an industry-wide pricing standard, simplifying comparison and procurement decisions for businesses evaluating different AI platforms.

Google's pricing restructure for AI Ultra plans and shift to a compute-used metering model is significant for developers, CTOs, and IT teams budgeting for AI tooling. The alignment of $20/$100/$200 tiers across Google, OpenAI, and Anthropic signals an industry-wide pricing standard, directly impacting procurement decisions.

The new pricing tiers and compute-based billing model provide more predictable costs for AI usage and simplify vendor comparison, as Google's pricing now aligns with other major AI providers. This can lead to more informed budgeting and procurement decisions for enterprises.