> ## Documentation Index
> Fetch the complete documentation index at: https://docs.surfacd.com/llms.txt
> Use this file to discover all available pages before exploring further.
# How Credits Work
> Understand how Surfacd's credit system works, how costs are calculated, and how to manage your team's usage.
Credits are the currency that powers data collection in Surfacd. Every time your prompts are submitted to AI platforms and the responses are captured and analysed, credits are consumed. Understanding how credits work helps you get the most value from your allowance.
## The Basics
Your team has a **monthly credit allowance** set by your plan. Each data collection run consumes credits based on a simple formula:
**Credits per run = Active Prompts × Active Services**
A project with 50 prompts monitoring 4 AI services uses **200 credits per run**.
## How Credits Are Used
Scheduled projects reserve credits from your allowance; pitch projects are free.
### Scheduled Projects (Daily, Weekly)
For projects that run automatically, credits are **reserved upfront** when you configure the project. This ensures your scheduled runs are always covered.
**Reserved credits = Credits per run × Frequency multiplier**
| Frequency | Multiplier | Example (50 prompts × 4 services) |
| --------- | ---------- | ---------------------------------- |
| Daily | 30 | 200 × 30 = **6,000 credits/month** |
| Weekly | 5 | 200 × 5 = **1,000 credits/month** |
Reserved credits are deducted from your available balance immediately, guaranteeing your automated monitoring runs without interruption.
### Pitch Projects
[Pitch projects](/docs/pitch-projects) use **no credits at all** — neither reserved nor per-run. They're bounded by their own limits (parallel pitches, prompts per pitch, platforms) instead.
If you've already collected data and then add new prompts or services, Surfacd is smart about it: you're only charged for the **new combinations** that haven't been collected yet, not the entire run again.
## Available Credits
Your available credits are calculated as:
**Available = Monthly Allowance − Reserved (scheduled)**
Scheduled reservations draw from your monthly allowance. The [Usage](/docs/usage-billing) page in your team settings shows a real-time breakdown.
## What Affects Credit Usage
| Factor | Impact |
| -------------------- | ------------------------------------- |
| **More prompts** | More credits per run |
| **More services** | More credits per run |
| **Higher frequency** | More credits reserved per month |
| **More projects** | Each project has its own credit usage |
When a platform is made unavailable by Surfacd, it is removed from active project service counts and scheduled reservations are recalculated. If that platform later becomes available again, projects will resume monitoring it only when the restored reservation fits within the team's credit allowance.
## Managing Your Credits
### Reducing Costs
* **Remove low-value prompts** — focus on prompts that give you actionable insights
* **Be selective with services** — if a platform isn't relevant to your audience, disable it
* **Choose a lower frequency** — Weekly reserves fewer credits than Daily
* **Archive projects** you're no longer actively monitoring — this releases reserved credits
### Monitoring Usage
* Check the **progress bar** in your sidebar for a quick overview
* Visit **Settings → Usage** for detailed breakdowns by project
* A warning appears when your projected usage approaches your allowance
### What Happens When Credits Run Out
* **Scheduled projects** continue to run as long as credits were reserved when the project was configured
* **On-demand runs** will be blocked if insufficient credits are available — you'll see a message explaining the shortfall
* No data is lost — once credits are replenished, you can resume data collection
## Credit Validation
Surfacd checks credit availability before any action that would increase usage:
* **Creating a scheduled project** — validates the reservation fits within your allowance
* **Adding prompts to a scheduled project** — validates the increased reservation
* **Changing frequency** — validates the new reservation amount
* **Requesting a new run** — validates credits are available for the run cost
If there aren't enough credits, you'll see a clear message explaining how many are needed and how many are available.
## Tips
Start with a Weekly schedule for most projects, and step up to Daily only for active campaigns where you need the richest trend data.
Check your Usage page monthly. Identify expensive projects and remove prompts or services you're not using.
The credit indicator in your sidebar gives you an instant read on your team's usage without navigating away.
Team admins can set **Maximum Schedule Frequency** and **Prompt Limits** in team settings to prevent unexpected credit usage.