Sign in into the **Google Cloud Platform**

Type "**Billing**" in the search bar and click on the **Billing** option

**What is Billing?**\
\
Billing refers to charging customers for the usage of services or resources provided by a service provider like Google Cloud Platform (GCP), based on actual usage or committed resource commitments.

**Overview** wizard will open, click on the **Budgets & alerts** from the left bar

**What are Budgets & alerts?**\
\
**Budgets & alerts** in Google Cloud Platform (GCP) refer to tools and features that help users manage their cloud spending effectively. Here's a concise overview:

1. **Budgets**: Users can set budgets to track and control their GCP spending. Budgets allow users to specify the amount of money they are willing to spend on GCP services within a defined period, such as monthly or quarterly.

2. **Alerts**: Users can set up budget alerts to receive notifications when their spending approaches or exceeds the specified budget thresholds. These alerts help users proactively monitor their spending and take necessary actions to avoid unexpected costs.

Together, budgets and alerts enable users to maintain cost visibility, control cloud expenditures, and optimize resource usage in GCP.

**Budgets & alerts** wizard will open, click on the **CREATE BUDGET** on the top left side

**Create Budget** wizard will open, give the Name as -  "**my-first-budget"**

Scroll to the **Projects** dropdown section, here you can choose the custom projects for your budget and click on the **NEXT** button

**Note:** You can also create a budget for All projects

Scroll to the **Budget type** section and select the option **Specified amount** from the dropdown

Scroll to the **Target amount** section,  enter "**1000**" in the input field and click on the **NEXT** button

**Note:** You can set the Target amount as per your requirement.

**What is the Target amount?**

In various financial and management contexts, the "target amount" typically refers to a specific goal or desired quantity that individuals or organizations aim to achieve. It can represent a monetary target, such as a budget or savings goal, or a quantitative target, such as sales targets or production quotas. The target amount serves as a benchmark or objective that guides planning, decision-making, and performance evaluation towards achieving desired outcomes.

Scroll to the **Actions** section, here you can set alert threshold rules for your budget

**Note:** To add more threshold rules click on the **ADD THRESHOLD** button

**What are Set alert threshold rules?**

Set alert threshold rules in Google Cloud Platform (GCP) allow users to define specific thresholds for spending or resource usage. When these thresholds are met or exceeded, GCP triggers alerts to notify users. This helps users monitor their usage and costs effectively, enabling proactive management and control of cloud expenditures.

Scroll to the **Manage notifications** section and checkbox the option **Email alerts to billing admins and users**

**What are Email alerts to billing admins and users?**\
\
Email alerts to billing admins and users in Google Cloud Platform notify designated recipients about important billing events, such as approaching budget limits, unusual spending patterns, and billing statements.

Scroll the page and click on the **FINISH** button

Congratulations! on completing this lab and Understanding Billing for Google Compute Engine - GCE

Google Cloud

This guide provides a comprehensive understanding of billing for Google Compute Engine (GCE) VMs.

Understanding Billing for Google Compute Engine - GCE VMs