How Pay-Per-Run Works

Pay for runs, not for waiting

On indie.money you pay when a workflow actually runs — not a flat monthly fee for software that sits idle. Each run costs what that run actually used. If a workflow never runs this month, it costs you nothing this month.

This is what we mean by pay-per-run: the unit you pay for is a single execution of a workflow, and you pay for it only when it happens.

How a run is priced

A run's cost has two parts:

• The Builder's per-run price — set by whoever published the workflow.

• The lowest a Builder can price a paid run is $1 per 1,000 runs, so even high-volume automations stay affordable.

For pay-as-you-go runs (where the person triggering pays at the moment they trigger), there's also a small

flat $0.001 payment-processing fee per run. That fee just covers processing the payment — it isn't a platform cut, and it's only charged on pay-as-you-go runs, never on pre-funded or free-trial runs.

Some triggers turn a call away with no data, for example a filtered Telegram update. Then no run starts and there is no run price, but the payment-processing fee still applies, because the payment was processed. See Webhook Node.

Automatic refunds

Before a run starts, the platform sets aside enough budget to cover the maximum a run could cost. When the run finishes and the real cost is known, you're charged only the actual amount — and

the difference is refunded automatically. You never have to ask for it back, and you never overpay for a run that turned out cheaper than expected.

Free trials

Builders can offer a number of free trial runs so you can try a workflow before paying for it. When a run is on a free trial, the Builder covers the cost — there's nothing for you to pay.

The number of free runs is set by the Builder.

Where the money goes

The per-run price you pay goes to the Builder. To understand the full revenue picture — what Builders keep and what the platform charges — see How Builders Earn.