Usage-based pricing models, long standard for infrastructure services, are expanding into application SaaS categories as vendors look to align pricing more closely with customer value.
AI-powered features in particular lend themselves to consumption pricing, with pricing by tokens, queries, or generated outputs becoming common. Hybrid models combining platform fees with usage charges are emerging.
Buyers should carefully model expected usage before signing contracts, as consumption pricing can lead to bill surprises when usage scales faster than anticipated or features are broadly adopted.
