What Your AI Key Costs

Gemini has a free tier. Claude and ChatGPT are pay-as-you-go with no subscription. ElevenLabs for audiobooks is the one with its own cost.

Using your own AI key is free or costs very little, and connecting it takes only a few seconds. Connecting is super easy, and the app guides you through it step by step. Gemini has a free tier. Claude and ChatGPT are pay-as-you-go, with no monthly subscription. The one key with its own cost is ElevenLabs, used for audiobook voices.

Why does the app ask me to use my own key?

It keeps costs directly tied to what each person actually uses, instead of everyone paying a flat fee for something some people use a little and others use a lot. You are billed directly by the AI company you choose.

What does Gemini cost?

Google offers a free Gemini API tier. Availability and request or token quotas depend on your model and your Google project, so nobody can promise that a whole course or a whole manuscript will fit inside the free tier. If you ever hit the limit, you see a "You've reached your Free Limit" message. That is Google's own tier limit, not a fee from us, and it resets on its own. Adding billing on Google's side is optional. Paid Gemini API billing is different from a paid Gemini chat subscription.

Long translations and extended manuscript coaching are more likely to reach a quota. Full-book translation needs your own Gemini connection. You get a Gemini key free at aistudio.google.com.

What does Claude cost?

Claude is pay-as-you-go. It is not a monthly subscription, so there is no plan to sign up for, no recurring charge and nothing to cancel. Anthropic charges only for the amount you actually use, billed directly to your own account, never as a flat fee up front. You get a key at console.anthropic.com. The model used is Claude Sonnet 5.

What does ChatGPT cost?

You use your own OpenAI API key from platform.openai.com/api-keys, with billing set up there. OpenAI bills API use separately and pay-as-you-go. The model used is GPT-6.1 Sol. A ChatGPT Plus or Pro subscription is a different product, and an API key is NOT included in it. See Can I use my ChatGPT subscription instead of an API key?

What about the other keys?

• ✦ElevenLabs (audiobooks): ElevenLabs has its own cost. Its free plan does not allow API access to generate audio, so a paid ElevenLabs plan is needed. This is the exception to the rule above. It is a recurring subscription, not a one-time purchase, and you can cancel any time once you are done.
• ✦Scraper key (Category Scout only): Free to sign up for, with no credit card, and used only for Category Scout in Step 7 · LAUNCH. It is a different key from your AI keys.

How can I see what I have used?

Click your profile picture at the top right and choose API Usage, listed right under Connected Services. It shows your own real token counts and estimated dollar cost for each generator, with a date range that defaults to the current billing cycle (it resets on the 1st of each month, the same as Google's own billing). There is also an All Time option to see everything since you started. This is your own data, scoped only to your account, not a company-wide number.

Not sure where to start? The Course Coach inside the app helps you every step of the way.

Last checked in the app: October 14, 2026.