" -o cluster_state.json`
it gives me `cluster_state.json` with size of `1013867688` ~ 1GB
and if try to take it without pretty it will be `323170792` ~ 323MB
So this value is nowhere near 11GB that is in `serialized_cluster_states`
How can I get the actual size of cluster state?
---
### Author:  [@DavidTurner](https://discuss.elastic.co/u/DavidTurner)
#### Post date: [April 7, 2026, 12:12pm UTC](https://discuss.elastic.co/t/real-cluster-state-size/385796/2 "2026-04-07T12:12:35Z")
> [@Nicko](#):
>
> `"uncompressed_size_in_bytes": 11241694795`
This is the total size of all full cluster states the node has serialized since it started. So on average that’s a little under 14MiB per state:
```auto
$ echo 'scale=2; 11241694795/772/1024^2' | bc
13.88
```
> [@Nicko](#):
>
> How can I get the actual size of cluster state?
What do you mean by “actual size”?
---
### Author:  [@Nicko](https://discuss.elastic.co/u/Nicko)
#### Post date: [April 7, 2026, 12:23pm UTC](https://discuss.elastic.co/t/real-cluster-state-size/385796/3 "2026-04-07T12:23:01Z")
Oh, I think I get it
So 11241694795 is the full state from start
And the current cluster state is the state from `/_cluster/state` and in my situation It is around 320MB?
By "actual size" I meant the current one, that the cluster is holding
Is there any documentation, where I can read about `uncompressed_size_in_bytes`? cause I didn't find one
---
### Author:  [@DavidTurner](https://discuss.elastic.co/u/DavidTurner)
#### Post date: [April 7, 2026, 12:28pm UTC](https://discuss.elastic.co/t/real-cluster-state-size/385796/4 "2026-04-07T12:28:09Z")
> [@Nicko](#):
>
> By "actual size" I meant the current one, that the cluster is holding
Sure but in what sense? The size on the wire between nodes is the compressed size (average ~5.2MiB according to your numbers). On disk it's stored as a collection of files in `${path.data}/_state` with a different format so I expect it's a little larger. Rendered as JSON it's much larger than either of these. Which of these is the "actual size" in the sense in which you're interested?
> [@Nicko](#):
>
> Is there any documentation, where I can read about `uncompressed_size_in_bytes`? cause I didn't find one
I don't think this is documented, no, it's only really useful for some fairly deep troubleshooting when read alongside the code itself, it doesn't have much meaning otherwise.
---
### Author:  [@Nicko](https://discuss.elastic.co/u/Nicko)
#### Post date: [April 7, 2026, 12:42pm UTC](https://discuss.elastic.co/t/real-cluster-state-size/385796/5 "2026-04-07T12:42:32Z")
> [@DavidTurner](#):
>
> Sure but in what sense? The size on the wire between nodes is the compressed size (average ~5.2MiB according to your numbers). On disk it's stored as a collection of files in `${path.data}/_state` with a different format so I expect it's a little larger. Rendered as JSON it's much larger than either of these. Which of these is the "actual size" in the sense in which you're interested?
In a matter of size I am interested in the current size of the cluster state, which is located in `${path.data}/_state`, but in a matter of content (which is the thing that I am originally looking at and trying to find what's in there currently) I think the second one
> [@DavidTurner](#):
>
> I don't think this is documented, no, it's only really useful for some fairly deep troubleshooting when read alongside the code itself, it doesn't have much meaning otherwise.
got it
---
### Author:  [@Nicko](https://discuss.elastic.co/u/Nicko)
#### Post date: [April 7, 2026, 12:43pm UTC](https://discuss.elastic.co/t/real-cluster-state-size/385796/6 "2026-04-07T12:43:36Z")
And if we are talking about the cluster size itself - is there any documentation (not the unofficial one), where I can find what things can affect the cluster state and is there any way to find out the normal cluster state size (maybe calculate it somehow)?
---
### Author:  [@DavidTurner](https://discuss.elastic.co/u/DavidTurner)
#### Post date: [April 7, 2026, 1:37pm UTC](https://discuss.elastic.co/t/real-cluster-state-size/385796/7 "2026-04-07T13:37:56Z")
I’m still not really sure what you’re asking here, but a cluster state that renders as ~300MiB of JSON is not particularly unusual or concerning.
---
### Author:  [@Nicko](https://discuss.elastic.co/u/Nicko)
#### Post date: [April 7, 2026, 1:54pm UTC](https://discuss.elastic.co/t/real-cluster-state-size/385796/8 "2026-04-07T13:54:56Z")
I am just trying to dive deeper into elastic cluster state
> [@DavidTurner](#):
>
> but a cluster state that renders as ~300MiB of JSON is not particularly unusual or concerning.
okey, got it
Thank you for your time and for answering my questions))