How overage billing works
The short version
When you exceed your plan's monthly credit allocation, additional dossiers bill at your plan's overage price. The overage cap is the upper limit beyond which the system stops accepting new dossier requests until the next billing cycle. No surprise charges; the cap exists to protect customers from runaway billing.
The numbers
| Plan | Included credits | Overage cap | Overage price |
|---|---|---|---|
| Solo monthly ($49) | 5 | 20 per month | $11 per credit |
| Solo annual ($525) | 60 per year | n/a; annual bucket | n/a within term |
| Professional monthly ($219) | 25 | 75 per month | $10 per credit |
| Professional annual ($2,295) | 270 per year | n/a; annual bucket | n/a within term |
| Pay-per-dossier | 1 per purchase | n/a | $15 per credit |
Annual plans grant the full year's credit allocation in a single bulk allocation on the first successful payment. There is no monthly overage cap on annual; if you blow through the annual allocation early, the next dossier request charges as a pay-per-dossier credit at $15 until renewal grants the next bulk.
What happens when you hit the included allocation
The included credit count appears in the Account page billing block and on the dashboard's top region. As you ship dossiers, the count drops.
When the included count reaches zero, the next dossier request charges an overage credit at your plan's overage price. The charge posts to the payment method on file at Stripe. You see the charge inside Stripe and on your monthly invoice; it does not require a separate authorization at the moment of purchase.
A small banner surfaces on the dashboard when you cross from "included" to "overage" so you do not miss the transition.
What happens at the overage cap
Solo's overage cap is twenty credits per month. Professional's is seventy-five. The cap is the upper limit; the system stops accepting new dossier requests once you reach the cap.
If you hit the cap mid-month, two paths work:
- Wait for the next billing cycle. The cycle resets at the renewal date; included credits reset to the plan's allocation, and you can run again normally.
- Upgrade to a higher tier. Solo to Professional, or Professional to Professional annual. Upgrades take effect immediately and prorate through Stripe.
A "switch to pay-per-dossier" path is not available mid-cycle on a subscription plan. Pay-per-dossier is its own purchase type; you can buy one as a one-off without changing your subscription, but the system bills it separately rather than counting it against your subscription cap.
Why overage exists at all
The cap-without-overage alternative ("you have five credits this month, that is it") would force every advisor with a heavier-than-typical month into a full upgrade. Overage absorbs the surge cleanly: pay $11 per dossier on Solo or $10 on Professional, ship the dossier, move on. The price is roughly 1.5 times the per-dossier cost-of-goods-sold; the multiplier is intentionally tight so overage does not punish a useful surge.
The cap-without-cap alternative ("ship as many as you want, charge per dossier") would expose a customer to a surprise four-figure charge if a script or a copy-paste accident triggered repeated requests. The cap eliminates that scenario.
Overage on annual plans
Annual plans do not carry monthly overage. The annual allocation is your full year's credit budget. Once it runs out, the next dossier request charges as a pay-per-dossier credit at $15.
If you find yourself running through the annual allocation faster than expected, the right move is to wait for renewal day (when the bulk allocation grants fresh) or to consider whether Professional annual is the right fit for your usage pattern. Bryce will reach out at the third pay-per-dossier credit charge after the annual allocation runs out to ask whether Professional annual makes sense.
Where to see your usage
The Account page billing block surfaces:
- Current plan.
- Credits remaining in the included allocation.
- Overage credits used this cycle.
- Next renewal date.
- Payment method on file.
Stripe's monthly invoice carries the line-item detail for every overage charge.
[CTA: Open the Account page]
End of help article.