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

# Usage Costs

> Understand how API operations consume credits from your shared credit pool.

## Overview

Your VidNavigator plan includes a monthly **credit pool** shared across all API operations. Different services consume credits at different rates. You can monitor your current balance at any time by calling the [`/usage`](/api-reference/endpoint/usage) endpoint.

<Info>
  There are **no per-service limits** — all operations draw from the same credit pool. The activity counters shown in `/usage` are informational only.
</Info>

## Credit Costs per Service

| Resource Unit                                      | Credit Conversion                                                              | Used By                                                  |
| -------------------------------------------------- | ------------------------------------------------------------------------------ | -------------------------------------------------------- |
| Standard Requests (`standard_request`)             | 1 credit = 10,000 non-YouTube transcripts or non-proxy scraper pages           | `/transcript`, non-proxy TikTok profile pages            |
| Residential Proxy Requests (`residential_request`) | 1 credit = 200 YouTube transcript retrievals or proxy-backed scraping requests | `/youtube/transcript`, proxy-backed TikTok profile pages |
| Analysis Requests (`analysis_request`)             | 1 credit = 100 video analysis requests                                         | `/analyze/video`, `/analyze/file`, extraction endpoints  |
| Search Requests (`search_request`)                 | 1 credit = 10 video searches                                                   | `/search/video`, `/search/file`                          |
| Transcription Hours (`transcription_hour`)         | 1 credit = 1 hour of video/audio transcription                                 | `/upload/file`, `/transcribe`, speech-to-text fallback   |
| Scene Analyses (`video_scene_analyses`)            | 1 credit per scene analysis                                                    | Scene analysis endpoints                                 |

### Deduction Order

Credits are deducted in this order:

1. **Monthly credits** are consumed first
2. **Purchased credits** cover any overflow

Monthly credits reset each billing period. Purchased credits persist across periods.

## Plan Credit Allowances

| Plan                  | Monthly Credits | Storage   | Indexed Channels |
| --------------------- | --------------- | --------- | ---------------- |
| Trial                 | 5               | 5 GB      | 2                |
| Navigator (\$9.99/mo) | 15              | 50 GB     | 3                |
| Voyager (\$49.99/mo)  | 80              | 500 GB    | 15               |
| Odyssey (Custom)      | Unlimited       | Unlimited | Unlimited        |

<Note>
  Voyager and above can purchase additional credit packs: 50 credits ($20), 300 credits ($100), or 1,200 credits (\$300).
</Note>

## Service Details

<CardGroup cols={2}>
  <Card title="Standard Requests" icon="file-invoice">
    Each non-YouTube transcript request to `/transcript` consumes `standard_request` units. 1 credit covers 10,000 standard requests.
  </Card>

  <Card title="Residential Proxy Requests" icon="youtube">
    Each YouTube transcript retrieval consumes a `residential_request` unit. 1 credit covers 200 residential proxy requests.

    <Note>Using `metadata_only: true` bypasses the residential proxy and counts as a Standard Request instead.</Note>
  </Card>

  <Card title="Transcription Hours" icon="hourglass">
    `/transcribe`, `/upload/file`, and speech-to-text fallback consume `transcription_hour` units. 1 credit covers 1 hour of audio/video processed.
    <Note>Files uploaded via `/upload/file` also count towards your storage quota.</Note>
  </Card>

  <Card title="Analysis Requests" icon="chart-mixed">
    `/analyze/video`, `/analyze/file`, and AI extraction consume `analysis_request` units. 1 credit covers 100 analysis requests.

    <Note>LLM analysis is billed by context size: 1 `analysis_request` unit covers up to 15,000 total tokens. Larger contexts use `ceil(total_tokens / 15000)` units.</Note>
  </Card>

  <Card title="Search Requests" icon="magnifying-glass">
    Each call to `/search/video` or `/search/file` consumes a `search_request` unit. 1 credit covers 10 searches.
  </Card>

  <Card title="Data Extraction" icon="wand-magic-sparkles">
    Each call to `/extract/video` or `/extract/file` uses AI to extract structured data from transcripts. Analysis Request units scale with token usage.
  </Card>
</CardGroup>

## Hard Limits (Not Credit-Gated)

Some resources have fixed plan limits that are **not** deducted from your credit pool:

| Resource             | How It's Enforced                                                                       |
| -------------------- | --------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- |
| **Storage**          | Total file storage in bytes checked against your plan's storage cap                     |
| **Indexed Channels** | Non-public YouTube channels counted live from your channel list against your plan's cap |

## YouTube vs Other Platforms

<Info>
  **Why do Residential Proxy Requests cost more?**

  YouTube and some scraper flows require residential proxy infrastructure for reliable access. This is reflected in the credit rate (1 credit per 200 Residential Proxy Requests vs. 1 per 10,000 Standard Requests).
</Info>

## Free Endpoints

The following endpoints do **not** consume credits:

* `GET /files` — List your uploaded files
* `GET /file/{file_id}` — Get file info and transcript
* `GET /file/{file_id}/url` — Get temporary file URL
* `GET /namespaces` — List namespaces
* `POST /namespaces` — Create a namespace
* `PUT /namespaces/{namespace_id}` — Rename a namespace
* `DELETE /namespaces/{namespace_id}` — Delete a namespace
* `PUT /file/{file_id}/namespaces` — Update file namespace assignments
* `GET /health` — Health check
* `GET /usage` — Usage statistics