Credits explained

What a credit is

A credit is VestaCreate's internal currency. One credit is one dollar at purchase. Fans buy credits in packs, from $10 for 10 credits up to $1000 for 1000, and the credits sit in their account until they spend them.

Fans can spend credits instantly on:

• Tips
• Pay-per-view unlocks, where you have set a credit price
• Subscriptions
• Paid messages, if you charge per message or per conversation

Credits are optional on both sides. Fans can still pay you directly through your own payment links, and you decide where you accept credits. Many creators run both: direct links for fans who prefer them, credits for everyone who wants a one-tap purchase.

Why fans like them

Fans buy a pack once, with one transaction on their card, and then spend across the site without entering payment details again. That removes friction at the exact moment they are deciding whether to tip or unlock. It also means the card transaction is a credit pack from VestaCreate, not a separate charge every time they buy from you.

For impulse purchases, which is what most tips and unlocks are, lower friction means more completed sales.

What creators receive

When a fan spends credits on you, those credits appear in your balance. You cash them out at 75 cents per credit. So a 20-credit unlock pays you $15, and a 100-credit tip pays you $75.

The rules around cash-out:

• A 7-day hold applies from when the credits were earned before they can be cashed out
• Minimum cash-out is 20 credits ($15)
• Maximum is 1000 credits per week
• Payment goes to the payout method you have chosen in your settings

The 25 percent difference covers card processing, chargeback exposure, fraud handling and the cost of running the credit system. Whether that is worth it to you depends on how much friction your direct links add and how many sales you lose to it. Direct payments through your own links remain free of any VestaCreate cut, so you are never pushed into credits.

Deciding what to price in credits

A reasonable starting point:

• Tips: accept credits. Tips are impulse purchases, and the one-tap matters most.
• Pay-per-view: price in credits for lower-cost posts where a quick unlock matters, and consider direct payment for high-ticket items.
• Messages: credits are the natural fit, since the whole point is a small charge per interaction.
• Subscriptions: offer credits alongside direct payment and see which your fans prefer.

You can change any of this whenever you like, and the right mix shows up in your numbers within a month or two.