How articles and scans are paid for with credits on every plan, quotes before anything runs, refunds on failure, how prompts use credits, the credit history, top-ups and auto-recharge.

What uses credits

Action	Notes
Scanning prompts	Each prompt, each scan round, charged per engine the market scans; engines differ
Repeated sampling	Each engine answers 3 times per scan, so credits rise accordingly; a dialog asks you to confirm before it turns on, and the credit check before a scan includes the extra runs (Business, agency)
Generating articles	Per article; AI-agent deep research uses more than a single-pass article
Simulated agent tasks	The weekly automatic run is free; clicking Run shows a quote first and charges after you confirm
Competitor prompt gaps, live audit, sentiment scans	Per run
Actions from the AI Assistant and MCP	Quote first, run after you confirm; each MCP app also has a monthly credit cap

Free of credits: viewing data, change lists, generating brand-defense prompts (they are scanned and charged like any prompt), the Agent Readiness Check and the Monday automatic check.

Holds and refunds

Credits are held when generation starts and refunded automatically when a queued job or pipeline fails, including an AI-agent run that errors or times out partway; a run you cancel is not refunded. Engine queries that return nothing are refunded. Deleting a low-quality article (readiness 3 of 5 or less, unpublished, within 24 hours) refunds it; deleting a good one only logs a refund request.

Prompts

There is no limit on how many prompts you track; credits are the only limit. Every prompt uses credits on each scan round, so the number of prompts drives what each round costs. When the balance is too low, scans don't run and prompts can't be added. To add prompts, the balance must cover the new prompts' first check; otherwise a Not enough credits to add prompts dialog opens, where you can top up and then add them. Prompt variants and brand-defense prompts (up to 8) are scanned and use credits like any prompt, and adding them needs the same check. The number of prompts you can set to daily frequency is capped per plan; beyond it, set others to weekly or monthly.

Balance, history and top-ups

API keys & credits → Credits: the current balance (plan credits and purchased credits shown apart), the next grant date and size, and the last 90 days of Credit history (grants, top-ups, expiries, and scan and article usage totalled per day and project). Pick an amount or Custom amount to top up; Auto-recharge charges your saved card when the balance falls below a threshold you set. When a scan or article is blocked for credits, a top-up dialog opens on the spot so you can continue. Free accounts cannot top up.

Monthly project caps and auto-scan pauses

Each project can have a monthly credit cap. When it is reached, scans and articles on that project stop until the next month or until you raise the cap. When the balance (or the cap) cannot cover the next scheduled scan, auto-scan pauses, you are told at most once a day, and it resumes after a top-up.

Agencies and your own keys

Agency accounts pay with credits in the same way for work run on Citadex. Engines with your own key under the API Keys tab use no credits.

New-user top-up bonus and invite credits

+10% on your first top-up: your first top-up within 7 days of signing up gets 10% extra credits. The top of Credits → Platform credits shows how long is left, and the amount picker shows the bonus.

Invite and earn: the user menu (bottom left) → Invite Friends, or Invite on the "Invite friends, earn credits" card on the credit wallet page (/credits; it shows how many signed up and the credits you earned, on every plan including Free), opens the invite page; copy your link (citadex.io/i/…) and share it. Sharing a free-check result works too: signed in (any plan), the result page's share links carry your invite code and the share bar's "View my invite records →" opens the invite page; signed out, the bar asks you to sign up first. Anyone who signs up after opening a result you claimed counts as your invite. White-label client accounts and agency accounts don't show the invite entries; agencies aren't part of invite credits.

When someone signs up through your link within 30 days and makes their first payment (a subscription or a credit top-up, whichever comes first), you are rewarded: 20% of a top-up's credits, or 20% of a subscription payment converted to credits at the standard credit price; up to 2,000 per person, with no limit on how many people you invite.
Credited as soon as the payment succeeds, with a bell notification and an email; if that payment is later refunded or disputed, the reward is taken back and you are told.
Not counted: the same company email domain or the same payment card (that's you); people who sign up through a partner (affiliate) link earn the partner a commission instead.
Bonus and reward credits can't be cashed out. For a cash commission, join the affiliate program (linked at the bottom of the invite page).

Frequently asked questions

Where do I see usage? Credit history on the Credits tab; the Prompt Library shows how many prompts you track.

Does a failed scan cost credits? Only engines that actually answered are charged; skipped engines are not.

Which pages do well on Google but not in AI? AI traffic → Overview, bottom card Google vs AI citations: each page's Google clicks (Search Console) next to how often AI answers cited it, in four boxes (Google weak / AI strong, strong on both, weak on both, Google strong / AI weak), each with a next step. "More" is relative to your own site's median. Connect Search Console under Integrations first.

Quotas and Credits — Articles, Scans, Sampling, Agent Tasks and Top-ups