Understanding FastPix billing
Understand FastPix's transparent, usage-based pricing for video encoding, storage, streaming, transformations, cloud playout, and DRM.
FastPix uses transparent, usage-based pricing that scales with your video needs. You pay only for what you use across three core areas: encoding, storage, and streaming.
How billing works
FastPix measures all usage in minutes rather than gigabytes. This approach makes costs predictable and easy to understand. When you upload a video or stream content to viewers, you're billed based on the actual minutes of video processed, stored, and delivered.
The three billing components
Encoding
When you upload a video or start a live stream, FastPix encodes your content into streaming-ready formats. This process includes transcoding your video into adaptive HLS renditions, normalizing audio, extracting metadata, and generating thumbnails.
FastPix offers three encoding quality tiers:
- Standard: Free encoding at all resolutions (up to 4K), ideal for MVPs, user-generated content platforms, and internal tools.
- Pro: Paid encoding with greater control over processing workflows, designed for branded video platforms, e-learning content, and mid-scale OTT platforms.
- Premium: Optimized for high-fidelity content like film production, sports broadcasting, and 4K/HDR delivery.
Storage
After encoding, FastPix stores your videos as ready-to-stream assets. The platform uses single-master storage with just-in-time streaming, meaning you store only one copy of each video instead of multiple resolutions.
Storage includes the master encoded file, metadata, captions, thumbnails, audio tracks, and subtitles. The first 30 days of storage are included by default. After that, you're billed per minute per month, prorated daily.
Streaming
When someone watches your video, FastPix delivers it through adaptive HTTP streaming (HLS) using a global CDN. Each stream adapts dynamically to the viewer's network speed and device.
You're billed per minute of video delivered to viewers. For example, if 100 people each watch a 10-minute video, that's 1,000 minutes of streaming usage.
Pricing tables
Encoding rates per minute
| Tier | Up to 720p | 1080p | 2K (1440p) | 4K (2160p) |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Standard | Free | Free | Free | Free |
| Pro | $0.021375/min | $0.026719/min | $0.042750/min | $0.085500/min |
| Premium | $0.032400/min | $0.040500/min | $0.064800/min | $0.129600/min |
Audio-only files are billed at 10% of the 1080p rate.
Storage rates per minute per month
| Tier | Up to 720p | 1080p | 2K (1440p) | 4K (2160p) |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Standard | $0.002150/min | $0.002688/min | $0.004301/min | $0.008602/min |
| Pro | $0.002150/min | $0.002688/min | $0.004301/min | $0.008602/min |
| Premium | $0.003226/min | $0.004032/min | $0.006451/min | $0.012902/min |
Audio-only assets are billed at 10% of the 1080p rate.
Streaming rates per minute
| Tier | Up to 720p | 1080p | 2K (1440p) | 4K (2160p) |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Standard | $0.000543/min | $0.000679/min | $0.001086/min | $0.002173/min |
| Pro | $0.000543/min | $0.000679/min | $0.001086/min | $0.002173/min |
| Premium | $0.000823/min | $0.001029/min | $0.001646/min | $0.003293/min |
Audio-only delivery is billed at 10% of the 1080p rate.
Plans
Your plan determines what's included each month and which features you can access. Your usage determines what you pay beyond the included credits.
Free plan
The Free plan includes:
- Up to 10 videos encoded and stored
- Up to 100,000 minutes of streaming
- Up to 300 minutes of auto-generated subtitles
- Up to 300 minutes of NSFW/profanity detection
- Up to 30 minutes of live streaming
This plan is ideal for developers experimenting with FastPix or creating proofs of concept.
Starter plan
The Starter plan costs $10/month and includes:
- Unlimited access to on-demand and live videos
- All APIs and SDKs
- Security features
- Transformation tools
- In-video AI features
- Add-ons like DRM and simulcasting
- $25 in free usage credits each month
- Developer support
After you use the $25 credit, standard usage-based pricing applies.
Enterprise plan
The Enterprise plan is designed for organizations running video at scale. It includes:
- Custom plan tailored to your usage pattern
- Volume discounts as your consumption increases
- Usage-based billing starting at $2,500/month
- Custom features and integrations
- 24/7 premium support with priority response
This plan is ideal for broadcasters, OTT platforms, and enterprises that need reliability and flexibility.
Billing cycle
A billing cycle is the recurring period between billing statements, determining when you're charged for services. FastPix uses a consistent billing cycle to make your payments predictable and easy to track.
When you sign up for FastPix, your organization’s billing cycle starts on your signup date and ends on the same date in the following month. For example, if you sign up on October 15, your billing cycle ends on November 14.
If you sign up on October 29, 30, or 31, your billing cycle ends on November 28. This keeps your billing date consistent on the 28th of every month.
All subsequent billing cycles then run from the 28th of one month to the 28th of the next month.
Prorated charges
Prorated charges mean you're billed proportionally for a partial period of service, not the full cycle. This ensures fairness when you start or change a plan mid-cycle. You pay only for the days you actually use the service.
For example, if a plan costs $100/month and you sign up on the 15th of a month with 30 days, you're charged approximately $50 for those 15 days of service in your first partial billing period.
Video transformations
FastPix transformations let you modify videos programmatically. These operations include clipping, merging, adding audio tracks, overlays, or subtitles.
How transformation billing works
Transformation billing depends on the processed duration—the total amount of video or audio that FastPix reads and re-encodes during the operation.
Transformation billing examples
| Operation | How billing is calculated | Example |
|---|---|---|
| Intro | Processes both intro and main video | 30-second intro + 10-minute video = 10.5 minutes billed |
| Outro | Processes both main video and outro | 10-minute video + 30-second outro = 10.5 minutes billed |
| Intro + Outro | Processes all clips combined | 30-second intro + 10-minute video + 30-second outro = 11 minutes billed |
| Overlay Audio | Processes the overlay duration | 3-minute overlay = 3 minutes billed |
| Splicing | Processes all videos being combined | Merging 5-minute + 7-minute + 8-minute videos = 20 minutes billed |
| Add Audio Track | Reprocesses entire video duration | 10-minute video = 10 minutes billed |
| Add Subtitles | Reprocesses entire video duration | 10-minute video = 10 minutes billed |
| Delete Track | Reprocesses entire video duration | 10-minute video = 10 minutes billed |
| Swap Tracks | Reprocesses entire video duration | 10-minute video = 10 minutes billed |
| Remove Segment | Reprocesses full source video | Removing 2 minutes from 10-minute video → 10 minutes processed |
| Generate Subtitles | Analyzes and transcribes entire video | 10-minute video = 10 minutes billed |
| Clipping | Processes only the clipped segment | Clipping 1-minute segment from 10-minute video = 1 minute billed |
| Optimize Audio | Reprocesses entire video duration | 10-minute video = 10 minutes billed |
Cloud playout
Cloud playout lets you create and manage 24/7 linear streaming channels that broadcast your video content continuously, similar to traditional TV channels. You can schedule videos, create playlists, and deliver a live streaming experience without manual intervention.
Cloud playout pricing
| Component | Rate | Description |
|---|---|---|
| Platform access fee | $1,000/month | One-time monthly fee to enable cloud playout on your account, including access to playout infrastructure, scheduling tools, and management APIs |
| Per-channel fee | $100/month | Monthly fee for each channel you create and manage |
Cloud playout pricing examples
| Channels managed | Free channels | Billable channels | Platform fee | Channel fees | Total monthly cost |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 channel | 1 | 0 | $1,000 | $0 | $1,000 |
| 3 channels | 1 | 2 | $1,000 | $200 | $1,200 |
| 5 channels | 1 | 4 | $1,000 | $400 | $1,400 |
| 10 channels | 1 | 9 | $1,000 | $900 | $1,900 |
What's included in cloud playout
When you enable cloud playout, you get:
- 1 free channel included
- 24/7 automated linear streaming
- Video scheduling and playlist management
- Channel creation and configuration tools
- API access for programmatic channel control
- Support for multiple concurrent channels
- Integration with your existing video library
The encoding and streaming costs for cloud playout channels follow the same per-minute rates as live streaming based on your selected tier and resolution.
Digital Rights Management (DRM)
FastPix offers DRM support using Widevine, FairPlay, and PlayReady encryption standards. Your videos are encrypted at upload or during playback and can only be decrypted by authorized players.
DRM pricing
DRM pricing has two components:
- Subscription fee: $100/month for access to the DRM infrastructure, including encryption keys, secure playback APIs, and license management tools.
- Per-license fee: $0.006 per license issued.
A DRM license is an encrypted key file that allows a specific device to decrypt and play your video. Each playback session that successfully retrieves a key counts as one license.
DRM pricing examples
| Use case | Monthly license volume | Estimated cost |
|---|---|---|
| Small app | 5,000 DRM video plays | $119 |
| Mid-scale OTT app | 100,000 DRM video plays | $499 |
| Large broadcaster | 1,000,000 DRM video plays | $4,099 |
Video Data Analytics
FastPix provides a real-time data layer that gives you insights into video performance, viewer engagement, and playback quality. The Video Data platform helps you monitor playback metrics, track viewer behavior, and diagnose issues across your video infrastructure.
Video Data pricing plans
FastPix offers three Video Data plans designed to scale with your analytics needs:
Free Plan
The Free plan includes:
- 100,000 data views per month (included)
- 30 days of data retention
- Multi-metric overview dashboard with views logs and error logs
- Multi-filter analysis dashboard
- Passable and custom metadata dimensions
- Two filtering levels
- Up to 25 team members
- Email and Slack support
Growth Plan
The Growth plan costs $299/month and includes:
- 1 million data views per month (included)
- Additional views at $0.50 per 1,000 views
- 100 days of data retention
- Everything in the Free plan
- Full suite of APIs and SDKs to build custom dashboards
- Four filtering levels
- Ten custom metadata dimensions
- Up to 25 team members
- Email and Slack support
Enterprise Plan
The Enterprise plan offers custom pricing and includes:
- Custom data view volume
- Custom data retention period
- Beta features and collaboration tools
- Deeper volume discounts
- Consulting services
- Four or more filtering levels
- Ten or more custom metadata dimensions
- Custom team size
- Email and Slack support
- Service Level Agreements (SLAs)
What's included in Video Data
All Video Data plans include:
- High-level monitoring dashboard: At-a-glance trends and in-depth metrics with APIs to access your data
- Audience engagement metrics: Views, unique viewers, and playing time measurements
- Play view metrics: Playback failures, video startup time, viewer experience scores, and more
- Detailed view inspection: Visualize individual video views with playback timelines, errors, player events, and metadata
- Failure metrics: Measurements of playback issues including startup failures, stalls, and fatal errors
- Failure tracking: Specific error identification to help diagnose where streams fail
- Metrics APIs: Real-time data on views and unique viewers for integration with your applications
- Custom domains: Send video view data to your own custom domain
- Web, mobile, and OTT SDKs: Integrations for all major video players and platforms
Supported video players
FastPix Video Data integrates with lightweight client-side SDKs for every major video player, including:
- FastPix Player
- HLS.js
- Shaka Player
- ExoPlayer (Android)
- AVPlayer (iOS)
- Media3
- Video.js
- DASH.js
- React Native Video
- Better Player (Flutter)
Coming soon features
Future Video Data features include:
- Viewer ID tracking
- Anomaly error alerts
- Additional metrics and dimensions
- CSV exports
- Video view streaming exports
- Custom dashboards with persistent multi-metric views
Key points to remember
- You're billed only for what you use across encoding, storage, and streaming.
- All usage is measured in minutes, not gigabytes.
- Storage billing begins after the first 30 days.
- Audio-only content is billed at 10% of the 1080p rate.
- Live streaming follows the same pricing as on-demand playback.
- Transformation costs depend on how many total minutes of video are processed, not just the final output length.
- Video Data analytics are priced separately based on data views and retention needs.
Frequently asked questions
How do I estimate my monthly costs?
To estimate your costs, calculate your expected usage across three areas:
Encoding: Multiply the total minutes of video you plan to upload by the encoding rate for your chosen tier and resolution.
Storage: Multiply the total minutes stored by the storage rate. Remember that the first 30 days are free.
Streaming: Multiply the expected total minutes delivered to viewers by the streaming rate.
Add these three amounts together to get your estimated monthly cost. If you're on the Starter plan, subtract the $25 monthly credit.
How is storage billed if I delete a video mid-month?
Storage is prorated daily, so you're only charged for the days a video remains in your account. If you upload a video on the 1st and delete it on the 15th, you're billed for 15 days of storage, not the full month. This prorated billing applies only after the first 30 days of free storage.
Do I get charged for video uploads that fail or videos I preview?
You're charged for encoding only when FastPix successfully processes your video. Failed uploads that don't complete encoding aren't billed. For previews, if the system generates adaptive renditions for playback, that counts as encoding usage.
Can I use live streaming on the Free plan?
Yes, you can use live streaming on the Free plan. Unlike other platforms, FastPix doesn't restrict live streaming to paid plans. The Free plan includes up to 30 minutes of live streaming. Each live broadcast minute is billed just like on-demand video by minute and resolution after you exceed the free tier limits.
What's the difference between Standard, Pro, and Premium encoding tiers?
The encoding tiers differ in quality and cost:
Standard: Offers free encoding at all resolutions with full feature support. Best for projects where encoding cost is a constraint.
Pro: Provides paid encoding with greater control over processing workflows and higher consistency across complex content. Ideal for platforms that prioritize playback quality at scale.
Premium: Delivers maximum visual fidelity across every frame, optimized for 4K, HDR, and high-stakes playback environments like film production and sports broadcasting.
All tiers support the same resolutions (up to 4K), but Premium offers the highest quality output.
Can I switch plans, and how does that affect my pricing?
You can switch between plans at any time. When you upgrade from the Free plan to the Starter plan, your usage transitions seamlessly without any migration or new setup. You start receiving the $25 monthly credit and gain access to all platform features immediately. If you upgrade to the Enterprise plan, your pricing adjusts based on your negotiated custom terms, which typically include volume discounts. The per-minute pricing model remains the same across all plans—only your included credits, usage limits, and support level change. Your existing videos and configurations stay intact during the switch, and you're billed according to your new plan from the date of the change.
How is Video Data pricing different from video streaming pricing?
Video Data pricing is separate from encoding, storage, and streaming costs. Video Data charges are based on data views (the number of playback sessions monitored) rather than minutes of video. Each time a viewer watches a video and the system collects analytics data, that counts as one data view. The Free plan includes 100,000 data views per month, while the Growth plan includes 1 million views per month at $299/month.
Get help
- Read the complete FastPix documentation guides
- Join the FastPix community discussions
- Contact FastPix support
Updated about 7 hours ago