> ## Documentation Index
> Fetch the complete documentation index at: https://docs.kordless.ai/llms.txt
> Use this file to discover all available pages before exploring further.

# Usage and billing

> Understand active-book billing, plans, and what is never metered.

Kordless uses one natural billing unit: the active Book. There are no per-quote fees, per-API-call fees, seat charges for ordinary users, percentage take rates, or outcome fees.

## The one billing unit

An active Book is a verified Live Book used to quote an identified customer during the billing month.

A Book becomes active the first time it produces a quote for an identified customer from a published Live version. The billing month is UTC. Usage is recorded at the moment of the first formal quote to an identified customer — not at draft, simulation, or anonymous inquiry.

## What is never metered

The following are free at every tier, forever:

* Reads and lookups
* Simulations (non-persistent pricing previews)
* Drafting and Test-mode quotes
* Non-ready outcomes (quotes that result in `held`, `unavailable`, `needs_input`, or `failed`)
* Authoring, clarifying, calibrating, and verifying the Book
* Test-mode API requests

<Info>
  If a customer submits a request and the evaluator returns a non-ready outcome, that request does not count as an active book. Only a priced quote to an identified customer triggers metering.
</Info>

## Plans

Kordless has four tiers. Every tier grants the same core-correctness surface — the evaluator, authoring, verification, and the Accounts capability. Tiers differ in distribution scale, commitment surfaces, and service level.

| Tier         | Pricing posture   | Included active books | Overage          | Key differences                                                                                                                                |
| ------------ | ----------------- | --------------------- | ---------------- | ---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- |
| Sandbox      | Free              | 0                     | None             | Test and draft only. API access in Test mode.                                                                                                  |
| Pro (Studio) | Self-serve        | 1                     | Published        | One active book, hosted quote path, deposits and payouts, and customer-surface configuration.                                                  |
| Scale        | Self-serve volume | Contract-set          | Published volume | Multiple included books at a lower unit price, portfolio controls, batch onboarding, multiple domains, webhooks and logs, priority support.    |
| Enterprise   | Contracted        | Contracted            | Contracted       | Volume commitments and discounts, SLA, SSO, advanced permissions, security review support, custom retention, migration and rollout assistance. |

### Pro (Studio) plan

The Pro plan — internally called Studio — is the self-serve plan for a single active book. It includes:

* Hosted quote path: customer intake to priced quote, deposit, and commitment handoff.
* Customer-surface configuration: subdomain, custom domains, and embeds.
* Deposits and payouts (through your own Stripe account via Stripe Connect).
* API access in Test mode for integration development.

Studio is billed monthly or annually. Switching between monthly and annual billing is handled through the Stripe portal.

### Scale plan

Scale is for agencies, franchises, and platforms that operate multiple books. It adds:

* Included active books (contract-set) plus published overage at a lower unit price.
* Portfolio controls and batch onboarding.
* Multiple domains.
* Webhooks and request logs.
* Priority support.

### Enterprise plan

Enterprise changes guarantees and service levels, not the evaluator or commercial record. It adds:

* Volume commitments and discounts.
* SLA and premium support.
* SSO and advanced permissions.
* Security review support.
* Custom retention and data residency when justified.
* Migration and rollout assistance.
* Bulk book manufacturing.

Enterprise pricing is contracted — there is no public price.

## The Usage & billing page

The Usage & billing page shows three things:

1. **This month's summary** — The current UTC month, the number of active books, your included allowance, and any overage.
2. **Active books this month** — A list of which books became active, when they were first and last used, and how many identified quotes each produced.
3. **Managed activation** — If Kordless applied book manufacturing labor to your first Book, it appears here as an explicit service item — never hidden inside your subscription.

The plan chip at the top shows your current plan state:

| Chip    | Meaning                                                                             |
| ------- | ----------------------------------------------------------------------------------- |
| Active  | A current paying or trialing subscription. Execution is allowed.                    |
| Paused  | The Pause plan or a paused subscription. Execution is stopped; the site stays live. |
| No plan | No subscription yet. Pre-launch, the audit, before a plan is chosen.                |

## Billing state and execution

Your billing state determines whether the agent runtime is live:

| State    | Execution | What it means                                                                               |
| -------- | --------- | ------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- |
| Active   | Allowed   | A current paying or trialing subscription.                                                  |
| Unbilled | Allowed   | No subscription yet. Choosing a plan is optional today.                                     |
| Paused   | Stopped   | The Pause plan or a Stripe-paused subscription. The site stays live; records are preserved. |
| Past due | Stopped   | Delinquent (past due or unpaid). Execution stops until payment recovers.                    |
| Canceled | Stopped   | Canceled or expired. Execution stops.                                                       |

<Info>
  Billing authorization comes from the persisted billing relationship row — the signed webhook state — not a live Stripe read. This means authorization never depends on Stripe being reachable on the request path. Stripe reconciliation runs asynchronously through the webhook that writes the row.
</Info>

## Stripe Connect

Deposits and payouts run through your own Stripe account, not Kordless's. Stripe Connect onboarding connects your Stripe account to your Kordless workspace:

1. An admin starts onboarding from the Usage & billing page.
2. Stripe hosts the onboarding flow — you provide your business and bank details.
3. On return, Kordless pulls the connected account's readiness from Stripe and persists it.
4. The `account.updated` webhook is the durable source of truth; the return path is a fast-path refresh.

Once connected, you can open the Stripe Express Dashboard to view payouts, update bank details, and see transaction history.

## Changing plans

Plan changes are handled through the Stripe portal or the in-app plan switcher:

* **Upgrading** — Choose a higher tier. The change takes effect immediately and Stripe prorates the difference.
* **Downgrading** — Switch to a lower tier. The change takes effect at the next billing cycle.
* **Pausing** — Switch to the Pause plan. See [Pause and resume Live use](/product/workspace/pause-and-resume-live-use).

<Warning>
  Only an organization admin can change plans, access the Stripe portal, or manage Stripe Connect.
</Warning>

## Managed activation

If Kordless manufactures your first Book for you (through the artifact-backed or starting-fresh pathway), the labor is recorded as an explicit attribution item on the Usage & billing page. This keeps the service transparent — you see what was done, when, and under what commercial terms — rather than hidden inside your subscription price.

The attribution records the pathway (artifact-backed or starting-fresh), the number of service components, and the sale mode (fixed fee, annual inclusion, scale pilot, or enterprise contract).