posthog-cost-tuning

# PostHog Cost Tuning ## Overview Optimize PostHog costs through smart tier selection, sampling, and usage monitoring. ## Prerequisites - Access to PostHog 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 estimatePostHogCost(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 PostHogUsageMonitor { 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 PostHog budget limit'); } } estimatedCost(): number { return estimatePostHogCost(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 posthogClient.trackEvent(event); } ``` ### Step 2: Batching Requests ```typescript // Instead of N individual calls await Promise.all(ids.map(id => posthogClient.get(id))); // Use batch endpoint (1 call) await posthogClient.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 PostHogClient({ compression: true, // Enable gzip }); ``` ## Budget Alerts ```bash # Set up billing alerts in PostHog dashboard # Or use API if available: # Check PostHog 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 posthog_api_logs WHERE created_at >= NOW() - INTERVAL '30 days' GROUP BY 1 ORDER BY 1; ``` ## Instructions ### Step 1: Analyze Current Usage Review PostHog 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 = estimatePostHogCost(yourMonthlyRequests); console.log(`Tier: ${estimate.tier}, Cost: $${estimate.estimatedCost}`); if (estimate.recommendation) { console.log(`💡 ${estimate.recommendation}`); } ``` ## Resources - [PostHog Pricing](https://posthog.com/pricing) - [PostHog Billing Dashboard](https://dashboard.posthog.com/billing) ## Next Steps For architecture patterns, see `posthog-reference-architecture`.