# Free, Pro, or your own instance

> Free and Pro run on big-agi.com, signed in; Open is the build you deploy yourself. What each includes, who bills you, and whether to keep the subscription you already pay.

- Canonical: https://big-agi.com/docs/choose-version
- Minimum tier: open  [Open ⊂ Free ⊂ Pro - a tier only ever ADDS to the Open baseline]
- Kind: decision · Last content update generation: 2026-07-27 · Review by: 2027-01-23
- Answers: Which version am I supposed to use? · What does Pro actually add over Free? · Who bills me, and for what? · Should I cancel my ChatGPT or Claude subscription? · Can I switch later without losing my work?

Free and Pro run on [big-agi.com](https://big-agi.com), signed in: Free is the product, Pro adds a subscription on top. Open is the same core, MIT-licensed, deployed and updated by you. The list of AI services is identical in all three.

## What each tier includes

| | Open - you host it | Free | Pro |
|---|---|---|---|
| 800+ models, on your keys | ✓ New models land here first | ✓ | ✓ |
| [Beam](/docs/multi-model) - several models on one question | ✓ | ✓ | ✓ |
| [AI Inspector](/docs/feature-ai-inspector) - the literal request, as sent | ✓ | ✓ | ✓ |
| [Personas](/docs/feature-personas) | - | ✓ | ✓ |
| [Rambles](/docs/feature-ramble) | - | ✓ | ✓ |
| Browsing, web search, premium voice | You supply and run them | ✓ | ✓ |
| Account, cloud backup, [sync](/docs/feature-sync) | - | Account only - no backup, no sync | 1 GB: personas and chats, unlimited devices |
| Email support from the builder | - | - | ✓ |

> **Pro:** Chats, personas and rambles stay on this device and browser only, unless you subscribe to Pro: cloud backup and multi-device sync (1 GB). On Open there is no sync. Disabling sync never deletes local data.

Teams arrange the Business plan by contact on [big-agi.com](https://big-agi.com/#pricing).

## Who bills you

Two bills, and only one is ours.

| Bill | Who charges you | For what |
|---|---|---|
| Model usage | Your AI service, directly | Every request, priced per token |
| Big-AGI Pro | Big-AGI, $10.99/mo | Backup, sync, 1 GB, email support |

Big-AGI never meters, caps, or takes a cut of model usage. Host Open and you pay whoever runs the machine, nothing to us.

The key behind the first bill comes from an AI service account you create, not the service's consumer chat account. Fund it there, by card or prepaid credit. Cap the spend in the service's console: [connect an AI service](/docs/connect-models), [keep your key safe](/docs/key-storage).



## Keeping the subscription you already pay

If your subscription works for you, keep it. [ChatGPT](https://chatgpt.com), [Claude](https://claude.ai) and [Gemini](https://gemini.google.com) give a lot away free, and their paid plans are subsidised - good deals for what they cover.

Big-AGI runs on API keys, not on those subscriptions: [connect an AI service](/docs/connect-models) walks the console. Consider it when you want several models on one question, vendors side by side, or a local model next to the cloud ones. The consumer extras - voice on a phone, memory, connectors, research agents - have no equivalent here. Feature by feature: [the comparison page](/vs).

## Switching later

Chats and settings move in every direction as one file: [back up, restore and import](/docs/account-backup). One caveat, one direction: personas built on the hosted app carry more than the Open creator holds, so they arrive simplified on your own instance.

## When this doesn't work

Sync is the only thing a server refuses:

| Message | What it means | What to do |
|---|---|---|
| `Sync not available` | You are not subscribed to Pro. | Subscribe, or keep working locally; local data is untouched. |
| `Storage quota exceeded. Please upgrade your plan or free up space.` | You are at 100% of cloud space: uploads stop, reads and deletes still work. | Delete synced items, or move to the larger quota. |

Missing chats: [Where did my chats go?](/docs/issue-missing-chats). Devices: [Will my chats appear on my other devices?](/docs/feature-sync).

## Related

- [Your first chat](/docs/first-chat)
- [Connect an AI service](/docs/connect-models)
- [Subscribe, change, or cancel Pro](/docs/account-pro)
- [Back up, restore and import](/docs/account-backup)