What uses AI credits
AI credits are consumed by actions that require AI processing. Everything else on the platform is free.
Article generation
Cost depends on the length you pick, not on the final word count:
Length | Target words | Credits |
Short | 800 to 1,000 | ~100 |
Medium | 1,800 to 2,000 | ~200 |
Long | 2,800 to 3,000 | ~300 |
This covers the whole pipeline: research, outline, drafting, refinement, internal linking, and the featured image.
AI image generation
Each generated image uses 5 credits
This excludes the featured (main) article image, which is generated free as part of the article
You only pay for images you generate yourself in the editor or media library
Stock image and video search
Each stock image search uses 2 credits
Each YouTube video search uses 2 credits
Prompt tracking (AI Visibility)
Each AI platform response uses 15 credits
One prompt tracked on one platform costs 15 credits every time it refreshes
One prompt tracked on 4 platforms costs 60 credits per refresh
How often that charge repeats depends on your tracking frequency, not on a fixed cycle. Your plan sets the fastest frequency you can pick, and you can always choose a slower one to spend less:
Plan | Fastest frequency | Refreshes per month | Cost of 1 prompt on 1 platform |
Starter | Every 7 days | ~4 | ~60 credits |
Pro | Every 3 days | ~10 | ~150 credits |
Scale | Every day | ~30 | ~450 credits |
You do not have to work this out by hand. Settings -> Automation -> Prompt Tracking shows a running estimate at the top of the screen, such as "You'll use about 405 credits every week for prompt tracking", and it updates as you toggle platforms or change the frequency.
You can also refresh any prompt manually at any time, which charges 15 credits per platform immediately.
Other AI actions
Action | Credits |
Auto content refresh (rewriting an existing article) | Half the article's length tier (50 / 100 / 150) |
Auto Optimize (fixing audit issues in place) | A quarter of the length tier (25 / 50 / 75) |
Repurpose content into a social post | 10 |
Topic and keyword suggestions | 1 |
Ask Snowy chat | Based on the length of the conversation, plus 1 per image |
What does not use AI credits
These features never touch your AI credit balance:
Keyword rank tracking: how many keywords you can track is a plan limit, not a credit cost
Website audits, page audits, and the GEO audit: these have their own monthly page limit
Keyword research: unlimited on all paid plans
Traffic analytics: pulling data from Google Search Console, Google Analytics, Bing, and PostHog
Topic clusters and the topic map: building and updating clusters
Competitor tracking: monitoring competitor rankings and AI visibility
Editing an article by hand, publishing, scheduling, and exporting
The featured image on a generated article
How far your credits go
Starter plan, 3,000 credits per month
Scenario 1, publishing focus
20 short articles per month: 2,000 credits
Remaining: 1,000 credits for prompt tracking or longer articles
Scenario 2, AI visibility focus
10 short articles: 1,000 credits
15 prompts on 2 platforms, refreshed weekly: 15 x 2 x 15 credits x 4 refreshes = 1,800 credits
Total 2,800 credits, comfortably inside the 3,000 allowance
Scenario 3, balanced
5 medium articles: 1,000 credits
20 prompts on 1 platform, refreshed weekly: 20 x 15 x 4 = 1,200 credits
A handful of extra images and repurposed posts: ~200 credits
Total ~2,400 credits
The biggest lever on your monthly spend is usually the number of platforms per prompt multiplied by how often they refresh. Halving the refresh frequency halves that whole line.
What happens when credits run out
Article generation pauses until your next billing cycle or until you purchase extra credits
Prompt tracking pauses, and scheduled refreshes are skipped rather than queued
Rank tracking, audits, traffic data, and keyword research keep working normally
Existing published content and reports stay accessible
You are never charged automatically for extra credits. Top ups are always a manual purchase.
Extra credit pricing is listed here: Plans, Extra Credits & Pricing
How credit reset works
Credits refresh on your billing cycle, not the calendar month.
If you subscribed on the 15th, your credits reset on the 15th of each month. If you subscribed on the 3rd, they reset on the 3rd.
Unused credits that come with your plan do not roll over, so plan your usage around your reset date.
If you purchase extra credits, they do not expire and have lifetime validity.
Your monthly plan credits are always spent first. Extra credits are only drawn on once the monthly pool is empty, so a top up you bought earlier is never consumed while you still have monthly allowance left, and it is never lost at your reset date.
You can see every charge, broken down by Brand and category, in Settings -> Billing & Plans -> Usage History.