Elastic Cloud offers ways to optimize costs in Elasticsearch by managing replica shards, which are crucial for data resiliency and high availability. Replica shards, which are copies of primary shards, contribute to search speed but also incur additional storage and processing costs. Configuring the number of replicas can be adjusted based on the use case; for instance, reducing replicas in non-production environments or for time series data can save resources. Elasticsearch allows dynamic settings for replicas, enabling changes post-index creation, and offers automation through index templates and Index Lifecycle Management (ILM) policies to streamline the process. These tools can automatically apply settings like the number of replicas and auto-expand replicas when indices are created, providing flexibility and cost efficiency. Elastic Cloud enhances resilience by distributing replica shards across availability zones, and users can further explore these cost-saving features through a 14-day free trial.