Azure Quantum pricing
In Azure Quantum, hardware and software providers define and control the pricing of their offerings. The information below is subject to change by providers and some delays in reflecting latest pricing information may exist. Be sure to verify the latest pricing information from the Azure Quantum workspace you are using.
Tip
First-time users automatically get free $500 (USD) Azure Quantum Credits for use with each participating quantum hardware provider. If you have consumed all the credits and you need more, you can apply to the Azure Quantum Credits program.
To see the different pricing plans in your local currency:
- Sign in to the Azure portal, using the credentials for your Azure subscription.
- Create a new Azure Quantum workspace.
- Go to the Providers tab in your Quantum workspace and click on Add a Provider. Then, select the provider you want to add.
- In the description of the provider pane, you will find the current pricing options in your local currency.
IonQ
IonQ charges based on the number of gates in your program, the complexity of the gates you use, and the number of shots. These units are called gate-shots.
Every quantum program consists of $N$ quantum logical gates of one or more qubits, and is executed for a certain number of shots. The number of gate-shots is calculated by the following formula:
$$ QGS = N · C $$
where:
- $N$ is the number of one- or two-qubit gates submitted
- $C$ is the number of execution shots requested
Multi-controlled two-qubit gates are billed as $6 * (N - 2)$ two-qubit gates, where $N$ is the number of qubits involved in the gate. For example, a NOT gate with three controls would be billed as $(6 * (4 - 2))$ or 12 two-qubit gates. One-qubit gates are billed as 0.225 of a two-qubit gate (rounded down). To learn more about IonQ, visit IonQ provider page.
All new Azure Quantum customers benefit of a one-time $500 (USD) free Azure Quantum credits toward IonQ provider to use in IonQ QPUs Harmony and Aria, and quantum simulator. Besides the Azure Quantum Credits plan, IonQ offers a pay-as-you-go plan with access to the quantum simulator and the IonQ Harmony 11-qubit quantum computer, and a monthly subscription plan which expands the access to the IonQ Aria 23-qubit quantum computer.
Azure Quantum Credits consumption is based on a resource-usage model and cost of use is deducted from your credits. To learn more about credits, see Azure Quantum Credits.
| Pricing | Use is deducted from the Azure Quantum Credits based on the number of QGSs executed |
|---|---|
| Includes access to |
|
| IonQ Harmony |
|
| IonQ Aria |
|
Minimum of $1 (USD) per program execution, deducted from your credits.
Note
Once you have consumed all the credits you need to switch to a different plan to continue using IonQ. Azure Quantum won’t start charging you once you reach your credit limit.
Important
There are no costs or charges to using your free credits. However, there may be some small storage costs, as the input and output of your credits jobs are stored in a storage account that you pay for. Job data is typically <1MB per job. For more details, see Azure Blob Storage pricing.
Quantinuum
Quantinuum uses a credit system that charges each job depending on the number of operations in the job, and the number of shots you run. The usage units are H-System Quantum Credits (HQCs) for jobs submitted to System Model H1 quantum computers, Powered by Quantinuum, and emulator HQCs (eHQCs) for jobs submitted to System Model H1 emulators.
Note
Do not confuse the Quantinuum HQCs with the Azure Quantum credits. Quantinuum HQCs are a usage unit defined by the provider to track the usage and quotas of their targets.
HQCs and eHQCs are used to calculate the cost of running a job, and they are calculated based on the following formula:
$$ HQC = 5 + C(N_{1q} + 10 N_{2q} + 5 N_m)/5000 $$
where:
- $N_{1q}$ is the number of single-qubit operations in a circuit.
- $N_{2q}$ is the number of native two-qubit operations in a circuit. Native gate is equivalent to CNOT up to several single-qubit gates.
- $N_{m}$ is the number of state preparation and measurement (SPAM) operations in a circuit including initial implicit state preparation and any intermediate and final measurements and state resets.
- $C$ is the shot count.
To learn more about Quantinuum, visit the Quantinuum provider page.
All new Azure customers benefit from $500 (USD) in free credits towards the Quantinuum provider. Besides Azure Quantum credits, Quantinuum provides two plans: Standard Subscription and Premium Subscription.
Azure Quantum Credits consumption is based on a resource-usage model and cost of use is deducted from your credits. To learn more about credits, see Azure Quantum Credits.
| Pricing | Use is deducted from the Azure Quantum Credits based on the HQC equation described above |
|---|---|
| Includes access to |
|
Note
Once you have consumed all the credits you need to explicitly switch to a different plan to continue using Quantinuum. Azure Quantum won’t start charging you once you reach your credit limit.
Important
There are no costs or charges to use your free credits. However, there may be some small storage costs, as the input and output of your credits jobs are stored in a storage account that you pay for. Job data is typically <1MB per job. For more details, see Azure Blob Storage pricing.
Rigetti
Rigetti charges for job execution time on their quantum processors, the 80-qubit Aspen-M-2 and Aspen-M-3. There is no added charge per job, per shot, or per gate. The Quantum Virtual Machine (QVM) simulator is free for all users.
To learn more about Riggeti, visit the Rigetti provider page.
All new Azure Quantum customers benefit from $500 (USD) free Azure Quantum credits to use specifically for Rigetti targets. To learn more about credits, see Azure Quantum Credits.
In addition to the Azure Quantum Credits plan, Rigetti offers a pay-as-you-go plan for live quantum processors, so you pay only for what you use.
Azure Quantum Credits consumption is based on a resource-usage model and cost of use is deducted from your credits. To learn more about credits, see Azure Quantum Credits.
| Pricing | Use is deducted from the Azure Quantum Credits based on the job execution time only |
|---|---|
| Includes access to |
|
Note
Once you have consumed all the credits you need to switch to a different plan to continue using Rigetti. Azure Quantum won’t start charging you once you reach your credit limit.
Important
There are no costs or charges to using your free credits. However, there may be some small storage costs, as the input and output of your credits jobs are stored in a storage account that you pay for. Job data is typically <1MB per job. For more details, see Azure Blob Storage pricing.
1Qbit
1QBit offers two plans: a Pay-as-you-go model based on the runtime of your optimization problem, and a fixed monthly plan.
Pay-as-you-go metered plan providing access to all 1QBit quantum inspired optimization solvers.
| Pricing | $0.00 (USD)/month + Azure infrastructure costs |
|---|---|
| Plus | CPU Usage by minute (minimum 1 second): $0.075 (USD)/minute |
For more information about Azure infrastructure costs, see Azure Blob Storage pricing.
You can find more information about 1QBit's offering on the 1QBit Provider Page.
Toshiba SQBM+
Toshiba SQBM+ offers two plans: Learn & Develop model and Performace at Scale model, both based on the runtime of your optimization problem.
Learn and develop with SQBM+ (not for operational use).
| Pricing | $0.00 (USD)/month + Azure infrastructure costs |
|---|---|
| Targets available | toshiba.sbm.ising |
| Plus | 0-0.1 hour: \$0 (USD)/hour 0.1-1 hour: \ $200 (USD)/hour |
For more information about Azure infrastructure costs, see Azure Blob Storage pricing.
You can find more information about Toshiba's offering on the Toshiba SQBM+ Provider Page.
Microsoft QIO
Charges for the Microsoft QIO provider are based on the runtime of your optimization problem, in seconds. Per-second rates are based on the plan you select and the volume of optimization jobs you run within a month. For detailed Microsoft QIO pricing in your region, see Microsoft Optimization Pricing Page.
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