# Tokens and billing

Claudech is prepaid. You hold a balance of **Claudech tokens**, every request debits exactly what it used, and you can always see the cost of a request in its response. There are no invoices after the fact and no way to run up a bill you did not fund.

## Claudech tokens

A request is priced from the published model rates: **$0.50** input, **$0.010** cached input, and **$1.90** output per million model tokens. That dollar cost is stored on your balance as Claudech tokens, at **1,000,000 Claudech tokens = $0.50**. Packages and monthly plans sell tokens at that same rate, so the prices above are what you pay. Quarterly and annual plans cost less.

Claudech tokens are **not** the same as the model tokens counted in `usage.prompt_tokens` and `usage.completion_tokens`. Model tokens measure text; Claudech tokens measure money. The conversion goes through each model's published price:

```text
cost_usd   = prompt_tokens        × input_price  / 1,000,000
           + cached_prompt_tokens × cached_price / 1,000,000   (instead of input_price for those tokens)
           + completion_tokens    × output_price / 1,000,000   (reasoning tokens are completion tokens)

claud_tokens_debited = ceil(cost_usd / 0.0000005)
```

**Example.** A `claude-opus-5-5` request with 1,200 prompt tokens (400 of them cached) and 300 completion tokens at $0.50 / $1.90 / $0.010 per million:

```text
input   800 × 0.50  / 1e6 = $0.000400
cached  400 × 0.010 / 1e6 = $0.000004
output  300 × 1.90  / 1e6 = $0.000570
total                      = $0.000974  →  1,948 Claudech tokens
```

Every response reports both numbers: `usage.claud_tokens_debited` and `usage.claud_cost_usd` (non-streaming) or the final `claud` event (streaming). Current prices per model are on the [Models](https://claudech.com/docs/models) page and in `GET /v1/models`.

> **Prompt caching is automatic**
>
> When a prompt prefix repeats (a long system prompt, a document, earlier turns of a conversation), the provider serves it from cache and Claudech bills those tokens at the much lower cached rate. `usage.prompt_tokens_details.cached_tokens` shows how many tokens were cached. Keep stable content at the **start** of the prompt to maximise hits.

## How a request is charged

1. **Estimate.** Before calling the model, Claudech estimates the prompt size and assumes the maximum possible output (`max_tokens` or the model default) to compute a worst-case cost, adds a 20% safety margin, and **reserves** that many Claudech tokens from your balance. If you do not have enough, the request fails immediately with `402 insufficient_balance` and nothing is charged. Reserved tokens appear as `reserved_tokens` in your balance while the request runs.
2. **Run.** The model generates the response.
3. **Settle.** The reservation is replaced by the exact cost based on the provider's real token counts. The difference is released within milliseconds.

Consequences worth knowing:

- Setting a **realistic `max_tokens`** lets you make requests with a smaller balance, because the reservation is smaller.
- Requests that fail before producing output (`4xx`, provider errors, rate limits) are **never billed**.
- If a stream is cancelled or fails part-way, you pay only for tokens actually generated.
- A small minimum balance (1,000 Claudech tokens, $0.0005) is required to start any request.

## Where tokens come from

Your balance has two buckets, drawn down in this order:

| Bucket | Source | Expiry |
| --- | --- | --- |
| **Subscription** | Monthly allowance granted by a paid plan (12M on Starter, 39M on Pro, 140M on Power, 525M on Business; none on pay as you go) | Unused allowance expires at the end of each billing period and when you change plans. |
| **Purchased** | One-off token packages and custom amounts you buy | Never expire. |

`GET /v1/billing/balance` and `GET /v1/account` break the balance down by bucket, and `GET /v1/billing/ledger` returns every credit and debit as a double-entry ledger you can reconcile against your own records.

### Plans

Plans set your monthly allowance and [rate limits](https://claudech.com/docs/rate-limits). Every model and the full context window are available on every plan. You can compare them on the [Pricing](https://claudech.com/pricing) page. Upgrading takes effect immediately: the new allowance is granted at once and the higher limits apply to the next request.

### Token packages

Packages are the way to add headroom beyond your plan or to use Claudech without a subscription. Purchased tokens never expire and stack with any plan. Buy them under [Billing](https://claudech.com/billing).

## Paying

You can pay with **PayPal**, a **credit or debit card**, or **cryptocurrency**. Every method works for plans, token packages and custom amounts, and an email address is the only thing an account needs.

### PayPal and cards

- **PayPal:** pay with your PayPal balance or any card or bank account linked to your PayPal account.
- **Credit and debit cards:** Visa, Mastercard, American Express and Discover, through PayPal's secure card checkout. You do not need a PayPal account.
- Card and PayPal details are entered on PayPal's checkout and handled by PayPal. Claudech never sees or stores your full card number or PayPal login.
- Tokens are credited as soon as PayPal confirms the payment.

### Cryptocurrency

Crypto payments go straight to Claudech with no third-party processor and **no KYC**: there is no identity verification, no card on file and no billing address to enter.

| Network | Assets |
| --- | --- |
| Bitcoin | BTC |
| Ethereum | ETH, USDT, USDC, DAI |
| Arbitrum One | ETH, USDT, USDC |
| OP Mainnet | ETH, USDT, USDC |
| Base | ETH, USDC |
| Polygon | POL, USDT, USDC |
| BNB Smart Chain | BNB, USDT, USDC |
| Avalanche C-Chain | AVAX, USDT, USDC |
| Tron | TRX, USDT, USDC |

- **How it works:** choose a plan or package, pick an asset, and you receive a unique deposit address and exact amount quoted at the current market rate. The quote is valid for 30 minutes. Send the payment; tokens are credited automatically once the network reaches the required confirmations (from 1–2 blocks on Bitcoin to about a minute on fast EVM chains).
- **Underpayments** within a small tolerance (0.5%) are accepted as paid. Larger shortfalls are held for review; open a [support ticket](https://claudech.com/support?category=payments) with the invoice ID and we will credit the amount received. **Overpayments** are credited in full at the quoted rate.
- Every payment and the tokens it produced are listed under Billing and in the ledger.

Claudech's payment addresses are derived from watch-only keys: the platform never holds private keys, and funds go straight to cold storage.

## Low balance and cost protection

- You receive an email when your balance drops below 100,000 tokens ($0.05), and the dashboard shows a warning. Adjust the threshold or turn it off in [Settings](https://claudech.com/settings).
- Because the system is prepaid, there is no overdraft: when the balance runs out, requests fail with `402 insufficient_balance` until you top up. Nothing else changes; keys and conversations remain intact.
- Watch `x-claud-balance` on non-streaming responses (or `balance_tokens` in the stream's `claud` event) to top up before your users notice.

## No refunds

All purchases are final and are not refunded, whichever way you pay. Crypto payments cannot be reversed once they confirm on-chain, so double-check the network and amount before you send. If you believe a request was billed incorrectly, send the `request_id` to [support](https://claudech.com/support?category=billing); every request's cost breakdown is recorded and we will correct any error.

## Reference

- [`GET /v1/billing/balance`](https://claudech.com/docs/api/account#balance): current balance, buckets and token rate.
- [`GET /v1/billing/ledger`](https://claudech.com/docs/api/account#ledger): every credit and debit.
- [`GET /v1/usage`](https://claudech.com/docs/api/usage): token counts and cost by day, month and model.

---

Source: https://claudech.com/docs/billing