cfw-autumn/apps/docs/mintlify/documentation/pricing/credits.mdx

---
title: Credit Systems
description: Learn how to create a credit system in Autumn
---

Credit systems let you track actions with different credit costs from a single balance pool.

A credit system is made up of a list of [features](/documentation/pricing/features) that can draw from it, and a credit cost per unit of usage for each feature.


> **Example** <br />
> You have a Pro plan that gives users `100 basic messages` per month, and `10 premium messages` per month. These 2 balances are separate and independent of each other.
> To give your users more flexibility, you instead decide to use a credit system, where:
> - `basic message`: costs 1 credit per message
> - `premium message`: costs 10 credits per message 
>
> Instead of having 2 separate balances for each message type, your Pro plan can have `200 credits` per month. Your users can use the credits in any combination of basic and premium messages they want.




## Creating a credit system

<Warning>
  Make sure you have some metered features created before creating a credit
  system.
</Warning>

1. Navigate to the features page, under Products.
2. Click "Create Credit System"
4. Add the features that can draw from this credit system.
5. For each feature, define how many credits each unit of usage should cost (eg, 3 credits per "premium request").
6. Click "Create"

<Info>
**Example**

If each `premium_request` is worth 3 credits, then using 6 premium requests will cost 18 credits.

</Info>

Now you can add this credit system to a plan, such as granting 50 credits per month or charging $1 per credit.

## Tracking and limiting credit usage

When implementing a credit system into your application, **you should interact with the underlying features -- not the credit system itself**. This means passing in the underlying `feature_id` when checking or tracking usage.

#### Checking access

Before allowing a customer to use a feature, `check` if they have enough credits to do so. If each "premium request" is worth 3 credits, then this example will check if the customer has at least 18 credits remaining.

<CodeGroup>

```typescript TypeScript
import { Autumn } from "autumn-js";

const autumn = new Autumn({ secretKey: "am_sk_test_1234" });

const response = await autumn.customers.check({
  customerId: "user_123",
  featureId: "premium_request",
  requiredBalance: 6,
});

console.log(response.allowed);
```

```python Python
from autumn_sdk import Autumn

autumn = Autumn("am_sk_test_1234")

response = await autumn.customers.check(
    customer_id="user_123",
    feature_id="premium_request",
    required_balance=6,
)
print(response.allowed)
```

```bash cURL
curl -X POST "https://api.useautumn.com/v1/check" \
  -H "Authorization: Bearer am_sk_test_1234" \
  -H "Content-Type: application/json" \
  -d '{
    "customer_id": "user_123",
    "feature_id": "premium_request",
    "required_balance": 6
  }'
```

</CodeGroup>

<Expandable title="check response">
The response will contain the balance for the credit system that is being deducted from.

```json
{
  "allowed": true,
  "customerId": "user_123",
  "requiredBalance": 6,
  "balance": {
    "featureId": "credits",
    "granted": 100,
    "remaining": 100,
    "usage": 0,
    "unlimited": false,
    "overageAllowed": false,
    "nextResetAt": 1757192635393
  }
}
```

</Expandable>
In this case, we have a balance of 100 credits remaining, so we're allowed to use our 6 "premium requests" feature.

<Note>
  If a feature is not defined in the credit system, it will return `allowed: false`
</Note>

#### Tracking usage

Since the customer has sufficient credits, you can let them use their 6 "premium requests". Afterwards, you can [track](/documentation/customers/tracking-usage) the usage to update their balance.

This will decrement the customer's balance by 18 credits (6 requests * 3 credits per request).

<CodeGroup>
```typescript TypeScript
import { Autumn } from "autumn-js";

const autumn = new Autumn({ secretKey: "am_sk_test_1234" });

await autumn.customers.track({
  customerId: "user_123",
  featureId: "premium_request",
  value: 6,
});
```

```python Python
from autumn_sdk import Autumn

autumn = Autumn("am_sk_test_1234")

await autumn.customers.track(
    customer_id="user_123",
    feature_id="premium_request",
    value=6,
)
```

```bash cURL
curl -X POST "https://api.useautumn.com/v1/track" \
  -H "Authorization: Bearer am_sk_test_1234" \
  -H "Content-Type: application/json" \
  -d '{
    "customer_id": "user_123",
    "feature_id": "premium_request",
    "value": 6
  }'
```

</CodeGroup>

<Expandable title="track response">
```json
{
  "customerId": "user_123",
  "value": 6,
  "balance": {
    "featureId": "credits",
    "granted": 100,
    "remaining": 82,
    "usage": 18,
    "unlimited": false,
    "overageAllowed": false,
    "nextResetAt": 1757192635393
  }
}
```
</Expandable>

Since the customer started with a balance of 100 credits, and used 18 credits, their remaining balance is 82 credits.

## Monetary credits

You may want your credit system to represent a monetary value: eg, $10 of credits. To implement this, you can map each credit to a cent value (eg, 1 credit = 1 cent).

1. When creating your credit system, define credit amounts in the per-cent cost 
<Info>
   Eg: if each `premium_request` costs 3 cents, our credit cost should be 3.
</Info>
2. When adding the credits to a plan, set the granted amount of credits in cents 
<Info>
   Eg, if customers get 5 USD credits for free, they should have an included usage of `500`.
</Info>
3. When charging for the credits, set the cost of each credit to 1 cent


See the credits pricing guide for a more detailed example of setting up a monetary credits system

<Card
  title="Credits Example"
  horizontal
  href="/examples/credits"
  icon="money-bills"
/>