BYOB Credit-Based Pricing Explained — No Subscriptions, Pay As You Go

BYOB uses a credit system where you buy credits once and use them whenever you need AI-powered features. Credits cost ₹1 each in India or $1 per 100 credits internationally. They never expire. No monthly subscriptions, no recurring charges.

Traditional SaaS platforms charge monthly whether you use them or not. BYOB charges only for actual AI usage. Build 10 projects one month and nothing the next month? Pay only for the month you built.

Key facts

•Credits cost ₹1 each (India) or $1/100 credits (international).
•Credits never expire once purchased.
•New users receive free starter credits to try BYOB.

How credits work

Credits are BYOB's internal currency. You buy credits with real money, then spend credits when you use AI features.

What consumes credits:

•AI code generation (building features, pages, components)
•AI refactoring and edits (modifying existing code via chat)
•Vision processing (converting screenshots or designs to code)
•Voice commands (building with voice input)
•One-click deployments (publishing your site live)

What doesn't consume credits:

•Manual code editing in the editor
•Browsing your project
•Version control (saving, restoring snapshots)
•Viewing history
•Testing your site locally
•Exporting code

You only pay for AI assistance and infrastructure (deployment). Everything else is free. Key facts

•Credits buy AI-powered operations and deployment.
•Manual work and version control don't consume credits.
•Credits buy infrastructure usage (hosting, CDN, SSL).

Pricing by region

BYOB automatically detects your location and shows appropriate pricing:

India: ₹1 per credit

•More affordable for Indian builders
•Supports UPI, cards, and local payment methods
•Pricing in familiar currency

International: $1 USD per 100 credits (effectively $0.01 per credit)

•~₹0.85 per credit at current exchange rates
•Supports international cards and payment methods
•Slightly cheaper per credit than India pricing

Why different pricing: India-specific pricing accounts for purchasing power parity. ₹1/credit is affordable for Indian freelancers and students. International pricing at $0.01/credit is competitive globally. Key facts

•India pays ₹1/credit (local currency, local payment methods).
•International pays $1/100 credits (effectively $0.01/credit).
•Region auto-detected (no manual selection needed).

How much do things actually cost?

Real costs for common operations:

Building a landing page

Prompt: "Build a SaaS landing page with hero, features, pricing, and contact form" AI generates:

•Hero section with gradient background
•Three-column features section
•Pricing table with three tiers
•Contact form with validation
•Mobile-responsive styles

Credits used: ~50-80 credits (~₹50-80 or $0.50-0.80)

Adding a blog to existing site

Prompt: "Add a blog section with post list, individual post pages, and categories" AI generates:

•Blog listing page with filters
•Dynamic post pages
•Category system
•Database schema for posts

Credits used: ~60-100 credits (~₹60-100 or $0.60-1.00)

Refactoring existing component

Prompt: "Make the hero section's background a gradient animation instead of static" AI modifies:

•Existing hero component
•Adds CSS animations
•Adjusts colors and timing

Credits used: ~15-25 credits (~₹15-25 or $0.15-0.25)

Deployment

Clicking Publish:

•Compiles SvelteKit project
•Optimizes and bundles assets
•Deploys to global CDN
•Provisions SSL

Credits used: ~5 credits (~₹5 or $0.05) Key facts

•Simple pages cost 50-100 credits to generate.
•Complex features cost 100-200 credits.
•Small edits cost 10-30 credits.
•Deployments cost ~5 credits each.

Typical monthly usage

Light user (1-2 small projects per month):

•Generate 3-4 pages
•Make 10-15 edits
•Deploy 5 times

Credits used: ~300 credits (~₹300 or $3.00) Active user (multiple projects, ongoing iteration):

•Generate 10-15 pages/features
•Make 30-50 edits
•Deploy 20 times

Credits used: ~1,000 credits (~₹1,000 or $10.00) Heavy user (agency building client sites):

•Generate 30-50 pages/features
•Make 100+ edits across projects
•Deploy 50 times

Credits used: ~3,000 credits (~₹3,000 or $30.00)

Most solo builders fall in the "light" to "active" category. Agencies and heavy users average ~₹2,000-5,000 ($20-50) monthly.

Key facts

•Light usage: ~₹300 ($3) per month.
•Active usage: ~₹1,000 ($10) per month.
•Heavy usage: ~₹3,000 ($30) per month.

Comparing to subscription pricing

Subscription model (Lovable, Cursor, etc.):

•Pay $20-80/month regardless of usage
•Unlimited use within "fair use limits"
•Charged even if you don't use the product
•Annual commitment often required for best pricing

BYOB credit model:

•Pay only for actual AI operations
•No monthly charges
•No expiration on credits
•No commitment required

When subscriptions are cheaper: If you generate code constantly (every day, multiple times per day), unlimited subscriptions may cost less than equivalent credit usage. When credits are cheaper: If you build in bursts (2 projects in one month, nothing for 3 months), credits cost far less than 4 months of subscription fees. Break-even calculation: At ~₹2,000 ($20) in monthly credit usage, you're near the cost of entry-level subscriptions. If you consistently use more, subscriptions might be cheaper. If you use less, credits save money. Key facts

•Credits win for bursty usage (some months heavy, some light).
•Subscriptions win for constant daily usage.
•Break-even point is ~₹2,000 ($20) in credits per month.

Free starter credits

New BYOB users receive free credits to try the platform:

New account: 100 starter credits (₹100 value or $1.00 value) Enough for:

•Build 1-2 simple landing pages
•Try AI editing and iteration
•Deploy 3-5 times
•Fully explore the platform

Starter credits work exactly like purchased credits (no restrictions). They expire after 30 days if unused to prevent abuse. Key facts

•New users get 100 free credits.
•Free credits work like paid credits (no limits).
•Free credits expire after 30 days.

Referral program

BYOB's referral program gives both referrer and referee free credits:

When someone signs up with your link: 5 credits for you When they make their first payment: 10 more credits for you, 10 credits for them How to refer:

1.Find your referral link in BYOB settings
2.Share it with friends, on social media, or in communities
3.Earn credits when people sign up and pay

Referral credits never expire and work exactly like purchased credits. Key facts

•Earn 5 credits per signup, 10 credits when they pay.
•Referred users get 10 credits on first payment.
•Referral credits never expire.

How to purchase credits

In BYOB:

1.Click "Buy Credits" in the interface
2.Choose amount (100, 500, 1000, or custom)
3.Pay via credit card, UPI (India), or international payment
4.Credits appear in your account instantly

Payment methods:

•Credit/debit cards (Visa, Mastercard, Amex)
•UPI (India only: GPay, PhonePe, Paytm)
•International cards (automatic currency conversion)

Minimum purchase: 100 credits (~₹100 or $1.00) No bulk discounts currently: Credits cost the same whether you buy 100 or 10,000. Future plans may include volume discounts for enterprise users. Key facts

•Credits purchase instantly via card or UPI.
•Minimum purchase is 100 credits.
•No bulk discounts (same price per credit at any volume).

Credit expiration policy

Purchased credits: Never expire

You can buy 1,000 credits today and use them over 2 years. No pressure to use credits before they expire because they don't.

Free/promotional credits: 30-day expiration

Starter credits and referral bonus credits expire 30 days after receiving them. This prevents abuse while giving you plenty of time to try BYOB.

Refund policy: Credits are non-refundable once purchased. Try BYOB with free starter credits before buying. Key facts

•Purchased credits never expire.
•Free credits expire after 30 days.
•Credits are non-refundable.

Credit usage tracking

BYOB shows your credit balance and usage history:

Balance display: Always visible in interface (e.g., "850 credits") Usage history:

-50 credits | Generated landing page hero section | Feb 17, 2:30 PM
-5 credits  | Deployed to production | Feb 17, 2:35 PM
-20 credits | Edited navigation component | Feb 17, 3:15 PM
+100 credits | Purchased credits | Feb 16, 1:00 PM

You can see exactly what consumed credits and when. This transparency helps you understand costs and optimize usage.

Key facts

•Credit balance always visible in interface.
•Usage history shows every credit transaction.
•Transparent pricing (no hidden charges).

Optimizing credit usage

Generate complete features upfront: Detailed prompts use similar credits to vague prompts, but detailed prompts work better on first try. "Build a hero with gradient, CTA button, and benefits list" costs the same as "build a hero" but produces better results. Iterate less by being specific: 5 vague iterations cost more than 1 detailed prompt. Describe exactly what you want. Manual edits for tiny changes: Changing a button color? Edit CSS manually. Save credits for changes that benefit from AI understanding. Deploy when ready: Each deployment costs ~5 credits. Test locally before deploying. One deployment of working code costs less than three deployments trying to fix bugs. Bulk changes when possible: "Update all section backgrounds to gradients" uses similar credits to three separate "update this section background" prompts. Key facts

•Detailed prompts reduce total iterations (save credits).
•Manual edits for simple changes save credits.
•Test before deploying to avoid wasted deployment credits.

Transparency and no hidden costs

BYOB pricing is straightforward:

•Credits cost ₹1 or $0.01 per credit
•AI operations and deployments show credit cost before running
•No platform fees, hosting fees, or surprise charges
•Export code anytime (no lock-in fees)

What's included in credits:

•AI code generation
•Global CDN hosting
•SSL certificates
•Unlimited bandwidth (within fair use)
•Version control storage
•Support

Nothing costs extra. Credits buy everything.

Key facts

•All costs are credits (no hidden fees).
•Credits include hosting, SSL, CDN, support.
•No surprise charges or additional fees.

Enterprise and high-volume users

Current pricing: Same credit cost regardless of volume Future plans: Volume discounts for users purchasing 10,000+ credits at once. Custom enterprise plans for agencies and teams with predictable high usage. Contact BYOB: If you're an agency building dozens of client sites per month, contact support for enterprise pricing discussions. Key facts

•Current pricing is same for all users.
•Volume discounts coming for enterprise users.
•Agencies with high usage can contact for custom plans.

Frequently Asked Questions

What happens if I run out of credits?

You can't use AI features or deploy until you purchase more credits. Your existing sites stay online. Manual code editing still works. Buy more credits when you're ready to continue building.

Can I get a refund if I don't like BYOB?

Credits are non-refundable. Try BYOB with the free starter credits before purchasing. This lets you evaluate the platform risk-free.

Do credits cover hosting costs?

Yes. Credits include hosting, CDN, SSL, and bandwidth. Your deployed sites stay online as long as your BYOB account is active (no ongoing credit drain for hosting).

How do I know how many credits something will use?

BYOB shows estimated credit cost before running AI operations. "Generate feature (~60 credits)" appears before the AI runs. Actual cost may vary slightly based on complexity.

Can I share credits with team members?

Not currently. Each account has its own credit balance. Future team features may include shared credit pools.

Start building with free credits. Try BYOB now →

BYOB Credit-Based Pricing Explained — No Subscriptions, Pay As You Go