Demo Data
CostPilot includes a built-in demo dataset that lets you explore the full platform before connecting your own Kubernetes cluster. It is enabled by default for all new accounts.
What Demo Data Is
The demo dataset represents a fictional cluster called Demo Production Cluster, configured to resemble a realistic production environment:
- Cloud provider: AWS, region
us-east-1 - Monthly cost: approximately $687/month (displayed in your configured display currency)
- Nodes: 6 nodes — a mix of
m5.xlarge,c5.2xlarge, and spot instances - Pods: 48 pods across multiple namespaces
- Namespaces:
production,staging,monitoring,data,batch - Teams: 4 label-based teams —
api,platform,data,ml
The data is static and pre-computed. It does not connect to any real infrastructure and does not change between sessions.
The Demo Badge
Any cost row, chart, or data card derived from the demo dataset is marked with an amber Demo badge. This makes it immediately clear which figures are fictional and which come from your own connected clusters.
Once you connect a real cluster, your actual data appears alongside the demo data (if demo data is still enabled), with the badge clearly distinguishing the two sources.
Enabling and Disabling Demo Data
Demo data is controlled from Settings → Features, under the Data & onboarding section.
- Navigate to Settings → Features
- Find the Demo cluster toggle
- Switch it off to hide the demo cluster entirely, or back on to restore it
The change takes effect immediately. No data is deleted — toggling demo data off simply stops it from appearing in views. You can re-enable it at any time.
Keep demo data enabled while you are familiarising yourself with the platform. It provides a complete, richly populated dataset that makes every view immediately useful, even before your cluster is connected.
What Works With Demo Data
The demo dataset is designed to exercise as much of the platform as possible:
- Dashboard — total cost, trends, top namespaces, and efficiency scores all populate from the demo cluster
- Cost Explorer — full breakdown by namespace, team, label, and node pool; all dimension switching works
- Nodes — all six demo nodes appear with utilisation and cost figures
- Analysis — trend charts, breakdown views, and velocity analysis all render using the static dataset
- Insights — pre-generated insights are shown for the demo cluster
What Does Not Work With Demo Data
Because demo data is static and fictional, some features have limited or no functionality:
- Cost alerts — alert rules require real-time cost data crossing a threshold. The demo cluster’s figures are fixed, so thresholds will not trigger
- Live notifications — cluster connected/disconnected events and new insight notifications are not generated for demo data
- Real-time updates — the demo dataset does not change, so there is nothing to stream via SSE
Insights shown for the demo cluster are representative examples of what the analysis engine produces for real clusters. They are pre-seeded, not generated on the fly from the static data.
Why Demo Data Exists
New users often connect CostPilot before their cluster has accumulated enough historical data for the platform to be immediately useful. Metrics need time to build up before trends, comparisons, and insights become meaningful.
Demo data solves this by giving you a fully populated, realistic environment from the moment you sign up. You can:
- Learn how to navigate every view without waiting for data
- Understand what a well-structured cost breakdown looks like
- Train team members on CostPilot features using consistent, predictable figures
- Evaluate whether CostPilot meets your needs before committing to a paid plan
Removing Demo Data Once Your Cluster Is Connected
Once your cluster has been running for a few days and your dashboards are populated with real data, the demo cluster is no longer needed.
Disable it via Settings → Features → Demo cluster toggle.
A good time to disable demo data is after your first full week of real metrics. By then, the Cost Explorer and Analysis views will have enough data to be meaningful, and the demo cluster will feel more like clutter than a teaching aid.
After disabling, all amber Demo badges disappear and every figure you see in CostPilot reflects your actual infrastructure spend.