Understanding credits
Corte has one simple split: editing is free, AI costs credits. Credits are the app's single currency for everything generative, so there's never a per-model subscription or a surprise line item.
What's always free
- The entire Cut Editor — timeline, trims, titles you type yourself, color, effects, transitions, multicam.
- Export, on every plan: watermark-free H.264/H.265 renders and FCPXML/XML interchange. See Exporting.
- Uploading and organizing your own media.
What uses credits
| Action | How it's metered |
|---|---|
| Generating video, images, or audio | Per second, per image, or per run, depending on the model |
| The AI editing agent | By the tokens the model uses — typically a few credits per request |
| Automatic captions & transcription | 72 credits per hour of audio |
| Applications and Workflows | The generations they run inside |
Every account starts with 50 free credits — no card required. They land when you confirm your email address (immediately, if you signed up with Google), and as a rule of thumb, 100 credits corresponds to $1. Your first top-up adds 250 bonus credits on top of what you buy.
Where to see your balance
- The credits badge near the bottom of the left rail shows your remaining balance at all times.
- Settings → Usage shows the full picture: your monthly budget, purchased credits, reset date, and an itemized activity ledger.
You'll always see the price first
Anything that spends more than a trivial amount shows an estimate up front. The Studio composer displays "~30 credits" next to Generate before you commit; model pickers show per-unit prices like 6 cr/s or 4 cr/img; and AI Clip Edit shows its cost inside the dialog. If you run low, generations simply pause — nothing overdraws.
Going deeper
- The complete math — monthly budgets, purchased credits, resets, and rollover — lives in How credits work.
- Need more? Buy a top-up ($5–$1000, never expires) or upgrade your plan for a monthly budget of 1,000 (Standard), 3,500 (Pro), or 10,000 (Max) credits.