Monthly subscription or pay per generation: the simple math

The short answer

A subscription pays off for someone who uses most of their credits every month, month after month. Someone who creates as needed, a lot one month and a little the next, pays per generation for exactly what they made, without paying for credits left on the shelf.

To know what fits you, divide what you paid for the subscription in a month by the number of generations you really made that month, and compare the result with the price of the same generation when you pay per generation. Further down there is a table that does this math for every level of use, and live prices to compare with.

How a credit subscription works

With a subscription to an AI tool you pay a fixed amount every month and get a quota of credits. Every generation takes a number of credits from the quota that depends on the model and the settings, just like paying per generation. The difference is what happens at the end of the month.

On many platforms unused subscription credits are lost when the cycle resets, and on some, extra credit packs you buy also expire after a limited time. Then the price per generation on the plan holds only for someone who uses every credit, and every credit left on the shelf makes the generations you did make more expensive.

The difference shows most in quiet months. On a subscription you pay the full amount even in a month you create nothing, and when you pay per generation, such a month costs nothing, apart from storage fees if you went past the free 1 GB.

The math: what each generation really costs

The formula is simple: the real price of a generation on a subscription is the plan price divided by the number of generations you actually made. So it depends on how much of the quota you used:

This is arithmetic only, not the price of any particular platform, and it explains why a plan that looks cheap per generation can turn out expensive for someone who uses it a little. Paying per generation, this table is not needed: every generation costs exactly the price shown before it, in a busy month and in a quiet one.

How to compare in three steps

1. Count what you made. How many clips, images or minutes of voiceover you made last month, in which model and at which settings
2. Divide. Divide what you paid for the subscription that month by the number of generations. That is your real price per generation
3. Compare. Against the price of the same generation, in the same model at the same settings, in the table here or on the model page

Every model and price is on the models page, and every model page has a full table by length, resolution or quality.

Which way fits whom

• Just starting and not sure how much you will create. Paying per generation lets you learn your own pace with no commitment, and after a month or two you have real numbers for the math
• Working in projects, a lot one month and a little the next. Each project costs exactly what was created in it, with no plan sized for your busiest month
• Moving between models. One balance covers them all, with no need for a plan that happens to include the model you need this month
• Running automations or an AI agent. Every request is sent with a price cap, so a script running on its own never spends more than you set
• Creating large, steady amounts in one model. In that case a plan used to the last credit can come out cheaper, and the math is worth doing

What to check in a plan before you commit

If you are considering a subscription, check these before the first payment:

• What happens to unused credits: wiped at the end of the month, carried to the next one, or kept for a limited time
• How many credits the generation you need costs, in your model and at your settings, not only how many credits the plan has
• Which models are included in the plan, and at which resolutions and lengths
• Whether the price includes VAT
• A yearly commitment: an annual plan can make each month cheaper, but you pay for a whole year up front
• Usage limits, such as a number of generations per day, if there are any
• Commercial use: on some plans, free ones for example, it is restricted
• How to cancel and when the monthly charge stops

Why credits run out fast

Whatever the way you pay, a long clip, a high resolution and a full model cost much more than a draft. In Kling 3.0, for example, a 5 second clip costs ₪2.1121.09 crKling 3.0, 1080p · 5s · no sound right now and a 15 second clip costs ₪6.3363.27 crKling 3.0, 1080p · 15s · no sound. So it is worth seeing the price before every generation, and testing an idea first in a short or budget version.

More ways to save are in the guide what creating with AI costs and how to pay less.

How it works here

Here there is no subscription and no cycle. You buy credits in advance, and every generation takes from your balance exactly the price shown before it. One credit is worth ₪0.10 including VAT.

• Unused credits stay in your balance and do not expire while your account exists
• An exact price before every generation, not an estimate. Changing the length, resolution or number of images updates it at once
• A generation that fails gives all its credits back to your balance, automatically. The details are in the guide a failed or stuck generation
• One balance for every model: video, images, voiceover and music, on the website, the API, the CLI and MCP
• Storage: the first 1 GB is free, and each extra GB costs ₪10 a month from your balance

When a subscription can pay off more

Paying per generation is not always cheaper, and it is worth saying so. Someone who uses a large plan to the last credit, especially an annual plan paid up front, can pay less per generation on a plan. Someone who creates large, steady amounts every month, in one or two models, should do the math above and choose by the result.

Someone who creates as needed, moves between models or works on projects that come and go pays here for exactly what they made, and not a single credit is lost at the end of the month.

Questions and answers