> ## Documentation Index
> Fetch the complete documentation index at: https://docs.tracklysms.com/llms.txt
> Use this file to discover all available pages before exploring further.

# Billing & Payments

> Understand plans, usage, costs, and payment management

Trackly SMS offers two plans: a **Free** tier for getting started and a **Paid** tier for production sending at scale.

## Plans

### Free Plan

The Free plan lets you try Trackly with your own phone number at no cost:

| Feature             | Details                |
| ------------------- | ---------------------- |
| Price               | \$0/month              |
| Message limit       | 500 messages per month |
| Phone numbers       | Bring your own (BYO)   |
| Number provisioning | Not available          |
| Credit card         | Not required           |
| API access          | Full access            |
| A/B testing         | Included               |

The free tier message counter resets on the first of each month.

### Paid Plan

The Paid plan unlocks platform-provisioned numbers and unlimited messaging:

| Feature             | Details                                      |
| ------------------- | -------------------------------------------- |
| Platform fee        | \$19.99/month (waived at 1M+ segments/month) |
| Message limit       | Unlimited (billed per segment)               |
| Phone numbers       | BYO + platform-provisioned                   |
| Number provisioning | Available                                    |
| Per-segment billing | Tiered pricing (see below)                   |

To upgrade, go to **Settings > Account Settings** and click **Upgrade to Paid**.

## How Billing Works

### Segments

SMS messages are billed by **segment**:

* 1 segment = up to 160 characters (standard)
* 1 segment = up to 70 characters (Unicode/emoji)
* Longer messages = multiple segments

### Pricing (Paid Plan)

| Tier                               | Rate             |
| ---------------------------------- | ---------------- |
| First 1M segments per annual cycle | \$0.0045/segment |
| After 1M segments                  | \$0.0030/segment |

The annual cycle is 360 days. Provider pass-through costs are billed separately.

### Auto-Charge Thresholds

Billing runs automatically when you reach usage thresholds that scale with your volume:

| Volume Tier          | Auto-Charge Every |
| -------------------- | ----------------- |
| Under 100K segments  | 10K segments      |
| 100K - 500K segments | 50K segments      |
| 500K - 7M segments   | 100K segments     |
| Over 7M segments     | 1M segments       |

Monthly billing also runs for platform fees, any remaining usage balance, and counter resets.

### Billing Safety

* **Minimum charge**: \$0.50 (Stripe minimum)
* **Fails open**: Billing errors never block message sending — the billing preflight is designed to fail open so your campaigns are never interrupted by billing issues
* **Platform fee waiver**: When you reach 1M segments in a calendar month, the \$19.99 platform fee is automatically credited back via a Stripe customer balance credit

## Viewing Usage

1. Go to **Settings > Account Settings**
2. See current usage:
   * Outbound messages
   * Total segments
   * Estimated cost
   * Free tier usage (if on Free plan)

### Discord Usage Commands

Check usage from Discord:

```
/sms usage
/sms usage period:today
/sms usage period:month
```

```
/sms balance
```

Shows unbilled segments and estimated amount.

## Subscription Management

### Upgrading to Paid

1. Go to **Settings > Account Settings**
2. Click **Upgrade to Paid**
3. Complete checkout via Stripe
4. Your plan updates immediately

### Cancelling Your Subscription

1. Go to **Settings > Account Settings**
2. Click **Cancel Subscription**
3. Your paid plan remains active until the end of the current billing period
4. After the period ends, your account downgrades to the Free plan

<Warning>
  After downgrading, you will no longer be able to submit new number provisioning requests. Existing lists remain but are subject to the 500 message/month limit.
</Warning>

## Payment Methods

### Adding a Card

1. Go to **Settings > Account Settings**
2. Click **Add Payment Method**
3. Enter card details
4. Save

Powered by Stripe for secure payments.

### Updating Card

Use the **Manage Payment Method** button to open the Stripe customer portal and update your card.

### Failed Payments

If payment fails:

1. You'll receive an email notification
2. A Discord alert (if configured)
3. Update your payment method
4. Retry will happen automatically

<Warning>
  Continued payment failures may result in service interruption.
</Warning>

## Invoices

### Viewing Invoices

1. Go to **Settings > Account Settings**
2. See invoice history
3. Click to view details

### Invoice Details

Each invoice shows:

* Billing period
* Segment count
* Per-segment rate
* Total amount
* Payment status

## Billing Alerts

Configure alerts for:

| Alert             | Trigger               |
| ----------------- | --------------------- |
| Threshold reached | Usage hits X segments |
| Payment failed    | Card charge failed    |
| Payment success   | Invoice paid          |

### Discord Alerts

Enable billing alerts in Discord:

```
/alerts configure billing:true
```

## Troubleshooting

<AccordionGroup>
  <Accordion title="Usage seems high">
    Check:

    * Are there duplicate sends?
    * Are messages longer than expected (multi-segment)?
    * Is there bot activity inflating numbers?
  </Accordion>

  <Accordion title="Payment failed">
    * Verify card details are current
    * Check card has sufficient funds
    * Ensure card allows online purchases
    * Try a different payment method
  </Accordion>

  <Accordion title="Hit the free tier limit">
    You've sent 500 messages this month. Upgrade to the Paid plan for unlimited messaging, or wait for the counter to reset on the first of next month.
  </Accordion>

  <Accordion title="Need invoice for accounting">
    Download invoices from Settings > Account Settings. All invoices are available with full details.
  </Accordion>
</AccordionGroup>

## Next Steps

<CardGroup cols={2}>
  <Card title="Team Management" icon="users" href="/account/team-management">
    Manage your team
  </Card>

  <Card title="Discord Support" icon="discord" href="/integrations/discord-support">
    Get billing help
  </Card>
</CardGroup>