What does one answered question cost?

Chatbot pricing hides behind credits, tiers, and add-ons. Strip it to the one number that matters: what you pay for each question the bot answers. Here is the arithmetic, worked plainly at three volumes, using public prices from October 2026.

A quiet bot: 300 replies a month

A metered plan at $40 for 700 credits works out to about 13 cents an answer — most of the credits expire unused. A free tier with 50 replies covers a sixth of it for nothing. At this volume the honest answer is: stay free as long as you can, and pay for the smallest metered plan that fits. A $99 flat plan is overkill here — we will tell you so on the sales call too.

A busy bot: 4,000 replies a month

This is where the models cross. Metered, you need the $150 tier for 4,000 credits: 3.75 cents an answer. Flat at $99 a month, the same traffic costs 2.5 cents — on the $790 yearly plan, 1.65 cents. And every reply past 4,000 is free on flat, while metered starts charging overages or forcing the next tier up.

A very busy bot: 15,000 replies a month

Metered, that is the $500 tier: 3.3 cents an answer, before badge removal and extra seats. Flat, it is still $99: two-thirds of a cent. Success stops raising the bill — which is rather the point. Your best month should be your most profitable, not your most expensive.

The rule of thumb

Under a few hundred replies a month, metered wins — buy the small plan and smile. Past a thousand-odd, flat wins, and the gap widens every month you grow. The trap is the middle: a bot that starts quiet on metered, gets good, and quietly climbs tiers until you are paying $150 for what a flat plan covers at $99.

Count your questions first, then pick the model — not the brand. Try it free — the trial bot runs on your real pages, so you will see your real numbers.