Verified decision guide
Kiro Upgrade vs Add-on Credits: Break-even Costs
Compare full-month incremental plan prices with Kiro add-on credits, including break-even quantities, expiry, and documented upgrade billing conditions.
Direct answer · Derived purchase comparison
Compare the extra credits you will use in the same month
For an existing paid commercial account with no prepaid balance or billing adjustments, an upgrade costs less than new add-ons once the extra credits needed exceed the break-even quantity below, provided they fit the higher plan. Below that boundary, add-ons cost less today and unused add-ons can survive the month.
This compares credit-acquisition cost, not completed tasks. One Kiro credit has no fixed prompt, token, or task conversion. Full plan prices remain on Kiro pricing.
Equivalent full-month arithmetic
USD per individual, commercial region, before taxes; excludes promotions, existing add-ons, GovCloud and Enterprise overage billing. Inputs are current official monthly plan prices/credits and add-ons at $0.04 per credit.
| Upgrade | Extra monthly cost | Extra monthly credits | Cost per additional included credit | Break-even extra credits |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Pro → Pro+ | $20 | 1000 | $0.02 | 500 |
| Pro+ → Pro Max | $60 | 3000 | $0.02 | 1500 |
| Pro Max → Power | $100 | 5000 | $0.02 | 2500 |
Formula: (higher monthly price − current monthly price) ÷ add-on unit price. At equality, cash cost ties; rollover can still favor add-ons. These are pairwise comparisons, not a universal best-plan recommendation.
Derived Pro → Pro+: 250 extra credits cost $10 in add-ons versus $20 to upgrade; 500 cost $20 either way; 750 cost $30 in add-ons versus $20 to upgrade. The upgrade provides 1,000 extra monthly credits, but unused monthly capacity expires. A demand above that increment needs a further comparison.
Purchase and expiry rules
Fact Paid social-login and AWS Builder ID subscribers can buy add-ons. Free and IAM Identity Center Enterprise billing do not use this purchase path. Packs range from $5 (125 credits) to $100; purchases are charged immediately. A 50-credit need still requires at least $5, leaving 75 credits for later.
Plan credits are used first and reset on the first of each calendar month without rollover. Add-ons roll over for 12 months from purchase, earliest expiry first. Having no available plan or add-on credits pauses use. An upgrade uses the new plan allocation before consuming remaining add-ons.
Mid-month billing is cohort-dependent
Fact Kiro documents a first-ever Free-to-paid upgrade with a prorated fee and the full allocation. Further upgrades in that first paid month use the first paid day for proration. For existing paid subscribers upgrading later, the price difference is charged retroactively for the whole month and that month's usage is recalculated against the new allocation. Downgrades start next month.
Unknown — account_dependent Without the first-paid date, current billing period, prior purchases, tax/region and promotion adjustments, an exact mid-cycle invoice or recommendation is blocked. The full-month table must not be day-prorated by assumption. Recheck the official billing page and account checkout before buying.
Sources and freshness
Review monthly and before purchase advice; recheck prices, add-on eligibility/expiry, upgrade timing, and billing-cycle changes.
For current plans and allowances, see the product guide.