master-zapier-plan-draft/docs/01-product/zapier-billing-research.md

Zapier cost structure and billing models

Planning brief for Verae Time
Source: official Zapier pricing at zapier.com/pricing, captured 17–18 August 2026 (USD).
Confirm live rates before a customer quote. The rate card at /pricing/rates was not fetchable at write time; multipliers below are those Zapier publishes on the main pricing page and “What is a task?” article (updated June 2026).

This document explains how Zapier charges, with examples, so we can design Verae’s meter without colliding with or accidentally subsidizing Zapier.

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1. The one idea that unlocks the rest

Zapier does not charge per Zap, per app, or per seat on Professional. It charges for successful work.

You buy two things that travel together:

1. A plan level — the feature set (Free / Professional / Team / Enterprise).
2. A task tier — a monthly (or Enterprise annual) allowance of tasks.

Then three other economies sit beside that, not inside it:

Economy	Unit	Used for
Core Zapier	Task	Zaps, AI-by-Zapier, Code-by-Zapier, MCP, SDK
Agents add-on	Activity	Zapier Agents (does not draw tasks)
Chatbots add-on	Feature tier (number of bots)	Zapier Chatbots (not task-metered)
Verae (us)	Timestamp / verify / batch	Middleware PLAN_LIMITS — a second invoice

Verae never appears on the Zapier invoice unless we sign a White Label / Powered by Zapier contract and resell Zapier usage ourselves.

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2. What a task is (and is not)

A task is counted when Zapier successfully completes a unit of work. Failures are free.

Counts

• A successful action in another product: Create Timestamp, post Slack, add a Drive file, write a Sheet row, call a webhook.
• A successful Zapier MCP tool execute (read or write).
• AI by Zapier and Code by Zapier (with multipliers / extra runtime — §4).

Does not count

• The trigger (including polling every 1–15 minutes).
• Logic and prep: Filter, Paths, Formatter, Delay, Looping, Sub-Zap, Digest, Zapier Manager, Storage.
• Zapier Tables and Zapier Forms triggers and actions.
• Building, turning on, or testing a Zap until a step actually succeeds in production.

Shared pool: one allowance for the whole account. There is no separate MCP budget.

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3. Plan levels (what you can build)

Plans are cumulative. Task volume is chosen separately (§5).

	Free	Professional	Team	Enterprise
Seats	1	1	25	Unlimited
Zap shape	Two-step only (trigger + 1 action)	Multi-step	Multi-step	Multi-step
Polling interval	15 min	2 min	1 min	1 min
Premium apps, webhooks	No	Yes	Yes	Yes
Filters, Paths, Formatter, AI by Zapier	No	Yes	Yes	Yes
Shared Zaps / connections, SAML SSO	No	No	Yes	Yes
SCIM, app controls, custom retention, TAM, BYOM	No	No	No	Yes
Task cycle	Monthly	Monthly	Monthly	Annual task limit
Pay-per-task overflow	No	Optional	Optional	Custom
Entry price (annual, USD/mo)	$0 (100 tasks)	$19.99 (750 tasks)	$69 (2,000 tasks)	Sales

Also: 14-day Professional trial (no card). Non-profit: extra 15% off the subscription, not on pay-per-task. Live chat on Professional only at the 2,000+ task tier.

Implication for Verae: a Free customer can run only “new file → Create Timestamp” (two steps). Anything with a catalog write, Slack notify, or Wait plus another action needs Professional.

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4. Variable pricing inside the task pool

Not every successful step costs one task. Zapier uses multipliers so expensive compute costs more of the same allowance.

Work	Tasks per success	Notes
Typical third-party action (Verae Create Timestamp, Slack, Drive, Sheets, webhook)	1	The default. Design around this.
Standard AI by Zapier (default model)	1	Same as a normal action
Advanced AI by Zapier	3	Confirm on /pricing/rates
Premium AI by Zapier	5	Confirm on /pricing/rates
Zapier MCP execute (read or write)	2	Discover / inspect / enable are free meta-tools
Code by Zapier	0 during included runtime; then 1 per extra 30 s	Included: Free 1 s, Pro/Team 30 s, Enterprise 2 min. Extended runtime is opt-in on paid plans (1–8 min cap).
Zapier SDK	Free while in beta	Zapier will announce when beta pricing starts; assume it will join the task pool

Failed steps = 0 Zapier tasks. They can still hit Verae (Autoreplay / customer retries). That is our problem, not Zapier’s.

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5. Task tiers and list price (USD, August 2026)

Self-serve is sold as plan × tier. Annual is ~33% off monthly. Figures are per month.

Professional

Tasks / mo	Annual / mo	Monthly / mo	Implied $/task (annual)
750	$19.99	$29.99	$0.027
1,500	$39.00	$58.50	$0.026
2,000	$49.00	$73.50	$0.025
5,000	$89.00	$133.50	$0.018
10,000	$129.00	$193.50	$0.013
20,000	$189.00	$283.50	$0.0095
50,000	$289.00	$433.50	$0.0058
100,000	$489.00	$733.50	$0.0049
200,000	$769.00	$1,149.00	$0.0038
500,000	$1,499.00	$2,199.00	$0.0030
1,000,000	$2,199.00	$3,299.00	$0.0022
2,000,000	$3,389.00	$5,099.00	$0.0017

Team (starts at 2,000)

Tasks / mo	Annual / mo	Monthly / mo	Implied $/task (annual)
2,000	$69.00	$103.50	$0.035
5,000	$119.00	$178.50	$0.024
10,000	$169.00	$253.50	$0.017
20,000	$249.00	$373.50	$0.012
50,000	$399.00	$598.50	$0.008
100,000	$599.00	$898.50	$0.006
1,000,000	$2,499.00	$3,749.00	$0.0025
2,000,000	$3,999.00	$5,999.00	$0.0020

Team’s entry $/task is higher than Pro because you are buying seats, shared connections, and SSO — not cheaper tasks.

Tiers also exist at 300k / 400k / 750k / 1.25M / 1.5M / 1.75M (see getting-started §9 or zapier.com/pricing). Above 2M: Sales.

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6. Overflow (pay-per-task)

On paid plans, a toggle decides what happens at the allowance:

Setting	What happens
On	Zaps and MCP keep running. Extra tasks bill at 1.25× the plan’s base $/task (annual) or 2.5× (monthly). Hard ceiling: 3× subscribed tasks, then pause until next cycle or upgrade.
Off	Everything stops at the allowance.
Free	No overflow. Hits 100 and stops.

Worked overage: Professional 750 annual → base ≈ $19.99 / 750 = $0.0267. Overflow ≈ $0.0333/task. Monthly base ≈ $0.0400; overflow ≈ $0.100/task. Same usage is ~3× more expensive on monthly overflow than annual overflow.

Enterprise uses an annual pool so seasonal spikes do not reset every month.

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7. Other Zapier products (different models)

Product	Model	Relation to tasks
Zap workflows	Task	Core
Zapier MCP	Same task pool; 2 tasks per successful execute	Meta-tools free
Zapier SDK	Beta free; expect tasks later	Consume, not publish
AI by Zapier	Task × model tier (1 / 3 / 5)	Inside the Zap
Code by Zapier	Included seconds + 1 task / 30 s extra	Inside the Zap
Tables / Forms	Plan limits (records, pages, upload size); 0 tasks when used in Zaps	Separate caps
Agents	Activities (Free 400/mo; paid ~$33.33/mo annual for 1,500). Per-run cap 10 (Free) / 40 (paid).	Does not use tasks
Chatbots	Bot-count tiers (Free 2; paid ≈5 / ≈20)	Does not use tasks
Canvas / Copilot	Included; Free Copilot has a daily message limit	Not a usage meter
Directory integration (us)	$0 to publish. Customer’s Zapier plan pays tasks.	Partner is not billed
White Label / Powered by Zapier / embed	Usage-based to the product company. End users may not need their own Zapier bill.	Sales contract
NLA / AI Actions	Retired	Do not design around this

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8. Worked examples (so the variables are visible)

Assume Professional, billed annually, and that every named action succeeds. Verae units are our meter.

Example A — Two-step timestamp (Free-capable)

New file in Drive → Verae: Create Timestamp

Volume	Zapier tasks	Fits	Zapier $ (annual)	Verae units
80 files / mo	80	Free	$0	80 timestamps
200	200	Pro 750	$19.99	200
600	600	Pro 750	$19.99	600 → starter (500) overflows us

Lesson: the customer can still be on Zapier Free while we 402 them. The two meters trip at different points.

Example B — Production pattern we recommend

New file → Filter → Create Timestamp → Formatter → write catalog row (Tables = 0 tasks) → Slack

If Slack is the only other third-party action: 2 tasks / file (timestamp + Slack). Tables write is free.

Files / mo	Passing filter	Zapier tasks	Cheapest Pro tier	Zapier $	Verae timestamps
1,000	20% (200)	400	750	$19.99	200
1,000	100%	2,000	2,000	$49	1,000 → pro on our side
10,000	100%	20,000	20,000	$189	10,000 → enterprise / contract

Filter early: 800 of 1,000 files dropped = 0 Zapier tasks and 0 Verae stamps for those 800.

Example C — Create and Wait vs hook

• Wait in the Zap: 1 task (the wait action). Fine for interactive “give me the certificate now.”
• Async + Timestamp Completed hook + update row: 1 task to create + 1 task when the hook fires an action = 2 tasks, but the Zap does not sit open. Prefer this at volume.

Polling Find Job Status every minute in a loop is the anti-pattern: each successful search is a task.

Example D — Same work via Zapier MCP (an agent)

Agent calls: execute Create Timestamp, execute write Sheet, execute Slack.

3 executes × 2 tasks = 6 tasks / file, plus any Agent activities if they used Zapier Agents.

200 files = 1,200 Zapier tasks → Pro 1,500 at $39/mo — three times the Zapier cost of Example B for the same Verae stamps (200).

Planning rule: MCP-shaped clients burn Zapier 2× per hop. Do not price Verae as if the customer’s only cost is our stamp.

Example E — AI enrichment in the Zap

New file → Standard AI extract metadata (1) → Create Timestamp (1) → Sheet (1) = 3 tasks.
Swap in Premium AI: 5 + 1 + 1 = 7 tasks.
1,000 files: 3,000 vs 7,000 tasks → $89 vs $129 on Pro annual.

AI model choice is the customer’s Zapier bill, not ours — unless we bury AI inside our action (we should not).

Example F — Overflow month

Customer on Pro 750 annual ($19.99). A campaign pushes 1,400 successful timestamp actions (and nothing else).

• Included: 750
• Overflow: 650 × ~$0.0333 ≈ $22
• Total Zapier ≈ $42 that month
• Still under the 3× ceiling (2,250)

If they were on monthly Pro 750 ($29.99): overflow 650 × $0.100 ≈ $65 + $30 = **$95**.

Example G — White Label (we are the billed party)

If Verae embeds Zapier and Zapier bills us per task, then 10,000 customer files × 2 tasks = 20,000 tasks ≈ $189/mo (Pro annual list) plus our timestamp COGS. That number has to sit in our COGS, not the customer’s Zapier account.

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9. Verae’s meter today (so we can place it)

From verae-zapier-middleware PLAN_LIMITS:

Verae plan	Timestamps / mo	Verifications	Batch	RPM
free	50	50	no	30
starter	500	500	yes, max 10	120
pro	5,000	5,000	yes, max 100	600
enterprise	unlimited / contract	contract	yes	3,000

Over-quota → 402 QUOTA_EXCEEDED. Batch on free → 403 PLAN_UPGRADE_REQUIRED.

These fire independently of Zapier’s pause / pay-per-task.

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10. How this should shape our billing

1. Never bundle “unlimited Zapier.” We do not control their task tier, MCP multiplier, or overflow toggle.
2. Meter what we uniquely do: accepted timestamp jobs, verifies, maybe stored GB / pin-days / Glacier restores — not Zap steps.
3. Mirror Zapier’s shape if we want familiarity: plan + included units + optional overage with a ceiling. Customers already understand 402 vs pause.
4. Do not use Zapier-like 2× MCP pricing on our API. MCP is Zapier’s tax on agent hops. Our HTTP /zapier/v1/timestamp should stay one Verae unit whether the Zap used 1 task or an agent used 2.
5. Price batch as a plan gate, not as “N Zapier tasks.” Zapier will still charge 1 task for the batch action; we decide whether 100 items cost 1 or 100 of our units. Today we count batch size against batchMaxItems and timestamp quota.
6. Hook-friendly packaging: include enough monthly stamps that the recommended “create + hook + catalog” pattern is cheaper on our side than polling.
7. Three customer motions, three packages:
   • Directory user — they pay Zapier + they pay Verae (API key). Our list price must look fair next to ~$0.02–$0.03 per Zapier task at Pro entry.
   • MCP / agent user — they already pay 2 Zapier tasks per hop; keep Verae simple or they will skip us.
   • Embed / White Label — we may owe Zapier usage; our price to the end user must cover that COGS or we only sell the timestamp and let them bring their own Zapier.
8. Storage / Peergos / Glacier is a third meter (see getting-started §10). Do not hide pin-days or restore fees inside “one timestamp.”
9. Failed Zapier steps are free for them, not for us if we already accepted the job. Bill on accepted jobId (202), not on Zapier’s success callback.
10. Quote two lines in every proposal: “Your Zapier plan (estimate N tasks)” and “Verae (M timestamps).” Never a single blended number.

Rough juxtaposition (order-of-magnitude)

At Pro 750 annual, Zapier’s included work is about 2.7 cents per task.
If our Create Timestamp is one Zapier task + one Verae stamp, the customer’s Zapier share of a two-step Zap is ~$0.027. Our stamp should be priced from our chain/ops cost, not matched 1:1 to that 2.7¢ — but if we charge dollars per stamp while Zapier is cents per step, SMB Zaps will feel “Verae-expensive” even when Zapier is the bigger invoice at volume.

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11. Planning checklist

• For each target Zap, count billable Zapier actions (not steps on the canvas).
• Multiply MCP executes by 2.
• Apply AI 1 / 3 / 5 if they enrich in the Zap.
• Pick the cheapest Zapier tier that covers that task count (or overflow math).
• Count Verae timestamps / verifies / batch separately; check 50 / 500 / 5,000 tripwires.
• If we embed Zapier, put Zapier list price into our COGS.
• Keep Peergos pin / Glacier restore off the timestamp SKU.
• Re-check zapier.com/pricing before any contract; this brief is dated 18 August 2026.