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Credits

Open Quantum uses a credit-based pricing system. Credits are deducted when jobs are submitted and refunded automatically if jobs fail or are canceled.

Credit Types

Type Description Usage Expiration
Spark Free or promotional credits. Granted on signup and through promotions. Public execution plan only. 90 days
Full Purchased credits via Stripe. Any execution plan (Public or Private). 12 months

Tip

New accounts receive 50 free Spark credits to get started. Spark credits refresh every 90 days, so you can continue experimenting even after your initial credits expire.

How Pricing Works

Job pricing is calculated during the preparation phase based on the backend, shot count, execution plan, and queue priority. The exact credit cost is returned as a quote before the job is submitted.

Visit the Open Quantum pricing page for current rates by backend and plan.

Public Compute plans qualify for use with Spark credits and are approximately half the price of retail (Private) plans.

Note

The exact pricing quote is returned during job preparation. The SDKs select the cheapest available plan and standard priority by default when using "auto" mode.

Execution Plans

Open Quantum offers two execution paths:

Plan Description Credit Types Accepted
Public Compute Powered by qBitTensor Labs, which provides subsidized access to quantum hardware at approximately half the cost of retail. Shared queue. Spark and Full
Private Compute Managed infrastructure through trusted providers. Dedicated queues and priority execution. Full only 
from openquantum_sdk.enums import ExecutionPlanType

config = JobSubmissionConfig(
    backend_class_id="ionq:forte-1",
    name="My Job",
    job_subcategory_id="oth:oth",
    shots=1024,
    execution_plan=ExecutionPlanType.PUBLIC,
)

dev = qml.device("openquantum.device", wires=2, shots=1024,
                  backend="ionq:forte-1", execution_plan="public")

Queue Priorities

Priority Surcharge Description
Standard 0 credits Default priority. Jobs are executed in FIFO order.
Priority A small additional credit fee Higher priority in the queue. Reduced wait time. See the pricing page for current rates.

Credit Consumption

When a job is submitted:

  1. The platform calculates the total cost from the preparation quote.
  2. Credits are deducted from the organization's credit batches in FIFO order (earliest expiring batch first).
  3. For Public plans: Spark credits are consumed first, then Full credits.
  4. For Private plans: Only Full credits are consumed.

Refunds

Credits are automatically refunded when:

  • A job fails at any stage.
  • A user cancels a Pending job.

Refunds restore credits to the original batches they were consumed from.

Note

Refunds are automatic. You do not need to request them.

Purchasing Credits

Full credits can be purchased through the Open Quantum Portal:

  1. Navigate to Credits.
  2. Select a credit amount.
  3. Complete the purchase via Stripe.
  4. Credits are added to your organization's balance immediately.

Earn more credits: You can earn additional Spark credits through referrals -- bonus credits each time someone signs up with your referral link.