MZSoft Studio
LingoAI Cloud Credits: What Costs What, What Is Free, and What Happens If It Fails
Only the Cloud engine uses credits: about 1 for a short sentence and roughly 20 for 5,000 characters. Pro includes 500 credits once; packs of 100, 500 and 1,000 never expire. Failed requests are not charged. Reinstalling restores your balance for the same Apple account, with one iOS-version exception.
The problem
Metered services are anxious to use. You don’t know how much a translation will cost until it’s done, credits expire, and one long document can drain a balance. People avoid using them, and so never find out whether they’re any good.
How it works
Cloud is the only engine that costs anything per use. Everything on-device is free of credits, whatever the length (subject to the free plan’s length limit).
- Measured by length. Roughly 500 tokens of input and output make one credit, so a short sentence is about 1 credit, a 500-word email a few, and a 5,000-character document about 20.
- Estimate first. With Cloud selected, the input box shows an estimate like ”≈ 20 credits · 843 left” instead of a token count.
- Standard and Best cost the same.
- Failures. If the translation fails on our side, you aren’t charged. If you cancel partway, the part already generated is charged.
Getting credits
- Pro includes 500 credits, once (not monthly).
- Credit packs of 100, 500 and 1,000 can be bought from Settings ▸ Cloud ▸ Credits, or from the Buy Credits button when you run out. They’re consumable, and they never expire.
- Free users start with none, and can buy a pack.
Reinstalling or changing phones
Your balance is tied to your Apple account and comes back after you reinstall. One known limit: on iOS earlier than 18.4, a free user who hasn’t bought Pro may lose the balance when reinstalling.
Are credits worth it?
For everyday translation, no: use the on-device engines. Credits make sense for a handful of long or important documents where consistent terminology matters, or for languages the device can’t do.
If you’re out of credits
The result card shows a Buy Credits button. Or switch to an on-device engine.
FAQ
What uses credits? Only Cloud translations. On-device translation never uses credits.
How many credits does a translation take? Credits are based on text length: about 1 credit for a short sentence, a few for an email and about 20 for a 5,000-character document. The app shows an estimate before you translate.
What does Pro include? 500 credits, once. It is not monthly.
Do credits expire? No. Credit packs never expire.
Am I charged if it fails? No. Failures on LingoAI’s side are not charged. If you cancel midway you pay for the part already produced.