Pay for collection, not for chasing.

A case is everything you need to collect for one subject - a person, company, vehicle, or other file your process is about - even when several people contribute forms, uploads, and approvals. Xena chases that work to completion: the follow-ups, the nudges, the reply handling, and the final close. Billing is anchored to completed cases (not starts): each completion in your included band is covered by the subscription, completions beyond that band bill as overage, and every completion earns its per-case allowances into your Global Monthly Pool.

A data element is a single piece of structured information captured in a case - a field someone fills in or signs on a form, or a value Xena extracts from an uploaded document. A short intake form might be a handful of elements; a multi-page packet with several forms can be a few hundred. It's easy to estimate up front: it tracks closely with the number and complexity of the forms in your case bundle. Each plan includes a per-completion allowance, and those earnings feed your Global Monthly Pool.

A Xena credit meters case-scoped AI work - not the SMS or email send itself (that's a separate communications action). Credits cover outreach decisions and drafting (who to contact, when, and what to say) and document validation and extraction (acceptability checks and pulling structured fields from uploads). As a planning guide: a light outreach decide/draft cycle usually uses a fraction of a credit; validating and extracting a typical short document usually lands around 1-3 credits; multi-page packets, re-checks, or heavy extraction burn more. Assistants outside a case (Studio or admin chat) aren't metered. Starter includes 5 credits per completed case - enough for light chase-plus-one-document workflows; heavier validation stacks point toward higher-tier allowances or an AI Pack.

Consumables aren't metered as separate per-API line items. Each billing cycle starts with a modest starter buffer so in-flight cases can run, then every completed case adds its per-case allowances (AI credits, communications, data elements, and file ingestion) into one shared pool. Cases draw from that pool as Xena works them - so a light case can effectively subsidize a heavier one. File storage is a separate account vault cap, not part of the per-case pool.

Every plan includes a 10-day free trial. During the trial you get full platform access with Starter limits - 50 completed cases per month and Starter allowances (including the trial starter buffer). Boosters and plan changes are blocked until you convert. We collect a card when you sign up so there's no interruption if you decide to keep going - but you can cancel anytime during the trial and you won't be charged. When the trial ends, billing follows the plan you chose with that tier's limits. No contracts, ever.

Nothing breaks. Additional completed cases are billed on a metered basis at your tier's overage rate - $1.00, $0.80, or $0.50 per case - and each overage completion still adds its consumables to the pool. The simulator above forecasts this for you.

One-time packs (AI Pack, Comms Pack, Data Pack, Ingestion Pack) are best for an unusually busy cycle - they top up the current pool only. Monthly profile boosters raise your per-completion multiplier (or vault cap) while the add-on is active, which is the better deal when most of your cases are consumable-heavy. If you're consistently over on completed cases themselves, upgrading the base plan lowers your overage rate. Add-ons aren't available during the free trial.

Yes - Billing Settings lets the Owner choose Keep working (recommended: continue past the plan ceiling, with email alerts and standard extra-usage charges) or Stop at the limit (block new usage so extras aren't charged; usage resumes next cycle or when you buy more). You can also set who gets emailed when usage is high. Trials always stop at the limit.

Your base subscription bills on its regular cycle. Extra usage (case overage and one-time packs) accrues as unbilled usage, which you can watch in Billing - live meters, running balance, and invoice history. If that unbilled balance reaches about $300 mid-cycle, we automatically invoice and charge your payment method, then reset the balance; otherwise extras roll into the next regular invoice. Upgrades take effect immediately (with a partial charge for the rest of the cycle); downgrades and removing monthly boosters apply at the next cycle. Billing is powered by Stripe.

Files, form data, and communication logs live in your encrypted vault. Each plan includes a vault storage cap (5 GB / 50 GB / 500 GB on Starter / Professional / Scale); expand with Vault Expansion if you need more room. By default we keep what's stored; Owners can optionally enable automatic retention on Billing Settings to purge files from completed cases after a set number of days.

Upgrades take effect immediately. Downgrades and removing monthly boosters take effect at the start of your next billing cycle (we don't prorate refunds for mid-cycle downgrades). Cancel anytime from Billing Settings - access continues through the end of the current cycle. There's no long-term contract on Starter, Professional, or Scale.