💎 New Pickaxe Credit System is Live

[abhi-support]

Hi everyone,

We’re happy to introduce our new Pickaxe Credit System, designed to make tracking and using credits simpler for everyone.

Every plan now comes with free monthly credits that automatically renew each month:

• Free plan: $5 worth of credits

• Gold plan: $15 worth of credits

• Pro plan: $50 worth of credits

Credits refresh automatically each month and cannot be stacked or carried forward. Each new month starts a fresh cycle.

You can check your balance and enable Auto-Reload anytime at
Pickaxe

Auto-Reload helps you stay worry-free by adding new credits automatically when your balance runs low, so your Pickaxes keep running smoothly.

To see how much each conversation or message costs, go to your Studio → Users → Activity, then click the “i” icon. You’ll see details like the exact dollar amount spent, tokens used, and generation time.

You can see detailed breakdown after clicking on “i”

This update makes it easier to manage your usage, understand your costs, and enjoy a seamless Pickaxe experience.

Check your account today and explore the new system.

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Frequently Asked Questions

1. How much does one query cost?
On average, one query costs around 1/10th of a cent. It can be slightly less or more depending on your prompt length and response size.

2. Do unused credits carry over to the next month?
No, credits do not stack or roll over. For example, if you’re on the free plan, you’ll get $5 worth of credits every month, and it resets at the start of each new month.

3. When do credits renew?
Credits refresh automatically every 30 days based on your plan cycle.

4. Can I buy more credits if I run out?
Yes, you can add more credits anytime or enable Auto-Reload to automatically top up your balance when it gets low.

5. Where can I see how much each message costs?
Go to your Studio → Users → Activity, then click the “i” icon beside any activity. You’ll see the total cost, tokens used, and model details.

6. What happens if my credits finish?
Your Pickaxe usage will pause until more credits are added, either manually or automatically through Auto-Reload.

7. Can I use my own API key instead of Pickaxe credits?
Yes. You can connect your own API key in the Studio Settings, and you’ll be billed directly by your provider instead of using Pickaxe credits.

8. Will the cost per query change?
The cost may vary slightly depending on the model you use and the length of your prompts, but it generally stays around 1/10th of a cent per query.

9. How can I track how my users are using credits?
If you manage a Studio, go to Users → Activity to view all user interactions, see usage patterns, and even assign bonus credits manually.

10. How often are guest credits refreshed?
Guest credits refresh every 30 days, depending on your Studio’s settings.

11. Can I control how many credits my end-users get?
Yes. In your Access tab, you can set how many credits guests or new users receive and whether those credits refresh monthly.

12. What happens if a Pickaxe exceeds its credit limit during a chat?
The chat will pause, and users will be prompted to add credits or upgrade their plan.

13. Does enabling Auto-Reload change my plan or monthly free credits?
No. Auto-Reload simply adds more credits when your balance is low. It doesn’t affect your free monthly credits.

1.4 Can I transfer my credits to another account?
Credits are connected to your individual Pickaxe account and cannot be transferred.

15. How do I know which Pickaxe used the most credits?
You can check in Studio → Activity for a breakdown of credit usage by tool, user, or message.

[lumora]

This makes calculation of plan pricing a bit confusing - before I could just charge my users relative to the number of credits they consumed but now I need to calculate by exact query cost?

How are we supposed to figure out simple billing models now?

[nathaniel]

Great point! To be clear, we haven’t changed the way you charge your users in your studio at all, so rest assured that will remain straightforward and usage based.

We found that the vast majority of our successful users were using their API keys (as opposed to Pickaxe credits) to power their tools. As they weren’t getting the benefit anyway, we realized it was best to just bite the bullet and unify the system!

[abhi-support]

Hi Lumora, thanks for the great question!

The new credit system actually gives you more value, flexibility, and transparency than before. Earlier, plans came with fixed one-time credits that ran out and had to be topped up manually. Now, credits can be added automatically every month based on real dollar value, so you always know what you’re getting and spending.

Here’s a quick comparison:

Plan	Previous Credits / Messages (per month)	New Approx. Messages per Month*
Free Plan	500	1,000 – 10,000 messages
Gold Plan	2,000	3,000 – 30,000 messages
Pro Plan	10,000	10,000 – 100,000 messages

*Message range is an estimate based on an average cost of 1/20th of a cent ($0.0005) to half a cent ($0.005) per AI interaction. Actual usage may vary depending on prompt length, response size, and model type.

You can still charge your customers using your existing credit system while benefiting from the new, higher-value Pickaxe credits. This means you can offer your users more while potentially earning higher profits in the process.

Overall, this update gives you clearer value, predictable monthly refreshes, and more control over your pricing and revenue.

[forward_ai_team]

@abhi-support Are credits sold at the same rate as the providers charge? In other words, is it more expensive to do it through pickaxe as opposed to having an API key for each provider?

[lindsay_support]

@forward_ai_team great question - it should cost about the same amount whether using our system or an API key! As Abhi flagged, you can see a detailed breakdown of prompt run cost using message insights

[abhi-support]

@forward_ai_team

@abhi-support Are credits sold at the same rate as the providers charge? In other words, is it more expensive to do it through pickaxe as opposed to having an API key for each provider?

I think @lindsay_support already answered this really well, I just want to add a bit about the convenience side.

With Pickaxe, you don’t need to manage multiple API keys or keep them updated. If one provider has issues, you can easily switch between models like OpenAI, Claude, or Gemini within seconds. No extra setup or configuration needed.

Our pricing is both competitive and transparent.

As mentioned earlier, Pickaxe only grows when creators grow. The goal is to help builders run profitable, sustainable AI tools without the hassle of managing multiple APIs or systems.

Hope this helps add a little extra context!

[rainmaker]

Will this new system also allow us to use up our PickAxe credits before it switches to the API keys we have inserted into our Pickaxes, or is it not intelligent enough yet to distinguish when credits are gone and make the switch to charge via our API keys like OpenAI?

[nathaniel]

We are sunsetting API key support over the next 6 months. However, this system provides the exact benefit you’re after, all you have to do it setup payments through us on your account page. We simply forward the cost of model on to you, so when your “monthly” credits run out, it switches over to as needed billing.

This works in exactly the same way the model providers do, with the added advantage that you don’t have to setup API keys on a million different platforms.

[rainmaker]

Sounds good. How are more complicated setups handled, like image creation through Flux Pro that requires a Replicate API token? I ask because they moved to a per-use basis months ago and require you to prepay, which is not ideal since you have to keep logging in and upping your account based on demand.

The main issue for everyone is making sure that, as demand increases, you don’t experience service interruptions, such as not having enough prepay to cover demand.

[nathaniel]

For now, those integrations remain unchanged.

Over the next few weeks, we will likely add the ability for you to choose for many of those services to be paid for through us, like usage, just to make it all a bit easier to manage. Great question and something we’re thinking about.