Pricing methodology
Router One bills pay-as-you-go calls per token at the rate posted on /models — up to 90% off official prices on select models — with no hidden markup inside the token line; FX and payment-channel fees are shown at checkout, and Pro, Max and Ultra plans are priced separately on /pricing. Pricing should not be a black box. This page documents how the numbers on /models are set, how upstream price changes flow through, how RMB conversion works, and how Router One makes money.
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Per-model rates
- Source of truth
- The input, output, and cached-input price columns on /models are the rates you are billed at. There is no separate book.
- Pay-as-you-go token line
- Pay-as-you-go calls are billed at the posted token rate shown on /models. Router One does not hide platform markup inside that token line; the dashboard's per-request trace shows the rate that applied at request time.
- Long-context input tiers
- Where a model lists input-length tiers, compare the full input of each request with the threshold. Full input includes ordinary input and distinct written/read input; never add a component again to an already-inclusive total. At the boundary the lower tier still applies; only a strictly greater total enters the next tier. The selected tier's rates apply to the whole request, including output, rather than only the excess tokens. This is a per-request threshold, not a monthly usage threshold. Model detail pages list current boundaries and rates; which ids carry a whole-request tier as of September 2026 is listed in the September 2026 new-model guide at /blog/new-llm-models-september-2026.
- Upstream change pass-through
- When an upstream provider publishes a price change, the /models rate is updated within 24 hours. The new rate applies only to requests made after the update.
Subscription plans
- Current availability
- Router One uses prepaid wallet credits for pay-as-you-go API usage, and Pro, Max, and Ultra subscription plans are live for predictable monthly access.
- Plan terms
- Subscription plans and enterprise contracts are governed by the applicable plan or written agreement. The pricing page is the source of truth for the current public plan list.
- Wallet coexistence
- Wallet billing remains live. Wallet balance can pay for one subscription period, and it continues to cover pay-as-you-go usage outside plan coverage.
RMB and stablecoin conversion
- Internal currency
- Balances are denominated in USD internally regardless of how you topped up.
- Alipay conversion
- USD to RMB at the daily mid-market rate plus a small, capped channel fee. Both numbers are shown at checkout — you see the effective rate before confirming.
- Stablecoin conversion
- USDT and USDC top-ups across Tron, BSC, Ethereum, Polygon, Base, and Arbitrum are credited to your USD wallet according to the checkout terms shown before payment. Network gas is paid by the user; any channel-side fee, if applicable, is shown before checkout. After credit, the wallet balance is plain USD.
- Refunds
- Purchased credits are non-refundable once added to your balance, except for billing errors on our side or where required by law, as described in the Refund Policy. Bonus credits and payment-channel fees are not refundable either. Bonus credits are spendable on API usage only and cannot be applied to subscription purchases.
- Reasoning / thinking tokens
- Output from thinking or reasoning models is billed at that model's posted output rate and counted in the request's total tokens. There is no separate reasoning price line.
Rate change notification
- Material changes
- Material rate changes — price changes to any separately offered subscription or enterprise contract, or upstream price changes that materially raise effective cost — are announced via the changelog and email to active accounts at least 7 days in advance.
- Immediate pass-through
- Upstream provider rate cuts may be passed through immediately without 7-day notice. Increases follow the 7-day rule.
How Router One makes money
- No hidden token-line markup on pay-as-you-go
- Wallet token charges use the posted rate. Router One does not hide platform markup inside the pay-as-you-go token line.
- Subscription margin
- Subscription economics are shown separately from the pay-as-you-go token line and governed by the applicable plan or written agreement.
- FX margin on RMB
- Alipay top-ups carry a small, capped FX margin shown at checkout. This covers payment-channel fees and FX risk on RMB-denominated top-ups.
- Enterprise
- Enterprise contracts include premium support, written SLAs, programmatic export, and other features priced separately.
FAQ
Is there a markup on top of upstream prices?
Not hidden inside the pay-as-you-go token line. Wallet token charges use posted rates; FX and payment-channel fees are shown at checkout. Subscription plan economics are shown separately on the pricing page.
What happens if an upstream provider raises prices?
Posted rates on /models are updated within 24 hours of the upstream change. Material increases are announced 7 days in advance via changelog and email. The new rate applies only to requests made after the update.
Does a long-context tier affect only tokens above the threshold?
No. Compare the full input of each individual request with the model's published boundary. Exactly at the boundary, the lower tier applies; strictly above it, the selected tier applies to the whole request, including output. Do not add input components again when they are already included in the total. Monthly usage does not select this tier.
Do you support invoices?
Yes. Any top-up completed through the hosted checkout — card or Alipay — can be invoiced, including plain pay-as-you-go wallet top-ups, not only subscription or enterprise accounts. Stablecoin top-ups are a separate rail and are not invoiced. On the deposit page, top up through the first Card / Alipay rail, then contact support@router.one with your account ID and invoice details to request the invoice.