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Not yet released. This guide describes implemented changes awaiting rollout. Availability requires the corresponding backend and dashboard release.

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Goal

Choose how to pay for a Dedicated database and understand what happens when a payment fails.

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Prerequisites

  • A wallet balance or a saved card

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Workflow

1
Choose billing when you create the database: monthly (default), yearly or hourly.
2
Monthly and yearly are paid up front from your wallet, or through a checkout link when the wallet is short.
3
Hourly needs a wallet balance or a saved card; the first hour is charged when you create the database.
4
See what you are paying and when with stackshift database billing DATABASE (GET /api/v1/databases/{id}/billing). It shows the status, the price lines, the current period and anything overdue.

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Changes during a period

  • Upgrades (a bigger size, a standby, a replica, more storage) are charged for the rest of the period. The API first answers 409 price_confirmation_required with the exact charge; send the same request again with confirm_charge_minor to confirm.
  • Downgrades and removals credit your wallet.
  • A size change that fails is credited back, so you aren’t charged for a size you didn’t get.
  • On hourly billing the new price simply applies from the next hour.
  • Automatic storage growth never asks for confirmation; the new storage price applies from the next renewal or hour.

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Pay by card and check a payment

  • When a charge needs a card payment, the answer is 402 payment_required with a checkout_url. Open it and pay.
  • After you are redirected back, the database page confirms the payment.
  • Pay whatever is due (a first payment, an overdue renewal or unpaid hourly usage) from the database page. Payments need a signed-in browser: the CLI and agent tokens get 403 browser_session_required.
  • The billing status is pending_payment, active, past_due, suspended, paused, terminated or cancelled.

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Change how you pay

  • Switch between monthly, yearly and hourly from the database page.
  • Monthly or yearly to another prepaid period, or to hourly: the switch is recorded and takes effect at your next renewal. Hourly billing then starts from the end of the period with nothing up front.
  • Hourly to monthly or yearly: it takes effect right away and is paid up front from your wallet. You first get 409 price_confirmation_required with the amount (the new period plus any unbilled hourly usage); resend with confirm_charge_minor.
  • Sending the mode you already have cancels a switch that hasn’t happened yet.

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If a payment fails

  • Monthly and yearly: after the period ends you get a grace period, then the database is suspended (connections are refused, data and backups are kept), and later retired with a final backup. The database page shows each date.
  • Hourly: failed card charges are retried; if they keep failing the database is paused (connections refused, data kept) and resumes as soon as you pay.
  • Pay what is due from the database page.
  • Nothing is deleted without a final backup.

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Prices

See https://stackshift.cloud/pricing.

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Expected result

The database billing shows active, with the current period and the next renewal date.

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Common failures

  • 402 payment_required on a change: top up your wallet, then retry.
  • A stopped or suspended database won’t start while a payment is overdue: pay first.

Dedicated databases

Create a Dedicated PostgreSQL database, connect to it, resize it and manage its lifecycle.

Move a Starter database to Dedicated

Copy a Starter PostgreSQL database to a new Dedicated database, switch your apps over and keep the original read-only for 7 days.

Starter or Dedicated

Starter databases share a server with other databases. A Dedicated database is its own virtual machine with a standby, read replicas and restore to any second.