Billing: Plan Changes & Prorated Charges

💳 Unrecognized Annual Plan Charge — What To Do

🔍 Why You May See an Unrecognized Annual Charge If a charge for your Search Atlas annual plan appeared on your bank or credit card statement but is not visible in your account billing history, this is most likely caused by one of the following known billing issues: - Duplicate Stripe account creation: In some cases, an upgrade to an annual plan created a second Stripe billing profile. Charges processed under this duplicate account do not appear in your in-app billing history. - Subscription re-billing at an old monthly boundary: Customers who switched from a monthly plan to an annual special-offer plan may have been re-billed the full annual amount at the original monthly renewal date instead of the correct new date. - Residual charges from a previous plan: After a plan change, a lingering charge from your prior subscription tier was occasionally processed before the old plan was fully cancelled in our system. All of these root causes have been identified and resolved at the engineering level. If you have been affected, our support team can verify your account and process a correction promptly. ✅ Steps to Resolve the Charge 1. Locate the charge details. Find the exact charge amount, the date it was processed, and the last four digits of the card that was billed. You can find this on your bank statement, credit card portal, or the payment receipt sent to your email by our payment processor (Stripe). 2. Check your in-app billing history. Log in to Search Atlas and navigate to your account settings to review your billing history. If the charge does not appear there, this confirms it may have been processed under a duplicate billing profile. 3. Note your account details. Before contacting support, have the following ready: your registered email address, the charge amount, the charge date, and any transaction or receipt ID shown on the Stripe receipt. 4. Contact our support team immediately. Our team can look up charges across all billing profiles linked to your account, confirm whether the charge was processed in error, and initiate a refund where applicable. If you need further assistance, open the chat widget in the bottom-right corner of the platform and type human teammate to be connected with a member of our team. ⏱️ What To Expect After Contacting Support Once our team verifies your account and confirms the erroneous charge, here is what happens next: - Verification: Our team will cross-reference your Stripe billing records to identify the duplicate or incorrect charge. - Refund initiation: If a billing error is confirmed, a full or partial refund will be issued to the original payment method. Refunds typically appear within 5–10 business days, depending on your bank or card issuer. - Account correction: Any duplicate Stripe accounts or misaligned subscription records will be resolved so future billing is accurate. - Confirmation: You will receive a Stripe receipt confirming the refund once it has been processed. ⚠️ Important Notes - Do not initiate a chargeback with your bank before contacting us. Chargebacks can freeze your account and delay resolution. Our team can resolve verified billing errors faster through direct refund. - Stripe receipts for charges are sent automatically to the email address on file. If you received a receipt for a charge you do not recognise, save it — this helps our team locate the transaction quickly. - If you are on a plan that includes team members or child accounts, note that child-account cancellations have in some cases triggered unexpected base-plan charges. Our team is aware of this and will check for it during your case review. 💡 How To Prevent This in the Future - After any plan upgrade or change, check your billing history within 48 hours to confirm the correct amount was charged. - Ensure only one payment method is active on your account at a time to avoid processing under multiple billing profiles. - Save Stripe receipts sent to your email as a reference for every transaction.

💳 How to Fix Pro Upgrade Payment Errors

💳 What the payment message means If you see “We’re still processing your payment,” your upgrade may still be pending. The payment provider has not yet confirmed the transaction, so your subscription may not update immediately. 🛠️ What to do first 1. Wait a few minutes and refresh the page once. 2. Check your account billing or subscription page to confirm whether Pro is active. 3. Review your payment method and bank statement for a pending or completed charge. 4. Do not submit the upgrade again while the payment is processing. Retrying may create duplicate charges or conflicting subscriptions. 🔄 If your plan has not updated Sign out of Search Atlas, close your browser, and sign in again. Then check your subscription status. If the upgrade still has not applied, try an up-to-date browser or a private browsing window. 💰 If you see a charge but no Pro access Keep the payment receipt or transaction details available and avoid starting another upgrade. Billing systems may need time to synchronize the payment with your Search Atlas account. Confirm that you are signed in with the account email used for the upgrade. ⚠️ If you see duplicate or unexpected charges Do not attempt another purchase. Record the charge dates, amounts, and the plan shown in your account. This information helps our team identify duplicate payments, an outdated subscription, or an upgrade linked to the wrong account. ✅ How to prevent the error - Use a payment method that supports online recurring payments. - Keep your billing details current. - Complete the upgrade in one browser session. - Wait for confirmation before refreshing repeatedly or trying again. 💬 Get help with a pending upgrade If the payment remains pending, your plan is incorrect, or you notice an unexpected charge, open the chat widget in the bottom-right corner of the platform and type human teammate to be connected with a member of our team.

💳 Fix an Annual Plan Charged Monthly

🔍 Overview If you purchased an annual Search Atlas plan but are seeing monthly charges on your statement or dashboard, your subscription may have been misconfigured at the time of purchase. This article explains why this happens, what to expect, and how to get it resolved fast. ⚠️ Why This Happens In some cases, an annual plan can be set up incorrectly in our billing system. Common causes include: - A trial flag remaining active after the plan was purchased, causing the system to revert to monthly billing logic. - The base plan price being set incorrectly, resulting in a monthly rate being charged instead of the discounted annual rate. - An add-on charge being applied separately on a monthly cycle even though the core plan is annual. - The billing dashboard displaying a monthly renewal date instead of your true annual renewal date, making it appear as though you are on a monthly plan. These are known issues our engineering team has addressed, and our support team can correct affected subscriptions directly. 📋 How to Check Your Current Billing Setup Before reaching out, gather the following information so the correction can be made quickly: 1. Log in to your Search Atlas account and open the top-right Avatar Menu (👤) → Billing → Plans & Top-ups page. 2. Note the plan label shown on the Plans & Top-ups page (e.g., "PRO Plan Subscription") along with the billing amount (e.g., $0.00/yr). 3. Check the renewal date displayed — it should reflect a date roughly 12 months from your purchase date. 4. Review your recent charges and note any amounts that appear to be monthly rather than the expected annual or monthly-instalment rate. 5. Take a screenshot of the billing page and any charge amounts you want to dispute — this speeds up the correction process. ✅ What a Correct Annual Plan Looks Like When your annual plan is configured correctly, you should see: - Your plan label shown on the Billing → Plans & Top-ups page (e.g., "PRO Plan Subscription") with the billing amount displayed as a yearly rate (e.g., $0.00/yr). - A renewal date set approximately 12 months from your original purchase date. - A single charge reflecting the annual price (paid upfront) or clearly labelled monthly instalments if you are on an annual-billed-monthly arrangement. - No duplicate or extra add-on charges running on a separate monthly cycle. - Correct quota reset dates aligned with your billing cycle. 🛠️ How to Get Your Subscription Corrected Our support team can manually correct a misconfigured annual subscription, remove incorrect charges, and ensure your renewal date and pricing reflect what you originally purchased. Follow these steps: 1. Open Search Atlas and locate the chat widget in the bottom-right corner of the platform. 2. Type human teammate to be connected with a member of our team. 3. Provide the following details in the chat: - The plan name you purchased (e.g., Growth Annual). - Your purchase date or approximate sign-up date. - The incorrect charge amount and the date it appeared. - A screenshot of your Billing page if available. 4. A teammate will review your account, correct the subscription configuration, and confirm the fix with you in chat. Important: Do not cancel your subscription before speaking with support. Cancelling may remove access to your data and make the correction more complex. 💡 Frequently Asked Questions Will I receive a refund for the incorrect monthly charge? Our team will review the charges on your account. If an incorrect amount was billed, a refund or credit adjustment can be applied. Your support teammate will confirm what is possible for your specific situation. How long does the correction take? Most subscription corrections are completed during the same chat session. Complex cases involving refunds may take 1–3 business days to fully process. Will my access or data be affected during the correction? No. Correcting your plan configuration does not interrupt your access to Search Atlas or affect any of your projects and data. My dashboard shows a monthly billing date even though I'm on an annual plan — is that a bug? Yes, this was a known display issue that has been fixed. If you are still seeing an incorrect date, contact support and a teammate can verify your true renewal date and correct the display on your account. 📞 Need Immediate Help? If you need further assistance, open the chat widget in the bottom-right corner of the platform and type human teammate to be connected with a member of our team.

🔄 Understanding Promotional Plan Upgrades and Billing Transitions

Overview If you are currently on a monthly Pro plan and considering switching to an annual plan, you may notice differences in pricing and wonder how the transition affects your existing subscription. This article explains what to expect when you upgrade, including how promotional annual pricing is structured, what bonus credits may be included, and how your billing changes after the switch. How Annual Plan Pricing Works Annual plans are offered at a discounted effective monthly rate compared to the standard month-to-month price. When you switch to an annual plan, you are charged a single upfront payment that reflects this discounted rate spread across 12 months. To verify the pricing details that apply to your account: 1. During the upgrade checkout flow, review the annual total, the effective monthly equivalent, and any promotional savings displayed on the pricing screen before confirming your purchase. 2. If the quoted amount looks unexpectedly high, this is typically because the annual plan is billed as a single lump sum rather than in monthly installments — the total annual cost is still lower than paying month-to-month for 12 months. 3. After completing the upgrade, check the confirmation email sent to your registered address — it will itemize the amount charged, the plan term, and the renewal date. Hyperdrive Credits Included with Annual Plans Some annual plan upgrades include bonus Hyperdrive credits as part of a promotional offer. If your upgrade included a credit bonus, those credits are applied to your account automatically at the time of purchase — you do not need to redeem a code or take any additional action. To check how many Hyperdrive credits are currently on your account, navigate to Avatar → Billing → Plans & Top-ups (Billing). The balance shown there will reflect any bonus credits added during your upgrade. What Happens to Your Monthly Billing When You Switch When you upgrade from a monthly plan to an annual plan, the following generally applies: - Monthly subscription: Your previous monthly subscription is replaced by the annual plan at the time of upgrade. You will no longer be billed on a monthly cycle. - Proration: If you upgrade mid-cycle, any unused days remaining in your current monthly billing period may be credited toward the annual plan cost. The exact proration amount will be shown during checkout before you confirm. - Renewal date: Your new annual renewal date is set from the date you complete the upgrade. This date will appear in your confirmation email and in your account billing settings. If you have already upgraded and want to confirm the changes to your billing, check the confirmation email sent to you at the time of purchase or review the billing section of your account settings for a full transaction history. If you need further assistance, open the chat widget in the bottom-right corner of the platform and type human teammate to be connected with a member of our team.

🏷️ How to Use Annual Billing Promo Code

🎯 What Is the Annual Billing Promo? Search Atlas periodically offers a 25% discount on annual plans through a promotional code. The current promo code is ANNUAL25. This code applies to new annual plan signups and gives you 25% off your first year when you pay annually instead of monthly. ✅ Who Can Use ANNUAL25? - New customers signing up for a Search Atlas plan for the first time. - Existing monthly subscribers who want to switch to an annual plan. - Returning users starting a new plan after a previous subscription ended. If you are already on an active annual plan, the code may not apply to your current subscription. See the section below for guidance. 🛒 How to Apply the Promo Code at Checkout 1. Go to the Search Atlas pricing or checkout page. 2. Select the plan you want and choose annual billing as your payment frequency. 3. At the checkout screen, locate the promo code or coupon code field. 4. Enter ANNUAL25 exactly as shown (all caps, no spaces). 5. Click Apply — you should see the 25% discount reflected in your order total before completing payment. 6. Complete your purchase and check your email for a confirmation receipt. 💡 Tips for a Smooth Checkout - Make sure you select annual billing before entering the code — the discount only applies to annual plans, not monthly. - The promo code field is case-sensitive: always enter ANNUAL25 in uppercase. - If the discount does not appear after clicking Apply, clear your browser cache or try a different browser and re-enter the code. - Only one promo code can be applied per order. ⚠️ Already on an Annual Plan? If you are currently on an active annual plan and want to take advantage of this promotion, your options may be limited by your current billing cycle. The ANNUAL25 code is designed for new annual plan purchases. Applying it to an existing active annual subscription is not supported at checkout. If you believe you should qualify for the discount based on a special offer you received, please reach out through the chat widget so our team can review your account and assist you directly. 🔄 Switching From Monthly to Annual If you are on a monthly plan and want to switch to annual billing to use the promo code, follow these steps: 1. Log in to your Search Atlas account. 2. Click your Avatar (top-right) and select Billing → Plans & Top-ups (Redeem Promo Code). 3. Choose the option to change your billing frequency to annual. 4. Proceed to checkout and apply ANNUAL25 in the promo code field. 5. Confirm the updated plan and discounted price before completing payment. ❓ Frequently Asked Questions - Does ANNUAL25 expire? Promotional codes are time-limited and tied to specific offers. Use it as soon as possible to ensure it is still active. - Can I use ANNUAL25 on any plan tier? Yes — the code applies across eligible annual plan tiers. The 25% discount is calculated on the standard annual price of whichever plan you select. - Will I be charged monthly after the first year? Your subscription renews annually. You will be notified before renewal so you can review your plan. - What if the code says it is invalid? Double-check that you selected annual (not monthly) billing, and that the code is entered in all caps. If it still does not work, contact support via the chat widget. 🛠️ Need Help? If you need further assistance, open the chat widget in the bottom-right corner of the platform and type human teammate to be connected with a member of our team.

💳 Wallet Funding, Plan Changes, and Prorated Billing

🗺️ Overview This article answers two common billing questions in one place: how prorated charges are handled when you change your plan using a different payment method, and whether Search Atlas has a wallet feature that lets you pre-load funds for future charges. 🔄 How Plan Changes and Prorated Billing Work When you upgrade or downgrade your Search Atlas plan mid-billing cycle, the platform automatically calculates a prorated amount based on the days remaining in your current cycle. To change your plan, log in to your Search Atlas account, click your avatar (top-right), and select Billing. From there, select the plan you want to switch to and follow the on-screen prompts to confirm the change. The prorated charge or credit is applied when the plan change is confirmed. 💳 Which Card Is Charged for Prorated Amounts? The card charged for any prorated amount is always the active default payment method on file at the time the plan change is confirmed. - If you add a new credit card and set it as your default before confirming the plan change, the prorated amount will be charged to that new card. - If you do not update your default card before confirming, the charge goes to the existing card on file. - Future recurring subscription charges will also use whichever card is set as the default at renewal time. To update your default payment method, click your avatar (top-right) and select Billing, then go to the payment methods section, add your new card, and set it as the default before making any plan changes. 👛 Does Search Atlas Have a Wallet Feature? If you have questions about whether a wallet or prepaid balance feature is available on your account, or how stored credit may apply to your charges, please reach out to our support team directly — they can confirm what options are currently available for your account. 🛠️ Managing Plan Changes With a New Card If you want a prorated charge to be applied to a new card rather than your existing one, the key step is to update your default payment method before you confirm the plan change. Here is the general process: 1. Click your avatar (top-right) and select Billing, then go to the payment methods section. 2. Add your new card and set it as the default payment method. 3. Then click your avatar (top-right) and select Billing to access the subscription or plans section. 4. Select the new plan and follow the prompts to confirm the change. 5. The prorated amount will be charged to the card that is set as default at the moment you confirm. If you are unsure which card is currently set as your default, check your Billing page (Avatar → Billing) before making any changes to avoid an unexpected charge to an old card. If you need further assistance, open the chat widget in the bottom-right corner of the platform and type human teammate to be connected with a member of our team.

⚙️ Pro Upgrade Charged but Stuck Processing

🔍 What Is Happening? After completing a Pro plan upgrade, some customers are charged successfully but then land on a "Please Wait" or "Still Trying to Process Payment" screen and cannot access their account. This is a known issue that can occur during checkout and is fully resolvable by our support team. Your payment has been received — this screen does not mean the transaction failed. It means the account provisioning step did not complete as expected. ✅ Steps to Take Right Now 1. Do not attempt to pay again. Your card has already been charged. Submitting a second payment may result in a duplicate charge. 2. Do not close or refresh repeatedly. If you have already left the processing screen, that is fine — but avoid initiating a new checkout session. 3. Take note of your payment confirmation. Check your email inbox for a receipt from Stripe. Save this for reference when you contact support. 4. Contact support immediately using the live chat widget (see below). Our team can manually verify your payment and provision your account without any delay. 🛠️ What Our Team Will Do Once you reach a support teammate, they will: - Verify that your payment was received and recorded correctly in Stripe - Confirm the correct plan and pricing applied to your account - Manually trigger account provisioning if it did not complete automatically - Confirm that no duplicate charges occurred - Ensure all expected features and limits are active on your upgraded account This process is typically resolved quickly once our team is looped in. ⚠️ Common Variations of This Issue This problem can appear in a few different ways depending on how the checkout was initiated: - Clicking Upgrade inside the platform causes a spinner that never completes - Completing Stripe checkout and being redirected back to a processing screen with an error message - Payment going through but the account remaining on the previous plan with no feature changes All of these scenarios are handled the same way — contact support and our team will resolve it manually. 💡 Tips to Prevent This in Future Sessions - Use a stable internet connection when completing checkout - Avoid using browser extensions that block scripts or modify page behaviour (such as ad blockers) during the payment flow - Complete checkout in a single session without switching tabs or navigating away from the payment page 💬 Need Help Now? If you need further assistance, open the chat widget in the bottom-right corner of the platform and type human teammate to be connected with a member of our team.

💳 Payment Not Reflecting Your Plan Upgrade

🔍 Why This Happens After completing a plan upgrade, most accounts update instantly. However, in some cases there can be a short delay between your payment being processed by your bank or card network and Search Atlas receiving the confirmation from our payment provider. This can cause a temporary mismatch where your bank statement shows a charge but your account still displays your previous plan. Common reasons this occurs include: - Payment processing delay: Debit card transactions and certain bank networks can take a few minutes longer to send a confirmation signal to our billing system. - Duplicate transaction attempt: If the payment page was refreshed or submitted more than once, a secondary charge may have been created while the plan upgrade was only partially applied. - Trial-to-paid upgrade timing: Upgrading mid-trial can occasionally cause a sync issue between your billing date and the plan activation date. - False failure notice: In rare cases, Search Atlas may display a "transaction failed" message even though the payment was successfully captured by your bank. This is a display error and does not mean your money was lost. ✅ What to Check First 1. Wait up to 15 minutes and then refresh your Search Atlas dashboard. Most delays resolve automatically once the payment confirmation is received. 2. Check your plan status by navigating to Avatar (top-right corner) → Billing (Plans & Top-ups) inside the platform. Confirm whether the plan name and feature limits have updated. 3. Review your email inbox for a payment confirmation or receipt from Search Atlas. If you received a receipt, the payment was captured successfully and the plan should update shortly. 4. Check for duplicate charges on your bank or card statement. If you see more than one charge for the same amount on the same date, make a note of the transaction dates and amounts before contacting support. ⚠️ When Your Plan Is Still Not Updated If more than 30 minutes have passed and your account still shows your old plan despite a confirmed bank charge, do not attempt to pay again. A second payment attempt could result in a duplicate charge without resolving the plan issue. Instead, gather the following information before reaching out so our team can resolve the issue as quickly as possible: - The date and amount of the charge on your bank or card statement - A screenshot of the transaction failed notice (if you received one) - The plan you intended to upgrade to (for example, Growth, Pro) - Whether you were upgrading from a free trial or a paid plan 💡 Debit Card Payments — Extra Notes Debit cards are fully supported, but they sometimes take longer to process than credit cards because the funds are drawn directly from your bank account. If you paid with a debit card and see a pending charge on your statement rather than a completed one, your bank may still be authorising the transaction. Allow up to one business day for the charge to settle and the plan to activate. If the charge moves from pending to completed but your plan still has not updated, contact our support team using the steps in the section below. 💰 Incorrect Charge Amount If the amount charged does not match the price shown during checkout — for example, you were billed a different figure than the plan price displayed — do not assume this is correct. Pricing discrepancies can occur during mid-cycle upgrades due to prorated calculations, but the final amount should always be clearly communicated before you confirm payment. Please contact our support team immediately with your bank statement and the price you expected to pay so we can investigate and, where applicable, issue a correction or refund. 🛠️ How to Get Help If none of the steps above resolved your issue, our team is ready to investigate your account and billing record directly. If you need further assistance, open the chat widget in the bottom-right corner of the platform and type human teammate to be connected with a member of our team. Please have your transaction details ready when you start the chat so we can resolve your case as quickly as possible.

💳 Understanding Prorated Charges and OTTO Google Ads Billing

🔍 Overview If you recently upgraded your Search Atlas plan or activated the OTTO Google Ads add-on, you may notice a charge on your invoice that wasn't part of your original subscription cost. This article explains what prorated charges are, why the OTTO Google Ads add-on generates its own billing line, and what to do if something looks incorrect. 💡 What Is a Prorated Charge? A prorated charge is a partial billing amount calculated based on the number of days remaining in your current billing cycle. When you upgrade your plan mid-cycle, you are charged only for the portion of the new plan you will use before your next renewal date — not the full monthly or annual amount. For example, if you upgrade from a Pro plan to an Agency plan partway through the month, you will be charged a prorated amount covering the remaining days of that billing period at the Agency plan rate. This charge appears as a separate line item on your invoice alongside your regular subscription. 📋 What Is the OTTO Google Ads Add-On? The OTTO Google Ads add-on is an optional feature that extends OTTO SEO automation to include Google Ads management. It is billed separately from your base Search Atlas plan and has its own pricing. This means: - The add-on can be activated independently of a plan upgrade. - It generates its own invoice line item or, in some cases, a separate invoice entirely. - If activated mid-cycle, the add-on charge is also prorated for the remaining days in your billing period. 🧾 Why Does My Invoice Show an Unexpected Charge? Customers most commonly see an unexpected charge in the following situations: - Plan upgrade mid-cycle: Upgrading from Pro to Agency (or any higher-tier plan) generates an immediate prorated charge for the difference in plan cost. - OTTO Google Ads add-on activation: Enabling the Google Ads add-on at any point in your billing cycle triggers a prorated charge for the remainder of that period. - Billing migration: If your account was recently moved to a new billing system, a pending add-on charge may appear on your first invoice after migration. - Annual plan with add-on: Annual plan subscribers who activate the Google Ads add-on are charged for the add-on on a separate schedule, which can make the charge appear unrelated to your main plan invoice. 📊 How to Check Your Invoices and Charges 1. Log in to your Search Atlas account. 2. Navigate to your Account Settings by clicking your Avatar Menu (👤) in the top-right corner. 3. Select Billing from the settings menu. 4. Review your invoice list. Each invoice will show the plan, add-ons, proration period, and the exact dates the charge covers. 5. Click any invoice number to view a full itemised breakdown, including the daily rate used to calculate the prorated amount. ⚠️ When to Contact Support Most prorated charges are expected and correct. However, you should reach out to our team if you notice any of the following: - You were charged for the OTTO Google Ads add-on but never activated it. - Your invoice shows a prorated charge for a plan upgrade, but your account still reflects the lower-tier plan. - You see two identical prorated charges for the same period (duplicate charge). - The prorated amount appears to cover only one day rather than the full remaining billing period. - Your annual plan was charged at an incorrect base price. If you need further assistance, open the chat widget in the bottom-right corner of the platform and type human teammate to be connected with a member of our team.

💳 Understanding Proration Charges When Upgrading Plans

🔍 Overview When you upgrade from the Growth plan to the Pro plan mid-cycle on an annual subscription, you may notice the charge looks higher than expected. This article explains how proration works, why the numbers may seem off, and what to do if your upgrade did not apply correctly. 💡 How Proration Works on Annual Plans Proration is the process of crediting the unused portion of your current plan and applying it toward the cost of your new plan. Here is how the calculation works in practice: 1. Unused credit: Search Atlas calculates the remaining value of your current annual plan based on how many days are left in your billing cycle. 2. New plan cost: The full annual price of the Pro plan is calculated from the upgrade date. 3. Amount charged: The unused credit is subtracted from the new plan cost, and only the difference is charged to your payment method. For example, if you have approximately 6 months remaining on your Growth annual plan, you should receive a credit for roughly half the annual Growth price. That credit is then applied to reduce what you owe for the Pro plan. ⚠️ Why Your Charge May Look Higher Than Expected In some cases, customers upgrading from Growth to Pro on an annual plan have seen a charge of approximately $1,735 when they expected to pay closer to $835 after their unused credit was applied. This discrepancy can occur for a few reasons: - Credit not applied at checkout: A known issue affected some accounts where the proration credit was calculated but not correctly deducted before the charge was processed. - Plan upgrade not fully applied: In some instances, the system processed the payment but did not switch the account to the Pro plan, leaving the customer on Growth while being charged for Pro. - Special offer interactions: Customers purchasing a promotional or summit special offer on top of an existing annual plan occasionally experienced billing calculation errors. - Multi-step upgrade timing: Accounts that went through a multi-step upgrade process (for example, adding quota top-ups alongside a plan change) sometimes saw credits applied incorrectly or not at all. These issues have been investigated and resolved in recent platform updates. However, if your account was affected before the fix was deployed, your billing may still reflect the incorrect charge. ✅ What You Should Expect When upgrading from Growth to Pro on an annual plan, here is what a correct upgrade looks like: - Your account immediately switches to the Pro plan upon successful payment. - Your unused Growth plan credit is automatically applied to reduce the Pro plan charge. - Your new annual billing cycle starts from the upgrade date. - Activity logs in your account reflect the plan change and the credit applied. 🛠️ Steps to Take If Your Charge Seems Incorrect If you believe you were charged incorrectly or your plan did not upgrade as expected, follow these steps: 1. Check your current plan: Click your Avatar (top-right corner) → Billing (Plans & Top-ups) and confirm whether your account now shows the Pro plan. If it still shows Growth, your upgrade may not have been applied. 2. Review your invoice: Open your most recent invoice and look for a proration credit line item. If no credit appears, the system may not have applied it. 3. Note the amounts: Write down the charge you received, the date of upgrade, and the date your current annual plan started. This will help our team resolve the issue quickly. 4. Contact support: If your plan was not upgraded or you were overcharged, reach out via the live chat widget so our team can review your account and issue a correction if needed. ❓ Frequently Asked Questions Will I lose my unused Growth plan days when I upgrade? No. Those days are converted into a credit and applied toward your Pro plan. You should never be charged for both plans simultaneously for the same period. My plan still shows Growth after I was charged. What should I do? This is a known issue that affected a small number of accounts. Contact support immediately so our team can manually apply the upgrade and review your billing. How long does the upgrade take to reflect in my account? Plan upgrades typically apply instantly. If your plan has not updated within a few minutes of payment, something may have gone wrong and you should contact support. Can I get a refund if I was overcharged? Yes. If our team confirms that the proration credit was not applied correctly, we will issue a credit or refund for the difference. Please contact support with your invoice details. 💬 Need Help? If you need further assistance, open the chat widget in the bottom-right corner of the platform and type human teammate to be connected with a member of our team.

💰 Annual STARTER Charge Breakdown Explained

📋 What Happened With Your Charge The $854.30 charge processed on June 16 was applied directly to your annual STARTER subscription. According to your Quote Proposal, the STARTER plan is priced at $950 per year. The amount you were charged has already been allocated as part of that annual payment, covering a portion of the total yearly cost. 🔍 Why a Refund Cannot Be Issued Because the charge has already been applied to your active annual subscription, it is considered used toward your plan’s yearly fee. Our billing system treats this allocation as final once the subscription period is funded, so we are unable to issue a refund for any portion of that applied amount. ✅ What You Can Do Review your Quote Proposal to confirm the $950 annual pricing. The $854.30 charge represents a partial payment toward that total. No further action is needed on your part — your subscription remains active and funded for the annual term. If you need further assistance, open the chat widget in the bottom-right corner of the platform and type human teammate to be connected with a member of our team.

⬆️ Upgrade Your Plan, Billing & OTTO Sites Costs

🗺️ Overview This article walks you through upgrading from the Growth plan to the Pro plan, choosing between monthly and annual billing, and understanding how additional OTTO Sites are priced under each billing option. 📋 Pro Plan Billing Options The Pro plan is available on both monthly and annual billing cycles. Annual billing typically offers a lower effective monthly cost compared to month-to-month billing. To see the exact, always-current pricing for each option before you commit, visit the Plans page directly inside your account: go to the top-right corner (avatar) → Billing → Plans & Top-ups tab (Billing). The full cost breakdown for both monthly and annual cycles is displayed there before you confirm any changes. ⬆️ How to Upgrade from Growth to Pro 1. Log in to your Search Atlas account. 2. Click your avatar in the top-right corner, select Billing, then open the Plans & Top-ups tab. 3. Locate the Pro plan and select the option to upgrade. 4. Choose your preferred billing frequency — monthly or annual — before confirming. 5. Review the order summary, which will display the full cost for your chosen plan and billing cycle. 6. Confirm your payment details and complete the upgrade. Note: The Plans page always reflects live pricing, so the figures shown at checkout are the most accurate and up-to-date available. 🤖 OTTO Sites Pricing — What You Need to Know OTTO Sites are additional site activations for the OTTO SEO automation feature. Each OTTO Site allows you to run automated SEO optimisations on one connected website. The number of OTTO Sites included with the Pro plan and the per-site cost for additional activations are listed on the Plans & Top-ups tab (top-right corner avatar → Billing → Plans & Top-ups). Because pricing can be updated periodically, checking the Plans page directly ensures you see the figures that apply to your account at the time of upgrade. The per-site cost for additional OTTO Sites will also be shown in your order summary before you confirm any purchase, so there are no surprises at checkout. If you need further assistance, open the chat widget in the bottom-right corner of the platform and type human teammate to be connected with a member of our team.

💳 Annual Plan Charged Monthly Too — What to Do

🔍 What Is Happening Some customers who purchased an annual Search Atlas plan have noticed an additional recurring monthly charge appearing on their payment method. This can happen when a monthly top-up or add-on is attached to your account alongside your annual base plan, or when a billing configuration issue causes both charge types to run simultaneously. A known issue previously caused annual plan accounts to display the annual renewal date where the monthly top-up renewal date should appear, making it harder to spot the overlap. This display bug has been resolved, and your billing dashboard now shows the correct dates for each charge type. ⚙️ Common Reasons for Dual Billing - Monthly add-on or top-up active: You subscribed to a monthly quota top-up on top of your annual plan. These are billed separately each month. - Misconfigured account: In some cases, accounts were set up with an incorrect plan configuration — for example, a trial flag left active, an incorrect base plan price, or an add-on charge applied in error. - Two separate subscriptions: A monthly plan was not cancelled before or after the annual plan was purchased, leaving both active at the same time. 📋 How to Check Your Current Subscriptions 1. Log in to your Search Atlas account. 2. Click your Avatar Menu (👤) in the top-right corner and select Billing or Subscription. 3. Review all active plans listed. Look for both an annual plan entry and any monthly charge entries. 4. Check the renewal dates shown. Your annual plan will display a date roughly 12 months from purchase; any monthly top-up will show a date within the next 30 days. 5. If you see a monthly charge you did not intentionally add, note the amount and the charge description before contacting support. 🛠️ How to Stop Unwanted Monthly Charges If you purchased an annual plan and are being billed monthly without intending to subscribe to a top-up or add-on, our team needs to review and correct your account configuration. This is not something you can fully resolve through self-service because it may involve a backend billing correction. Do not cancel your annual plan in an attempt to stop the monthly charge — this could interrupt your service and create further billing complications. Instead, follow these steps: 1. Gather the following information before reaching out: your registered email address, the date of your annual plan purchase, the amount of the unexpected monthly charge, and any transaction IDs from your payment receipts. 2. Contact our support team directly via the live chat widget (see below) so we can audit your account, stop the incorrect charge, and issue any applicable refund. 💰 Will I Receive a Refund for Incorrect Charges If our team confirms that monthly charges were applied to your account in error — for example, due to a misconfigured plan setup — we will work with you to reverse the incorrect charges and correct your subscription going forward. Refund eligibility and processing time will be confirmed by our billing team during your support conversation. ✅ What a Correctly Configured Annual Plan Looks Like - One annual subscription line item reflecting your full yearly price. - A renewal date approximately 12 months from your original purchase date. - No additional recurring monthly base-plan charge unless you intentionally added a monthly quota top-up. - If a monthly top-up is present and intended, it should display its own separate monthly renewal date — not your annual plan renewal date. 🆘 Still Seeing Unexpected Charges If you have reviewed your billing dashboard and are still unsure why a monthly charge is appearing, or if you were billed monthly in addition to your annual plan purchase and need it corrected, please reach out right away. If you need further assistance, open the chat widget in the bottom-right corner of the platform and type human teammate to be connected with a member of our team. Additional Notes Take a screenshot of the billing page and any charge amounts you want to dispute — this speeds up the correction process. Also: 'What a Correct Annual Plan Looks Like' section (plan label clearly marked as Annual) helps customers verify their setup is fixed.

💳 Payment Plans for Canada Annual Pro Billing

Overview This article explains the current availability of payment plans for Canadian customers on annual Pro and Summit plans and what to expect when contacting support about this topic. Canada Payment Plan Status If you are a Canadian customer asking about financing your annual Pro or Summit plan, payment plan availability for Canada annual billing is a known topic that our support team handles directly. At this time, no self-serve option is confirmed to be available at checkout for Canadian customers. Because the specifics of availability, timelines, and any account-level accommodations depend on factors our team reviews case by case, the most effective path is to escalate to a human teammate who can give you an accurate, up-to-date answer for your account. How to Get a Definitive Answer To get the most accurate information about payment plan availability for your Canadian account, please have the following ready before reaching out: - Your account email address - The specific plan you are interested in (Pro annual or Summit annual) - Your billing country confirmation (Canada) - Any previous communication you received regarding payment plan options If you need further assistance, open the chat widget in the bottom-right corner of the platform and type human teammate to be connected with a member of our team.

🎯 Understanding OTTO Sites Billing After Pro Upgrade

🎯 What's Included in Your Pro Plan When you upgrade to Search Atlas Pro, your plan includes 5 OTTO Sites at no additional cost. OTTO Sites are AI-powered landing pages that help you capture leads and drive conversions. If you need more than 5 OTTO Sites, you can purchase additional slots as an add-on for $85 per month per extra site. 💰 Why You Might Still See an Add-on Charge If you recently upgraded to Pro and notice a continued charge for OTTO Sites add-ons, it's likely due to one of these reasons: - Billing cycle timing: Your add-on charges may have been processed before your upgrade took effect. The charge will stop on your next billing date. - Duplicate billing: In rare cases, the system may not have immediately removed the add-on after your upgrade completed. This can be resolved quickly. - Using more than 5 OTTO Sites: If you have more than 5 OTTO Sites active, each additional site is charged at $85 per month. 🔍 How to Check Your OTTO Site Count To see how many OTTO Sites you're currently using and verify your billing: 1. Log into your Search Atlas account. 2. Navigate to OTTO SEO in the left sidebar. 3. Select All Sites (OTTO SEO Projects) from the menu. 4. Count the active OTTO Sites listed in your dashboard. 5. Go to your Avatar (top-right) > Billing to review your current plan and active add-ons. Compare the number of OTTO Sites you're using to your plan's included limit. If you're using 5 or fewer sites and still see an add-on charge, this indicates a billing issue that needs immediate attention. 🛠️ How to Stop Unwanted OTTO Sites Add-on Billing If you've upgraded to Pro and should no longer be charged for OTTO Sites add-ons, follow these steps: 1. Go to your Avatar (top-right) > Billing in your account. 2. Locate the OTTO Sites add-on in your active subscriptions. 3. On the Billing (Plans & Top-ups) page, review your active add-ons. Note that there is no Cancel Subscription or Remove Add-on button available here. 4. To stop the add-on charge, contact our team for assistance. If the add-on doesn't appear in your billing settings or you cannot remove it yourself, our team can help you immediately through the chat widget. ⚡ Troubleshooting Ad Creation Freezing If you're experiencing frozen or unresponsive ad creation while using OTTO Sites, try these steps: - Clear your browser cache and cookies: This resolves most performance issues. - Use a different browser: Test Chrome, Firefox, Safari, or Edge to rule out browser-specific problems. - Check your internet connection: A slow or unstable connection can cause the interface to freeze. - Disable browser extensions: Ad blockers and security tools sometimes interfere with the platform. - Ensure you're on the latest version: Always refresh the page or log out and back in. If ad creation continues to freeze after trying these steps, please reach out for support—our team can investigate further and may identify account-specific issues. 💡 Managing Your OTTO Sites Quota Your Pro plan comes with 5 included OTTO Sites. To manage your quota: - To add more sites: Purchase an additional OTTO Sites add-on from Avatar (top-right) > Billing (Plans & Top-ups) using the Add-on button. Each extra site costs $85 per month. - To reduce costs: Delete OTTO Sites you no longer need. Once deleted, you'll stop being charged for those slots on your next billing date. - To pause temporarily: You can unpublish OTTO Sites without deleting them. They won't generate charges, but you can reactivate them later. ❓ Frequently Asked Questions How long does it take for billing to update after I cancel an add-on? Add-on charges stop on your next billing date. You won't be charged again after cancellation is confirmed, but any already-processed charge for the current cycle cannot be reversed retroactively through the platform—our team can review this manually if needed. Can I downgrade from Pro to a lower plan? Yes. If you downgrade, you'll keep only the OTTO Sites included in your new plan. Any extra OTTO Sites will need to be deleted or converted to add-on charges. What if my Pro plan includes more than 5 OTTO Sites but I was only told about 5? All Pro plans include 5 OTTO Sites. If your plan states otherwise, or if you need clarification, our team can confirm your entitlements immediately. 📞 Need Help with Your Billing? If you've reviewed your billing and still have charges that shouldn't be there, or if you need help canceling OTTO Sites add-ons, our support team can resolve this in minutes. If you need further assistance, open the chat widget in the bottom-right corner of the platform and type human teammate to be connected with a member of our team.

⚡ Payment Processed But Plan Not Upgraded

🔍 What Happened In some cases, a plan upgrade payment is successfully charged but the new plan is not automatically applied to your account. You may notice your account still shows your previous plan (such as Starter), and attempting to upgrade again results in a stuck please wait message. This is a known billing issue that our engineering team has investigated and resolved on the platform side. ⚠️ What to Check First Before contacting support, verify the following: - Check your email inbox for a payment confirmation or receipt from Search Atlas. This confirms whether the charge was processed. - Log in to your account and navigate to the Billing section to review your billing history and confirm the charge appears in your invoices. - While in the Billing section, check your current plan details to see which plan is active on your account. If your billing history shows a successful payment but your active plan still reflects your old plan, your account has been affected by this issue. 🛠️ How This Gets Resolved When a payment is processed but the plan upgrade does not apply automatically, the account must be manually upgraded by a member of our support team on the backend. However, you can help speed up the process significantly by following these steps before reaching out: 1. Gather your payment confirmation. Locate the payment receipt in your email inbox or check your bank/card statement to confirm the charge amount and date. 2. Do not attempt to pay again. Submitting a second payment for the same upgrade may result in a duplicate charge. Our team will confirm your original payment and apply the correct plan without any additional charge to you. 3. Contact our support team (see below) and share the details listed in the next section. Provide your account email address, the plan you intended to upgrade to, the charge amount and date, and a screenshot or copy of your payment confirmation. Our team can typically verify the payment and apply your plan upgrade within the same conversation — no additional payment is needed. By having your payment details ready before you start the chat, our team can verify and apply your upgrade promptly — often resolving the issue in a single support interaction. 📋 What to Have Ready To help our team resolve this as quickly as possible, please have the following information available when you reach out: - The plan you intended to upgrade to (for example, Growth or Pro) - The amount charged and the approximate date and time of the payment - A screenshot or confirmation of the payment from your email or bank statement - Your account email address 💬 How to Get Help Because this fix requires a manual action on our backend, you will need to contact our support team directly. Once you have gathered the information listed above, reach out via the support chat available inside the platform. Share your payment confirmation details and account email address, and a support agent will manually apply your plan upgrade — typically within the same conversation. To connect with a member of our team, open the chat widget in the bottom-right corner of the platform and type human teammate. If you have any questions or need further assistance, please don't hesitate to reach out — we're happy to help.

💳 Switch From Annual to Monthly Billing

🔍 Overview Search Atlas subscriptions can be billed annually or monthly. If you would like to switch from an annual plan to a monthly plan, it is important to follow the correct order of steps — especially if you also need to update your payment card before your next renewal date. This article explains how the process works and what to expect. ⚠️ Important: Do This Before Updating Your Payment Card If you plan to both switch to monthly billing and update your payment card, always change your billing cycle first, before adding or updating your card. Updating your payment method before switching plans can trigger an unintended charge at the annual rate. Follow the steps below in the order shown to avoid this. 🛠️ How to Switch From Annual to Monthly Billing 1. Click your avatar in the top-right corner of the platform. 2. Select Billing from the dropdown menu. 3. Open the Plans & Top-ups tab. 4. Click Manage Subscription or Change Plan. 5. Select the monthly billing option for your current plan tier. 6. Review the summary, confirm the change, and save. Once confirmed, your subscription will switch to monthly billing at the start of your next billing period. You will not be charged immediately — the change takes effect when your current annual term ends. 💳 How to Update Your Payment Card After Switching After you have confirmed the billing cycle change, you can safely update your payment method: 1. Click your avatar in the top-right corner. 2. Select Billing, then open the Plans & Top-ups tab. 3. Click Add Payment Method and enter your new card details. 4. Save your changes. Your new card will be used for all future charges. 📊 What to Expect After the Switch - No immediate charge: Switching billing cycles does not generate a new charge right away. Your annual plan remains active until its expiration date. - Monthly billing begins: After your annual term ends, you will be billed monthly at the standard monthly rate for your plan. - Pricing difference: Monthly plans are typically priced higher per month than annual plans. Review the updated cost on the Plans & Top-ups page before confirming. - Invoices: All billing records are available under Billing → Invoices tab in your Avatar Menu (👤). ❓ Frequently Asked Questions Can I switch to monthly billing before updating my payment card? Yes — and this is the recommended order. Change your billing cycle first, then update your payment card. This prevents any risk of being charged at the wrong rate. Will I lose access to my current plan features when I switch? No. You retain full access to your current plan features until your annual term expires. The monthly billing simply takes over from that point forward. Can I switch back to annual billing later? Yes. You can change your billing cycle again at any time from the Plans & Top-ups tab. Annual plans may offer a discounted rate compared to monthly billing. 💬 Need Help? If you need further assistance, open the chat widget in the bottom-right corner of the platform and type human teammate to be connected with a member of our team.

🔧 Fixing Incorrect Charges After a Plan Upgrade

🔍 Overview When you upgrade your Search Atlas plan or make changes to your add-ons, your invoice should reflect only the correct prorated or new plan amount. In some cases, a billing error may result in a charge higher than expected after adjusting add-ons or changing your plan. This article explains what to do if you believe you have been incorrectly charged following a plan upgrade, and what to have ready when contacting our team. ⚠️ Common Causes of Incorrect Charges After an Upgrade Billing discrepancies during a plan upgrade can happen for a variety of reasons, including timing issues between plan changes and how charges are calculated. If the amount on your invoice does not match what you expected, it is worth reviewing your billing history and contacting our team for confirmation. 📋 What to Have Ready Before Contacting Support Because resolving an incorrect charge requires our billing team to investigate your account directly, there are no self-serve steps to issue a refund. To help us resolve your case as quickly as possible, please have the following information ready when you reach out: - Your account email address associated with your Search Atlas subscription. - The amount you were charged and the amount you expected to be charged. - The date the charge occurred and the date you upgraded your plan or made changes to your add-ons. - Any relevant invoice or transaction reference numbers from your payment method or confirmation emails. 💡 What Happens When a Billing Error Is Confirmed Once our billing team reviews your account and confirms that an error occurred, they will work to issue a refund for the difference between what was charged and what should have been charged. Refunds are returned to the original payment method used for the transaction. If you need further assistance, open the chat widget in the bottom-right corner of the platform and type human teammate to be connected with a member of our team.

💳 Resolve a Stuck Pro Upgrade Payment

🔎 What a stuck payment means If your Pro plan upgrade shows an error or the message “We’re still processing your payment”, the payment provider has not yet confirmed the transaction. Do not submit the payment repeatedly, as this can create duplicate charges. 🛠️ Check your billing status 1. Open the Avatar Menu (👤) from your avatar in the top-right corner. 2. Select Billing, then open the Plans & Top-ups tab. 3. Review your current plan and the status of the upgrade. 4. Open the Invoices tab to check whether an invoice was created or paid. 5. Open the Activity Log tab to review recent billing events. 💡 Try these safe troubleshooting steps - Wait a few minutes, then refresh the Billing page. Payment confirmation can occasionally be delayed. - Check that your payment method is valid and has sufficient available funds. - If needed, select Add Payment Method in Billing → Plans & Top-ups, then retry the upgrade once. - Use a stable internet connection and try again in a private or incognito browser window. - Do not retry if your invoice or bank statement already shows a successful charge. ✅ Confirm the upgrade After the payment is confirmed, return to Billing → Plans & Top-ups and verify that Pro is active. Check the Invoices tab for the completed transaction. If you were charged but your account still shows the previous plan, wait briefly and check again before making another payment. 🚨 When to contact support Contact support if the payment remains pending after a reasonable wait, you received an error after being charged, your account shows the wrong plan, or you see duplicate charges or invoices. Include the account email, approximate payment time, displayed error, and invoice details. Do not share full card numbers or security codes. If you need further assistance, open the chat widget in the bottom-right corner of the platform and type human teammate to be connected with a member of our team.

💳 Fix Billing Issues After Upgrading to PRO

🔍 Overview When you upgrade from a Growth plan to a PRO plan mid-billing cycle, Search Atlas calculates a prorated charge — meaning you only pay for the remaining days in your current cycle at the new plan rate. However, in some cases customers have reported that the proration did not correctly account for the amount already paid, or that their monthly rate appeared higher than expected. This article explains how upgrade billing works, what to check, and how to get a correction if something looks wrong. 📋 How Proration Works on a Plan Upgrade When you upgrade your plan partway through a billing cycle, here is what should happen: 1. Search Atlas calculates how many days remain in your current billing cycle. 2. It credits you for the unused portion of your Growth plan payment. 3. It charges you only for the remaining days at the PRO plan rate. 4. On your next renewal date, your full PRO plan monthly rate takes effect. For example, if your Growth plan costs $199/month and you upgrade 15 days into a 30-day cycle, you should receive a credit of roughly $99.50 for the unused Growth days. That credit is then applied against the prorated PRO charge — so you only pay the difference, not the full PRO amount on top of what you already paid. ⚠️ Common Billing Issues After Upgrading The following issues have been reported by customers after upgrading from Growth to PRO: - Previous payment not deducted: The prorated PRO charge appeared on the invoice without applying the credit for the already-paid Growth subscription days. - Incorrect monthly rate displayed: The plan page or invoice showed an unexpected rate (for example, $622/month) instead of the correct PRO plan price. - Quota not resetting after upgrade: Credits or usage quotas did not refresh to reflect the new PRO plan limits immediately after upgrading. - Points deducted but no content generated: Usage points were consumed by a task that failed to produce output, leaving the quota reduced without benefit. ✅ Steps to Take If Your Billing Looks Wrong 1. Check your invoice: Go to Avatar Menu (👤) (Avatar Menu (👤), top-right) → Billing → Invoices and review the most recent charge. Look for a credit line item that reflects your unused Growth plan days. If no credit appears, your billing may not have calculated correctly. 2. Verify your current plan rate: In the top-right avatar → Billing → Plans & Top-ups (Billing), confirm the monthly rate matches the PRO plan pricing shown on the Search Atlas pricing page. If the displayed rate is different, note the amount shown. 3. Check your quota usage: Click your avatar in the top-right corner, then go to Billing → Plans & Top-ups to see whether your PRO plan limits are active. If your quota still reflects Growth plan limits or shows usage from before your upgrade without a reset, that is a known issue our team can resolve. 4. Document the discrepancy: Before contacting support, note the date of your upgrade, the amount charged, the amount you expected to be charged, and any screenshots of your invoice or usage page. This speeds up the resolution. 5. Contact support via the chat widget: If you confirm a discrepancy, reach out immediately so our billing team can issue a correction or credit. See the section below for how to reach a human teammate. 🔄 What Happens to Points Used With No Output If your account was charged usage points for a task — such as a content generation request — but no content was actually produced, those points should be restored. This can happen due to a processing error or a system interruption during the task. Our support team can review the usage log for your account and reinstate the points that were deducted without a successful output. 📅 When Will My PRO Quota Reset? Your usage quota resets on your billing renewal date, not on the date you upgraded. If you upgraded mid-cycle, your first full PRO quota will be available at the start of your next billing cycle. If your quota did not increase to PRO limits immediately after upgrading, or if your renewal passed without a reset, contact support so the team can manually trigger the correct quota assignment for your account. 🛠️ Known Issues Already Resolved Our engineering team has already addressed several billing-related bugs, including: - Customers being charged at a Growth or Starter rate after upgrading to PRO. - Incorrect base prices being stored on Growth subscriptions, leading to wrong proration calculations. - Annual upgrade flows showing a Stripe checkout screen instead of updating the subscription directly. If your account was affected before these fixes were deployed, you may still see an incorrect historical charge. Our team can review and correct this retroactively. 💬 Get Help From Our Team If you need further assistance, open the chat widget in the bottom-right corner of the platform and type human teammate to be connected with a member of our team. When you reach out, please share: the date of your upgrade, the charge amount on your invoice, the rate you expected to be billed, and any screenshots of your billing or usage pages. This helps our team resolve your case as quickly as possible.

🐛 Fix Subscription Downgrade and Duplicate Billing Issues

🔍 Overview A known checkout bug can occasionally cause your subscription to switch from an annual plan to a monthly plan without your intent — sometimes resulting in duplicate charges or unexpected billing cycles. This article explains how to identify the issue and get it corrected by our team. ⚠️ Signs You May Be Affected - Your plan shows as monthly when you originally purchased an annual subscription. - You received a charge that does not match your expected billing amount or cycle. - Your invoice history shows two charges within a short time period. - Your auto-renewal date appears earlier than expected. 📊 Step 1: Review Your Current Plan and Billing Details Navigate to your account's billing or subscription section and check your active plan type and next renewal date. Review your recent invoice history to confirm whether any duplicate payments or unexpected charges appear. 🧾 Step 2: Identify the Discrepancy Compare what you currently see against your original purchase confirmation. Look for the following: - Plan type mismatch: If your current plan shows monthly but you purchased annual, a downgrade may have occurred during checkout. - Unexpected charge amount: A monthly plan is typically billed at a higher per-month rate than the prorated cost of an annual plan. - Duplicate charge: If you see two charges with similar amounts close together in your invoice history, both may need to be reviewed. 🚀 Step 3: Contact Support for a Correction Because billing corrections — including plan restoration and refunds for duplicate charges — require action from our billing team, you will need to reach out directly. Do not attempt to cancel and resubscribe manually, as this may create additional charges or reset your billing cycle incorrectly. When you connect with the team, have the following ready to speed up the resolution: - The date you originally purchased your annual plan. - The charge amounts and dates visible in your invoice history. - A screenshot of your current plan details (optional but helpful). 🔄 Step 4: Confirm the Fix Once our billing team has reviewed your account, they will restore your correct plan type and process any applicable refund for duplicate charges. Confirm that your plan type and next renewal date reflect the corrected annual subscription before closing the conversation. If you need further assistance, open the chat widget in the bottom-right corner of the platform and type human teammate to be connected with a member of our team.

🔍 Reduce OTTO Sites and Adjust Your Billing Plan

🧭 Overview OTTO sites are billed based on the number of sites allocated to your account, not just the ones actively using OTTO. If your current plan includes more OTTO site slots than you need, you can reduce your site count and adjust your billing plan to match your actual usage. This article walks you through how to do that. Important: Disengaging (deactivating) OTTO on a site does not reduce your OTTO bill or free the site's OTTO quota slot — the project stays counted. To free the slot, delete the project (freed right away) or use Deep Freeze (freed after 14 days). To stop a top-up charge, cancel the top-up in Billing → Services. ⚙️ Step 1 — Check How Many OTTO Sites You Have Active Before making any changes, confirm how many OTTO sites are currently activated on your account. 1. In the left sidebar, click OTTO SEO → SEO Automation (URL: /seo-automation-v3). 2. Review the list of sites that have OTTO activated. Each site shown with OTTO enabled counts toward your billed site total. 3. Identify any sites where OTTO is activated but no longer needed — these are the slots you can free up. 🛠️ Step 2 — Deactivate OTTO on Sites You No Longer Need To free up OTTO quota slots, you must delete the project (freed right away) or use Deep Freeze (freed after 14 days). Simply deactivating OTTO on a site does not free the slot or reduce your bill. 1. From the OTTO SEO → SEO Automation page, locate the site you want to remove from your OTTO quota. 2. Open the site and find the OTTO activation toggle or settings. 3. Delete the project to free the slot right away, or use Deep Freeze to free it after 14 days. Note: simply deactivating OTTO on a site does not free the slot. 4. Repeat for any additional sites you no longer need covered by OTTO. Important: Deactivating OTTO on a site stops the OTTO pixel from serving OTTO's changes for that site, though the project's settings, recommendations and history are retained for later reactivation. Note that any changes written directly into the site's CMS are not served by the pixel. Make sure you no longer need OTTO managing that site before proceeding. 📊 Step 3 — Downgrade Your OTTO Sites Plan Once you have deactivated OTTO on the relevant sites, you can adjust your billing plan to reflect the lower number of sites. 1. Click your Avatar (top-right) → Billing (Plans & Top-ups tab). 2. Locate the OTTO SEO section, which displays your current quota (shown as 'Total Quota X / Y') and the number of sites in use. 3. Select the option to downgrade or reduce your OTTO sites allocation. 4. Choose the plan tier or site count that matches your actual usage — for example, if you now only use 6 sites, select a 6-site plan. 5. Confirm the change. Your billing will be updated to reflect the new, lower site count at your next billing cycle. Note: You cannot downgrade your OTTO sites count below the number of sites that currently have OTTO active. Always deactivate OTTO on unused sites first (Step 2) before attempting to reduce your quota. 💡 Why Am I Being Billed for More Sites Than I Use? Your bill is based on the number of OTTO site slots allocated to your account, not just sites where OTTO is actively doing work. If you previously added extra site capacity — for example, through a top-up or plan upgrade — those slots remain billed until you explicitly reduce your quota. Common reasons this happens include: - A site was added to OTTO during testing and never deactivated. - A top-up was purchased for a temporary project and not cancelled afterward (top-ups must be cancelled in Billing → Services to stop the charge). - A previous plan included more OTTO sites than your current needs require. Reviewing your active OTTO sites regularly and keeping your quota aligned with actual usage is the best way to avoid unexpected charges. ❓ Frequently Asked Questions Will I lose any data if I deactivate OTTO on a site? Your site's historical data and Search Atlas account information are retained. However, OTTO will stop managing optimisations for that site, and any active OTTO tasks will be paused. When will my billing reflect the downgrade? Plan changes typically take effect at the start of your next billing cycle. You will not usually receive a refund for the current period, but you will stop being charged for the reduced slots going forward. Can I add sites back later? Yes. You can upgrade your OTTO sites quota at any time from Avatar (top-right) → Billing (Plans & Top-ups tab) if your needs change. 💬 Need Help? If you need further assistance, open the chat widget in the bottom-right corner of the platform and type human teammate to be connected with a member of our team.

🔧 Reduce OTTO Sites and Adjust Your Billing

🧾 Understanding OTTO Sites and Top-Ups Your base Search Atlas plan includes a set number of OTTO sites. If you need more sites than your plan allows, you can purchase top-ups — each top-up adds one additional active OTTO site to your account. For example, if your base plan includes 5 OTTO sites and you purchased 2 top-ups, your total is 7 active sites. If you are only using 6, you are paying for one top-up you do not need. Removing that top-up will reduce your billing accordingly. ✅ Before You Start: Check Your Active Sites Before requesting a top-up removal, confirm how many OTTO sites are currently active on your account so you do not accidentally reduce below your actual usage. 1. Navigate to the OTTO or OTTO SEO section of the platform. 2. Review the list of sites that have OTTO activated. Count only the sites with an active OTTO status. 3. Make a note of this number — this is the minimum number of sites your plan must support after the adjustment. 🛠️ How to Remove an OTTO Site Top-Up Reducing your OTTO site top-ups and adjusting your billing plan requires assistance from our support team. This is not currently available as a fully self-service action. To get this resolved, have the following information ready before reaching out: - The name of your project or account as it appears in Search Atlas. - The number of OTTO sites currently active (from your count above). - The number of top-ups you want to remove and the resulting total you want to keep. Once you contact support with these details, our team can reduce your OTTO site count and adjust your billing plan accordingly. 📊 How Top-Ups Map to Extra Sites The table below explains how top-ups translate to additional OTTO sites above your base plan allowance: - 0 top-ups: You use only the sites included in your base plan. - 1 top-up: 1 extra site beyond your base plan allowance. - 2 top-ups: 2 extra sites beyond your base plan allowance. Each top-up is billed individually, so removing one top-up reduces your bill by the per-top-up rate. Always ensure the number of active top-ups is equal to or greater than the number of sites that exceed your base plan limit — otherwise, OTTO may be deactivated on one or more sites. If you need further assistance, open the chat widget in the bottom-right corner of the platform and type human teammate to be connected with a member of our team.

❓ Does Downgrading My Plan Affect My Wildfire Backlinks?

If you have questions about how a plan downgrade may affect your Wildfire backlinks, this is something our team needs to review on a case-by-case basis. The interaction between plan changes and active backlinks depends on account-specific details that require manual investigation. What To Have Ready Before Reaching Out To help our team resolve your situation as quickly as possible, please have the following information ready when you contact us: - Your project name and Search Atlas account email - The date on which the plan downgrade took place - The specific backlink URLs that you believe have been affected - A description of the issue you are seeing (e.g., backlinks showing as inactive, quota discrepancies, unexpected changes) Next Steps Once you reach out, a member of our team will review your account, check the status of your Wildfire backlinks in relation to your current plan, and advise you on the best path forward — whether that involves restoring links, adjusting your plan, or another resolution. If you need further assistance, open the chat widget in the bottom-right corner of the platform and type human teammate to be connected with a member of our team.

⬇️ How to Downgrade Your Subscription Before Billing

⬇️ Overview If you need to reduce the number of sites on your Search Atlas subscription — for example, moving down to a 2-site package — you can request a downgrade before your next billing date. Acting quickly is important: changes must be processed before your renewal date to avoid being charged at your current plan rate. 📋 Before You Begin Check the following before requesting your downgrade: - Know your billing date. You can find this in your account under the top-right Avatar Menu (👤) → Billing. If your billing date is tomorrow, submit your request immediately. - Remove projects you no longer need. Ensure you have only the sites you want to keep active. Removing extra projects before the downgrade prevents data conflicts. - Understand what changes. Downgrading to a 2-site package means any projects beyond the new limit must be removed or archived prior to the plan change taking effect. 🛠️ How to Request a Downgrade Search Atlas subscription downgrades are handled by the support team to ensure your billing is adjusted correctly. Follow these steps: 1. Log in to your Search Atlas account. 2. Open the chat widget in the bottom-right corner of the platform. 3. Type human teammate to be connected with a member of our team. 4. Let the team member know: - The package you want to downgrade to (e.g., 2-site plan) - Your current billing date - Which projects you want to keep active 5. The team member will confirm the change and ensure it is applied before your billing date. ⏰ Timing Is Critical Downgrade requests submitted on the same day as your billing date may not be processed in time to prevent a charge at your current plan rate. If your billing date is tomorrow or very soon: - Contact support right away — do not wait. - Clearly state that your billing date is imminent so the team can prioritise your request. - Keep a record of your chat conversation as confirmation that the request was submitted before the billing date. 💡 What Happens After the Downgrade Once your downgrade is confirmed by the support team: - Your account will be updated to the 2-site plan at the start of your next billing cycle. - You will be charged the lower plan rate on your next renewal date. - Any projects beyond the 2-site limit that were not removed may be archived automatically — ensure you back up any important data beforehand. - Features or limits tied to your previous higher-tier plan (such as keyword tracking volume or additional users) will adjust to match the new plan. ❓ Frequently Asked Questions Can I downgrade mid-cycle and get a refund for the difference? Refund eligibility for mid-cycle downgrades depends on your billing terms. Ask the support team when you submit your request and they will advise you on your specific situation. Can I upgrade again later? Yes. You can upgrade your plan at any time from the top-right Avatar Menu (👤) → Billing or by contacting support via the chat widget. What if I only want to remove one site but keep my current plan? You can remove individual projects from your dashboard without changing your subscription. Go to Projects, select the project you want to remove, and delete it. Your plan and billing remain unchanged. 🆘 Need Help? If you need further assistance, open the chat widget in the bottom-right corner of the platform and type human teammate to be connected with a member of our team.

💡 OTTO Site Downgrade and Plan Billing Trade-offs

🔍 Overview If you want to reduce the number of OTTO website seats on your account back down to your plan's default allocation — this article explains how seat reductions work, what happens to your billing, and what to consider before making changes. ⚙️ Understanding OTTO Website Seats OTTO seats determine how many websites you can actively manage with OTTO SEO automation. When you add extra OTTO sites beyond your plan's default allocation, those additional seats are billed as add-ons on top of your base plan cost. - Default seats: Each plan includes a set number of OTTO sites, and this varies by tier. The Growth Plan, for example, includes two OTTO sites (projects) by default. - Add-on seats: Any sites added beyond your plan's default are charged as separate line items on your subscription. - Removing seats: Deactivating or deleting an OTTO site releases its slot, but it does not automatically cancel the recurring add-on (top-up) charge. The top-up must be cancelled separately from your billing settings. 💡 Can I Stay on the Growth Plan With Only Two OTTO Sites? Yes. Downgrading your OTTO site seats does not require you to downgrade your overall plan. You can remain on the Growth Plan and simply remove the extra OTTO site seats you no longer need. Your plan features, limits, and pricing will stay the same — only the add-on seat charges will be removed. This is the recommended approach if your goal is purely to reduce costs related to extra OTTO sites, without losing access to any Growth Plan features. 📊 Billing Impact of Removing OTTO Seats Before removing seats, it is important to understand how the billing change takes effect: - Prorated credits: Depending on where you are in your billing cycle, you may receive a prorated credit toward your next invoice when seats are removed. - Immediate vs. end-of-cycle changes: Seat reductions typically take effect at the end of your current billing period. The extra sites will remain active until that date. - No refunds for mid-cycle removal: Seat charges already billed for the current cycle are generally not refunded. The reduction applies from the next renewal date. 🛠️ How to Reduce Your OTTO Website Seats 1. Navigate to OTTO SEO in the left sidebar, then open SEO Automation (or go to /seo-automation-v3). 2. Review the OTTO sites currently active on your account and identify which ones you want to remove. 3. Deactivate OTTO on the sites you no longer wish to manage. This disconnects OTTO automation from those sites. 4. To stop the recurring add-on charge, click your Avatar Menu (👤) → Billing → Services, find the OTTO top-up, open the ⋮ menu, and choose Cancel. Note that top-ups are also cancelled automatically when your main plan's cancellation takes effect at the end of the billing period. Deep Freeze does not cancel the top-up. 5. If the seat count or billing amount does not reflect your changes, use the chat widget to confirm the update has been applied correctly. ⚠️ Important Considerations Before Downgrading Seats - Active OTTO deployments: Deleting a site will stop OTTO automation for that site and release the slot, but the recurring top-up charge will continue until cancelled separately. Any changes OTTO has already deployed will remain on the site, but no new automated actions will occur. - Reconnecting later: If you remove a site seat and later want to re-add it, you will need to purchase the seat again at the current add-on price, which may differ from what you originally paid. - Multiple sites on one domain: Make sure you are deactivating OTTO on the correct property. Check the site list in OTTO SEO V3 carefully before making changes. - Plan seat limit: Once you return to your plan's default seat allocation, adding any new OTTO sites will again be treated as add-ons and billed accordingly. 💬 Need Help With Your Specific Account? Seat and billing changes can vary depending on your subscription start date, billing cycle, and any custom plan terms. If you need further assistance, open the chat widget in the bottom-right corner of the platform and type human teammate to be connected with a member of our team.

🔧 Troubleshooting Plan Downgrade Billing Errors

🔍 Why Downgrade Billing Errors Occur When you downgrade your Search Atlas subscription plan, billing discrepancies can occur for a few common reasons: - Prorated charges: If your billing cycle was already in progress when you downgraded, you may see a prorated charge for the time spent on the higher-tier plan before the downgrade took effect. - Timing of the downgrade: Downgrades typically take effect at the end of the current billing period, so a final charge at the original plan rate is expected before the new, lower rate applies. - Promotional codes or credits not applied: If a discount or credit was expected but did not appear on the invoice, this can cause the charge to look higher than anticipated. - Duplicate or overlapping charges: In rare cases, a system delay may result in an overlapping charge between the old and new plan. Understanding the likely cause of the discrepancy will help you resolve it faster, either on your own or with team support. 🛠️ Steps to Review and Resolve the Charge 1. Log in to your Search Atlas account and navigate to your billing or subscription settings to confirm which plan is currently active and what charges are listed. 2. Compare the charge on your invoice against the plan pricing for both the plan you downgraded from and the plan you downgraded to. Check whether the amount reflects a prorated charge or a full billing-cycle charge at the old rate. 3. Check your billing date and downgrade date. If your downgrade was initiated mid-cycle, a prorated charge for the remainder of that cycle is expected and correct. 4. Verify whether any promotional codes or credits were applied. If a credit is missing, note the code or credit name and the amount you expected to see. 5. Review the invoice number and billing date for the charge in question and keep this information available. 💬 If the Issue Persists If the charge does not match a prorated amount, a final cycle at the old rate, or any other expected billing event, the issue may require manual review by our team. When escalating, have the following ready: - The invoice number or billing record showing the charge - The charge amount and billing date - The date you initiated the plan downgrade - The plan you downgraded from and the plan you downgraded to - Any promotional codes or credits that should have been applied but were not reflected If you need further assistance, open the chat widget in the bottom-right corner of the platform and type human teammate to be instantly connected with a member of our team.

📅 Annual Subscription Renewals and Mid-Year Plan Changes

📋 Annual Renewal Dates, Upgrades, and Downgrades If you have questions about how your annual renewal date is calculated, how a mid-year plan upgrade or downgrade affects your billing, or how proration is applied to your account, our support team can look into the specifics of your subscription and provide accurate details. Because billing policies — including how renewal dates are set, when plan changes take effect, and whether prorated charges or credits apply — can vary depending on your account and subscription terms, we are not able to confirm the exact rules here. Our team will be able to review your account directly and give you a precise answer. How to Get Help with Your Billing or Plan Change When you reach out, please have the following ready so our team can assist you as quickly as possible: - Your account or project name - Your current plan and the plan you are considering changing to (if applicable) - Your billing start date or renewal date (visible in your account settings or on any invoice you have received) - The specific question or action you need help with — for example, understanding your renewal date, requesting an upgrade, or requesting a downgrade If you need further assistance, open the chat widget in the bottom-right corner of the platform and type human teammate to be connected with a member of our team.