Oracle OKE pricing
Oracle Cloud · managed Kubernetes · snapshot captured June 2026
Oracle OKE has a free control plane. Basic clusters are free (no control-plane fee). Enhanced clusters (with a 99.95% SLA and add-on support) cost $0.10/cluster/hour (~$73/month). You then pay for worker nodes (You pay normal OCI compute rates for worker nodes; virtual nodes add $0.015/node/hour. OCI's Always Free tier includes some Ampere ARM compute.) plus load balancers and egress. Its representative cheapest node is about $30/month, and it runs in 40+ oci regions worldwide. This is one of the providers with a free control plane.
Source: Oracle Cloud pricing. Data as of June 2026.
Oracle OKE pricing at a glance
| Cost factor | Oracle OKE |
|---|---|
| Control-plane fee | Basic clusters are free (no control-plane fee). Enhanced clusters (with a 99.95% SLA and add-on support) cost $0.10/cluster/hour (~$73/month). |
| Est. control-plane cost / month | Free |
| Worker node example | You pay normal OCI compute rates for worker nodes; virtual nodes add $0.015/node/hour. OCI's Always Free tier includes some Ampere ARM compute. |
| Load balancer | OCI Load Balancer billed separately (a small flexible shape is in the Always Free tier). |
| Egress | Generous 10 TB/month free egress, then low per-GB rates. |
| Free tier | Basic clusters are free; OCI Always Free tier can run a small OKE cluster at no cost. |
| Regions | 40+ OCI regions worldwide. |
| SLA | 99.95% SLA on Enhanced clusters. |
Source: Oracle Cloud pricing page. Data as of June 2026.
Source: Oracle Cloud pricing. Snapshot captured June 2026 — Kubernetes pricing changes frequently; verify before purchasing.
What drives the cost on Oracle OKE
A managed-Kubernetes bill has three main parts: the control plane (free here), the worker nodes (where most of your spend goes), and networking (load balancers and egress). For Oracle OKE: You pay normal OCI compute rates for worker nodes; virtual nodes add $0.015/node/hour. OCI's Always Free tier includes some Ampere ARM compute. Load balancers: OCI Load Balancer billed separately (a small flexible shape is in the Always Free tier). Egress: Generous 10 TB/month free egress, then low per-GB rates.
Cost pros & cons
Where Oracle OKE saves money
- Free basic clusters and a usable Always Free tier
- 10 TB/month free egress is generous
- Free ARM (Ampere) compute can run small clusters at $0
Watch-outs
- Enhanced clusters (for the SLA) cost $0.10/hr
- Smaller third-party ecosystem
- Console and tooling are less polished than the big three
Oracle OKE vs other providers
How Oracle OKE's control-plane and node costs compare with similar providers:
| Provider | Control plane | Est. control-plane/mo | Cheapest node/mo |
|---|---|---|---|
| Oracle OKE (this provider) | Free | Free | $30/mo |
| Azure AKS | Free | Free | $30/mo |
| DigitalOcean DOKS | Free | Free | $12/mo |
| Akamai LKE | Free | Free | $12/mo |
| OVHcloud MKS | Free | Free | $20/mo |
| Scaleway Kapsule | Free | Free | $7/mo |
Frequently asked questions
How much does Oracle OKE cost?
Oracle OKE has a free control plane. Basic clusters are free (no control-plane fee). Enhanced clusters (with a 99.95% SLA and add-on support) cost $0.10/cluster/hour (~$73/month). On top of that you pay for worker nodes (You pay normal OCI compute rates for worker nodes; virtual nodes add $0.015/node/hour. OCI's Always Free tier includes some Ampere ARM compute.), load balancers and egress. Snapshot captured June 2026 — verify on the vendor's pricing page.
Is the Oracle OKE control plane free?
Yes — Oracle OKE's standard/basic control plane is free; you pay only for worker nodes and resources. Basic clusters are free (no control-plane fee). Enhanced clusters (with a 99.95% SLA and add-on support) cost $0.10/cluster/hour (~$73/month).
What do Oracle OKE worker nodes cost?
You pay normal OCI compute rates for worker nodes; virtual nodes add $0.015/node/hour. OCI's Always Free tier includes some Ampere ARM compute. Node pricing is the largest part of most clusters' bills, so the choice of instance size and count usually matters more than the control-plane fee. Snapshot captured June 2026.
What hidden costs should I watch for with Oracle OKE?
Beyond nodes and the control plane, the common extras are load balancers (OCI Load Balancer billed separately (a small flexible shape is in the Always Free tier).) and data egress (Generous 10 TB/month free egress, then low per-GB rates.). NAT gateways, storage volumes and support plans can also add up. Always model your real workload — the calculator gives a quick estimate.
Keep exploring
Source & accuracy
Figures are a dated snapshot from Oracle Cloud's pricing page (snapshot captured June 2026). Estimated monthly control-plane cost is the hourly fee × 730 hours (see methodology). Managed-Kubernetes pricing is volatile and varies by region, instance type and discounts — verify current prices on the vendor's page before purchasing. This is an informational comparison, not a quote.
Last updated: 2026-06-20