Payment methods and Stripe

What we accept

All major credit and debit cards via Stripe. Apple Pay and Google Pay where supported by your browser. We do not currently accept PayPal or bank transfer.

Adding a card

1. Go to Billing or visit /add-payment-method.
2. Enter your card details into the Stripe secure form (we never see the card number - Stripe tokenizes it).
3. Confirm. You will see a $0.00 authorization hold for verification.

Once saved, the card is tokenized and stored by Stripe. It is used for:

• Monthly subscription renewals
• Credit bundle purchases
• Any upgrades or one-time charges

Why we require a card

As of April 2026, all new signups are required to add a payment method. This is an abuse-prevention measure - we were getting hit hard by disposable-email signups abusing the free credit pool. Requiring a card does not mean you are charged; it just ties the account to a real identity.

You will not be charged unless you:

• Buy a subscription or bundle explicitly
• Upgrade from the free tier

"I have credits but it won't let me generate"

This is the most common cause, and it is not a bug. Every account can spend its first 25 credits with no card on file. Once those 25 are spent, generating is blocked until a card is verified, even if you still have credits. You will see a message like:

You have used your 25 free credits, and you still have 55 credits on your account. Add a payment method to unlock them - it is a $0 check and you are not charged now or later unless you choose to buy something. You can also buy a bundle from $4.99; bundles never expire.

Your credits are not lost and nothing has been spent. Add a card at /add-payment-method and generation works immediately - the 80 credits from quests, your streak credits, all of it.

It is a $0 verification, not a payment. Stripe places a temporary authorization to confirm the card is real, then releases it. You are not charged, no subscription starts, and free credits stay free.

This applies if all of the following are true:

• You have already spent your first 25 credits (every account gets those with no card, whatever its balance)
• Your account was created after the cutoff date (older accounts are grandfathered and never see this)
• You have no card on file
• You have never bought a credit bundle or a subscription

If you have a subscription, a card already saved, or you have bought a bundle at any point, this gate does not apply to you.

A separate case: "your subscription payment failed"

If the message mentions a failed subscription payment rather than verification, that is different - your card was declined on renewal. Update it at /billing and creating resumes. See "What if a subscription payment fails" below.

Updating or replacing a card

1. Go to /billing.
2. Click Manage payment methods.
3. Add the new card, then remove the old one (do not remove the old one first or you will lose access to subscription changes until a card is present).

What if a subscription payment fails

Stripe retries failed payments automatically over ~2 weeks. During this window:

1. Your account is not immediately downgraded. You keep your current plan's features.
2. You receive email notifications from Stripe prompting you to update your card.
3. If all retries fail, your subscription is cancelled and you drop to the free tier.

Any bundle credits you own are kept through this process.

Double charge or dispute

If you see a duplicate charge:

1. Check Stripe's email receipts to confirm it is actually duplicate (not a legitimate bundle + subscription combo).
2. Contact support via the in-app VoxBot or email, with the charge amount and date.
3. We verify against Stripe and refund the duplicate within 5 business days.

If you want to dispute a legitimate charge, see billing-and-refunds for our refund policy.

Cancelling a subscription

From /billing, click Cancel subscription. You stay on your current plan until the end of your current billing cycle, then drop to free.

This does not delete your account or your content. Your bands, songs, stations, and bundle credits are all still there. You can resubscribe anytime.

Privacy

We never see your card number. Stripe handles all card data - they are PCI-DSS Level 1 certified. Our database only stores:

• Your Stripe customer_id
• Your Stripe subscription_id (if applicable)
• The last 4 digits of your card (for display only)
• Card brand (Visa, Mastercard, etc.)

If you delete your account, we send a delete request to Stripe to remove your tokenized card data.