Quantum computer price list 2026: what it costs to rent and to buy
"How much does a quantum computer cost?" has two answers, because there are two ways to get one. You can rent cloud access by the shot, minute or month, or you can buy a physical machine outright. This page lists both. Section 1 is the verified cloud-access price list across every major provider; Section 2 is the physical-purchase price list, from a $5,000 desktop unit to a $20 million commercial annealer, marked by whether the price is published, industry-reported, or quote-only. For estimating a specific job on rented hardware, use the cost calculator.
1.Cloud-access price list (rent by the shot, minute or month)
This is the price to run circuits on someone else's hardware over the cloud, the route almost everyone takes. Rates are verified against each provider's primary pricing page (or, for IBM, independent research notes where the page is bot-blocked).
Table 1 — Cloud-accessible QPU offerings, 2026
| Provider | Tech | Qubits | Price | Status |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| IBM Quantum — Open Plan | superconducting | 156 | $0 free | verified primary |
| IBM Quantum — Pay-As-You-Go | superconducting | 156 | $96 per QPU minute | industry reported |
| IBM Quantum — Flex Plan | superconducting | 156 | $72 per QPU minute | industry reported |
| IBM Quantum — Premium | superconducting | 156 | $48 per QPU minute (effective) | industry reported |
| AWS Braket — IonQ Forte | trapped-ion | 36 | $0.08 per shot | verified primary |
| AWS Braket — IonQ Aria | trapped-ion | 25 | $0.03 per shot | industry reported |
| AWS Braket — Rigetti Cepheus-1-108Q | superconducting | 108 | $0 per shot | verified primary |
| AWS Braket — QuEra Aquila | neutral-atom | 256 | $0.01 per shot | verified primary |
| AWS Braket — IQM Garnet | superconducting | 20 | $0.001 per shot | verified primary |
| Azure Quantum — IonQ Aria 1 (PAYG) | trapped-ion | 25 | $12.42-97.5 per program (minimum) | verified primary |
| Azure Quantum — IonQ Forte (PAYG) | trapped-ion | 36 | $25.79-168.2 per program (minimum) | verified primary |
| Azure Quantum — Quantinuum H2 Standard | trapped-ion | 56 | $125,000 per month | verified primary |
| Azure Quantum — Quantinuum H2 Premium | trapped-ion | 56 | $175,000 per month | verified primary |
| Azure Quantum — Rigetti Cepheus | superconducting | 108 | $0.02 per 10-ms | verified primary |
| Azure Quantum — Pasqal Fresnel | neutral-atom | 100 | $3,210 per QPU hour | verified primary |
| Google Quantum AI — Willow | superconducting | 105 | quote n/a | quote only |
| D-Wave Leap — Trial | annealer | 4400 | $0 free trial | verified primary |
| D-Wave Leap — Commercial | annealer | 4400 | quote n/a | quote only |
Cloud rates verified 2026-06-03; AWS Braket and Azure Quantum re-verified live 2026-07-07 (both match). Full per-provider breakdowns: AWS Braket · Azure Quantum · IBM Quantum · D-Wave · Google Willow.
2.Physical-purchase price list (buy the machine)
Only a handful of vendors will sell you a quantum computer outright, and the price ladder is steep. A desktop NMR unit for teaching costs about the same as a workstation; a single superconducting QPU module is most of a million dollars before you have cooled it; a full commercial system is eight figures. Where a public or buyer-confirmed price exists it is tagged verified; where only secondary coverage exists it is industry-reported; where the vendor publishes no price it is quote-only.
Table 2 — Physical quantum computers you can buy, 2026
| System | Type | Price | Status |
|---|---|---|---|
| SpinQ Gemini / Triangulum (desktop) Room-temperature desktop unit for education and training; sits on a bench like a tower PC. | NMR, 2-3 qubits | from ~$5,000 | industry reported |
| Rigetti Novera QPU The QPU module only; needs a dilution refrigerator and control electronics (a full turnkey Novera system has sold at roughly $2.85M each). | Superconducting, 9 qubits | from $900,000 | verified primary |
| D-Wave Advantage2 A complete on-premise annealing system. Florida Atlantic University signed a $20M agreement to purchase and install one in 2026. | Annealer, 4,400+ qubits | $20,000,000 | verified primary |
| IBM Quantum System One / Two IBM installs on-premise systems for enterprise and government but does not publish a list price; industry estimates put a full system above $10M. | Superconducting, utility-scale | no public price | quote only |
Purchase prices are point-in-time and change without notice; the D-Wave figure is the $20M price Florida Atlantic University agreed in January 2026, and the Rigetti figure is the Novera QPU starting price. IBM installs on-premise systems but publishes no list price. These are hardware costs only and exclude cryogenics, facilities and staff.
3.Buy or rent?
For nearly every workload, renting cloud access is dramatically cheaper than buying. A 10,000-shot circuit on AWS Braket's Rigetti Cepheus costs about $4.55, and IBM's Open Plan is free for 10 minutes of QPU time per 28-day window. Owning hardware only pays off when you need dedicated, always-on access and can absorb both the six-to-eight-figure purchase and the cryogenic infrastructure and specialist staff to keep it running. That is why the practical "price of a quantum computer" for most teams is a cloud bill, not a capital purchase.
4.Frequently asked questions
How much does it cost to buy a quantum computer in 2026?
It spans four orders of magnitude. A SpinQ desktop NMR machine for education starts at about $5,000. A Rigetti Novera QPU (9 superconducting qubits) is priced from $900,000, though it needs its own dilution refrigerator. A complete D-Wave Advantage2 annealing system sold for $20 million to Florida Atlantic University in 2026. Utility-scale superconducting systems from IBM are installed on-premise but have no published list price; industry estimates exceed $10 million. Most organisations rent cloud access instead of buying hardware.
What is the cheapest quantum computer you can buy?
A SpinQ desktop NMR quantum computer, from about $5,000, is the cheapest machine you can actually purchase and put on a bench. It has 2-3 qubits and runs at room temperature, aimed at teaching and algorithm training rather than research-scale computation. Anything with more qubits and higher fidelity jumps to six or seven figures.
What is the price of a commercial quantum computer?
For a full research-grade or production system, published figures in 2026 are: Rigetti Novera QPU from $900,000 (module only), and a complete D-Wave Advantage2 annealer at $20 million (the price Florida Atlantic University agreed to pay). IBM's utility-scale superconducting systems are quoted privately and industry-estimated above $10 million. Prices this high are why cloud access dominates: you can run the same hardware from free to a few dollars per job.
Is it cheaper to buy or rent a quantum computer?
For almost everyone, renting cloud access is far cheaper. IBM's Open Plan gives 10 minutes of QPU runtime per 28-day window for free, and a 10,000-shot circuit on AWS Braket's Rigetti Cepheus costs about $4.55. Buying hardware only makes sense when you need dedicated, always-on access and can absorb both the six-to-eight-figure purchase and the cryogenic infrastructure and staff to run it.
See also: cost calculator · all-provider price reference · providers index · methodology. Independent reference, no affiliate revenue. Corrections: oliver@digitalsignet.com.