NAT Gateway Cost Optimization
NAT Gateways are one of the most surprisingly expensive AWS services. Each NAT Gateway costs $0.045/hour ($32/month) just to exist, plus $0.045/GB for data processed. Teams deploy them per-AZ as recommended, then push all internet-bound traffic through them. A busy application processing 1 TB of data through NAT costs $45 in data charges alone — per month, per gateway.
Common NAT Gateway cost waste patterns
High data processing charges
NAT Gateway charges $0.045/GB for all data processed. S3, DynamoDB, and other AWS service traffic routed through NAT when VPC endpoints would be free.
NAT Gateways in unused AZs
NAT Gateways deployed in every AZ for high availability but some AZs have no active instances. Each idle gateway still costs $32/month.
Traffic that should use VPC endpoints
S3 and DynamoDB traffic flowing through NAT Gateway instead of using free Gateway VPC endpoints. This is the single most common NAT waste pattern.
How to reduce your NAT Gateway costs
Use VPC endpoints for AWS services
Save 30-60% mediumCreate Gateway VPC endpoints for S3 and DynamoDB (free). Create Interface VPC endpoints for other frequently used services. This removes traffic from NAT Gateway entirely.
Consolidate NAT Gateways
Save 25-50% mediumIf you have NAT Gateways in AZs with no active workloads, route traffic through NAT Gateways in active AZs. Only add per-AZ gateways where availability requirements justify the cost.
Analyze data flow with VPC Flow Logs
Save 10-40% advancedEnable VPC Flow Logs to identify the top traffic destinations flowing through NAT. Often a small number of destinations account for most of the data charges.
How ZapStack finds NAT Gateway waste
ZapStack automatically scans your AWS environment and surfaces NAT Gateway cost savings you can action immediately.
- Identifies high data processing charges per NAT Gateway
- Detects NAT Gateways in AZs with no active instances
- Flags missing S3 and DynamoDB VPC endpoints
- Calculates potential savings from VPC endpoint migration
- Recommends consolidation of underused gateways
Frequently asked questions about NAT Gateway costs
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