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

# Billing FAQ

> Understand starter usage, paid billing paths, budget controls, AI-query allowances, and commercial-use boundaries

Use this page to resolve an account or workload question before you increase traffic. For a specific organization, read `GET /v1/billing`, `GET /v1/limits`, and, for a repeated operation, `POST /v1/billing/quote` with the key that will run it.

## Do new organizations receive included usage?

Yes. Every new organization receives `150` included calls. The starter grant does not renew automatically. `GET /v1/billing` shows the authenticated organization's remaining included usage and current billing state.

## What happens after included usage runs out?

Billable requests need an active paid billing path. Enable Pay As You Go or choose a paid plan in the signed-in dashboard. When a request cannot proceed, the API returns a billing or entitlement condition; resolve that condition before retrying.

## Do I need a subscription to use the API?

No. Pay As You Go is the paid path for metered use. Personal and Team are for sustained internal use. Commercial covers external-facing use and negotiated terms. Read [plans and pricing](/plans-and-pricing) before choosing a path.

## Which plans permit customer-facing output?

Commercial. Use a commercial agreement before redistributing, embedding, white-labeling, or reselling SEC API-derived output. A successful evaluation or self-serve request does not grant those rights.

## Where do I manage payment methods, invoices, and budgets?

Use the Billing area of the signed-in [dashboard](https://secapi.ai/app). Payment methods, invoices, checkout, billing portal actions, and budget changes require an authorized browser session. API keys are machine credentials and cannot perform those actions.

## How should an agent limit spend?

Before a loop, read billing and limits, then call `POST /v1/billing/quote` for the actual path and units. A quote is an estimate, not a reservation. Set a maximum work-unit count in your application, retain the quote context with the run record, and stop when the API returns a billing, budget, entitlement, or quota condition. [Billing-aware agent runs](/agent-billing) has the preflight pattern.

## What counts as an AI query?

The `ai_queries` quota applies to documented `/v1/intelligence/*` routes and `GET /v1/signals/dilution/enhanced`, including the corresponding MCP tools. Filing reads, factor lookups, and market-data reads use their own meter classes and do not consume this allowance.

## What are the AI-query limits?

The sandbox grant has 10 AI queries per UTC calendar month. Pay As You Go, Personal, Team, and Commercial are not subject to a fixed monthly AI-query cap; they are metered and governed by their current billing and budget controls.

Quota-counted responses include `SECAPI-AI-Quota-*` headers, and `GET /v1/billing` returns `monthlyQuotas.ai_queries` with `limit`, `used`, `remaining`, and `resetAt`.

## What happens when AI-query allowance is exhausted?

For the sandbox grant, quota-counted REST routes return `429 Too Many Requests` with `code: "ai_query_quota_exceeded"`; MCP returns an HTTP `429` JSON-RPC error with the same code. The response headers provide usage and reset information. For paid usage, resolve the returned billing or budget condition rather than waiting for a sandbox-style quota reset.

## Can an agent bootstrap itself?

Not anonymously. A signed-in administrator creates a short-lived sponsor token through `POST /v1/agent/bootstrap_tokens`; the agent exchanges it once through `POST /v1/agent/bootstrap`. Read [agent billing](/agent-billing) before automating this flow.

## Can an API key create more keys or manage billing?

No. Create or revoke keys, change budgets, manage billing, update dashboard settings, and request account deletion through a signed-in browser session with the necessary permissions. For key placement and rotation, read [API keys, usage, and billing](/auth-and-pricing).