GitHub · Billing system eligibility
GitHub Copilot: AI Credits or Premium Requests?
This page answers which metering system applies to your Copilot contract. Current usage limits, reset clocks, and exhaustion behavior stay on the usage-limits guide.
Direct answer
Which system applies to my Copilot plan?
- Current standard
- Fact As of June 1, 2026, current monthly and new standard Copilot plans use GitHub AI Credits (1 credit = $0.01).
- Remaining exception
- Fact GitHub still documents remaining annual Copilot Pro and Pro+ subscribers who stayed on legacy premium request-based billing after June 1, 2026.
- Not historical everywhere
- Derived Premium requests are historical for new and current monthly plans. They remain current for that remaining annual cohort until the annual plan ends.
- When the annual plan ends
- Fact GitHub says keeping the annual plan continues premium-request tracking until it ends, then the account is automatically downgraded to Copilot Free unless you resubscribe or upgrade to a monthly paid plan.
- Last verified
- Sep 7, 2026, 6:30 PM UTC
How to identify which system applies
- If you started a monthly Pro, Pro+, or Max plan, or you are on Copilot Free, Business, or Enterprise: use GitHub AI Credits.
- If you still have an existing annual Copilot Pro or Pro+ plan that remained on request-based billing after June 1, 2026: GitHub says premium requests still apply until that annual plan ends.
- Check GitHub billing / the Copilot usage view. A premium-request dashboard is expected only for that remaining annual cohort. Current monthly plans show AI Credits.
Unknown — account-dependent TraceCheck cannot see your contract. Remaining premium-request balances are account-specific.
Worked eligibility examples
| Scenario | Applies | What does not apply |
|---|---|---|
| New monthly Copilot Pro subscriber | Fact GitHub AI Credits. Pro includes 1,500 monthly credits (1,000 base + 500 flex). | Premium-request units are not the current pool. |
| Remaining annual Pro or Pro+ plan that stayed on request-based billing after June 1, 2026 | Fact Premium requests, with model multipliers, until that annual plan ends. | GitHub does not say this cohort is already on AI Credits. |
| That annual plan reaches its end and you take no action | Fact Automatic downgrade to Copilot Free. | GitHub does not document an automatic conversion onto a paid monthly AI Credits plan. |
| Copilot Business or Enterprise seat | Fact Organization AI Credits, pooled at the billing entity. See organization credit pooling. | Do not copy individual Pro credit totals or premium-request tables into org seats. |
What changed, and what did not
- Changed: On June 1, 2026 GitHub replaced request-based billing with usage-based GitHub AI Credits for the current standard system.
- Changed: Current individual paid plans publish base + flex AI Credit allotments that reset on calendar month day 1 at 00:00:00 UTC.
- Did not change for the remaining annual cohort: GitHub still documents premium request units plus model multipliers until that annual plan ends.
- Did not change: Paid code completions and next edit suggestions are not billed as AI Credits on current paid plans.
Current vs historical terminology
| Term | Status | Applies to |
|---|---|---|
| GitHub AI Credits | Current standard | Monthly/new individual plans, Free, Business, Enterprise |
| Premium request unit (PRU) | Current only for a remaining cohort; otherwise historical | Remaining annual Pro/Pro+ on request-based billing after June 1, 2026 |
| Model multiplier on premium requests | Legacy billing model | That same remaining annual cohort |
Freshness
Named sources: GitHub “What changed with Copilot billing (legacy)”, individual usage-based billing, and Plans for GitHub Copilot. Effective date for the standard AI Credits system: June 1, 2026. Review trigger: a change to those official billing articles, or GitHub ending the remaining annual request-based cohort.
Last verified Sep 7, 2026, 6:30 PM UTC