How credits work
Everything on AetherWave costs credits. Every action - an image, a video clip, a song, a master - costs a set number of credits, and different models cost different amounts. The exact credit cost of every model and feature is on the pricing page.
You have two credit pools:
- Subscription credits - refresh monthly with your plan. Drained first.
- Bundle credits - one-time purchases. Never expire. Drained after subscription credits run out.
There is no daily credit refill on the free plan. Daily regen was retired on 2026-05-15 after sustained abuse from multi-account farming. New free-plan signups start with 0 credits. Existing accounts keep whatever balance they had on May 15.
Daily login streaks (added 2026-05-26, closed to new accounts 2026-07-26) are a way to earn free credits without subscribing, but only if your account was created before 26 July 2026. Newer accounts have no streak counter at all; for them the gift-box quests are the free route. Visit AetherWave every calendar day and credits post on milestone days: day 3 (+15), day 7 (+20), day 14 (+30), day 30 (+100), day 60 (+200), day 100 (+500). A single missed day is forgiven; miss two or more days in a row and it resets to 1. See daily streaks for the full mechanics.
The plans
| Plan | Price/mo | Monthly credits | Station limit | Band limit |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Free | $0 | 0 starter, 0 daily | 1 | 1 |
| Starter | $4.99 | 800 | 2 | 3 |
| Studio | $9.99 | 1,700 | 5 | 5 |
| Artist | $24.99 | 3,500 | 10 | 15 |
| Producer | $44.99 | 6,500 | 20 | 30 |
| Mogul | $69.99 | 12,500 | Unlimited | Unlimited |
| Ultimate | $149.99 | 30,000 (hard cap) | Unlimited | Unlimited |
Subscriptions charge immediately on the first month - there is no free trial as of 2026-05-15.
Exact pricing is also on the live pricing page.
How to subscribe
To start a subscription, or to move up a tier:
- Go to
/buy-credits(the Upgrade Plan button on your profile goes to the same place, and/upgraderedirects there). - Pick the plan you want. Compare tiers first on the pricing page if you are undecided.
- Pay through the Stripe checkout.
Your credits and the new plan limits are applied as soon as the payment succeeds. The first month charges immediately - there is no free trial as of 2026-05-15 - and the plan then renews monthly on that same date until you cancel.
To stop a subscription instead, see how to cancel your subscription.
Gallery storage per plan
Every plan includes a personal gallery for your generated music, images, and videos. Paid plans have no cap on the number of items stored - only the total storage size matters. Files generated under a plan stay in your gallery for the retention window below; you can always download anything before it expires.
| Plan | Gallery storage | File retention |
|---|---|---|
| Free | 100 MB | 30 days |
| Starter | 1 GB | 60 days |
| Studio | 10 GB | 90 days |
| Artist | 25 GB | 180 days |
| Producer | 50 GB | 1 year |
| Mogul | 100 GB | 2 years |
| Ultimate | 1 TB | Forever |
If you approach your storage limit, you'll see a warning in the gallery. Delete older items or upgrade your plan to keep generating. Downloading a file to your device does not count against your storage - the limit only applies to what's kept on AetherWave.
How to unlock generation on the free plan
Four paths:
- Daily login streaks - visit every day to build a streak; credits post on milestone days (3, 7, 14, 30, 60, 100). A perfect 100-day run pays 865 credits total. See daily streaks.
- Gift-box quests - 8 one-time community quests, 10 credits each, 80-credit ceiling. Includes sharing your creations to social media (URL-verified) and following AetherWave on Discord, Facebook, X, Instagram, Threads, TikTok, and YouTube.
- Subscribe - Starter ($4.99/mo, 800 credits) or any higher tier. Cancel anytime; you keep your bundle credits even after cancelling.
- Buy a bundle - one-time, never expires. Starts at $4.99 for 500 credits.
Which pool drains first
Let's say you have:
- 500 subscription credits (monthly)
- 2,000 bundle credits (purchased)
You generate a song that costs 50 credits. That 50 comes off your subscription pool (450 / 500 left, 2,000 bundle untouched).
When your subscription pool hits 0, future generations pull from the bundle pool. This means:
- You never waste monthly credits - the platform uses them before they expire
- Bundles are durable savings - they carry over forever
- If you cancel your subscription, you keep any remaining bundle credits
Credit bundles
For users who generate in bursts rather than steadily. Bundles never expire and stack on top of your subscription.
| Pack | Base credits | Bonus | Total | Price |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Starter Pack | 500 | - | 500 | $4.99 |
| Popular Pack | 1,000 | +100 | 1,100 | $9.99 |
| Artist Pack | 2,000 | +300 | 2,300 | $19.99 |
| Pro Pack | 4,000 | +500 | 4,500 | $34.99 |
| Mogul Pack | 11,000 | +1,500 | 12,500 | $79.99 |
Bundles stack with your subscription. If you're on Studio and buy a Popular Pack, you have your monthly 1,700 Studio credits PLUS 1,100 durable bundle credits that carry over forever.
Upgrading, downgrading, cancelling
- Upgrade - takes effect immediately, prorated charge
- Downgrade - takes effect at the next billing cycle
- Cancel - you stay on your current plan until the next renewal, then drop to free with no daily regen and no remaining subscription credits (bundle credits preserved)
All of this is managed from your profile at /profile: the Manage Subscription button opens the Stripe portal, where you upgrade, downgrade or cancel. See how to cancel your subscription.
The quest system
A series of one-time community quests that pay out bonus credits the first time you complete each action - share to feed plus social media, say hi on Discord, and follow our official channels (Facebook, X, Instagram, Threads, TikTok, YouTube). Each quest grants 10 credits; the full ceiling across all quests is 80 credits.
For the current quest list, payouts, and your progress, open the gold gift icon in the top header bar - the values shown there are the source of truth. See where to find the gift box, including what to do on a phone.
If you earned quest credits but cannot generate, you have most likely spent your first 25 credits. Every account can spend 25 credits with no card on file; after that a card has to be verified before creating, which is a $0 check and not a charge. Your remaining credits stay yours and stay free. See payment methods.
Frequently confused
- There is no daily refill. It was retired on 2026-05-15. If your balance hasn't grown overnight, that's expected.
- Daily streaks DO pay credits, but only on milestone days (3, 7, 14, 30, 60, 100). Days in between advance the streak counter but post zero credits. If you signed in today and saw no credit change, you're still streaking - your next payout is at the next milestone.
- Credits do not roll over (subscription pool only). If you end the month with 200 leftover, they do not get added to next month. Use them, or they reset.
- Bundle credits DO roll over - forever. They never expire.
- Your first 25 credits need no card. Every account can spend 25 credits before the card check applies, whatever the balance is. Earning more credits does not raise that number.
- There is no free trial. First subscription month charges immediately. Cancel anytime.
- Free users can absolutely use paid models - they just cost credits like everyone else.