Metered utilization is the correct answer because it allows the company to pay only for the resources it consumes. This characteristic aligns with the company's goal to match costs with actual usage and also provides the flexibility to adjust to changing demands. Rapid elasticity, while related, mainly addresses the speed and agility with which resources can be scaled, rather than the cost alignment aspect. High availability is an important factor for maintaining uptime and accessibility, but does not directly impact the cost aspect as metered usage does. File synchronization is a feature that ensures consistency of files across systems, but it does not affect the billing or the cost structure based on actual usage.