# Cost Explorer (with Claude Code)

> Where every cost investigation starts. I let Claude Code read it and find the culprit.

- Verdict: My default
- Vendor: AWS
- Layer: [Accounts, identity and cost](https://cloudlesslabs.com/stack/layers/accounts.md). Job: Cost analysis
- Last reviewed: 18 October 2026, by Nicolas Dao (Cloudless Labs, Sydney)
- Web page: https://cloudlesslabs.com/stack/aws-cost-explorer/. The whole stack in one file: https://cloudlesslabs.com/stack/brief.md

Group by service, then usage type, then operation. An agent with read-only access does this in minutes.

## Use it when

- Monthly bill reviews and any surprise on the invoice.

## Gotchas, with fixes

- **Gotcha:** Operation names can mislead: CloudWatch log ingestion shows as 'PutLogEvents' but is billed per GB.
  **Fix:** Group by usage type as well as operation.

## Where it fits

- [An AWS foundation for a client](https://cloudlesslabs.com/stack/use-cases/aws-foundation.md): pick 5. Monthly review, with an agent doing the digging.

## Related

- [Accounts, identity and cost](https://cloudlesslabs.com/stack/layers/accounts.md): every tool in this layer, with its verdict
- [The whole stack in one file](https://cloudlesslabs.com/stack/brief.md): every use case and tool, for questions that span many
- [Map of every Markdown file on cloudlesslabs.com, with what each one answers](https://ask.cloudlesslabs.com)