---
name: retellai-cost-tuning
description: |
  Optimize Retell AI costs through tier selection, sampling, and usage monitoring.
  Use when analyzing Retell AI billing, reducing API costs,
  or implementing usage monitoring and budget alerts.
  Trigger with phrases like "retellai cost", "retellai billing",
  "reduce retellai costs", "retellai pricing", "retellai expensive", "retellai budget".
allowed-tools: Read, Grep
version: 1.0.0
license: MIT
author: Jeremy Longshore <jeremy@intentsolutions.io>
---

# Retell AI Cost Tuning

## Overview
Optimize Retell AI costs through smart tier selection, sampling, and usage monitoring.

## Prerequisites
- Access to Retell AI billing dashboard
- Understanding of current usage patterns
- Database for usage tracking (optional)
- Alerting system configured (optional)

## Pricing Tiers

| Tier | Monthly Cost | Included | Overage |
|------|-------------|----------|---------|
| Free | $0 | 1,000 requests | N/A |
| Pro | $99 | 100,000 requests | $0.001/request |
| Enterprise | Custom | Unlimited | Volume discounts |

## Cost Estimation

```typescript
interface UsageEstimate {
  requestsPerMonth: number;
  tier: string;
  estimatedCost: number;
  recommendation?: string;
}

function estimateRetell AICost(requestsPerMonth: number): UsageEstimate {
  if (requestsPerMonth <= 1000) {
    return { requestsPerMonth, tier: 'Free', estimatedCost: 0 };
  }

  if (requestsPerMonth <= 100000) {
    return { requestsPerMonth, tier: 'Pro', estimatedCost: 99 };
  }

  const proOverage = (requestsPerMonth - 100000) * 0.001;
  const proCost = 99 + proOverage;

  return {
    requestsPerMonth,
    tier: 'Pro (with overage)',
    estimatedCost: proCost,
    recommendation: proCost > 500
      ? 'Consider Enterprise tier for volume discounts'
      : undefined,
  };
}
```

## Usage Monitoring

```typescript
class Retell AIUsageMonitor {
  private requestCount = 0;
  private bytesTransferred = 0;
  private alertThreshold: number;

  constructor(monthlyBudget: number) {
    this.alertThreshold = monthlyBudget * 0.8; // 80% warning
  }

  track(request: { bytes: number }) {
    this.requestCount++;
    this.bytesTransferred += request.bytes;

    if (this.estimatedCost() > this.alertThreshold) {
      this.sendAlert('Approaching Retell AI budget limit');
    }
  }

  estimatedCost(): number {
    return estimateRetell AICost(this.requestCount).estimatedCost;
  }

  private sendAlert(message: string) {
    // Send to Slack, email, PagerDuty, etc.
  }
}
```

## Cost Reduction Strategies

### Step 1: Request Sampling
```typescript
function shouldSample(samplingRate = 0.1): boolean {
  return Math.random() < samplingRate;
}

// Use for non-critical telemetry
if (shouldSample(0.1)) { // 10% sample
  await retellaiClient.trackEvent(event);
}
```

### Step 2: Batching Requests
```typescript
// Instead of N individual calls
await Promise.all(ids.map(id => retellaiClient.get(id)));

// Use batch endpoint (1 call)
await retellaiClient.batchGet(ids);
```

### Step 3: Caching (from P16)
- Cache frequently accessed data
- Use cache invalidation webhooks
- Set appropriate TTLs

### Step 4: Compression
```typescript
const client = new RetellAIClient({
  compression: true, // Enable gzip
});
```

## Budget Alerts

```bash
# Set up billing alerts in Retell AI dashboard
# Or use API if available:
# Check Retell AI documentation for billing APIs
```

## Cost Dashboard Query

```sql
-- If tracking usage in your database
SELECT
  DATE_TRUNC('day', created_at) as date,
  COUNT(*) as requests,
  SUM(response_bytes) as bytes,
  COUNT(*) * 0.001 as estimated_cost
FROM retellai_api_logs
WHERE created_at >= NOW() - INTERVAL '30 days'
GROUP BY 1
ORDER BY 1;
```

## Instructions

### Step 1: Analyze Current Usage
Review Retell AI dashboard for usage patterns and costs.

### Step 2: Select Optimal Tier
Use the cost estimation function to find the right tier.

### Step 3: Implement Monitoring
Add usage tracking to catch budget overruns early.

### Step 4: Apply Optimizations
Enable batching, caching, and sampling where appropriate.

## Output
- Optimized tier selection
- Usage monitoring implemented
- Budget alerts configured
- Cost reduction strategies applied

## Error Handling
| Issue | Cause | Solution |
|-------|-------|----------|
| Unexpected charges | Untracked usage | Implement monitoring |
| Overage fees | Wrong tier | Upgrade tier |
| Budget exceeded | No alerts | Set up alerts |
| Inefficient usage | No batching | Enable batch requests |

## Examples

### Quick Cost Check
```typescript
// Estimate monthly cost for your usage
const estimate = estimateRetell AICost(yourMonthlyRequests);
console.log(`Tier: ${estimate.tier}, Cost: $${estimate.estimatedCost}`);
if (estimate.recommendation) {
  console.log(`💡 ${estimate.recommendation}`);
}
```

## Resources
- [Retell AI Pricing](https://retellai.com/pricing)
- [Retell AI Billing Dashboard](https://dashboard.retellai.com/billing)

## Next Steps
For architecture patterns, see `retellai-reference-architecture`.