# Top up and understand the balance

Source: https://cicora.ai/en/docs/billing-balance

The [Balance](https://app.cicora.ai/balance) page shows funds for the active workspace. Check the selected workspace before paying or investigating a request.

## Top up the active workspace

1. Open [Balance](https://app.cicora.ai/balance) and select **Top up**.
2. Choose an amount in USD and continue to the secure card checkout.
3. Enter an amount at or above the minimum displayed in the form.
4. Complete the external payment, then return to the balance page to check status.

The minimum is a current cabinet value, not a permanent amount from a guide.

## Use the available checkout

The checkout shows the payment methods available for the current account and country. Use only the methods displayed there; this guide does not promise support for a fixed card brand, country, alternative currency, or payment method.

## Read the three balance amounts

| Amount    | Meaning                                                                 |
| --------- | ----------------------------------------------------------------------- |
| Available | Funds that can be used for a new request now.                           |
| Total     | The ledger balance before active request reservations are subtracted.   |
| Reserved  | Estimates temporarily held for requests that are still being processed. |

Available balance equals total balance minus active reservations. Parallel requests have separate reservations, so the reserved amount can rise during agent or batch work.

## Understand a reservation

Before a request starts, cicora.ai estimates its cost from the input and requested output limit, then reserves that amount. The reservation prevents the same funds from being promised to concurrent requests. It is an estimate, not a hard spending cap.

After settlement, confirmed usage is charged in full even when it exceeds the estimate. The difference is debited from total balance and can leave too little available balance for the next request. Unused reserved funds are released. Use [API-key spend limits](/en/docs/spend-limits) for budget control, while allowing for the same estimate-versus-final-charge boundary.

## Know when a request is charged

A request that fails before any model output or reported usage is confirmed releases its reservation without a usage charge. If a stream delivered part of the output or usage was confirmed before interruption, that confirmed portion can be charged. Do not blindly retry a stream after output starts because that can repeat work and cost.

## Check a pending payment

Check the operation status on [Balance](https://app.cicora.ai/balance) and refresh the balance. If a confirmed payment is still missing, do not create a duplicate payment until its status is checked. Send [support](/en/contact) the payment or order ID, approximate time with timezone, receipt, and active workspace name. Never send payment credentials or a complete API key. Confirmation time is not guaranteed.

## Troubleshooting


**The payment status is pending, failed, or confirmed**


Branch on the cabinet status. Pending means refresh without creating a duplicate; failed or cancelled means follow the visible payment action. If it is confirmed but no credit exists, send support the payment or order ID, receipt, active workspace, and exact time with timezone.


**HTTP 402 appears while total balance is positive**


Calculate available funds from total minus reserved. A large reserved amount points to concurrent work; a small reserved amount points to the new request estimate or earlier usage debt. Compare the request's model and explicit output limit before topping up.


**A reservation has no matching active request**


Find the request in [Usage](https://app.cicora.ai/usage). If it is still running, avoid a duplicate request; if it is finished or absent, send support the request identifier, exact time, model ID, key name, and visible masked key prefix. Release time is not guaranteed.

## FAQ

### What is cicora.ai?

cicora.ai is a multi-model AI workspace and compatible API for chat, text, images, video, coding tools, and teams. Start with the [overview](/en.md), [documentation](/en/docs.md), or [model catalog](/en/models.md).

### How is usage billed?

Confirmed usage is charged in USD from the active workspace's prepaid balance. Use the live catalog for current model prices and the [usage guide](/en/docs/usage-costs.md) for settlement details.

### Which protocols and integrations are available?

Documentation covers OpenAI-compatible Chat Completions and Responses, Anthropic Messages, image interfaces, Claude Code, OpenCode, and Codex CLI. Compatibility does not imply support for every upstream parameter.

### Which sources are authoritative and current?

For model IDs, availability, capabilities, limits, and prices, use the [live catalog](/en/models.md). For API behavior, use the matching [documentation page](/en/docs.md). Never include API keys, private workspace data, or preview URLs in public documents.