Credits (coming soon)

Introduction

Credits are prepaid balance or account credit that customers can use to pay for usage, invoices, or one-off charges. Instead of charging the customers payment method every time, you deduct from their balance and only charge when the balance runs out or at the end of a period.

Common use cases include:

• Prepaid balance — Customers top up their account; usage or invoices draw down the balance.
• Promotional credit — Apply one-time or recurring credit (e.g. sign-up bonus, goodwill) that is used before charging the payment method.
• Hybrid billing — Combine subscriptions or fixed fees with usage; credits cover usage until exhausted, then you charge the payment method on file.

Credit assets

Credit assets let you define custom credit types that match your business. Instead of a single generic balance, you create named assets—such as tokens, coins, API calls, or storage units—that customers earn, buy, or receive and then spend within your product.

Examples by business type:

• Gaming / apps — Coins, gems, or in-app currency that users purchase or earn and spend on items or features.
• API / developer platforms — Tokens or API credits that customers consume per request; balances can be topped up or granted as part of a plan.
• Marketplaces — Seller credits or platform balance that can be applied to fees or withdrawn.
• Content / media — View credits, download credits, or streaming minutes that decrement as customers consume content.

You define each credit asset (name, unit, and how it’s granted or purchased), and Billingrails tracks balances and usage per asset so you can gate features, apply credits to usage or invoices, and report on consumption.

When available on Billingrails, you'll be able to manage customer balances and control how credits are applied to invoices and usage.