About usage-based billing
With the new billing platform, you pay monthly for the number of GitHub Enterprise and GitHub Advanced Security licenses you use. You will not need to buy a predefined number of licenses in advance. Usage-based billing provides flexibility and cost savings compared to more traditional licensing models, such as volume or subscription models.
GitHub Enterprise licensing models
There are two types of GitHub Enterprise (GHE) licenses.
-
GHE (Metered): A cloud-first license where users must first be assigned to a GitHub Enterprise Cloud organization.
- All Cloud users automatically receive a use right for GitHub Enterprise Server.
- Billing is based on the number of active users each month.
- Users can generate their own Server license, which covers the number of assigned Cloud seats at the time of generation and is valid for one year.
- Server-only users will be added to GHE (Metered) billing. These users are de-duplicated with email matching to avoid double billing.
-
GHE (Volume/Subscription, also called GHE Unified): A bundled license for both GitHub Enterprise Cloud and GitHub Enterprise Server.
- One license covers both GitHub Enterprise Cloud and GitHub Enterprise Server, allowing users to work in either or both.
- Users can access both services via GitHub Connect.
- This license requires manual setup and is provided by GitHub Sales.
Comparison of licensing models
| License model | GHE (Metered) | GHE (Volume/subscription) |
|---|---|---|
| Billing type | Usage-based | Volume-based |
| Cloud vs. Server | Cloud-first, with a Server use right for Cloud users | 1 user license covers both Cloud and Server (hybrid, Cloud-only, or Server-only) |
| Setup | Self-service | Manual setup via GitHub Sales |
| Server license generation | Users generate their own GitHub Enterprise Server license | License file provided by GitHub Sales |
| License file scope | Covers Cloud-assigned users at time of generation | Covers all purchased users for both Cloud and Server |
| License expiration | Expires in 12 months | Aligned with volume license term |
| License key usage | Limits max Server users | Covers all users in the volume subscription |
| Required GitHub Enterprise version | GitHub Enterprise 3.13+, with GitHub Connect | No specific version required |
| Billing model | Invoiced for users not assigned on Cloud via GitHub Connect | Fixed cost based on purchased volume |
Visual Studio subscriptions with GitHub Enterprise is currently not supported for usage-based billing.
How are metered licenses measured?
With metered billing, the cost of a license is calculated by measuring consumed licenses and billable licenses.
- Consumed licenses: The number of licenses currently in use.
- Billable licenses: The unique licenses billed in a billing cycle. If a user stops consuming a license within the month, the adjustment is reflected in your next month's bill.
If a user starts consuming a licensed seat in the middle of the billing cycle, you will pay pro rata for the user's license usage that month.
For example: The billing cycle begins on the first day of the month, and the account starts with 0 licenses.
- Day 1: The administrator adds 10 licensed users.
- Day 2: The administrator adds 20 licensed users.
- Day 3: The administrator removes 5 licensed users.
- Day 4: No change.
At the end of day 4, there will be:
- 25 consumed licenses
(10 + 20 - 5). This is the number of users actively consuming licenses. - 30 billable licenses
(10 + 20). This is the number of distinct users that consumed a license at some point during the month.
Pending invitations to join an organization that belongs to your enterprise on GitHub do not consume a license.
Which payment methods can I use?
You can use the following payment methods for usage-based billing for licenses:
- Invoiced and self-serve GitHub Enterprise customers can pay using a credit card or PayPal
- Invoiced customers can also pay using prepaid credits (only available to customers who have a volume subscription with or without metered add-ons)
- You can connect an Azure subscription to your enterprise account
- For purchase orders, you can contact your account manager in GitHub's Sales team