Beginning next month, we will shift from billing based on Requests to billing based on Compute Units (CUs).
TL;DR: Starting next month, GetBlock is replacing Request-based billing with a new, streamlined Compute Units model. Please ensure your account contact details are up to date, so we can clearly communicate the upcoming changes.
What’s happening?
Starting March 2025, GetBlock, a top-tier RPC node provider, will transition from a request-based pricing model to a more precise and flexible model based on Compute Units (CUs), a new way of measuring computational resources utilized by our clients.
The current pricing system (where users are charged based solely on the number of requests they send to blockchains) lacks flexibility and fairness. It overlooks two key distinctions in RPC node usage:
- Different blockchains require different computational resources. Simply put, some blockchains are more resource-intensive than others. For example, running Solana RPC nodes requires significantly more computational resources and costs compared to Ethereum nodes. Similarly, non-programmable blockchains like Bitcoin or Litecoin typically consume fewer resources than programmable networks.
- Not all RPC requests are created equal. The amount of resources consumed varies greatly depending on the RPC methods used to interact with blockchains. For example, within EVM-compatible blockchains, an eth_blockNumber request consumes far fewer resources than an eth_getLogs query or similar resource-heavy methods.
To address these differences, we've designed the Compute Units (CUs) pricing model. This new model accurately accounts for both the complexity ("weight") of each RPC method and the specific blockchain associated with that request, ensuring fairer and more transparent billing.
Our motivation
The concept of Compute Units (CUs) isn’t brand new: it’s already utilized by several Web3 infrastructure providers and Web2 tech giants like AWS.
At GetBlock, we're excited to bring this industry-proven method to our own users, ensuring your experience is:
- Fair. Data-intensive processes require more resources and thus should be priced accordingly.
- Transparent. With a CU-based pricing model, you'll clearly see which parts of your dApp consume more resources, making it simpler for you to optimize your usage.
- Cost-effective. The new pricing structure enhances our resource management, becoming more data-driven, optimized, and tailored to better serve your needs.
- Secure from abuse. Our internal tests demonstrate that CU-based pricing effectively protects you from paying extra for resources consumed by freeloaders and resource-abusers.
The countdown has started: The migration process kicks off 30 days from this announcement, providing every user with ample time to prepare.
Is action required on your part?
All our updated plans — now based on Compute Units instead of Requests — are already crafted, leveraging detailed analysis of user activity from the past 12 months. We’ll soon introduce these new plans with a comprehensive explainer.
From the official rollout date onward, only the new CU-based plans will be available. New users will only be able to use this pricing scheme.
We'll personally reach out to every user affected by this upgrade. Detailed instructions about the migration procedure are coming shortly, and our priority is to make this transition as streamlined, hassle-free, and smooth as possible.
Only one simple action is required on your end: Please ensure your contact details are up-to-date in your Account. This way, we can clearly communicate with you throughout the migration.
Users who do not actively respond will still have their accounts migrated automatically. Rest assured: special offers will be available to everyone post-upgrade.
Stay tuned for more updates!
Warm regards,
The GetBlock Team
