Credits are the spend unit experts use for everything that costs something on the platform: applying to a job, submitting a proposal, joining a Practice Bench, or running BidWiz beyond the free quota. Every tier comes with a monthly allowance. This article explains how the allowance works, what each action costs, and what happens to credits an expert does not use.
What a credit is
A credit is the platform's internal spend unit. One credit lets an expert apply to a job, submit a proposal, or buy one BidWiz run beyond the monthly free quota. Credits are not money. They are not refundable to a card and have no cash value outside the platform.
Experts see their current credit balance on the /profile overview, in the navbar, and on any screen where an action would cost credits.
Monthly allowance by tier
Each tier comes with a fixed number of credits added at the start of every billing cycle:
| Tier | Credits per month |
|---|---|
| Free | 1 |
| Ace | 12 |
| Veteran | 40 |
| Enterprise | 150 |
New signups start with the 30-day Ace trial, which uses the Ace allowance (12 credits) until the trial ends.
The allowance lands on the same day the billing cycle renews. If an expert upgrades or downgrades mid-cycle, the change in allowance takes effect at the next renewal, not immediately.
How rollover works
Unused credits roll over for two months on Ace, Veteran, and Enterprise. After two months, the oldest unused credits expire.
Free tier does not roll over. Free users have a maximum of 1 credit at any time. If a Free user has not used last month's credit when the new one arrives, the balance remains at 1. The new credit replaces the old one. This is a deliberate cap and is the reason Free users cannot accumulate enough to apply to a Practice Bench (which costs 3).
If an expert upgrades from Free to Ace mid-month, the current 1 credit carries forward into the new tier's allowance.
What each action costs
| Action | Cost |
|---|---|
| Apply to a job | 1 credit |
| Submit a proposal | 1 credit |
| Apply to a Practice Bench | 3 credits |
| Paid BidWiz run (beyond the free monthly quota) | 1 credit on Ace and Veteran, 3 credits on Enterprise |
BidWiz is not available on Free. Paid tiers get a number of free BidWiz runs each month that do not touch the credit balance; the per-run credit cost above only applies once those free runs are used.
| Tier | Free BidWiz runs per month |
|---|---|
| Free | None (no BidWiz access) |
| Ace | 1 |
| Veteran | 3 |
| Enterprise | 10 |
Reading and receiving messages is always free. Sending messages does not cost credits but requires a paid tier (Ace and above). Free users have a read-only inbox.
Buying credit packages
Ace, Veteran, and Enterprise users can buy credit top-up packages from the /profile/credits page when the monthly allowance is not enough. Two packages are offered: 5 credits for $15, or 15 credits for $39. Packages are charged through Stripe and credit the account immediately.
Free users cannot buy credit packages. To buy top-ups, a Free user must upgrade to Ace first.
Top-up credits join the same pool as the monthly allowance and follow the same two-month rollover rule. They are not refundable to a card after purchase but remain usable on the platform until they expire.
Credit ledger
Every credit added to or spent from an account is recorded in a credit ledger viewable at /profile/credits. Each entry shows the date, the amount, the reason (monthly allowance, top-up purchase, job application, refund, and so on), and a reference to the action that triggered it.
Two actions return a credit automatically, both at the interest stage, before the client has asked for a full proposal: a client rejecting an applicant, and an expert withdrawing their own application. In either case the credit spent to apply is returned to the balance and a refund row appears in the ledger. Once the client has progressed the application past interest, the credit is locked in. Other refunds require a support request.
If a credit movement looks wrong, the ledger provides a record the expert can reference when contacting support.
What happens to credits at cancel or downgrade
Cancelling a paid tier, downgrading to Free, or letting a tier lapse all end at the same state, Free. The rules below apply to all three:
- Existing credit balance is preserved. Credits already earned (from allowances or top-ups) stay in the account. They do not expire on the day of cancellation.
- The Free cap of 1 credit applies going forward. The old balance remains spendable, but no new monthly allowance is added beyond the Free rule (1 credit per month, no rollover).
- Practice Bench seats and pending bench applications are vacated. This is the only end-state-Free consequence that is not reversible by paying again later. The bench owner is emailed and the seat is removed.
- Other in-flight items are preserved. Pending job applications, advisory bookings, message threads (read-only on Free), and BidWiz history all survive.
An expert who re-subscribes to a paid tier later still has the old credit balance. Nothing is lost by cancelling, only by letting credits sit unused past the two-month rollover window.
Related
- Getting set up as an expert: /help/getting-set-up
- What our AI features do with your data: /help/ai-features
- Refund policy: /help/refund-policy