Create a cluster

Weaviate Cloud (WCD) provides two cluster types.

• Free clusters: Free clusters are free forever and need no credit card, which makes them the easiest way to get started. They are perfect for learning, hobby projects, and small workloads, and you can upgrade to a paid plan at any time without losing your data. See the free tier allowance below.
• Shared Cloud clusters: Shared Cloud clusters are robust, paid clusters designed for production use.

When you log into the Weaviate Cloud web console, you land on the Overview page. The Database card lists your clusters, and the CLUSTER selector in the left sidebar switches between them. A new account has no clusters yet.

Free clusters

Free clusters are the easiest way to start building with Weaviate. They are free forever, need no credit card, and are ideal for learning, hobby projects, and small workloads. Each user can create one free cluster, and you can upgrade to a paid plan at any time without losing your data.

The free tier includes an allowance for the database, Weaviate Embeddings, and the Query Agent. The create-cluster form shows the current allowance as you create the cluster.

Free tier allowance

As of September 2026. The pricing page is the authority for current limits.

Resource	Allowance
Clusters	1 free cluster per user, always free
Object limit	100,000 objects
Collections	1
Tenants	Up to 3
Embedding service	Up to 2,000 requests daily
Query Agent	1,000 requests per month

Steps to create a free cluster

To create a free cluster, follow these steps:

1. Click the + button next to the CLUSTER label in the left sidebar.
2. Select the Free option.
3. Choose a name for your cluster.
4. The optimization profile is set to Cost Optimized for free clusters.
5. Configure the Advanced configuration settings if needed (AWS region, auto schema generation, and CORS settings).
6. Click the Create cluster button.

Advanced cluster configuration

The following advanced configuration settings are available:

• AWS region. Free clusters run on AWS, and you select the region.
• Enable auto schema generation
• Allow all CORS origins

The MCP server is always enabled on Weaviate Cloud clusters. The Enable MCP Read-Only switch, which restricts it to its read tools, is off by default (so the write tool is available) and is not part of the free cluster creation form. Set it after creation from the cluster's Advanced configuration, no restart needed.

Free cluster lifecycle

A free cluster runs for as long as you use it. After 7 days of inactivity, the cluster is suspended and your data is preserved. You can reactivate a suspended cluster from the Weaviate Cloud console.

If a cluster stays inactive, it is permanently deleted after 30 days of total inactivity (about 23 days after it is suspended). Weaviate sends a warning email 1 day before the cluster is deleted. To keep a cluster running indefinitely, or to run production workloads, upgrade to a paid plan.

Shared Cloud clusters

Shared Cloud clusters require billing details. Weaviate Cloud prompts you to add billing details if you have not already added them.

Steps to create a Shared Cloud cluster

To create a Shared Cloud cluster, follow these steps:

1. Click the + button next to the CLUSTER label in the left sidebar.
2. Select the Shared Cloud option.
3. Choose a name for your cluster.
4. Select an optimization profile (Cost Optimized or Performance Optimized).
5. Configure the Advanced configuration settings if needed (cloud provider and region, auto schema generation, CORS, and the MCP read-only setting).
6. Click the Create cluster button.

Advanced configuration for Shared Cloud clusters

The following advanced configuration settings are available:

• Cloud provider and region. Shared Cloud clusters can run on AWS or GCP.
• Enable auto schema generation
• Allow all CORS origins
• Enable MCP Read-Only

The MCP server is always enabled on Weaviate Cloud clusters. Enable MCP Read-Only is off by default, so the write tool is available. Turn it on to restrict the server to its read tools, on the creation form or at any time after creation without a restart.

Optimization profile

When you create a cluster, the Optimization profile sets the default vector index and compression for new collections in that cluster. Choose the profile that matches your workload:

• Cost Optimized: Uses the HFresh vector index for a lower memory footprint and reduced storage costs. Suitable for small or non-latency-sensitive workloads.
• Performance Optimized: Uses the HNSW vector index for efficient in-memory retrieval that balances speed and search quality. Suitable for most workloads.

The optimization profile only sets the default for new collections. You can still configure the vector index and compression for each collection when you create it.

Free clusters

Index type and compression are enforced on the free tier: free clusters use the Cost Optimized (HFresh) profile. To choose your own optimization profile, including Performance Optimized (HNSW), upgrade to Shared.

Authentication

Weaviate Cloud clusters use API key authentication. The authentication approach depends on whether RBAC (Role-Based Access Control) is enabled:

Authentication with RBAC enabled

New clusters with Weaviate version v1.30 (or later) have RBAC enabled by default. With RBAC enabled, you create API keys with specific roles for granular access control.

When you develop your client application, use an API key to connect your client to the cluster. For detailed instructions on finding and managing your API keys, including creating new keys and managing roles, check out this guide:

• Manage clusters: Authentication

Authentication with RBAC disabled (deprecated)

If RBAC is not enabled (before v1.30), clusters use the traditional approach with two default API keys:

• Admin keys: Provide read-write access to the database
• ReadOnly keys: Provide read-only access to the database

Weaviate Database version

When you provision a new cluster, Weaviate Cloud uses the latest version of Weaviate to set up the new cluster. There may be a short delay between the release of a new Weaviate version and its availability in Weaviate Cloud.

Weaviate Cloud automatically updates existing clusters as new Weaviate versions become available.

For more details on Weaviate Cloud versioning, see:

• Account management: Server version.

Number of clusters

Each user can create one (1) free cluster. By default, an organization can have up to six (6) Shared Cloud clusters at the same time. To change these limits, contact support.

Support

If you use Weaviate Cloud (Database cluster(s) or Weaviate product in the cloud) or have a self-hosted support package, open a ticket in the Support Portal or email Weaviate support directly. To add a support plan, contact Weaviate sales.

Use the Support Portal for direct help from the Weaviate team: open and track tickets, and we'll respond in line with your support plan. The Community Forum is open to everyone, and a great place to ask questions, get help with your cluster, and connect with other developers. For all the ways to get help, see the Support overview.

Weaviate Support Portal

Direct help from the Weaviate team for Weaviate Cloud. Open and track tickets in the Support Portal.

Weaviate Community Forum

Ask questions, share ideas, and connect with other developers on our Community forum.