Payment methods for 1inch APIs
There are two ways to pay for access to 1inch APIs. Pick the one that fits your usage, or combine them.
Supported payment methods
- Subscription plans: a monthly quota of API calls for a fixed price, authenticated with an API key. Best when your usage is predictable or sustained. Plans range from a Free tier to Business, plus negotiated Enterprise and configurable Custom plans; paid in USDC on Ethereum.
- x402 pay-per-call: pay per request in USDC on Base with no subscription and no API key, using the open x402 standard. Best for occasional, variable, or agent-driven usage, and as overflow when a plan's quota is exhausted.
Which one should I use?
| Subscription | x402 pay-per-call | |
|---|---|---|
| Billing | Fixed monthly price, prepaid quota | Pay per request in USDC on Base |
| Auth | API key (Authorization: Bearer) |
Signed on-chain payment, no API key |
| Best for | Predictable, sustained usage | Occasional, variable, or agentic usage |
| Commitment | Monthly (1 to 12 month intervals) | None |
| Payment | USDC on Ethereum | USDC on Base |
The two methods work together: keep a subscription for your baseline traffic and let x402 cover overflow when you exceed your plan quota. See Managing your subscription.
Next steps
- Subscription plans: compare tiers, purchase a plan, and make your first authenticated request.
- x402 pay-per-call: link and fund a wallet, then pay per request in USDC on Base.