- Up to ~63% below list price The price falls through the UTC day (about 25% to 47% below list), and the Low Tide lane is about 30% cheaper still for work that can wait.
- Keeps no copy of your data Zero data retention: Tokentide never stores prompts or outputs, and each key has a privacy mode.
- Spending you control Prepaid credit from 10 USD that doesn't expire, spend caps per key and per account, and refused requests are never charged.
- No new code to learn OpenAI-compatible: the same SDKs, with a different base URL and key.
Last verified Nov 8, 2026
What it costs to build an app with an AI agent
Honest and dated. Each app only pays for the pieces it needs: no logins, no auth costs; nothing stored, no database; no AI features, no AI provider. Prices change: always check the official page before you buy.
Tokentide first. Vercel AI Gateway when it can't answer.
- Answers when Tokentide can't Daily supply sold out (503), rate limits (429), no credit or a spend cap (402), server errors and timeouts all move to the Gateway at once.
- Many models behind one key Add credit or bring your own provider keys, inside the Vercel dashboard you already use.
- Pay only when it's used Pay as you go: on a normal day it handles little or nothing.
Together
- The lowest price whenever Tokentide has capacity, and an answer every time.
- No retries on Tokentide (
maxRetries: 0), so a refusal reaches the backup in milliseconds;Retry-Afteris honoured. - Calls stay on the server, with a token limit on every request and the fallback tested in dev before launch.
Figures from Tokentide's documentation, checked 8 Nov 2026. Prices change daily; always check the live price. Lesson: adding AI to your app, with a backup · How we choose tools and our commercial relationships
| Piece | What it's for | While you learn | Later | Official pricing |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Claude Code | Your coding agent | Needs a paid Claude plan (Pro or higher) | Same plan; higher tiers allow more use | claude.com |
| GitHub | Your code and its history | Free, private repos included | Usually still free for one person | github.com |
| Vercel | Your app online | Hobby: free, personal and non-commercial | Pro plan for anything commercial | vercel.com |
| Neon | Database, only if your app stores data | Free plan | Paid plans as data and traffic grow | neon.com |
| Tokentide | Main AI provider, only for AI features | Prepaid credit from $10, never expires; set a daily cap | Pay for what you use, below list price | tokentide.app |
| Vercel AI Gateway | Backup AI provider | Add credit or bring your own provider keys | Pay as you go | vercel.com |
| Sentry | Error alerts, once real people use your app | Free Developer plan | Paid plans for teams and volume | sentry.io |
| Telegram | Alerts for you, the operator, on your phone | Free: a bot made with @BotFather | Still free | core.telegram.org |
| Resend | Email, only if your app sends it | Free plan: 3,000 emails a month, 100 a day | Pro: $20/month for 50,000 emails | resend.com |
| Domain (.app) | Your own address, optional, bought through Vercel | Not needed: you get name.vercel.app free | From $9.99 the first year, then $15/year (checked with Vercel's domain tools) | vercel.com |
The free path while learning
Your agent's plan is the one fixed cost. GitHub, Vercel Hobby (personal, non-commercial), Neon's free plan and Sentry's free plan cover a learning project.
Caps and alerts
Use prepaid AI credit, set a daily cap and spend alerts, and keep a separate low-cap key for development. Your agent sets limits in code too.
What can surprise you
AI spend if a feature is abused (rate limits help), and commercial use: anything that earns money needs Vercel Pro, not Hobby.
Heads-up
Disclosure: the guide recommends Tokentide as the main AI provider. Any commercial relationship between the publisher of this site and a recommended provider will be stated here and on the About page before launch.
Monthly running-cost estimator
Estimate what running your app online costs per month. This is a dated estimate based on our stack table above, never a quote.
Estimated monthly app running cost
$0 / month
Assumptions verified Nov 8, 2026 · not a quote
Piece-by-piece breakdown
- GitHub · $0
- Free plan includes private repositories for one builder.
- Vercel · $0
- Hobby plan ($0/month) for personal, non-commercial projects.
- Sentry · $0
- Free Developer plan covers error alerts for a single builder.
Assumptions
- Excludes your coding agent subscription (e.g. a paid Claude plan) and an optional custom domain ($9.99 first year, then $15/year for .app).
- Assumes rate limits on every AI endpoint and a daily spend cap in Tokentide and Vercel AI Gateway.
- Informational estimate only, never a quote. Always check each provider's official pricing page.
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