> For the complete documentation index, see [llms.txt](https://docs.maker.co/llms.txt). Markdown versions of documentation pages are available by appending `.md` to page URLs; this page is available as [Markdown](https://docs.maker.co/maker-greatstore/insights-and-usage/usage-and-credits.md).
# Usage & credits
## Credits
Usage — five metrics against the previous period, with the credits breakdown below
The admin home shows your balance, spend against budget, and the reset date — for example *$0.08 of $10.00 used, resets Sep 1*.
Anything that invokes the AI spends credits — including the **test chat on the Knowledge screen**, not just live shopper conversations.
## How each mode is metered
| Mode | Metered as |
| ----- | ----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- |
| Text | Per message a shopper sends. |
| Voice | **Per minute** while voice mode is active. Voice is a constant connection rather than request/response, so cost accrues for as long as the session is open. |
| Image | Per image a shopper uploads — each upload is processed once. |
Each mode has its own pricing.
## The usage breakdown
**Usage** gives you five metrics over a date range:
| Metric | What it counts |
| ------------- | ------------------------- |
| Credits | Spend |
| Conversations | Distinct chat sessions |
| Users | Distinct shoppers |
| User messages | Messages sent by shoppers |
| Voice minutes | Metered voice time |
Each is shown against the previous period, so you can see direction as well as level.
## Controls
| Control | Effect |
| -------------------------- | ------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- |
| From / To | The date range |
| Incremental / Cumulative | **Incremental** shows usage per window; **cumulative** shows the running total across the period. |
| Daily / Hourly | Bucket size |
| All · Text · Voice · Image | Break credits down by modality |
## Tool usage
The assistant works by calling tools — searching the catalogue, looking up a product, invoking an app. Usage tracks which tools it called across conversations, so you can see what it leans on most and break that down per conversation.
{% hint style="info" %}
The modality split is the useful view for cost control; the tool breakdown is the useful view for understanding *what the assistant is actually doing* with those credits.
{% endhint %}
---
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