Based on my notes (I auto-generated this explanation from my notes using #
Claude)
I recently ran into an issue when trying to use the OpenAI API playground. I kept getting an error message saying I had hit my usage limit, even though my usage dashboard showed I had only used the API minimally so far this month.
I contacted customer support, and the agent suggested a few things to check:
- Verify I was on the Pay-As-You-Go plan and not the free Explore plan (I was)
- Make sure my usage limit was high enough (it was set to $50 initially)
- Check if I accidentally had the wrong organization selected (everything looked correct)
I then noticed a few other details:
- My “Credit balance” was negative and equal to my usage so far (-$3.94)
- I also pay for a separate $90/month ChatGPT team plan
I tried increasing my API usage limit to $100 to account for the ChatGPT subscription, but I still got the error. I then tried adding $10 to my credit balance. Interestingly, this made my credit balance go to $10 instead of $6.06 (which I expected due to the previous negative balance).
After waiting a few minutes, I was finally able to use the API again without errors. My usage went up slightly and my credit balance decreased accordingly.
In the end, it seems there may have been a short delay in updating my account after changing my usage limit and adding funds. The negative credit balance was also a bit confusing, and I’m not sure if it should have accounted for my ChatGPT team plan payment.
The key lessons are:
- Make sure you’re on a paid plan with a high enough usage limit
- Check your credit balance and add funds if needed
- There may be a short lag before changes take effect, so be patient
- If you’re still seeing errors, contact support to investigate further
Hopefully this helps others who encounter a similar issue! Let me know if you have any other questions.