A credit is one character of text. When you generate audio, every character in your text costs one credit. Free accounts get 10,000 welcome credits. Paid plans start at 50,000 credits per month. You can also connect your own ElevenLabs key for extra credits.
What a credit is
One credit equals one character of text converted to audio. Here are typical post sizes:
- A short 500-word blog post: around 3,000 credits
- A standard 1,500-word article: around 9,000 credits
- A long-form 3,000-word guide: around 18,000 credits
Spaces and punctuation count as characters. Playback is free and unlimited - credits are only used when you generate new audio.
How many credits you get
Free plan
You get 10,000 welcome credits the first time you connect a site. Welcome credits are a one-time bonus. They never expire.
Free plans do not get monthly credits. When your welcome credits are used up, you need to upgrade, buy a top-up, or connect your own ElevenLabs key.
Paid plans
Paid plans get a fresh credit allowance every month. The amount depends on your tier:
| Plan | Credits per month |
|---|---|
| Pro Starter | 50,000 |
| Pro 100k | 100,000 |
| Pro 250k | 250,000 |
| Pro 500k | 500,000 |
| Pro 1M | 1,000,000 |
| Agency Starter | 250,000 |
| Agency 500k | 500,000 |
| Agency 1M | 1,000,000 |
Monthly credits reset on your billing date. Unused credits do not roll over.
Top-up credits
Top-ups are one-off credit packs that you can buy on top of any plan. They never expire and they never reset. TTSWP uses your monthly credits first, then falls back to your top-up balance.
Two ways to get more credits
If you run out of credits and still want to generate audio, you have two options.
Upgrade or top up
Buy a bigger plan, or add a one-time top-up pack. See Plans and pricing and Top-ups.
Connect your own ElevenLabs key
If you already pay ElevenLabs directly, connect your ElevenLabs API key to your TTSWP account. When your TTSWP credits run out, generation continues using your ElevenLabs account. You pay nothing extra to TTSWP.
Free ElevenLabs accounts get 10,000 characters every month. Paid ElevenLabs accounts get more. See Connect your own ElevenLabs key.
Where to check your balance
Overview page
The Quick Stats card shows your current balance in the first tile:
[ 4,238 ]
Credits remaining
It updates right after each generation.
Posts list
The TTS column does not show credit numbers, but attempts to generate when you have zero credits give a clear "out of credits" message.
Account page
Go to Text to Speech → My Plan & Credits for the detailed view: monthly balance, top-up balance, next reset date, and your plan tier.
What happens when credits run out
Without your own ElevenLabs key connected:
- Free plan: the plugin tells you to upgrade or top up
- Paid plan, mid-month: same, plus you can wait until your next reset
With your ElevenLabs key connected:
- Generation continues using your ElevenLabs account
- No extra cost to TTSWP
- Your ElevenLabs dashboard shows the usage
Plan upgrades and downgrades
- Upgrading to a higher plan: takes effect immediately. Unused credits stay.
- Downgrading to a lower plan: takes effect on your next billing date.
- Canceling: keeps your plan active until the end of the current billing period, then downgrades to Free.