Buy top-tier model credits with crypto
A common worry is that crypto-funded balance only buys the cheap models. It does not. Crypto and card top-ups land in the same USD balance and reach exactly the same models.
Four things worth settling first
shared balance
However you top up, it lands in the same USD balance. Model access is never partitioned by payment method.
coins accepted
USDT, USDC, BTC, ETH, TRX, BNB, DOGE, BCH and USDS, across 56 networks in total.
platform fee
No third-party crypto gateway, so the full USD value of what you send reaches the balance.
concurrency limits
Billing follows actual usage; nothing about your payment method caps concurrency or rate.
The balance is general; the model list lives elsewhere
The billing model is simple. Topping up gives you a balance denominated in USD, and every model call draws from it by actual usage. Money arriving via crypto, card or Alipay is indistinguishable once it is there, and none of it is tagged as usable only on certain models. That is why this page does not restate per-model rates or context windows: those move whenever a vendor changes them, so the model and pricing pages are the live source.
What the crypto channel covers today
Nine coins across 56 coin and network combinations, spanning Tron, Solana, Arbitrum, Base, Polygon, Optimism, TON, Aptos, Sui, Stellar, Algorand, Injective and Canton among others. Zero platform fee, and we credit the balance after verifying the on-chain transaction, usually within a day. The overview page carries the full list.
From top-up to first request
Confirm on the models page that the model you want is actually on offer, then check its rate on the pricing page to estimate how much to send.
Sign in, pick a coin and network on the recharge page, send the transfer, and report the transaction hash with your QCode ID.
Once the balance lands, configure your client per the model's integration docs and start calling. Nothing extra is required because you paid in crypto.
Two common misconceptions
These are true
The balance is general and crypto does not restrict which models you can call. Billing is by usage with no concurrency cap. The full amount reaches your balance because nothing is skimmed. And the balance behaves the same regardless of how it was funded.
These are not
"Crypto money only buys cheap models" is false; access is never partitioned by payment method. "Crypto top-ups run slower" is false; once the balance lands, call performance is identical, and the only difference is that crediting involves a manual check. "You cannot get an invoice for a crypto top-up" is false; invoicing is independent of payment method, and the rules are on the recharge page.
Which channel should you use
Crypto (this page)
Zero platform fee and no overseas card needed. Best if you already hold stablecoins and do not mind waiting about a day.
Card or Alipay
Instant and fully automated, best if you need to start immediately or hold no crypto. Carries a processing fee.
Estimating how much to send
Look up the input and output rates for the model you expect to lean on, roughly work out a day of your normal usage in dollars, and multiply by however many days you want covered. There is no need to get it right first time: start with a small amount, run the whole loop once to confirm the model and integration suit you, then add more.
The models page is authoritative
What QCode carries shifts as vendors launch and retire models, and spans Anthropic, OpenAI and Google alongside Chinese families such as GLM, Kimi, DeepSeek and Qwen. For which models are callable right now and at what rate, read the models and pricing pages directly rather than trusting a number written into any article.
Frequently asked questions
Can a crypto-funded balance call the most expensive models?
Yes. It is an ordinary USD balance, and which models you can call depends only on what is currently on offer, never on how you paid.
Does the balance expire?
Nothing about the balance differs by payment method. For the current balance policy, the dashboard and pricing page are authoritative.
Can I try a small amount first?
Yes, and we would suggest it. Send a small amount to run the whole loop of transfer, report, credit and call, then scale up once you are satisfied. Just note that on very small transfers the on-chain fee is a large share of the total.
How long until the top-up is usable?
The crypto channel is verified by hand, so the balance usually lands within a day of your report and faster during business hours. After that there is no additional wait before calling.
What if instant settlement matters more to me?
Use the card or Alipay channel; both settle instantly and automatically, at the cost of a processing fee. The resulting balance is identical, so you can mix channels freely.
Where this page gets its facts
The coin and network list comes from the same configuration that drives the recharge page. Model availability and rates are deliberately not hardcoded here; the models and pricing pages are the live source.
Start topping up with crypto
Sign up for QCode, send a small amount to run the loop once, then scale to whatever your real usage needs.
Related reading
Crypto payment overview
The full list: nine coins across 56 networks.
Claude Opus 5 complete guide
What it does well, where it fits and how to connect.
Claude Sonnet 5 pricing
Rates, context window and where it fits.
This page deliberately omits per-model prices and availability so it cannot drift out of step with live data; the models and pricing pages are authoritative. Crypto transfers cannot be reversed, so check the network and token symbol on the recharge page before sending.