Free Plan Guide
We understand the challenges of the startup journey:every line of code holds the potential to change the world, but server costs and operational pressures can push your dream further away. That’s why we’re committed to supporting you with essential resources, easy onboarding, and a stable infrastructure, so you can stay focused on building core value without being held back by technical or financial burdens.
Our Free Plan is a long-term support initiative designed for early-stage developers, nonprofit projects, and technical prototyping. It’s our way of helping you go from 0 to 1 — making technology more accessible and standing alongside you as your ideas take flight.
Note:
Basic Description
Category | Description |
Covered Users | Limited beta testing |
Billing Model | Prepaid plan, free of charge. |
Plan Usage | Unmetered acceleration traffic and requests |
Plan Validity Period | Once activated, the subscription remains valid unless manually destroyed. |
Excess Charge | Basic usage is unmetered, with no excess charges. |
Service Commitment | Basic security and acceleration services are provided, but SLA is not guaranteed. |
Note:
1. The Free Plan is intended for individual developers, technical teams refining MVPs, nonprofit and educational projects, and early-stage websites in technical validation - especially those willing to follow fair use policies and contribute constructive feedback.
2. This Free Plan focuses on accelerating and caching standard website content (e.g., HTML, JS, CSS), but does not support video delivery or large-file distribution (including but not limited to high-volume images, audio/video files, game installers, etc.). For these use cases, please subscribe to a paid plan.
3. If such content is distributed - or reasonably suspected to be - without an applicable paid subscription,EdgeOne reserves the right to:
Suspend or restrict your access to EdgeOne;
Restrict end users from obtaining your specific resources through EdgeOne;
4. If the system detects high-frequency abnormal calls, continuous resource occupation in non-genuine business scenarios, or other suspected violations (e.g., commercial abuse, or malicious use), automated protection mechanisms may be triggered, resulting in traffic throttling or feature restrictions.
5. Free Plan accounts are also subject to isolation if overdue, resulting in site suspension and service termination.
Plan Functions
The Free Plan provides essential acceleration capabilities through basic resources, as well as platform-level DDoS protection and basic WAF protection capabilities. For a detailed feature comparison, please refer to Comparison of EdgeOne Plans to view.
Auto-Downgrade
If your prepaid plan (Personal / Basic / Standard) is not renewed upon expiration, the system will automatically downgrade your plan to the Free Plan to maintain basic service continuity.
As the Free Plan differs significantly from paid plans in terms of functionality, the downgrade will follow the constraints outlined below:
Constraint Type | Constraint Content |
Functionality Constraints | 1. Value-added features such as Smart Acceleration, QUIC, and image/video processing will be automatically disabled. 2. Other unsupported functions will remain effective but cannot be modified; deletion is allowed. 3. SLA guarantee level will be adjusted from 99.9% to no guaranteed SLA. |
Quota Adjustment | The rules exceeding quotas will remain effective but cannot be added or modified; items must be deleted to stay within plan limits before making modifications. |
Data Retention | 1. Historical offline logs will remain accessible, but new offline logs will no longer be generated or available for download. 2. The data query range will be limited to 14 days. |
All affected features and quotas subject to the above constraints during the downgrade are detailed in the table below.
Function Category | Product Feature | Post-Downgrade Handling Procedures | Features Limitations After Downgrade | Recovery Methods Post-Downgrade |
Functional Category | Smart Acceleration | Automatically closed | Once automatically closed, it cannot be reopened. | After upgrading the plan, it can be manually reopened. |
| QUIC | | | QUIC |
| Image Processing | | | Image Processing |
| Video Processing | | | Video Processing |
| Speed limit for single connection download | | | Single-Link Download Speed Limit |
| Custom Cache Key | Pre-downgrade configurations remain unchanged and continue to take effect. | Only query string handling (retain/ignore all) and case sensitivity can be configured. | Configuration modifications are allowed under either of the following conditions: 1. Upgrading the plan restores the rights and enables unrestricted changes. 2. Manual deactivation or deletion of configurations allows subsequent modifications. |
| Usage Cap Policy | | No additions or edits are allowed; only closure or deletion is permitted. | No new additions, no edits allowed, only closure or deletion is permitted. |
| Real-Time Logs | | | Real-Time Logs |
| Custom statistics metrics | | | Custom Statistics Indicators |
| Web Protection - Exception Rules | | | Web Protection - Exception Rules |
| Web Protection - Precise access control | | | Web Protection - Custom Precise Matching Rules |
| Web Protection - Rate Limiting Rules | | | Web Protection - Rate Limiting Rules |
| Web Protection - Web security monitoring rules | | | Web Protection - Web Security Protection Alert Notification |
| Web Protection - IP Group | | | Web Protection - IP Grouping |
| Web Protection - Intelligent Client Filtering | | Enabling is not allowed; only closure is permitted. | Not allowed to enable, only permitted to close. |
| Web Protection - Managed Rules - Automatic Update | | | Web Protection - Managed Rules - Automatic Update |
| Web Protection - Deep Analysis | | | Web Protection - Deep Analysis |
| Web Protection - Core Managed Rules | | Modifications apply exclusively to the free vulnerability protection rules; other rules remain fixed. | Only allows modifications to the free vulnerability protection rule set; other rules cannot be modified. |
| Web Protection - Custom Block Page | | Only restoration to default configurations is permitted: default pages/status codes (566/567). | Only allows restoration to default configurations:Default page/status codes (566/567) |
Quota Category | Number of Origin Groups | Quota rules that exceeded limits before the downgrade remain intact and stay effective. | No additions or edits allowed; only closure or deletion is permitted. | Configuration modifications are allowed under either of the following conditions: 1. Upgrading the plan restores the rights and enables unrestricted changes. 2. Manual deactivation or deletion of configurations allows subsequent modifications. |
| Number of Load Balancing Tasks | | | Number of Load Balancing Tasks |
| Total Number of Rules Engines | | | Total Number of Rules Engines |
| Number of Embedded IF Rules in the Rules Engine | | | Number of Embedded IF Rules in the Rules Engine |
| Number of Embedded ELSE IF Rules in the Rules Engine | | | Number of Embedded ELSE IF Rules in the Rules Engine |
| Number of Subdomains | | | Number of Subdomains |
| Number of Real-Time Log Tasks | | | Number of Real-Time Log Tasks |
| Number of Rate Limiting Rules in Web Protection | | | Number of Rate Limiting Rules in Web Protection |
| Number of Precise access control Rules in Web Protection | | | Number of Precise Matching Rules in Web Protection |
Free Plan Downgrade Example - Feature Limitations
If a user purchases a Standard Plan on May 12th and activates the following features based on actual scenarios during business access:
Product Feature | Configuration Details |
Smart Acceleration | Enabled |
Custom Cache Key | Cache specified parameters |
Web Protection - Precise Access Control Rules | Matches based on specified UA, triggering a JavaScript challenge upon hit |
Web Protection - Deep Analysis | Enabled |
Web Protection - Core Managed Rules | Core managed rules, enabled observation mode |
Upon non-renewal of your Standard Plan at expiration on June 12, the downgrade protocol will be triggered. During this process, restrictions will apply to features unsupported in the Free Plan, primarily as follows:
Product Feature | Processing Limitations |
Smart Acceleration | Disabled automatically (value-added feature not supported). |
Custom Cache Key | The Free Plan does not support custom Cache Keys; the configuration will still be effective after downgrade, only allowing changes to the query string (retain/ignore all parameters) and ignore case sensitivity. |
Web Protection - Precise Access Control Rules | The Free Plan does not support Precise Access Control Rules; the configuration will still be effective after downgrade, but no modifications are allowed, only deletion of the rules. |
Web Protection - Deep Analysis | The Free Plan does not support deep analysis; the configuration will still be effective after downgrade, but no modifications are allowed, only closure of the feature. |
Web Protection - Core Managed Rules | The Free Plan does not support core managed rules; the configuration will still be effective after downgrade, but no modifications are allowed, only modifications to the free vulnerability protection rule set. |
Free Plan Downgrade Scenario - Quota Limits
If a user purchases a Standard Plan on May 12th and activates the following features based on actual scenarios during business access:
Product Feature | Configuration Details |
Subdomains | Accessed 300 subdomains |
Rules Engine | Configured 50 rules engines |
Real-Time Logs | Configured 2 real-time log push tasks |
Web Protection - Rate Limiting Rules | Configured 5 rate limiting rules |
Web Protection - Precise Access Control Rules | Configured 2 custom rules |
Upon non-renewal of your Standard Plan at expiration on June 12, the downgrade protocol will be triggered. During this process, restrictions will apply to features unsupported in the Free Plan, primarily as follows:
Product Feature | Processing Limitations |
Subdomains | The Free Plan only supports 200 subdomains; if the number of subdomains exceeds 200, configuration changes will not be allowed, and you will need to delete the excess 100 subdomains before any configuration changes can be made. |
Rules Engine | The Free Plan only supports 20 rules engines; if the number of rules engines exceeds 20, configuration changes will not be allowed, and you will need to delete the excess 30 rules engines before any configuration changes can be made. |
Real-Time Logs | The Free Plan only supports 1 real-time log task; if the number of real-time log tasks exceeds 1, configuration changes will not be allowed, and you will need to delete one of the excess real-time log tasks before any configuration changes can be made. |
Web Protection - Rate Limiting Rules | The Free Plan only supports 1 rate limiting rule; if the number of rate limiting rules exceeds 1, configuration changes will not be allowed, and you will need to delete the excess 4 rate limiting rules before any configuration changes can be made. |
Web Protection - Custom Precise Matching Rules | The Free Plan only supports 0 Custom Precise Matching Rules; if the number of Custom Precise Matching Rules exceeds 0, configuration changes will not be allowed, and you will need to delete the excess 2 Custom Precise Matching Rules before any configuration changes can be made. |
Note:
The Free Plan is currently in limited beta.Automatic downgrade is applicable only to users eligible for the Free Plan. If your paid plan expires without renewal, the system will automatically downgrade your service to the Free Plan, ensuring uninterrupted business continuity to the greatest extent possible.
Upgrade Instructions
If you require enhanced acceleration or security capabilities beyond what the Free Plan offers, we provide a smooth upgrade. By upgrading to the official plans, you can fully unlock higher-level product technical features. You can upgrade the Free Plan anytime via the console to a personal, basic, or Standard Plan.Upon successful upgrade, you will receive formal EdgeOne security acceleration services. For example, if you need to upgrade to the Standard Plan during your current free usage, you may refer to the following steps:
1. Log in to the EdgeOne Console, and click on Plan Management in the left navigation bar.
2. On the Plan Management page, select the Free Plan and click Upgrade Plan.
3. On the Upgrade Plan page, select the Standard Plan, check Agree to the Service Agreement, and click Confirm.
4. You will be redirected to the order payment confirmation page; if you have any vouchers, you may select them for use, and then click Submit Order.
5. After submitting the order, choose the corresponding payment method to complete the payment.
Note:
1. If Free Plan was downgraded from a higher plan, you can only upgrade to your original plan by default. To upgrade to other plans, you must manually disable feature configurations that exceed the target plan's limits.
2. If your Free Plan was downgraded from a higher-tier plan, you can only upgrade back to the original tier by default. To upgrade to a different tier, please remove or disable features that exceed the target plan's limits.
2. You can use the console to upgrade only to the Personal, Basic, or Standard plans. For upgrades to Enterprise Plan, please contact us