Pricing models for AI products

A reference guide for choosing and configuring the right pricing structure for your AI product. Each model has different trade-offs for you and your customers.

Comparison

Per-token billing

Charge a fixed rate per token consumed. Simple to understand and easy to implement.

When to use: Developer API products where customers want to pay exactly for what they use.

Meter setup:

• Two meters: prompt_tokens and completion_tokens
• Calculation type: SUM for both
• Optional: model_id property if you have multiple models

Pricing plan setup:

• Usage-based product item linked to the completion tokens meter
• Flat rate per unit — e.g., $0.015 per 1,000 tokens (block_size: 1000)
• Separate product item for prompt tokens at a lower rate

Example rates (fictional):

Trade-offs:

• Customers can’t predict their monthly bill
• Encourages efficient prompt engineering
• Revenue scales directly with usage

Prepaid credits

Customers purchase a block of tokens or a dollar amount upfront. Usage draws down the balance. This model is common for developer platforms and self-serve products.

When to use: Products where customers want spending predictability and control.

Solvimon setup:

• Use staircase or top-up pricing on the product item
• Customer buys a block (e.g., 10M tokens for $50); each usage event draws from that block
• At period end, unused balance rolls over or expires depending on your configuration

Variant — dollar credits:

• Use an AMOUNT type meter value instead of NUMBER
• Charge the dollar value of each request (your cost + margin) rather than raw tokens
• Useful if your per-token rate varies significantly by model and you want a unified credit currency

Trade-offs:

• High customer satisfaction — no surprise bills
• Creates commitment (customers pre-pay)
• Requires handling balance queries in your application

Per-seat + token allowance

A flat monthly fee per user seat that includes a token budget. Usage above the included allowance is billed at an overage rate.

When to use: B2B team products where buyers prefer predictable pricing.

Solvimon setup:

• Per-seat product item (model type: PER_SEAT) for the base charge
• Number feature monthly_token_budget set as an entitlement per plan tier
• Usage-based product item for tokens, with a pricing rule that activates only above the included threshold — or structure as a separate overage product item that only appears on invoices when the allowance is exceeded

Example plan:

Trade-offs:

• Familiar model for B2B buyers
• Revenue is partially decoupled from usage (seat revenue is guaranteed)
• More complex to set up and explain to customers

Model-tiered pricing

Same subscription, but different per-token rates depending on which model the customer uses. Implemented using pricing rules that evaluate the model_id meter property.

When to use: Platforms that expose multiple LLMs and want to reflect the cost difference to customers.

Solvimon setup:

• Single completion_tokens meter with a required model_id property
• One product item with pricing rules:
  • If model_id = gpt-4o → $0.015/1k tokens
  • If model_id = gpt-4o-mini → $0.0006/1k tokens
  • Default → $0.005/1k tokens (catches any model not explicitly listed)

Trade-offs:

• Lets you pass through model cost differences to customers
• Customers may optimize their model selection based on price
• Adding a new model doesn’t require a new product item — just a new pricing rule

Outcome-based pricing

Charge per completed task rather than per token. The customer pays for a “translation”, a “code review”, a “document summary” — not for the underlying tokens consumed.

When to use: Vertical AI agents where customers think in terms of tasks, not tokens. Particularly effective when you can control and optimize the model usage on the backend.

Solvimon setup:

• Single COUNT meter: tasks_completed
• Meter value: NUMBER, calculation: SUM
• Optional task_type property if you have multiple task types at different prices
• Product item with model type USAGE_BASED, flat rate per task

Example:

Implement using a task_type property on the meter and a pricing rule per task type.

Trade-offs:

• Most customer-friendly — aligns price with value delivered
• Requires you to absorb token cost variability
• Higher margin potential if you optimize model selection per task

Mixing models

Real products often combine these. A common pattern:

• Per-seat base charge (predictable revenue)
• Included token allowance per seat (perceived value)
• Per-token overage at model-tiered rates (scales with power users)
• Optional premium add-on: priority queue, access to frontier models

Solvimon supports multiple product items per pricing plan, so you can combine all of these on a single subscription.