What is the minimum deposit, and why?

"Can I deposit a little less just to test the waters?" is the most-asked question on the top-up page. The short answer at the top gives the conclusion; here we explain where it comes from: 30 isn't an arbitrary round-number threshold, it's worked backward from "what this money is ultimately for." The platform balance is designed for opening cards and topping up cards; if the money that arrives can't even open a single minimum-limit card, it just sits in your balance waiting for a second deposit (and if you actually want to exit, you'll be charged another on-chain transfer fee), so you end up paying the transfer cost twice over.

Beyond this chain of reasoning, this page also explains another mechanism that decides how fast your funds arrive: the "exact-amount recognition" used by on-chain transfers. An amount that matches to the last decimal within the validity window is the dividing line between automatic crediting and manual verification.

The math behind 30 starts from the real price of a single subscription

1. The starting point is what you actually pay for a US AI subscription: the $20-tier plan includes sales tax in some states, so the real amount paid is usually $20-22, and certain back-charges for arrears can reach $25.
2. That's why the minimum card limit is set at 26 US dollars: it covers all the fluctuation from sales tax and back-charges, so the first charge won't be declined for being a dollar or two short.
3. Opening this 26-limit card costs at most $28.52: 26 (the limit) + $0.52 (a 2% service fee on the limit) + up to $2 card-opening fee (the card-opening fee is $1-2 depending on the card tier).
4. To cover $28.52, working backward at the first-tier 2% top-up fee: depositing 30 credits $29.40, which just covers it and leaves $0.88.

Read this chain in reverse and you have the real meaning of 30: any lower threshold could not guarantee covering the full cost of a single minimum-limit card. 30 is the result of covering the maximum cost of $28.52, rounding up, and keeping a $0.88 buffer. The top-up fee is tiered by amount, and the more you deposit, the cheaper it gets:

Why an on-chain transfer must match to the last cent

An on-chain transfer has no memo field to carry an order number; the chain only shows three pieces of information: time, amount, and address. So the system treats the order amount itself as a "fingerprint": when you place an order, it generates a dedicated amount precise to the decimal place that uniquely corresponds to your order within the validity window. The validity window follows the countdown on the order page (about 1 hour); once it expires, that amount immediately becomes invalid. If you didn't transfer in time, place a new order to get a new amount, and don't transfer to the old amount anymore.

When the amount received within the validity window matches to the last cent, it is credited automatically after 3-10 minutes of block confirmation. If the amount differs, the fingerprint doesn't match, so the transfer cannot be matched automatically and won't be credited automatically; if it hasn't arrived after 30 minutes, submit a support ticket with your order number and it will be handled after manual verification. This is why you should copy and paste the amount from the order page rather than typing it by hand: anything that changes the actual amount received (typing one digit short, a withdrawal fee deducted from the amount) will push the top-up out of automatic matching.

Two channels, essentially two different paths

Choosing a channel comes down to one thing: how you want to pay. If you want to skip the on-chain transfer fee and pay directly from your balance, use Crypto Payment for instant crediting; if you want to initiate the on-chain transfer yourself, use the TRC20 transfer (the checkout also supports scanning a QR code to make an on-chain transfer).

Hands-on checklist

1. First pick a channel: to pay directly from your balance and skip the on-chain transfer fee, choose Crypto Payment; to initiate the on-chain transfer yourself, choose the TRC20 transfer.
2. Make your first deposit 30 (crediting $29.40, enough to cover the $28.52 maximum total cost of a minimum-limit card); to open a higher-limit card, work out the total card-opening cost in advance and deposit enough in one go, so you don't have to make a second transfer and pay the on-chain fee again.
3. Copy and paste the TRC20 amount from the order page rather than typing it by hand; if you're withdrawing from an exchange, watch the "actual amount received" rather than the "withdrawal amount," since a fee deducted from the amount will make the two differ; exchange withdrawals also have review delays, so if you're not sure it will reach the chain within the order's validity window, withdraw to your own on-chain wallet first and then transfer.
4. Make sure the network is TRC20: transferring on the wrong network risks losing your assets, so double-check both the network and the address before transferring.
5. Arrival within 3-10 minutes is the normal pace; if it hasn't arrived after 30 minutes, submit a support ticket with your order number. Proof is based on the order number and the on-chain transaction record; an exchange's "internal transfer" doesn't go on-chain, so a screenshot cannot serve as proof of arrival.
6. The platform only accepts USDT; it does not support Alipay, WeChat Pay, or bank cards.