Your ChatGPT Pro API credits are used up: what now
As of 2026-11-05, OpenAI's documentation says eligible ChatGPT Pro and Business subscriptions can claim up to $500 per month in API credits (added to the official changelog on 2026-10-28); once they run out, API requests fail with HTTP 429 and the error code credit_balance_exhausted. You then have two routes: add paid credits to your OpenAI API organization, or send your GPT calls through a QCode key (billed per token; per-model rates are listed on /models).
Updated 2026-11-05
One key for Claude, GPT and leading Chinese models, billed per token, up and running in minutes.
- Billed per token — live rates on /models
- Pay by card (Visa / Mastercard), Apple Pay, Google Pay or crypto
- Self-service: top up and activate instantly
Four official points
Monthly credits on the three Pro tiers
The official guide lists them by tier: the Pro $100 tier gets $100, the $200 tier gets $200 and the $500 tier gets $500. Business is counted per paid seat: $20 per Standard seat and $100 per Premium seat.
The error when credits run out
With no credits left, API requests fail with HTTP status 429 and the error code credit_balance_exhausted; if the organization holds purchased API credits, those are used instead.
Gone at the end of the cycle
Unused credits expire at the end of the billing cycle and do not carry over. Cancelling alone does not take back credits already issued, so you can use them until they expire.
Separate from subscription usage
The official guide says the credits do not cover Codex used through API keys and do not raise your ChatGPT or signed-in Codex usage limits. The matching Claude-side benefit is on our Claude Max and Team API credits page.
What the credits are, who can claim them, what happens when they run out
As of 2026-11-05, the official OpenAI changelog (2026-10-28) says eligible ChatGPT Pro and Business subscribers can now claim up to $500 per month in API credits as a subscription benefit; you activate it from ChatGPT or the API Platform by linking an API organization you own. The amount depends on the plan: the Pro $100, $200 and $500 tiers get $100, $200 and $500; Business Standard gets $20 per paid seat and Premium $100 per paid seat, capped at $500 per workspace per month. Your organization spends the subscription credits first and purchased API credits second; once both are gone, API requests fail.
The details in the official guide
The guide page API credits for ChatGPT subscribers sets the conditions: the subscription must be active, paid and at least 7 days old, and trial subscriptions do not qualify; you must own both the subscription (or Business workspace) and the API organization that receives the credits; the ChatGPT account and the API account must use the same email address. There are two ways to claim: in ChatGPT, Pro users open Settings → Billing and Business owners open the workspace billing settings or the Admin Console; or sign in to the API Platform and, under Billing, select the subscription or Business workspace to link.
Timeline
Anthropic's API release notes say Claude Max, Ultra and Team plans now include monthly API credits, the matching subscription benefit on the Claude side.
OpenAI's changelog releases gpt-6.1-terra, available through the Responses and Chat Completions APIs.
OpenAI changelog: eligible ChatGPT Pro and Business subscribers can claim up to $500 per month in API credits.
Confirmed vs not stated by the vendor
Confirmed (verbatim in the official pages)
The first grant is prorated for the time left in the current subscription billing cycle and expires at the end of that cycle; Business credits are pooled and capped at $500 per workspace per month; grants apply only to the linked API organization, so select that organization and use one of its project API keys when making requests; no API payment method is required while you hold active credits; ChatGPT Enterprise is not eligible.
Not published by the vendor
The official guide says nothing about a make-up grant or grace period once the credits run out, and it does not say at which moment of each cycle the credits arrive, only that they are issued automatically when the subscription renews.
Choosing what to do after the credits run out
Keep using the OpenAI API directly
Add paid API credits in the organization's billing settings, or set up Auto Recharge. The official credits cover usage billed on the Responses API, Agents API, Decisions API, Realtime API, Images API and more, which suits you if you already call those interfaces directly.
Use a QCode key for GPT
Call the GPT-6 series with a QCode key (it starts with cr_) over the Chat Completions and Responses endpoints. It suits you if you call through the OpenAI SDK or Codex CLI and are happy to switch the Base URL and key to QCode's.
Three steps once the credits are gone
① Confirm the credits are used up: check the balance in the API Platform billing settings. ② To stay on the official API, add paid API credits in the organization's billing settings or set up Auto Recharge; while the benefit is offered and your subscription stays eligible, subscription credits are issued again automatically when the subscription renews. ③ To move your GPT calls to QCode, swap in QCode's Base URL and key and pick a model ID that /models lists as available; the next section has the three steps.
Using GPT on QCode
As of 2026-11-05, QCode's /models lists gpt-6.1-sol, gpt-6.1-terra and gpt-6-sol, billed per token with per-model rates on /models. Three steps: ① register and top up (Alipay, WeChat Pay, cards, crypto and more); ② get an API key (it starts with cr_); ③ in the OpenAI SDK set base_url to https://api.qcode.cc/openai/v1 (Chat Completions); in Codex CLI write base_url = "https://api.qcode.cc/openai" and wire_api = "responses" in the model_providers table of ~/.codex/config.toml. Not ready for a monthly plan? Pay-as-you-go Packs start at $4 for a one-time quota you use within 7 days; if you already have a Personal Plan, add a booster pack when you need more quota.
Frequently asked questions
What happens when the $500 of ChatGPT Pro API credits runs out?
Your organization spends the subscription credits first and purchased API credits second; with neither left, requests fail with HTTP 429 and the error code credit_balance_exhausted. To keep using the official API, add paid API credits in the organization's billing settings or set up Auto Recharge.
Do the monthly ChatGPT Pro API credits roll over to the next month?
No. The official guide says unused credits expire at the end of the billing cycle and do not roll over. Cancelling alone does not take back credits already issued, so you can use them until they expire; if you downgrade to an ineligible plan such as Plus, Go or Free, the API organization link is removed at the end of the cycle.
Are the ChatGPT Pro API credits the same thing as Codex usage?
No. The official guide says the credits do not cover Codex used through API keys and do not raise your ChatGPT or signed-in Codex usage limits.
If the API credits run out, can I still use Codex?
Signed-in Codex runs on your subscription's own usage limits, separate from these API credits: the official guide says the credits neither raise the signed-in Codex limit nor cover Codex used through an API key. How much signed-in Codex usage you have left is shown on your own usage dashboard.
How do I connect GPT-6 on QCode?
In the OpenAI SDK set base_url to https://api.qcode.cc/openai/v1 and use Chat Completions; in Codex CLI write base_url = "https://api.qcode.cc/openai" and wire_api = "responses" in the model_providers table of ~/.codex/config.toml; the full configuration is on the Codex CLI page of docs.qcode.cc. The model IDs are gpt-6.1-sol, gpt-6.1-terra and gpt-6-sol; /models is the final word on availability.
How do I pay from mainland China to keep using GPT?
On QCode you can top up with Alipay, WeChat Pay, cards (Visa · Mastercard · Apple Pay · Google Pay) or crypto (USDT · USDC · BTC · ETH and more), then call GPT with your QCode key. Alipay, WeChat Pay and cards usually arrive within a minute; crypto is checked by hand and credited within 1 day. The full steps are on /gpt-6-api-china-top-up.
Sources
OpenAI Developers: the guide API credits for ChatGPT subscribers and the API changelog (entries of 2026-10-26 and 2026-10-28); Anthropic's API release notes (entry of 2026-10-07); QCode's /models, the Codex CLI and endpoint pages on docs.qcode.cc, and the top-up page wording on qcode.cc. All retrieved on 2026-11-05.
When the official API credits run out, switch the key and carry on
One key for gpt-6.1-sol, gpt-6.1-terra and gpt-6-sol, billed per token; per-model rates are listed on /models.
Related reading
Pay-as-you-go Packs
One-time quota packs valid for 7 days, no subscription; extra packs add to the same key.
ChatGPT Pro usage limits in Codex (October 2026)
The Pro 200 old allowance through 2026-10-29, and the Pro 500 Ultrafast consumption rates.
Claude Max and Team monthly API credits
The Claude-side subscription API credits: amounts, how to claim, no Claude Code, gone at the end of the cycle.
Crypto payment guide
Nine coins, 56 networks, zero platform fee for AI coding API credits.
Figures and quotes on this page were checked on 2026-11-05; the official OpenAI pages prevail, and official changes are not announced here. Credit balances are whatever your own OpenAI account shows; model availability follows /models.