How to Use Caliper Press Data
Caliper Press tracks 364 plans, services and websites in 6 sections; 329 of them have a value from their latest check. Every number carries its date, its data status, a link to the source page and a methodology. Our own numbers are licensed CC BY 4.0 with attribution to Caliper Press. How we check · Coverage by section.
Who the data is for
- Buyers of hosting, VPN, domains and software. The first price on a pricing page is often conditional. Our records show the first-term price, the renewal price where the provider publishes it, and the date both were read, so the full cost over several years can be worked out from two measured numbers.
- Procurement teams. Each plan has a history of measured values with dates. A price change shows the old and the new value and the day the change was first seen, which helps when a renewal quote differs from what was paid last year.
- Journalists. Named indices come with a value, a sample size, the observed range, the date and the list of what is included. Quote the index together with its date and sample size; a value without them cannot be checked.
- Researchers. Every record page has two files next to it, data.json and data.csv, with the same numbers as the page; the renewal costs page also has a data.csv with its table. Our numbers are CC BY 4.0; attribute them to Caliper Press. Quotations from supplier pages are short excerpts under their owners' rights and are not covered by our licence.
- Developers. The files are static and have stable addresses: the page address plus data.json or data.csv. There is no API, key or sign-up; the data downloads page describes the files and their fields.
How to cite us
Use the name of the index, plan or website, the date of the data (not the date you read the page) and the page address:
Caliper Press, <index name>, as of <date>, <page URL>
For example: Caliper Press, Caliper Press Domain Renewal Premium Watch, as of Oct 18, 2026, https://caliperpress.com/domain-prices/
.
The date is the date of the measurement shown on the page. If you cite a single plan or website, use its page address; it does not change when new measurements are added, and the history on that page keeps the value you cited.
The four data statuses
Every value on the site has one of four statuses, shown by a symbol and a word:
- Observed — the value was read from the source page on the stated date.
- Published by the source — only the supplier’s own statement is available; we quote it but did not measure it.
- Calculated — derived from measured records, for example an index or a renewal premium; how it is calculated is on the methodology page.
- Unknown — no value is recorded for that date; the reason is shown in place of a number.
A fault on our side is never recorded as a fact about a provider.
Early data and samples
A record with fewer than 2 successful checks of its main question on 2 different days is new: its numbers are shown, and the page says how much history it has so far. An index is published with its sample size; a small sample says less, and the observed range is the lowest and highest value in that sample, not a confidence interval. Each record names the country in which its value was shown; prices and responses can differ elsewhere.
What we do not measure
Each section measures a narrow, testable claim. The limits come from each section's methodology:
- Domain registration and renewal prices: the published one-year registration and renewal price of a standard domain, not a checkout, premium domains or a guarantee of next year's renewal price.
- SaaS pricing tracker: the public list price for a new customer, not a completed purchase, product quality, extra seats, overages or negotiated and grandfathered prices.
- Web hosting and VPS prices: first term vs renewal: the published monthly price and renewal price of a plan with its stated configuration, not performance, uptime or support quality.
- Post-quantum TLS checks: the hybrid key agreement of one hostname on port 443, not post-quantum certificates, QUIC, ECH, mail servers, origin connections or the security of an organisation.
- VPN pricing, renewal and refund terms tracker: published prices and terms only; speed, leaks, logging and streaming access are not tested.
- AI bot access policies: the root-path policy declared in robots.txt, not actual bot enforcement, training use or compliance with the policy.
Guides and reports
Section guides explain one question each with the current numbers:
- Domain registration vs renewal: the renewal premium — Domain registration and renewal prices
- Monthly vs annual billing: how much you save — SaaS pricing tracker
- How SaaS prices change over time — SaaS pricing tracker
- How hosting renewal pricing works: first term vs renewal — Web hosting and VPS prices: first term vs renewal
- VPS prices for the same configuration — Web hosting and VPS prices: first term vs renewal
- Hybrid Post-Quantum TLS Explained, with a Finland Sample — Post-quantum TLS checks
- Why VPN prices rise at renewal: what we measured — VPN pricing, renewal and refund terms tracker
- How to Block GPTBot and Other AI Crawlers in robots.txt — AI bot access policies
Monthly reports summarise each section for one calendar month; the full list is on the monthly reports page:
Corrections
If a value is wrong, send the page address, the date shown next to the value, the disputed value and a supporting source. The process and its current status are on the corrections page. A correction is recorded next to the affected value; the original measurement is not silently overwritten. Coverage of each section, including records without a recorded value, is on the coverage page. Who runs the site and how the data is produced: about.