How billing works
Parallect uses prepaid credits and budget tiers as spending caps -- plus initial credits from invite codes.
How billing works
Parallect charges for actual AI usage against a prepaid balance. This page explains the model in plain terms: what you're paying for and how budget tiers relate to your bill.
Balance-based prepaid credits
Your account holds a balance of credits. When you run research, the job draws down that balance based on real usage.
Think of it like a prepaid meter: you add funds before or as you go, and the app prompts you to top up when there isn't enough balance left for what you're trying to do.
Budget tiers are caps -- you're charged actual cost
Budget tiers set a maximum spend for a given job (and influence how many providers participate). You are charged the actual cost of the run, up to that cap -- not automatically the full tier amount every time.
If a job finishes under the cap, you pay less. You won't be charged more than the tier cap.
Starting a job
To start research, you need sufficient balance or a payment method on file. If your balance is too low and you don't have a payment method saved, the app will prompt you to add credits before the job can begin.
Individuals and businesses
Individual accounts are pay-as-you-go: add credits when you need them ($10, $25, $50, or $100 per top-up -- see Adding credits), run research when you need it, and watch your balance as usage goes up or down.
Business is built for organizations: $200 per month covers team usage patterns with up to 10 seats, so small groups can share Parallect without everyone maintaining a separate personal wallet. Exact entitlements and invoicing appear in checkout and account settings when Business is available to you.
Initial credits from invite codes
Many accounts start with credits because an invite code was applied at signup. Those codes may come from Parallect, a friend, or a referral program -- wherever you got yours, it's normal for your first balance to reflect that promotional or referral credit.
Ready to fund your account? Continue with Adding credits for top-up amounts and the low-balance prompt on threads.