Snowflake Certification Practice Test

Does a materialized view in Snowflake add more storage cost to the customer bill?

1. True

2. False

3. Only if updated

4. Only in the initial creation

The correct answer is: True

A materialized view in Snowflake does indeed add more storage costs to the customer bill. This is because when a materialized view is created, it stores a physical copy of the data from the underlying base tables. Unlike a regular view, which generates the data dynamically at query time, a materialized view holds the results of the query, allowing for quicker access and improved query performance. Since the content of the materialized view is saved and maintained in a separate storage space, it consumes additional storage resources that contribute to the overall costs incurred by the user. The storage cost persists even if the content of the materialized view is not frequently accessed, as it remains allocated within Snowflake's cloud infrastructure. In contrast, options that suggest storage costs are only incurred under specific circumstances, such as during updates or only at the time of initial creation, misunderstand how materialized views operate in Snowflake. The ongoing storage requirement is constant as long as the materialized view exists, making it important for users to consider their usage patterns to manage costs effectively.