Overage Billing Explained

How Overage Billing Works

When you exceed your plan's included monthly credits, Koji's overage billing lets you continue your research without interruption. Overages are billed at a simple, flat rate with full transparency.

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Overage Pricing

Overage is only available on paid plans (Insights, Interviews, Enterprise). Free plan users cannot go over their credit balance.

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How Overage Is Tracked

Koji uses Stripe metered billing to track overage in real time:

1. When you complete a conversation that passes the quality gate (score ≥ 3/5), Koji checks if you have included credits remaining
2. If your included credits are exhausted, a meter event is sent to Stripe
3. The meter event records the credit cost of the action (1 for text, 3 for voice, 5 for report refresh)
4. At the end of your billing period, Stripe tallies all overage meter events and adds them to your invoice

Credit Consumption Priority

Credits are consumed in this order:

1. Bonus credits first — any admin-granted or promotional credits are used before your plan's included allocation
2. Included plan credits — your monthly allocation (29 for Insights, 79 for Interviews)
3. Overage credits — billed at €1/credit via Stripe metering

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Configuring Your Overage Cap

You can control your maximum overage spending by setting an overage cap:

To configure your overage cap, contact the Koji team or adjust it through your account settings.

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The Quality Gate and Overages

The quality gate applies to all conversations, including overages. This means:

• If a conversation during overage scores below 3/5, it is completely free
• You are never charged for low-quality interactions, even in overage
• This protection applies equally to text and voice interviews

For example, if you run 10 overage voice interviews and 3 of them score below the quality threshold, you're only charged for 7 (7 × 3 credits × €1 = €21), not all 10.

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When Overage Makes Sense vs. Upgrading

Stay on your current plan + overage when:

• You occasionally exceed your credits by a small amount
• Your usage varies significantly month to month
• You need flexibility without commitment to a higher tier

Upgrade to the next plan when:

• You consistently exceed your credits by more than 20-30%
• The overage cost regularly exceeds the price difference between plans
• You need features only available on the higher tier (e.g., voice interviews on Interviews plan)

Example calculation:

If you're on Insights (€29/mo, 29 credits) and regularly use 45 credits:

• Overage cost: 16 extra credits × €1 = €16/mo → Total: €45/mo
• Interviews plan: €79/mo for 79 credits + voice + API + unlimited studies
• If you need voice or API access, upgrading is the better value

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Monitoring Overage

Keep track of your overage spending:

1. Dashboard — view your current credit usage and remaining balance
2. Stripe billing portal — see detailed invoices including overage charges
3. Usage alerts — receive notifications as you approach your credit limit

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Overage on Your Invoice

Overage charges appear as a separate line item on your Stripe invoice:

• Base subscription: Your plan's monthly or annual fee
• Metered usage: Overage credits consumed × €1/credit

Invoices are generated at the end of each billing period and processed automatically via your saved payment method.