Planning credits are how you pay for path plan generation on Launch Pad. This page explains what one credit buys, the exact moment you are charged, which actions are always free, and how to buy credits and keep track of your balance.

1 credit = 1 planning session: one operation planned on one field boundary.

Once your plan is created, you can keep refining it, generate routes, compare results, and export, all on the same credit. The same rules apply in the web app and through the API.

When you are charged

A credit is consumed at the moment a new path plan finishes generating and is saved to your Plans list. Not before, and never again for the same plan.

Each of these consumes credits:

Creating a new path plan for a field boundary and operation: 1 credit.
Switching between straight and curved tracks: the track type is fixed when a plan is created, so changing it means generating a new plan: 1 credit.
Planning a different boundary: a field can have more than one boundary, and a plan is tied to one specific boundary. Planning another boundary, even for the same field, is a new plan: 1 credit.
Planning multiple fields at once: 1 credit per field boundary in the batch.
Plan From: generating a new plan based on an existing one creates a new plan, so it consumes 1 credit.
Creating a path plan through the API: 1 credit per generated plan.
Equipment Explorer scenarios: 1 credit per scenario.

What is included in a planning session

Everything you do with a plan after it is created is included in its credit:

Refining the same plan. Adjusting inputs and re-running the plan for the same field and operation is free: equipment, swath width, headland and interior passes, preferred bearing, adding or removing tramlines, custom AB lines, zone updates, and advanced options.
Routes. Generating, regenerating, and comparing routes within the plan. You can keep up to 5 routes per plan (a soft guideline, not a hard cap).
Comparing results with KPIs such as time, distance, and overlap before you commit to a plan.
Re-opening and viewing any completed plan.
Exporting and downloading plans in any supported format.
Renaming, archiving, or deleting plans. Note that deleting a plan does not return its credit.

Also free, outside of any planning session:

Fields and boundaries. Creating and editing field boundaries costs nothing.
Imported plans. Plans imported from ISO-XML files or recognized from uploaded machine (logged) data do not consume credits.

What if plan generation fails?

The charge only happens when a finished plan is saved. If generation fails (for example, the swath width is too wide for the field, or part of the field cannot be planned), nothing is saved and no credit is consumed.

Credits and the API

The API draws from the same credit balance as the web app, with the same core rule: a credit is consumed only when a new plan is saved.

POST /api/path-plans/direct and POST /api/path-plans/direct/geojson (the same operation, returning the plan as GeoJSON): each successful request generates and saves a new plan, and consumes 1 credit. A request made with an empty balance is rejected up front with an HTTP 402 Payment Required response and the error code InsufficientCredits, before anything is generated.
POST /api/guidance (guidance job): omitting pathPlanId creates a new plan and consumes 1 credit when the finished plan is saved. Passing the pathPlanId of an existing plan regenerates that same plan for free, just like refining a plan in the web app.
POST /api/bulk-guidance: consumes 1 credit per field boundary in the batch.
POST /api/equipment-scenarios (Equipment Explorer job): consumes 1 credit per scenario, no matter how many boundaries or equipment configurations it compares. The path plans generated inside the scenario are part of that credit.
Every other API endpoint is free: routing, retrieving plans, boundaries, fields, exports, and job status checks never consume credits.

How to get credits

Free trial credits

Every new Launch Pad account starts with 5 free planning credits.

Buying credits

Click the credits counter or the Buy button in the left sidebar of Launch Pad. The purchase options depend on your country:

Direct purchase. In most countries you buy credits right in the app: pick a bundle (larger bundles cost less per credit), adjust the quantity, and pay by card.
Through a local partner. In some countries, credits are sold through our local partners instead. The purchase dialog shows your partner's contact details.

Where to see your balance

The credits counter in the left sidebar shows your available balance (displayed as "99+" when you have more than 99) and opens the purchase dialog when clicked.
Your user profile shows a credit summary: the credits you have available and the total you have used over time.
Your order history, opened from your user profile, records every transaction that changes your balance, positive or negative. Each order links to its details and to the receipt generated at the time of purchase.

Credits, billing accounts, and teams

Credits belong to a billing account, not to an individual user, so a team can share one pool:

Each user has a billing account, and a billing account can be assigned to multiple users.
Everyone on a shared account draws from the same credit pool and sees the same balance.
Users can independently belong to multiple organizations. As long as your billing account has credits, you can plan in any organization you have access to.

Contact support if you want a shared billing account for your team.

Intended use and reasonable limits

Credits are priced for agricultural use. The following are reasonable guidelines for a single planning session:

Field size typically ranges from one to two quarter sections, up to a full section (about 640 ac / 260 ha) per plan.
A boundary may contain a few parts (a multi-polygon for one field). This is supported and fully expected.
One operation per plan. Planning a different operation on the same field is a separate planning session.

What counts as abuse

A planning session is meant to plan one real field and operation. The following defeat that intent and are not permitted:

Swapping the boundary to a completely different field and re-planning as if it were the same plan, to avoid spending a credit.
Packing what are effectively multiple fields into a single boundary to plan them all on one credit. A few parts of one field is fine, several distinct fields is not.
Re-running an existing plan against a different field, boundary, or operation rather than tweaking parameters on the same plan.
Scripting or automating the planning flow (including through the API) to mass-produce many distinct plans from one credit, or otherwise working around credit deduction, rate limits, or the soft route guideline.
Submitting boundaries far larger than a reasonable single field to cover many fields' worth of area in one call.

Fair use: these limits are guidelines. Verge Ag determines, at its sole discretion, what constitutes reasonable use versus abuse, and may adjust limits, decline requests, charge for additional credits consumed, or suspend access where abuse is detected.

What happens when you run out of credits?

Running out of credits never takes anything away from you: your existing plans stay available, and everything in "What is included in a planning session" above keeps working. The only thing that stops is starting new plans:

In the web app, when you try to create a new plan with an empty balance, Launch Pad opens the purchase dialog so you can top up. When planning multiple fields, the app also checks that you have enough credits for the whole batch before starting.
Through the API, direct plan requests without an available credit are rejected up front, as described in "Credits and the API" above.

FAQ

Am I charged again when I tweak or re-run my plan? No. Adjusting inputs, updating the plan, tramlines, custom AB lines, zone changes, and route changes all belong to the same planning session and the same single credit.

Can I switch a plan between straight and curved tracks? No. The track type is chosen when the plan is created and cannot be changed while refining. Switching means creating a new plan, which consumes a new credit.

Does exporting or downloading a plan cost a credit? No. Exports and downloads are always free, in every format, no matter how often you repeat them.

A plan failed to generate. Did I lose a credit? No. Credits are only consumed when a finished plan is saved. Failed generations are never charged.

If I delete a plan, do I get the credit back? No. The credit pays for generating the plan, so deleting or archiving it afterwards does not return the credit.

Do the web app and the API share the same credits? Yes. There is one balance per billing account, and plans created in the web app, through the API, or by the Launch Pad assistant all draw from it.

I ran out of credits in the middle of my work. What happens? Nothing is lost. Your existing plans remain fully usable and refinable; only creating new plans requires topping up.

Do credits expire? Purchased credits are valid for one year from the date of purchase, as noted on your receipt.

What happens if my payment is refunded? Refunded credits are removed from your balance.