AWS bill line item
ConfigurationItemRecorded
The per-item charge AWS Config bills every time it detects and records a change to a tracked resource's configuration. It's metered by how often your infrastructure changes, not a flat monthly fee.
AWS Config configuration item recording
Verified against official AWS documentation last checked
Why it shows up
Ephemeral or auto-scaled infrastructure can each generate several configuration items per launch (the resource itself, plus the network interfaces, groups, and attachments it creates), so a workload that churns instances hourly can dwarf its own compute cost in Config charges alone.
Because billing tracks activity rather than resource count or uptime, a resource stuck in a create/delete loop can spike this line from a few dollars to hundreds within a billing period with no corresponding change in what you're running.
How to cut it
- Exclude high-churn, low-value resource types from the configuration recorder's recording scope.
- Run ephemeral or bursty workloads in an account or organizational unit where this recording is disabled or scoped down.
- Investigate any resource stuck in a create/delete loop. It's a common root cause of runaway configuration-item volume.
- Review rule evaluations and conformance packs alongside configuration items, since both are billed by activity too.
How to read a usage type
ConfigurationItemRecorded carries no region or direction token, so there's nothing to break down here.
Source
Source: AWS docs →Found ConfigurationItemRecorded on your own bill?
Drop your Cost Explorer CSV into the AWS Bill Analyzer. It'll flag line items like this one on your own bill and link straight back to the fix.
Analyze your own bill →The invoice is a lagging signal.
A monthly invoice tells you what already happened. CostMon builds a daily baseline, so a spike stands out while you can still act on it.