# Data Key Caching

* Data key caching **stores data keys and related cryptographic material in a cache**.\\

* **When you encrypt or decrypt data, the AWS Encryption SDK looks for a matching data key in the cache**.\\

  * **If it finds a match, it uses the cached data key rather than generating a new one**.\\

* Data key caching can **improve performance, reduce cost, and help you stay within service limits as your application scales**.

* Your application **can benefit from data key caching if:**
  * It can **reuse data keys**.
  * It **generates numerous data keys**.
  * Your **cryptographic operations are unacceptably slow**, expensive, limited, or resource-intensive.\\

* **Caching can reduce your use of cryptographic services**, such as KMS.\\

* **If you are hitting your KMS requests-per-second limit**, caching can help.
