# Projects & Billing

## What is a Project?

A **Project** is your organization's workspace in the Perplexity API Portal. It allows you to:

- **Manage billing** and payment methods for API usage
- **Create and control API keys** for accessing the Perplexity API
- **Invite team members** and control their permissions (optional)
- **Monitor usage and costs** across all your API keys

## Prerequisites

Before getting started, make sure you have:

- A Perplexity account (sign up at [perplexity.ai](https://perplexity.ai))
- **Admin permissions** for billing and API key management
- A **credit card** ready for payment setup (you won't be charged initially)

:::callout{intent="note"}
If you're joining an existing team, you'll need an invitation from an Admin. Contact your team lead to get access.
:::

## Accessing the API Portal

Navigate to [console.perplexity.ai](https://console.perplexity.ai) to access your project. The left-hand sidebar is divided into two sections:

- **Project**: Settings, Members, Billing (Admins only), API keys, Files
- **API Playground**: Search API, Agent API

***

## Creating and Managing a Project

To set up your organization:

:::::steps
::::step{title="Access Project Settings"}
Click **Settings** in the left sidebar under **Project**.

:::frame
![Project Settings](../img/site-assets/mintcdn.com/perplexity/DPUduAo6hpcohwv5/docs/assets/images/api_portal/console_new_group-13i1z7p.png)
:::
::::

::::step{title="Complete Organization Details"}
Fill out your organization's name, address, and tax details.

:::frame
![Project Setup](../img/site-assets/mintcdn.com/perplexity/DPUduAo6hpcohwv5/docs/assets/images/api_portal/console_new_group_setup-nao7vg.png)
:::

:::callout{intent="info"}
Your organization name and address will appear on invoices and help us support you better.
:::
::::
:::::

***

## Billing and Payment Methods

### How Billing Works

The Perplexity API uses a **credit-based billing system**:

- **Credits** are purchased in advance and used for API calls
- **Different models** consume different amounts of credits per request
- **Usage is charged** based on tokens processed and search queries made
- **Automatic top-up** can be enabled to avoid service interruptions

:::callout{intent="info"}
See our [Pricing page](/guides/getting-started-pricing) for detailed cost information per model and usage type.
:::

### Setting Up Payment

:::card{title="Access Billing Dashboard" href="https://console.perplexity.ai/project/billing" icon="credit-card" cta="Go to Billing" horizontal="true" arrow="true"}
Navigate directly to your API billing dashboard to manage payment methods, view usage, and configure billing settings.
:::

:::::steps
::::step{title="Navigate to Billing"}
Click **Billing** in the left sidebar. This page shows your credit balance, payment method, usage chart, and billing breakdown.

:::frame
![API Billing Dashboard](../img/site-assets/mintcdn.com/perplexity/DPUduAo6hpcohwv5/docs/assets/images/api_portal/console_billing-1yzz1r7.png)
:::
::::

::::step{title="Add Payment Method"}
Click **Add payment method** and enter your credit card information. Payment is managed via Stripe — you can also click **Manage ↗** to access the Stripe portal directly.

:::callout{intent="note"}
Adding a payment method will not charge your credit card. It stores payment information for future API usage.
:::
::::

::::step{title="Configure Auto Reload (Recommended)"}
Enable automatic credit top-up by clicking **Change preferences** next to **Auto reload**.

:::frame
![API Billing Dashboard](../img/site-assets/mintcdn.com/perplexity/DPUduAo6hpcohwv5/docs/assets/images/api_portal/console_topup-1mjucdo.png)
:::

:::callout{intent="warning"}
If you run out of credits, your API keys will be blocked until you add to your credit balance. Auto reload prevents this by automatically adding credits when your balance drops below a threshold.
:::
::::
:::::

### Credit Balance

The Billing page displays your **remaining credit balance** prominently at the top. You can purchase additional credits at any time using the **Buy more credits** link.

Your current **usage tier** is also shown here — click **Learn more ↗** for details on tier thresholds and benefits.

***

## Managing API Keys

### What are API Keys?

API keys are your credentials for accessing the Perplexity API. Each key:

- **Authenticates your requests** to the Perplexity API
- **Tracks usage** for attribution
- **Can be revoked** for security purposes
- **Should be kept secure** and never shared publicly

:::callout{intent="info"}
You'll need to include your API key in the Authorization header of every API request: `Authorization: Bearer $PERPLEXITY_API_KEY`
:::

### Creating an API Key

:::::steps
::::step{title="Navigate to API Keys"}
Click **API keys** in the left sidebar.

:::frame
![API Keys](../img/site-assets/mintcdn.com/perplexity/DPUduAo6hpcohwv5/docs/assets/images/api_portal/console_api_keys-2i29ii.png)
:::
::::

::::step{title="Generate New Key"}
Click **+ Generate API Key** to create a new API key.

:::frame
![API Keys](../img/site-assets/mintcdn.com/perplexity/DPUduAo6hpcohwv5/docs/assets/images/api_portal/console_api_keys_new-1onwe5r.png)
:::
::::
:::::

:::callout{intent="warning"}
API keys are sensitive credentials. Never expose them in client-side code or share them in public repositories.
:::

***

## Adding and Managing Members

Admins can invite team members to the organization with specific roles: **Admin** or **Member**.

### Adding a Member

:::::steps
:::step{title="Navigate to Members"}
Click **Members** in the left sidebar. This page shows your current team members and their roles.
:::

:::frame
![Members](../img/site-assets/mintcdn.com/perplexity/DPUduAo6hpcohwv5/docs/assets/images/api_portal/console_members-1fjezu4.png)
:::

::::step{title="Initiate Member Invitation"}
Click **+ Add Member**. Enter the user's email address and click **Invite**.

:::frame
![Add Member](../img/site-assets/mintcdn.com/perplexity/DPUduAo6hpcohwv5/docs/assets/images/api_portal/console_add_member-kxcr39.png)
:::
::::

::::step{title="Member Receives Invitation"}
The invited user will receive an email with a link to join your project.

:::callout{intent="success"}
Once they accept, they'll appear in your member list with their assigned role.
:::
::::
:::::

### Filtering Members by Role

Use the dropdown to filter your list of team members by role.

### Roles

- **Admin**: Can invite/remove members, manage billing, and view usage data.
- **Member**: Cannot access the **Billing** page or view usage metrics in the console.

:::callout{intent="warning"}
Only Admins can make changes to billing and member permissions.
:::

***

## Viewing Usage Metrics

Only Admins can monitor API usage from the **Billing** page in the console. If you're a Member and need usage or billing information, contact an Admin in your project.

:::frame
![Usage Metrics](../img/site-assets/mintcdn.com/perplexity/DPUduAo6hpcohwv5/docs/assets/images/api_portal/console_usage_metrics-1clumbx.png)
:::

The **Usage** chart lets you track activity over time with the following filters:

- **Metric selector**: Choose from Chat Completions API Requests, Input Tokens, Output Tokens, Citation Tokens, Reasoning Tokens, Deep Research Requests Count, Search API Requests Count, or Pro Search API Requests Count
- **Time range**: Filter by Last 7 Days, Last 30 Days, or custom range

Below the chart, the **Billing breakdown** table shows a per-model breakdown of usage quantity, rate, and cost — giving you a clear picture of spend by product.

:::callout{intent="success"}
Usage metrics help you monitor API activity and optimize for cost or performance.
:::

## Invoice History

Below the usage chart and billing breakdown on the **Billing** page, you'll find your **Invoice history** — a record of all past invoices with their date, status, and cost.

:::frame
![Invoice History](../img/site-assets/mintcdn.com/perplexity/DPUduAo6hpcohwv5/docs/assets/images/api_portal/console_invoices-rbja9h.png)
:::

Invoices are generated automatically each billing cycle. Use the **Previous** and **Next** controls to paginate through older records.

## Related pages

- [Admin & Management](./admin-management-index.md)
- [Agent API](./agent-api-2-index.md)
- [Agent API](./agent-api-index.md)
- [Analytics API](./analytics-api-index.md)
- [Authentication](./authentication-index.md)
- [Changelog](../changelog.md)
- [Cookbook](./cookbook-2-index.md)
- [Embeddings API](./embeddings-api-2-index.md)
- [Embeddings API](./embeddings-api-index.md)
- [Getting Started](./getting-started-index.md)

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