Cloud cost optimization is crucial to prevent uncontrolled expenses due to the elasticity of cloud resources. Overprovisioning and cloud sprawl are common problems that lead to increased costs, making it necessary for companies to implement cost optimization measures. Some challenges faced in managing cloud costs include lack of visibility into cloud costs, cost attribution issues, unexpected expenses, lack of cost oversight, and inaccurate forecasting. To optimize cloud costs effectively, teams can follow tactics such as understanding their cloud bill, rightsizing cloud resources, using Spot instances, autoscaling resources to match demand, and picking the right tool for the job. Automated solutions are recommended for efficient optimization without impacting performance or availability.