Moderation Cost Calculator

See how much your team could save with OpenModeration. Compare self-hosted, managed cloud, and building in-house across three real-world scenarios.

Small Platform

10K requests / month

Self-hosted Best value

~$25/mo

Software free + ~$10 AI + ~$15 infra

Cloud SaaS Managed

~$49/mo

All features, zero infra management

Build In-House Most expensive

~$8K/mo

Amortized dev cost over 12 months

Popular

Growing Platform

100K requests / month

Self-hosted Best value

~$100/mo

Software free + ~$75 AI + ~$25 infra

Cloud SaaS Managed

~$149/mo

$49 platform + ~$100 AI usage

Build In-House Most expensive

~$16K/mo

Amortized dev + ongoing maintenance

Large Platform

1M requests / month

Self-hosted Best value

~$1K/mo

Software free + ~$750 AI + ~$250 infra

Cloud SaaS Custom

Custom

Enterprise pricing with volume discounts

Build In-House Most expensive

~$50K/mo

Full team + infrastructure at scale

Estimates include AI provider fees and infrastructure. Build in-house costs are amortized over 12 months. Actual costs may vary.

What's included with OpenModeration

Every plan gives you the full platform, no feature gating.

4 AI Provider Integrations

OpenAI, Azure, Anthropic, and Amazon Bedrock — switch between them with a config change.

Action Engine & Rules

Conditional moderation actions — auto-flag, block, escalate, or notify based on confidence scores and content type.

Native Connectors

Pre-built integrations for Facebook, YouTube, Discord, and more. Connect your platforms in minutes.

Admin Dashboard

Real-time moderation queue, analytics, action logs, and rule management — all in one UI.

BYOK

Bring your own API keys for all AI providers. No data leaves your account. Full control over provider choice and cost.

Docker Deployment

One-command deploy with Docker Compose. PostgreSQL, Redis, and the app stack — all containerized and ready.

Frequently asked questions

Everything you need to know about pricing, scaling, and switching.

What affects the total cost of self-hosted OpenModeration?

The main cost drivers are: (1) AI provider API fees — paid per-request to OpenAI, Azure, or Anthropic based on your volume; (2) Infrastructure — a small VPS starts at ~$10/mo, scaling up with traffic; (3) Optional managed database services. The OpenModeration software itself is free.

How does your SaaS pricing compare to other platforms?

Our cloud plan starts at $49/mo with all features included. Most proprietary platforms charge per-seat or per-request on top of a base fee, leading to unpredictable bills. With OpenModeration, you only pay the platform fee plus the AI provider usage — no hidden per-moderator or per-action costs.

Do I need to commit to an annual contract?

No. Both self-hosted (free) and cloud (monthly) plans are month-to-month. Enterprise customers can opt for annual billing at a discount, but it's never required. No sales calls, no lock-in.

What if my volume exceeds 1 million requests per month?

Self-hosted scales linearly — your main cost increase is AI provider API fees and infrastructure. For cloud, we offer custom enterprise pricing at high volumes. Contact us for a tailored quote.

Can I migrate from self-hosted to cloud without downtime?

Yes. OpenModeration uses the same data format and schema regardless of deployment mode. You can export your configuration and rules from self-hosted and import them into the cloud plan. We provide migration scripts and can assist with the transition.

How do 'build your own' costs compare long-term?

Building in-house requires 1–3 engineers working for 3–6 months minimum ($60K–$150K upfront), plus ongoing maintenance, provider integration updates, and infrastructure costs. OpenModeration gives you the same result in an afternoon for zero software cost.

Ready to simplify your moderation stack?

Deploy in minutes with Docker or start a free trial. One API for every moderation provider, with no vendor lock-in.