GitHub shifts Copilot to AI credits

GitHub changed how it charges for Copilot on June 1, moving the coding assistant from flat access and premium-request limits to usage-based billing measured in GitHub AI Credits. The company said all Copilot plans now include a monthly allowance of credits, with extra usage billed according to token consumption across the models customers use. GitHub said the change applies across its Copilot lineup, including Pro, Pro+, Business and Enterprise plans. The company kept base subscription prices unchanged while shifting the meter underneath them. ### So what changed on June 1? GitHub said on June 1 that “all Copilot plans bill based on GitHub AI Credits consumed,” with each plan now carrying a monthly included allowance rather than broad flat-rate access. The new billing unit is the AI credit. GitHub’s documentation says overages are billed in GitHub AI Credits and that one AI credit equals $0.01. Usage is calculated from token consumption, including input, output and cached tokens, with costs varying by model. ### Did GitHub raise the sticker price? GitHub’s listed base prices did not change with the June 1 billing shift. (github.blog) GitHub documentation says Copilot Business remains $19 per user per month, while GitHub’s individual-plan materials say Copilot Pro remains $10 per month and Pro+ remains $39 per month. Enterprise pricing also remains plan-based, but the usage model changed there too. (docs.github.com) GitHub says Copilot Business and Copilot Enterprise include per-user AI credit allowances that are pooled at the billing-entity level, with extra consumption billed separately once included usage is exhausted. ### What does an AI credit actually pay for? GitHub says Copilot usage now maps to tokens rather than simple feature counts. (docs.github.com) In the company’s billing documents, an interaction can consume input tokens, output tokens and cached tokens, and the number of AI credits charged depends on the model selected and the amount of work done. GitHub gave a practical example in its individual-billing guide: a quick Copilot Chat question on a lightweight model may use only a fraction of a credit, while a longer cloud-agent session using a frontier model across multiple files will cost more. (docs.github.com) ### Which plans are affected, and how are allowances handled? GitHub said the June 1 change covers all Copilot plans. (docs.github.com) For organizations, the company says Copilot Business includes 1,900 AI credits per user each month and Copilot Enterprise includes 3,900 AI credits per user each month, with those allowances pooled at the organization or enterprise billing level. (docs.github.com) GitHub also said existing organization customers receive higher included AI credits during a promotional period running from June through August 2026. The company did not present that promotion as a change to the base seat price. ### What are teams supposed to do now? GitHub recommended that organizations set budgets and monitor usage as the new system takes effect. (github.blog) Its spending-management documentation says enterprise owners and billing managers can use budget controls, spending visualizations and threshold alerts to manage AI credit consumption. The company also launched user-level budget controls alongside the billing change and directed customers to usage-based billing documentation for individuals and organizations. (docs.github.com) For companies rolling out Copilot broadly, GitHub says usage reports and budget settings are the main tools for controlling overages. ### Where does GitHub want customers to look next? (docs.github.com) GitHub’s next step for customers is in its Copilot billing documentation, including the models-and-pricing tables and the usage-based billing guides for individuals, organizations and enterprises. Those pages set out the per-model rates, included allowances and budget controls that now govern Copilot usage after June 1. (docs.github.com) (github.blog)