Blog • Business Strategy
By Cemhan Biricik — Founder of ZSky AI
Pricing an AI product is harder than pricing traditional SaaS because your cost structure is fundamentally different. Every generation costs compute. Every free user costs you money. Here is how I built ZSky AI's pricing to be sustainable while genuinely serving free users.
Free trials create urgency but also anxiety. Users rush through the trial period, never fully exploring the product, and churn when the trial ends because they did not develop a habit. Freemium — a permanent free tier with real value — lets users develop usage patterns at their own pace. Conversion happens naturally when they hit the free tier limits and want more.
ZSky AI uses a credit system rather than unlimited generation. Each generation costs one credit. Free users get a daily credit allocation. Paid users get larger monthly allocations with rollover. This model is transparent — users know exactly what they are paying for — and sustainable — I can predict compute costs accurately.
Three paid tiers: Starter, Pro, and Ultra. The gap between free and Starter is small enough that conversion feels natural, not like a cliff. Each tier doubles the value proposition relative to its price increase — users always feel they are getting a good deal at every level.
Users value AI generation differently from traditional software features. A word processor is worth X per month. But an AI that creates unique images has variable perceived value — sometimes a generation is worth $0.01, sometimes $10, depending on how the user intends to use it. Credit-based pricing acknowledges this variance.
If starting over, I would launch with simpler pricing — just free and one paid tier. Adding complexity later is easier than simplifying. Every additional pricing tier requires additional support, additional documentation, and additional decision-making friction for users.
Credit-based freemium. Free users get daily credits. Paid tiers offer more credits, higher resolution, and priority processing. No time-limited trials.
Permanent free access lets users develop habits naturally. Conversion happens organically when users want more.
Yes, when infrastructure costs are controlled through self-hosting. The free tier is subsidized by paid users, not VC money.