Quantum computing cost calculator
Shots a $20 balance buys on each processor, at provider list price.
| Processor | Qubits | Rate | Max shots per job | Shots for $20 |
|---|---|---|---|---|
 Belenospriced in euros, converted at a fixed rate | 12 | $0.32 / job + $1.1e-6 / shot | 800,000 | 18,218,518over 800,000 per job, so split across tasks |
 Cepheus-1-108Q | 108 | $0.30 / task + $0.000425 / shot | 50,000 | 46,352 |
 Garnet | 20 | $0.30 / task + $0.00145 / shot | 20,000 | 13,586 |
| Emerald | 54 | $0.30 / task + $0.0016 / shot | 20,000 | 12,312 |
 Aquilaruns in weekend execution windows | 256 | $0.30 / task + $0.01 / shot | 1,000 | 1,970over 1,000 per job, so split across tasks |
 IBEX Q1 | 12 | $0.30 / task + $0.0235 / shot | 2,000 | 838 |
 Forte Enterprise 1 | 36 | $0.30 / task + $0.08 / shot | 5,000 | 246 |
 FRESNELbilled as machine time: EUR 500 per hour at one shot per 4s | 100 | $0.60 / shot of machine time | 100 | 33 |
Prices are the providers' published list rates, passed through without markup, and are generated directly from the registry that bills each job. Euro-priced devices are converted at a fixed 1.08 rate, so a quote stays reproducible instead of moving with the market. Queue time is not billed.
What these numbers say
The same $20 buys roughly 46,352 shots on Rigetti Cepheus-1-108Q and about 33 on Pasqal FRESNEL. Neither number is a mistake. They are different physical technologies billed on different clocks, one by the shot and one by the second. Simulation, meanwhile, costs a fraction of a cent a job, which is why most work should start there.
Why the spread is so wide
A superconducting chip repeats a circuit thousands of times a second, so a shot is cheap. A trapped-ion machine moves real atoms with lasers and repeats far more slowly, so a shot costs more. Neutral-atom hardware bills machine time rather than shots altogether, which is why Pasqal FRESNEL is quoted here per second of the machine rather than per repetition.
Splitting a budget across engines
The table shows each engine on its own, because that is the honest unit. Every rate is also given per shot and per task, so a top-up divides however you like. Run the search in simulation for a tenth of a cent, then spend the rest on the one hardware run that genuinely needs a real device. Every job quotes its price before it runs, at no charge.