Free vs paid credits explained

There are three kinds of credits on ShoutXChange. They all spend the same way. The difference is where they came from.

Earned credits

These are the most common kind. Every fan you deliver to another creator earns you one earned credit. They never expire. They are the heart of how trades stay fair.

Free credits

When you sign up, we give you fifty free credits. They are a starter pack so you can run your first few trades and see how things work. Once they are spent, they are gone. You cannot earn more free credits, you have to earn or buy regular ones.

If you bring in a friend with a referral link, the new creator also gets fifty free credits, and you get fifty free credits as a thank-you.

Paid credits

If you want to start trading without waiting to earn, you can buy a small pack of credits. We sell them in three sizes:

• 100 credits
• 500 credits
• 2,000 credits

The price per credit drops at the bigger sizes. We show the per-credit price right next to each pack.

You can also choose Auto-top-up: we automatically buy a small pack if your balance falls below a number you pick. You stay in control. We never charge without a card you put on file yourself.

Which kind gets spent first?

We always spend the cheapest one first.

1. Free credits go first. We do this because they came free, so they have no real cost to you.
2. Earned credits go next. You earned them by delivering fans, so spending them is the same as banking the work you already did.
3. Paid credits go last. They cost real money, so we save them for when nothing else is left.

This means if you have plenty of earned credits coming in, you may never need to buy any.

Why we do it this way

Some tools charge a flat monthly fee for trades. We do not. We think you should pay only for what you really use. Free or earned credits cost you nothing. Paid credits are an option for people who want a head start.

Where to see your balance

The top of your dashboard shows your total balance and a tiny breakdown by source. Click it to see the full ledger. Every credit in and out is logged with a reason. "fan delivered to @velvet", "purchase of 500 pack", "fan received from @luna". Nothing hidden.