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Strive runs on a metered allowance — every plan grants the same features, only the size of the monthly allowance differs. Here's how it works.
Strive is consumption-based, not feature-tiered. Every plan — Free, Starter, Pro, Studio — gives you full access to course creation, lesson generation, module quizzes, audio narration, and code execution. The only thing that changes between tiers is the size of your monthly allowance.
| Plan | Monthly price | Annual-equivalent monthly | Roughly per month |
|---|---|---|---|
| Free | $0 | — | 1 lesson |
| Starter | $12.99 | $10.39 | 17 lessons |
| Pro | $24.99 | $19.99 | 37 lessons |
| Studio | $49.99 | $39.99 | 82 lessons |
Lesson counts are estimates for a standard lesson. Optional enrichments — hero image, curated links, audio narration — draw a bit more from your allowance when enabled. The table shows the steady monthly rate; a brand-new account starts with more than that, which the next-but-one section explains.
Your allowance is split into two buckets:
When a paid action runs, monthly allowance is spent first; top-up is only touched once the monthly bucket is empty. Your billing surface shows whichever bucket is currently being spent — one number at a time, even though two are tracked.
A brand-new account doesn't open on the Free plan's ordinary monthly figure. It opens on a one-time welcome grant — roughly 5 lessons, on top of the cheap steps that surround them: the clarifying questions, the course structure, a module quiz. It's sized so a first course gets past the structure and all the way through a complete opening module, rather than stopping you a lesson or two in.
Three things worth knowing about it:
Anything that calls an AI model:
Reading, reviewing recall cards, taking already-generated quizzes, taking notes, and changing settings draw nothing.
When you start a paid action, Strive checks that you have any remaining allowance — that's the gate; you don't need a full lesson's worth to start. The actual cost depends on how many tokens the model used during the job, and is computed and debited at the end of the job, not at the start. If a job fails or is cancelled, you're not charged at all; Strive absorbs whatever cost it incurred before the failure.
Occasionally the actual cost slightly exceeds your remaining balance. When that happens, Strive clamps the debit at your balance and absorbs the difference — you never get an overage charge or a mid-job abort. It's a deliberate, bounded design choice that keeps the rule simple: if you have any allowance, you can run the action.
The Billing tab on your profile shows your current plan, your allowance bar, your top-up balance in dollar-equivalent, your renewal date, and a recent-activity ledger. The ledger uses human-readable reasons — "Lesson generation: Module 3 / Lesson 2", "Plan upgrade bonus", "Period reset", "Top-up purchase" — so you can see exactly where your allowance went.