10 Tips for Amazon EKS Cost Optimization In 2026

Table of Contents

1. Understanding Amazon EKS Cost Components in 2026

2. Why EKS Costs Spiral Out of Control

3. Tip #1: Right-Size Pods Using Real Usage, Not Requests

4. Tip #2: Adopt Cluster Autoscaler + Karpenter Strategically

5. Tip #3: Use Spot Instances the Right Way (Without Downtime)

6. Tip #4: Optimize Node Groups and Instance Families

7. Tip #5: Reduce Control Plane and Cluster Sprawl

8. Tip #6: Optimize Storage Costs (EBS, CSI, and Snapshots)

9. Tip #7: Control Networking and Load Balancer Expenses

10. Tip #8: Use Namespace-Level Cost Allocation and Budgets

11. Tip #9: Implement Kubernetes-Native Cost Monitoring

12. Tip #10: Build a FinOps Culture Around EKS

13. Common Mistakes in Amazon EKS Cost Optimization

14. Future Trends: EKS Cost Optimization in 2026 and Beyond

15. FAQs on Amazon EKS Cost Optimization

Understanding Amazon EKS Cost Components in 2026

Before optimizing anything, you need clarity on where your money is actually going.

Amazon EKS costs typically fall into five buckets:

1. EKS Control Plane

AWS charges a fixed hourly fee per cluster. While this cost seems small, it adds up fast in environments with multiple clusters per team or per environment.

2. Compute Costs

This includes EC2 instances, Spot Instances, Graviton nodes, and managed node groups. For most teams, compute accounts for 60–70% of total EKS spend.

3. Storage Costs

Persistent volumes, EBS gp3/io2 volumes, snapshots, and orphaned disks quietly inflate monthly bills.

4. Networking Costs

Load balancers, NAT gateways, inter-AZ traffic, and cross-region data transfer are often overlooked until finance raises a red flag.

5. Add-ons and Observability

Ingress controllers, monitoring agents, logging pipelines, and service meshes all consume resources even when traffic is low.

Understanding these layers is the foundation of effective Amazon EKS cost optimization.

Why EKS Costs Spiral Out of Control

EKS itself is not expensive. Poor defaults are.

Here’s why costs tend to explode:

• Developers over-request CPU and memory “just in case”

• Clusters are created per team, per feature, per sprint

• Spot instances are avoided due to fear of instability

• Autoscaling is enabled but misconfigured

• No one owns cost accountability

In 2026, cloud waste is rarely technical—it’s organizational.

Tip #1: Right-Size Pods Using Real Usage, Not Requests

The Hidden Cost of Over-Provisioning

Kubernetes schedules based on requests, not actual usage. If a pod requests 2 vCPUs but uses only 200m CPU, you’re paying for idle capacity.

This is one of the largest silent cost drivers in Amazon EKS.

How to Fix It

• Collect real CPU and memory usage using:

• Metrics Server

• Prometheus

• AWS Container Insights

• Compare requests vs. p95 usage

• Reduce requests gradually, not aggressively

Best Practice for 2026

Use Vertical Pod Autoscaler (VPA) in recommendation mode. Let it observe workloads and suggest optimal values without auto-applying changes.

This alone can cut 20–40% of EKS compute costs.

Tip #2: Adopt Cluster Autoscaler + Karpenter Strategically

Autoscaling is powerful but only when tuned correctly.

Cluster Autoscaler (CA)

Cluster Autoscaler removes underutilized nodes when:

• Pods can be rescheduled elsewhere

• Nodes remain empty for a defined time

Misconfiguration often causes:

• Slow scale-down

• Excess buffer nodes

• Unused instance types

Karpenter in 2026

Karpenter has matured significantly and is now production-ready for most workloads.

Key benefits:

• Launches right-sized instances per pod

• Supports Spot + On-Demand blending

• Reduces bin-packing inefficiencies

Cost Impact

Teams using Karpenter correctly report:

• Faster scaling

• Lower idle capacity

• Up to 35% cost savings compared to static node groups

Tip #3: Use Spot Instances the Right Way (Without Downtime)

Spot Instances are no longer risky misusing them is.

Why Teams Still Avoid Spot

• Fear of pod eviction

• Stateful workloads concerns

• Poor interruption handling

How to Use Spot Safely

• Run stateless workloads on Spot

• Use multiple instance families

• Set interruption handling with:

• Pod Disruption Budgets

• Graceful termination hooks

2026 Recommendation

Aim for 50–70% Spot coverage for:

• CI/CD runners

• Batch jobs

• APIs with autoscaling

Spot alone can reduce Amazon EKS compute costs by up to 70%.

Tip #4: Optimize Node Groups and Instance Families

Using a single instance type across your cluster is expensive and inefficient.

Common Mistake

Running everything on m5.large or m6i.large because “it works”.

Smarter Approach

• Use:

• Compute-optimized nodes for CPU-heavy workloads

• Memory-optimized nodes for data processing

• Mix Graviton (c7g, m7g) with x86

Graviton in 2026

Most popular workloads now support ARM. Graviton offers:

• Better price-performance

• Lower energy cost

• 15–25% cheaper compute

Tip #5: Reduce Control Plane and Cluster Sprawl

Every EKS cluster costs money—even when idle.

The Cluster Explosion Problem

Teams often create:

• Separate clusters per environment

• Per-region clusters without traffic

• Temporary clusters never deleted

Optimization Strategy

• Consolidate non-prod environments

• Use namespaces instead of clusters

• Automate cluster lifecycle cleanup

This reduces:

• Control plane costs

• Observability overhead

• Operational complexity

Tip #6: Optimize Storage Costs (EBS, CSI, and Snapshots)

Storage waste is sneaky.

Where Money Leaks

• Over-provisioned Persistent Volumes

• Orphaned EBS volumes

• Snapshot sprawl

Best Practices

• Use gp3 instead of gp2

• Define PVC size limits carefully

• Automate cleanup of unused volumes

• Audit snapshots monthly

Storage optimization can save 10–15% of total EKS spend.

Tip #7: Control Networking and Load Balancer Expenses

AWS networking costs can quietly rival compute costs.

Costly Components

• NAT Gateways

• Network Load Balancers

• Cross-AZ traffic

Optimization Techniques

• Use Ingress controllers efficiently

• Share load balancers across services

• Reduce cross-AZ chatter where possible

In 2026, network optimization is FinOps gold.

Tip #8: Use Namespace-Level Cost Allocation and Budgets

If you can’t see who’s spending, you can’t optimize.

What to Do

• Tag resources properly

• Allocate costs per namespace

• Set budgets per team

This creates accountability and reduces waste organically.

Tip #9: Implement Kubernetes-Native Cost Monitoring

CloudWatch alone is not enough.

Tools to Consider

• Kubecost

• OpenCost

• AWS Cost Explorer (EKS-aware views)

These tools help:

• Identify idle workloads

• Forecast costs

• Attribute spend accurately

Tip #10: Build a FinOps Culture Around EKS

The biggest savings come from behavior change, not tooling.

What High-Performing Teams Do

• Review costs weekly

• Include cost in architecture decisions

• Treat cost like performance and security

Amazon EKS cost optimization in 2026 is a team sport.

Common Mistakes in Amazon EKS Cost Optimization

• Blindly downsizing without usage data

• Avoiding Spot entirely

• Overusing clusters instead of namespaces

• Ignoring networking costs

• No ownership of cloud spend

Avoid these, and you’re already ahead.

Future Trends: EKS Cost Optimization in 2026 and Beyond

Looking forward:

• AI-driven autoscaling decisions

• Predictive cost anomaly detection

• Deeper FinOps-Kubernetes integration

• Carbon-aware scheduling

Cost optimization is becoming intelligent, proactive, and automated.

Frequently Asked Questions (FAQs)

1. What is the biggest cost driver in Amazon EKS?

Compute costs from EC2 nodes, especially over-provisioned workloads.

2. Is Amazon EKS more expensive than self-managed Kubernetes?

Not when optimized properly. Managed control plane reduces operational overhead.

3. How much can I save with Spot Instances?

Up to 70% on compute costs if implemented correctly.

4. Are Graviton instances safe for production EKS workloads?

Yes. Most modern workloads fully support ARM in 2026.

5. How often should I review EKS costs?

Weekly for active environments, monthly at minimum.

6. Does Karpenter replace Cluster Autoscaler?

In many cases, yes but both can coexist depending on needs.

7. What tools are best for EKS cost visibility?

Kubecost, OpenCost, and AWS Cost Explorer.

8. Can namespaces really replace multiple clusters?

For many non-prod and internal workloads, absolutely.

9. How do I prevent storage cost leaks?

Regular audits, automated cleanup, and right-sized PVCs.

10. Is EKS cost optimization a one-time task?

No. It’s an ongoing practice tied to scaling, traffic, and team behavior.