Understanding Credits
The free plan includes 100 verification credits per month. This guide explains how credits are tracked, what happens when they run out, and how to manage your usage.
How Credits Work
Credits are consumed per verification attempt, not per visitor session. The cost depends on the verification tier:
- Tier 1 (face liveness attempt): 1 credit
- Tier 2 (document verification attempt): 2 credits
A single visitor may consume multiple credits if they retry verification or if their session escalates from Tier 1 to Tier 2.
Example Scenarios
| Scenario | Credits Used |
|----------|-------------|
| Visitor passes Tier 1 on first try | 1 |
| Visitor fails Tier 1, passes on retry | 2 |
| Visitor passes Tier 1 but escalates to Tier 2, passes document check | 3 |
| Visitor passes Tier 1 but fails Tier 2 document, retries document and passes | 5 |
| Visitor goes directly to Tier 2 (required by region), passes both | 3 |
Monthly Reset
Free Plan credits reset on the first of each month (UTC). Unused credits do not roll over to the next month. The counter is based on when the verification attempt occurs, not when the session was started.
What Happens at the Credit Limit
When your monthly credits are exhausted, the behavior depends on your API Failure Behavior setting (found in Settings > Age Verification):
Fail Open (Default)
Visitors are allowed through without verification. Your site remains fully accessible. This is the recommended setting if uptime is more important than strict age-gating.
Fail Closed
Visitors from age-gated regions are redirected to an error page. They cannot access your content until credits reset or you add more credits. This is the recommended setting for regulatory compliance, where allowing unverified visitors is not acceptable.
In-Progress Verifications
If a visitor has already started a verification session when the credit limit is reached, their session is allowed to complete. Credits are only checked when a new session is created. This prevents the confusing experience of a visitor being cut off mid-verification.
Monitoring Your Credits
From the Settings Page
Go to Settings > Age Verification. The status section shows your current credit usage and monthly limit.
From the Free Plan Admin
Go to Settings > Free Plan. The Recent Verifications tab shows each verification session and how many credits it consumed.
Getting More Credits
Credit packs are available for purchase at xyzinc.com/credits. The purchase flow is:
- Enter the email address associated with your site
- Verify your identity with a 6-digit code sent to that email
- Select which site to add credits to
- Choose a credit pack
- Complete payment via PayPal (or debit/credit card through PayPal)
Available Packs
| Pack | Credits | Price | Per Credit |
|------|---------|-------|------------|
| 250 Credits | 250 | $15.00 | 6.0¢ |
| 500 Credits | 500 | $25.00 | 5.0¢ |
| 1,000 Credits | 1,000 | $45.00 | 4.5¢ |
| 2,500 Credits | 2,500 | $100.00 | 4.0¢ |
| 5,000 Credits | 5,000 | $200.00 | 4.0¢ |
First Purchase Bonus
When you purchase your first credit pack, you receive a bonus of 300 credits on top of whatever pack you buy. For example, purchasing the 250-credit pack gives you 550 credits total. This bonus is a one-time thank-you for upgrading.
How Prepaid Credits Work
When you buy a credit pack, your site's billing model switches from the free monthly plan to prepaid. This means:
- Your free 100 monthly credits are replaced by your prepaid balance.
- Prepaid credits do not expire and do not reset monthly — they remain available until used.
- You can purchase additional packs at any time to top up your balance.
- Verification costs remain the same: 1 credit for Tier 1, 2 credits for Tier 2.
Pro Plan
For sites with higher verification volumes or that need additional features (custom regions, consent text, admin dashboard access), the Pro plan uses the same prepaid credit system with additional configuration options.
Estimating Your Credit Needs
To estimate how many credits you'll need per month:
- Estimate unique visitors from age-gated regions. This is a fraction of your total traffic — only visitors from regions you've configured.
- Most visitors pass Tier 1 on the first try (1 credit each). Budget about 1.2 credits per visitor to account for retries and escalations.
- If you require Tier 2 for any region, budget about 3 credits per visitor for those regions.
- Verification cookies last across visits. Once a visitor is verified, they won't use credits again until the cookie expires.
For most small to medium sites with standard Tier 1 verification, 100 credits per month covers roughly 80-90 unique verified visitors.
Next Steps
