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Smelt offers three ways to handle AI costs, giving you flexibility based on your needs.

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The Three Modes

Free Tier

250 rows/month includedNo setup needed

BYOK

Bring Your Own Key10-50x cheaper at scale

Managed

We handle everythingSimplest billing

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Free Tier

Best for: Trying Smelt, small tests, evaluating the product

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How It Works

  1. Sign up for free
  2. Upload a CSV
  3. Run jobs immediately
  4. Smelt’s platform API key handles all AI calls
Free tier is fully functional. Same features as paid plans, just limited to 250 rows/month.

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BYOK (Bring Your Own Key)

Best for: High volume users, cost-conscious teams, maximum savings

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How It Works

  1. Subscribe to a paid plan (Starter/Growth/Scale)
  2. Choose BYOK billing mode
  3. Add your OpenAI API key in Settings
  4. Jobs use your key — you pay OpenAI directly

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Cost Comparison

BYOK is dramatically cheaper at scale. If you process 25K+ rows/month, BYOK saves serious money.

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BYOK Requirements

  • OpenAI account with API access
  • API key with available credits
  • Added to Smelt in Settings > API Keys

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Managed Mode

Best for: Teams wanting simplicity, those who prefer one invoice

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How It Works

  1. Subscribe to a paid plan (Starter/Growth/Scale)
  2. Choose Managed billing mode
  3. No API key setup needed
  4. Smelt handles all AI costs

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Why Choose Managed

  • ✅ One invoice, one vendor
  • ✅ No API key management
  • ✅ No monitoring OpenAI credits
  • ✅ Simpler for teams

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Comparison Table

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Switching Modes

You can change billing modes:
  1. Go to Settings > Billing
  2. Click Manage Subscription
  3. Select different plan/mode
  4. If switching to BYOK, add API key in Settings
Switching modes takes effect on your next billing cycle.

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Which Should You Choose?

Start with Free tier. You get 250 rows to test everything.
Managed is simpler. The cost difference vs BYOK is small at this volume.
BYOK starts saving meaningful money. Worth the API key setup.
BYOK is significantly cheaper. Could save hundreds or thousands monthly.
Managed keeps billing simple, even if slightly more expensive.