📊 Section 1: Key Patterns Across SaaS

The dominant pricing models we see today in AI-powered SaaS — from legacy subscription to emerging usage-based patterns.

Model 1 ↓ Diminishing

Traditional Subscription

The classic SaaS pricing model. 3 tiers with features that scale (users, seats, storage). AI credits bundled in. Add-ons for BYOK and extra credits.

Pattern: Diminishing in popularity. Still the most common today, but increasingly feels rigid as AI costs vary wildly by usage. Tiers gate features & seats, with AI bolted on as credits. BYOK is offered as a premium add-on.
$228/yr
$49 one-time
Starter
1 user · 500 AI credits/mo
  • ✓ 1 user seat
  • ✓ 500 AI credits/month
  • ✓ Core AI tools
  • ✓ 50+ templates
  • ✓ Email support
  • ✗ Premium models
  • ✗ BYOK
Most Popular
$588/yr
$99 one-time
Pro
3 users · 2,000 AI credits/mo
  • ✓ 3 user seats
  • ✓ 2,000 AI credits/month
  • ✓ All AI tools + premium models
  • ✓ 200+ templates
  • ✓ Priority support
  • ✓ API access
  • ✗ BYOK
$1,188/yr
$199 one-time
Business
10 users · 10,000 AI credits/mo
  • ✓ 10 user seats
  • ✓ 10,000 AI credits/month
  • ✓ Everything in Pro
  • ✓ Team collaboration
  • ✓ Dedicated support
  • ✓ White-label exports
  • ✓ Custom integrations
Model 2 ↓ Diminishing

Per-User Pricing

Tiers defined by how many seats are bundled. AI features are sold as add-ons on top of the seat-based plan.

Pattern: Diminishing in popularity. The "per-seat" model made sense for collaboration tools, but feels increasingly outdated for AI products where value comes from usage, not headcount. Teams resist adding seats when one power user drives 90% of the AI usage.
$120/yr
$29 one-time
Solo
1 seat included
  • ✓ 1 user seat
  • ✓ Full platform access
  • ✓ All workflows & templates
  • ✓ Export to any format
  • ✗ AI features (add-on)
Most Popular
$360/yr
$79 one-time
Team
5 seats included
  • ✓ 5 user seats
  • ✓ Everything in Solo
  • ✓ Team collaboration
  • ✓ Shared workspaces
  • ✗ AI features (add-on)
$840/yr
$149 one-time
Agency
25 seats included
  • ✓ 25 user seats
  • ✓ Everything in Team
  • ✓ White-label & branding
  • ✓ Client management
  • ✗ AI features (add-on)

AI Add-Ons Stack on any plan

AI Writing & Chat

1,000 credits/mo — drafts, rewrites, chat assistant

+$49

AI Image Generation

500 images/mo — social, marketing, product shots

+$39

AI Video & Voice

50 clips/mo — video gen, voice cloning, TTS

+$79
Model 3 ↑ Increasing

Usage-Based Pricing (PAYG)

No tiers, no seats. Just buy credits — either as one-off packs or recurring monthly allotments. Use them however you want.

Pattern: Increasing in popularity, but not the most common yet. Most likely the future of SaaS pricing. Aligns cost directly with value — you pay for what you use. Works great for AI tools where usage is unpredictable. Either one-off credit packs or recurring credits.
250
credits
$29
$0.116 / credit
1,000
credits
$79
$0.079 / credit — Save 32%
Best Value
3,000
credits
$179
$0.060 / credit — Save 48%
10,000
credits
$449
$0.045 / credit — Save 61%

One-time purchase. Credits never expire. Use on any AI tool.

Model 4 ⟳ Increasingly Common

Hybrid: Subscription + Usage

Lifetime deal gets you platform access with minimal credits. Then add credit packs (one-off or recurring) as needed. Can have multiple tiers.

Pattern: Increasingly common, but quite complex for end users. Combines the predictability of a base subscription with the flexibility of usage-based credits. Base = LTD access to the platform with minimal credits included. Users top up with one-off or recurring credit add-ons. Could have 3 tiers for different levels of base access.

Choose Your Tier

Starter
1 user · 250 credits · Core AI tools
$180/yr
$49
one-time
Most Popular
Pro
3 users · 1,000 credits · Premium models
$468/yr
$99
one-time
Business
10 users · 5,000 credits · White-label
$948/yr
$199
one-time

All tiers include lifetime access & updates.

Credit Add-Ons Stack on any tier

200
credits / month forever
$49
one-time purchase
500
credits / month forever
$99
one-time purchase
1,500
credits / month forever
$199
one-time purchase
🔀 Section 2: Alternatives

Other pricing approaches worth exploring — from interactive credit choosers to outcome-based and marketplace models.

Model 5

Base + Power Add-Ons

One simple lifetime deal for platform access. Layer on premium capabilities as optional add-ons.

Alternative approach: Keep it dead simple. One base lifetime deal for platform access, then let users layer on premium capabilities as add-ons. No tier confusion — just a base and optional upgrades.
Lifetime Deal
$348/yr
$69 one-time
Base
Lifetime platform access
✓ Full platform access
✓ 500 AI credits/month
✓ All core AI tools
✓ 50+ templates
✓ Lifetime updates

Power Add-Ons

Premium Models

Access GPT-4, Claude, Gemini & more

+$79

Video + Voice Studio

AI video gen, voice cloning, text-to-speech

+$99

Unlimited Credits

No monthly 500-credit cap, unlimited usage

+$149
Model 6

Base LTD + Need More Credits

Simple base lifetime deal. If you run out of credits, just buy more — no tiers, no complexity.

Alternative approach: The simplest possible upsell path. Base LTD gives you everything you need. If you burn through credits, just buy more. No tiers, no complexity.
Lifetime Deal
$348/yr
$69 one-time
Lifetime Deal
Full platform access
✓ Full platform access
✓ 500 credits/month
✓ All AI tools
✓ Lifetime updates

Need More Credits?

200
credits / month forever
$49
one-time purchase
500
credits / month forever
$99
one-time purchase
1,500
credits / month forever
$199
one-time purchase

Pay once, get monthly credits forever.

Model 7

Bring Your Own Key

Base plan uses credits. Upgrade to unlock BYOK — connect your own API keys and skip credits entirely.

Alternative approach: For power users who already have API budgets. Base plan at $69 works fine with credits. BYOK unlock at $199 lets you connect OpenAI, Anthropic, etc. directly — $0 markup on API costs.
Base Plan

Standard Access

Everything you need. Use our credits — no API keys required.

$348/yr
$69 one-time

500 credits included

  • ✓ All AI tools & workflows
  • ✓ 200+ templates
  • ✓ Export to any format
  • ✓ Lifetime updates
  • ✗ BYOK not included
Unlock BYOK

Base + Bring Your Own Key

Everything in Base, plus connect your own API keys. Pay providers directly.

$480/yr
$199 one-time

500 credits + unlimited BYOK

  • ✓ Everything in Base
  • ✓ Connect unlimited API keys
  • ✓ $0 markup on API costs
  • ✓ Use credits OR your own keys
Supported Providers

OpenAI

GPT-4o, DALL·E, Whisper

Anthropic

Claude models

10+ more providers

Stability, Replicate, Mistral...

Model 8

Credit Chooser — Buy Exactly What You Need

An interactive slider/input that lets users pick any credit amount. Volume discounts kick in automatically.

Alternative approach: Instead of fixed packs, let the user choose any amount. Feels more personalized and transparent — they see exactly how the price changes as they adjust.

How many credits do you need?

AI credits
Price per credit$0.135
Your total$68
You save10% off
Model 9

Pay Per Result — Not Per Generation

Generate unlimited drafts for free. Only pay when you export a final result.

Alternative approach: Flips the model — creation is free, exporting costs money. Removes the anxiety of "wasting" credits on bad generations. Users feel they're only paying for value they actually want to keep.
🎨

Generate Freely

Create as many drafts and variations as you need

Free & Unlimited
→
👀

Review & Refine

Iterate until it's exactly right — no meter running

Still Free
→
⬇️

Export & Pay

Only pay when you download a result you love

Pay Here

🖼 Image Export

High-res PNG/JPG, ready for web or print
$1.50
per final image

📝 Article Export

Polished copy to Docs, HTML, or Markdown
$0.75
per final article

🎬 Video Export

Rendered MP4 clip at full quality
$5.00
per final video
💡 Generate unlimited drafts for free. You only pay when you export a final result you love.
Model 11

Discounted Recurring Credits via AppSumo

Buy recurring monthly credits through AppSumo at a discounted rate vs. buying directly from the partner.

Alternative approach: Most partners prefer to control recurring billing on their end. But this model lets AppSumo sell discounted recurring credit subscriptions — the AppSumo brand acts as the discount layer. Users get a better rate than going direct, and partners get distribution.
Monthly credit plans DirectAppSumo
500/mo
$29/mo $19/mo -34%
1,500/mo
$69/mo $39/mo -43%
5,000/mo
$149/mo $89/mo -40%
15,000/mo
$349/mo $199/mo -43%
💰
Why buy through AppSumo?
AppSumo negotiates bulk rates. You get 34–43% off vs. going direct. Same credits, better price.
Save 34–43%

Get Discounted Credits via AppSumo

Subscribe to recurring monthly credits at a fraction of the direct price. Same credits, same features — just cheaper through AppSumo.

  • ✓ 34–43% off vs. buying direct
  • ✓ Cancel anytime — no lock-in
  • ✓ Credits work across all AI tools
  • ✓ Unused credits roll over 1 month

Billed monthly. Powered by AppSumo.

Model 10

Pay Per Use — No Commitment

No credits, no subscriptions. Just use and pay. Each AI action has a transparent per-use price, billed monthly.

Alternative approach: True pay-per-use with no upfront cost. Each AI action has a transparent per-use price. Great for light users or people who want zero commitment. Billed monthly based on actual usage.
AI Tool DirectAppSumo
💬 AI Chat
$0.005 $0.003 -40%
✍️ AI Writing
$0.08 $0.05 -38%
🖼 Image Gen
$0.15 $0.10 -33%
🎬 Video Gen
$3.50 $2.00 -43%
🎤 Voice / TTS
$0.12 $0.08 -33%
💻 Code Gen
$0.04 $0.02 -50%

Get Started with Pay-Per-Use

No upfront cost. Start using AI tools and only pay for what you consume.

✓
Sign Up Free on AppSumo
Create your account in seconds. No credit card required.
✓
Connect to Partner
Access all AI tools instantly through AppSumo.
✓
Use & Pay As You Go
Only pay for what you use. Billed monthly, cancel anytime.

No credit card required · Cancel anytime

🔮 Section 3: Future Concepts

These models explore where AI pricing could go next — not available today, but worth thinking about.

Model 12

Speed Tiers — Instant or Economy

Same tools, same quality. Choose how fast you get results. Need it now? Pay standard. Can wait? Save up to 70%.

Future concept: As AI compute becomes more commoditized, speed becomes the pricing lever. Batch/queue processing at off-peak times costs providers less — those savings get passed to users who aren't in a rush.
Default
⚡

Instant

Results in seconds. Priority queue, dedicated compute.

1x
standard credit rate
Image generation~5 sec Instant
Article writing~10 sec Instant
Video render~30 sec Instant
🐢

Economy

Same output, just queued. Perfect for batch jobs or overnight runs.

0.3x
up to 70% cheaper
Image generation~2 min Save 60%
Article writing~5 min Save 65%
Video render~15 min Save 70%
Example: 100 images at Instant = $75 · 100 images at Economy = $23
Model 13

Quality Picker — Good / Better / Best

Every tool has three quality tiers. Use the cheap option for drafts. Upgrade to premium when it matters. Choose per task.

Future concept: As AI models proliferate, quality becomes the pricing axis. Each partner could offer Good/Better/Best tiers per tool — powered by different models behind the scenes. Users control cost vs. quality on every single task.
🖼

Image Generation

Good
$0.10
per image
Fast drafts, mood boards
Popular
Better
$0.50
per image
Social media, marketing
Best
$1.50
per image
Print-ready, client work
✍️

AI Writing

Good
$0.05
per generation
Brainstorming, outlines
Popular
Better
$0.20
per generation
Blog posts, emails
Best
$0.60
per generation
Long-form, white papers
🎬

Video Generation

Good
$0.50
per clip
Quick previews
Popular
Better
$2.50
per clip
Social reels, promos
Best
$8.00
per clip
Full HD, cinematic

No commitment. Switch quality levels on every single task.