Captcha 2.0 supports two billing methods: pay-as-you-go (post-payment) and subscription (upfront payment). You can also purchase a resource plan to pay for verification fees. This topic describes billing for Captcha 2.0.
Billing concepts
For both the V2 and V3 client architectures, Captcha 2.0 is billed based on the number of verification requests. A request to the Captcha 2.0 server for risk analysis, security verification, and bot detection counts as one billable verification request.
The following table describes the billing steps within the sequence diagrams for the V2 and V3 client architectures.
Client architecture version | Description | Slider CAPTCHA, Puzzle Verification, One-click CAPTCHA, andImage Restoration | Invisible CAPTCHA |
V2 verification request | A | Step 3 in the sequence diagram. | Step 3 in the sequence diagram. |
V3 verification request | A | Step 3 in the sequence diagram. | Step 3 and Step 4.1(i) in the sequence diagram. |
Pay-as-you-go (post-payment)
Calculation formula
Total Fee = Verification Fee + Add-on Fee
Billable items
A billing request is counted for each verification request initiated by the user and received by the Captcha 2.0 server.
Once the Captcha 2.0 server processes the verification request, it will be counted as a billing request, regardless of whether the request is deemed risky or not.
Billing type | Billable item | Unit price | Billing logic |
Verification fee | Verifications (the Chinese mainland) | USD 0.0007 per request | Billed based on the total number of daily verifications. |
Verifications (outside the Chinese mainland) | USD 0.001 per request | Billed based on the total number of daily verifications. | |
Add-on fees | Number of scenarios | USD 1 per scenario per day | The first three scenarios are free. You are charged for each additional |
Custom policy configuration | USD 5/day | Billed daily if the feature is enabled. |
Billing cycle
Under the pay-as-you-go method, fees for Captcha 2.0 are settled daily (UTC+8). A new billing cycle begins after settlement, and a bill is generated on the following day.
Resource plan (upfront payment)
After you activate the Alibaba Cloud Captcha service, you can purchase a resource plan to pay for verification requests. Visit the resource plan purchase page to view available specifications and prices, and purchase a plan based on your expected request volume.
If you use up all the verifications in your resource plan, the service automatically switches to the pay-as-you-go model. The system then deducts any subsequent fees from your Alibaba Cloud account balance after a bill is generated.
Calculation formula
Total Fee = Verification Fee + Add-on Fees
Deduction rules
A
resource plancovers verification requests regardless of the region or CAPTCHA type. Prices vary by specification. For details, see the resource plan purchase page.Add-on fees are billed on a
pay-as-you-gobasis and are not covered by aresource plan. The following table lists the billable add-ons.Billing type
Billable item
Unit price
Billing logic
Add-on fees
Number of scenarios
USD 1 per scenario per day
The first three scenarios are free. You are charged for each additional
scenario, starting from the fourth.Custom policy configuration
USD 5/day
Billed daily if the feature is enabled.
Deduction order
After you purchase a resource plan, its quota is used first to pay for your verification requests.
You can purchase multiple resource plans. If you have more than one plan of the same type, they are consumed in the following order:
The plan that expires first is used first. If multiple plans expire at the same time, the one that was purchased first is used first.
Once a
resource plan's quota is used up, any additional usage is automatically billed on apay-as-you-gobasis and deducted from your account balance.
Validity period
Resource plans are valid for one year or one month.
After a resource plan expires, you can no longer use it to pay for verification requests. You must purchase a new plan to continue using this billing method.
Effective time and deduction start time
A resource plan takes effect immediately after purchase and starts covering charges from that day forward.
Check the remaining quota
You can check the remaining quota and usage details of your Captcha 2.0 resource plan in the Alibaba Cloud console.
Log on to the Expenses and Costs console.
In the left-side navigation pane, click Resource Management.
On the Resource Packages page, set Resource Dimension to Resource Packages.
Click the Instance Summary or Usage Details tab. In the Product Name column, select Web Application Firewall.
NoteAlibaba Cloud Captcha 2.0 is part of Web Application Firewall. Therefore, you can select Web Application Firewall from the Product Name list to quickly find your Captcha resource plan.
View the remaining quota, usage details, and other information about your
resource plan.
Refunds
Resource plans support self-service unsubscription. You can request a refund if you meet all of the following conditions:
The
resource planwas purchased within the last 5 days.The
resource planhas not been used.
For the procedure, see Initiate an unsubscription.
After a resource plan is used, the remaining quota is not refundable.
Overdue payments
Your Alibaba Cloud account has an overdue payment if your account's available balance, including credits and coupons, is less than the amount on your outstanding bill. To prevent service interruption for Captcha 2.0, pay the overdue amount promptly. If your account has an overdue payment for more than seven days, the service instance is released and all your configurations are deleted. You can no longer access the console and must activate the service again.
Related topics
To learn how to activate Captcha 2.0, see Activate Alibaba Cloud Captcha 2.0.
To learn how to view your billing information, see Manage bills.