How pay-as-you-go billing works

The model

You add money to your Dial Milo balance, and it's drawn down as you use the product. When the balance runs low, you top up again, either by hand or automatically. Nothing is charged without your knowledge, and there's no surprise invoice at the end of the month.

This works well if your call volume changes with the seasons, or if you want to keep tight control of costs.

What gets charged

Your balance pays for:

• Inbound calls: billed per second at your number's rate, from the moment Milo answers until the call ends.
• Outbound calls: the phone line is priced for the exact number dialled and the number you call from, and billed per started minute. AI is added for each talk minute. See how calls are priced.
• Phone number rental: a flat monthly fee for each number you own, taken on the monthly anniversary of the purchase.
• SMS messages: billed per message, for things like text confirmations after a call.

To estimate a campaign or a month of answered calls before you start, use the spend calculator.

Topping up

Go to Billing and choose an amount. The minimum is $10. You can top up to $500 in one payment; established accounts can top up larger amounts at once. Payments go through Stripe, and credit and debit cards are accepted. The credit is in your balance as soon as the payment goes through, and you get exactly the amount you paid for.

Only the account owner can top up or change payment methods. See team members and roles.

Auto top-up

If you'd rather not think about topping up, turn on auto top-up. You set a threshold and an amount. When your balance drops below the threshold, your saved card is charged that amount automatically.

What happens when you run out

If your balance reaches zero, Milo stops answering calls for your account until you add credit. People who call your number will hear a "this number is unavailable" message from the phone network, not from Milo.

If your balance won't cover a number's next monthly rental, we email you 7 days before it's due so you have time to top up. If the charge still fails, the number is suspended for 3 days. Top up during that time and the number comes back automatically. After 3 days the number is permanently released and can't be recovered.

With auto top-up on, none of this should happen, because your balance refills as soon as it drops below your threshold.