- The majority of companies report not having control over cloud costs, with 58% saying costs are too high
- 89% of employees say lack of cloud cost visibility prevents them from doing their job well
- The number of engineers reporting high levels of disruption due to cloud costs has doubled since 2022 (from 11% to 22%)
- Three in four employees fear losing their jobs if cloud costs suddenly increase
A new report from CloudZero, the leader in proactive cloud cost efficiency, covers results from a survey of 1,000 finance and engineering professionals in the U.S. on the state of their cloud costs in 2024. The report is an update on a previous survey from 2022, which revealed that the majority of businesses wanted to prioritize managing their cloud costs in light of troublingly high spending.
The new report aims to find out if companies are on track with this goal, unveiling both positive strides and lingering challenges in cloud cost management.
You can read the full report here: https://www.cloudzero.com/state-of-cloud-cost/
Over half of companies say their cloud costs are too high in 2024
CloudZero’s survey found that less than half of companies report healthy cloud costs in 2024, with 58% of respondents saying their cloud costs are too high.
Most concerningly, the data shows an increase in the number of companies saying their costs are “way too high” — from 11% in 2022 to 14% in 2024. This isn’t a huge jump, but it indicates a continued lack of control over cloud costs.
| Cost level | % of respondents who agree |
| Our cloud costs are about where they should be | 42% |
| Our cloud costs are a little higher than they should be | 37% |
| Our cloud costs are way too high | 14% |
| Our cloud costs are lower than they should be | 7% |
| I have no idea if our cloud costs are too high or too low | 1% |
Nine out of 10 employees say lack of cloud cost visibility prevents them from doing their job well
89% of respondents said that lack of cloud cost visibility has an impact on their ability to carry out their role, with just under half reporting a significant impact.
Broken down by role, 22% of engineers said cloud costs cause high levels of disruption to their work (the equivalent of a full sprint), doubling since 2022 (11%). Meanwhile, 23% of finance professionals reported high levels of disruption, pointing to this being an equal problem for both teams.
81% of respondents report a positive impact on cloud costs when engineering has ownership
The survey data reveals that a strong culture of cost ownership leads to more efficient cloud spend, with 81% of respondents stating their cloud costs are about where they should be when engineering has some level of ownership.
Another 68% said they can accurately align costs to business at more than double the rate when engineers take ownership of costs.
Data also points to a positive correlation between engineering ownership and better business outcomes, like greater confidence in reporting accuracy. The findings prove the importance of ownership shifting left to drive better business outcomes.
Three in four employees fear losing their jobs if cloud costs suddenly increase
75% of employees said they fear losing their jobs if cloud costs abruptly surge by 50% or more. This unease is particularly heightened among employees at larger companies, with 100% of those at organizations with over 9,000 personnel believing their positions are vulnerable.
This scenario highlights the urgent need for businesses to implement effective cloud cost management strategies, carefully balancing innovation with responsible financial stewardship.
Bill Buckley, Senior Vice President of Engineering at CloudZero comments:
“Out-of-control cloud costs foreground the need for better visibility and company-wide initiatives for cloud cost management. Our study has proven that businesses must empower engineering with ownership of cloud costs as it is clear that it emerges as a key driving factor for better cost management and the alignment of priorities between engineering and finance teams.”
“The data has shown that when engineering does take ownership of cloud costs, businesses gain a clearer understanding of costs, leading to improved reporting accuracy and the alignment of engineering and finance teams. The shift fosters increased business and job confidence and improved efficiency.”
Read next: AI adoption to drive 20% surge in cloud infrastructure spending in 2024, Canalys report
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