Billing FAQ

Common questions about token packs, payments, receipts, and refunds

Token Packs

How do I buy tokens? Any signed-in user can buy a token pack — there's no tier requirement and no subscription. The fastest way is the Buy Tokens button in the header (visible on every page once you're signed in) — it opens a dialog with the same pack grid. You can also open the Pricing page or your Settings. Pick a pack ($10 → 10M tokens, $20 → 20M, $50 → 50M), and you'll be taken to our secure checkout (handled by Polar). As soon as payment completes, the tokens are credited to your balance — usually within seconds.

Do tokens expire? No. Purchased tokens never expire and stay in your balance until you spend them. You can buy as many packs as you like; each one adds to your balance immediately.

My tokens haven't arrived — what do I do? Purchases are credited by an automatic confirmation from Polar, which usually lands within a minute. If your balance hasn't updated:

  1. Wait about a minute and refresh the page — the token meter reads your live balance.
  2. Check for the receipt email from Polar confirming the payment went through.
  3. If a few minutes pass and the tokens still haven't appeared, contact billing@coffeescribe.ai with your account email and the Polar receipt ID. We keep a full audit trail of every token transaction and can credit it manually.

Can I buy more tokens? Yes — buy another pack any time. Your balance refills immediately. If you'd rather not buy tokens, you can bring your own AI provider key (BYOK) in Settings and generate on your own account instead.

How do I check my token balance? Your exact token count is shown in Settings → Billing and in the account menu (click your avatar). Both show the real number, not a vague meter — so you always know exactly how much you have before you spend it.

What happens when I run out of tokens? Any action that costs tokens (creating scribes, research, AI analysis) shows a prompt to buy a token pack. Your existing scribes, highlights, notes, and exports stay accessible — you just can't generate new content until you top up (or use BYOK).

Payments, Receipts & Refunds

Who processes payments? All purchases are handled by Polar, our Merchant of Record. Polar is the seller of record — it manages checkout, billing, tax collection, and receipts. Polar uses Stripe as its downstream card processor. Coffeescribe never sees or stores your card details.

What payment methods are accepted? Polar (via Stripe) supports major credit/debit cards and regional payment methods. Available options may vary by country.

Are prices shown with tax included? Prices may or may not include tax depending on your region. As Merchant of Record, Polar calculates and collects any applicable sales tax/VAT/GST at checkout based on your location.

Where's my receipt or invoice? Polar emails you a receipt for every purchase. After your first purchase, a "Manage billing & receipts" link appears in your Settings — it opens the Polar customer portal, where you can view all your invoices and manage your payment method.

Can I get a refund? Refunds are handled through Polar, our Merchant of Record. Tokens already spent on completed AI generations are non-refundable, because we've already paid the upstream AI provider for that compute. If you bought a pack by mistake and haven't used it, contact billing@coffeescribe.ai within 14 days and we'll review it with Polar. See the Refund Policy for full details.

Subscriptions

Can I subscribe to a monthly plan? Not yet. Coffeescribe is currently pay-as-you-go — you buy token packs as you need them. Monthly subscription plans with a recurring token allowance are coming soon. When they arrive, token packs will remain available alongside them, and any tokens you've already bought carry over (they never expire).

I have Pro or Creator already — what happens? Nothing changes for you either way. Free, Pro, and Creator still exist internally as account labels, but every feature is open to every signed-in user regardless of which one your account has — there's no subscription tier to purchase right now, and none of the old tier perks are gated anymore. Paid usage is entirely through token packs (or BYOK).

Models & Generation

Which AI model does my generation use? Whichever one you pick. Every signed-in user gets the full model picker — the CoffeeScribe Model (our curated default) is pinned at the top and pre-selected, plus ~12 curated favourites and the full 350+ OpenRouter catalogue behind an "advanced" disclosure. Nothing is locked by account tier; pricier models simply cost more tokens. See What is the CoffeeScribe Model? for the reasoning behind the default.

Free Tier

Is the Free tier really free? Yes. No credit card required. You receive a welcome credit on signup and can access the full app — every creation mode, Workspace, Research Cafes, web search, the full model picker, audiobooks, and every export format. Token balance is the only limit, and it's the same limit every account runs into once its balance hits zero.

What happens when my welcome credit runs out? Any action that costs tokens shows a prompt to buy a token pack. Your existing scribes, highlights, notes, and exports remain accessible — you just can't generate new content until you buy a pack (or use BYOK).

Can I delete scribes on the Free tier? Yes. Every signed-in user can delete any of their scribes, including completed ones.