Hi there,
I recently added $10 to my OpenAI API account yesterday and have since spent $5.70, expecting this usage to qualify me for an upgrade to Tier 1. However, my account status still shows as “Free Tier.”
Could someone explain why this might be the case and what steps I should take to upgrade to Tier 1?
Thank you!
Welcome to the Forum!
I assume this is where you looking?https://platform.openai.com/settings/organization/limits
The fact that you have been successfully able to use the API indicates that you are already at Tier 1 level even if it may not show. OpenAI basically no longer offers a Free Tier. Any use of the API requires the addition of a minimum of $5. There might just be a small system lag regarding the “visible” update of your tier under the above link.
I hope this helps. Any further questions, just let us know.
But I still get a rate limit error when requesting (200 RPD). My current balance is $4.3.
I see. Anecdotally, we’ve seen a few cases where the upgrade to a higher Tier took longer despite being successful payment and meeting certain other criteria that may apply.
I’d give it another 24h and if the old limits still prevail then, I’d reach out to OpenAI support via chat.
But I need it at the moment!
I understand the urgency of your situation, but it’s also true that other users have reported similar experiences where their tier was not upgraded immediately after meeting the requirements.
Therefore, while we recommend that you wait a little longer or contact OpenAI support for assistance, please understand that there’s not much more we can do here beyond offering this advice.
This is false. the “free” tier (that isn’t actually free) has rate limits, which I am currently consistently hitting. 70$ spent. Should be in Tier 2, but alas I am stuck in FREE.
Contacting “support” is just a bot that answers with a Google form that doesn’t exist anymore.
As a paying customer I’d like for a service to actually work as advertised.
Help. 
I understand your frustration. Your best option remains to reach out directly to support via the chat. You need to interact with the support bot such that you can provide an actual description of the issue which can then be reviewed by a member of the support staff. You will then get a response back via email. One way to achieve this is as follows:
Note that it might still take a little while to get a response.
Hello there,
I spend over 15€ on tokens, and am using API.
I need more than 3RPM but openai doesnt want to upgrade me to tier 1 althought I spent 15€.
I contacted support and they said theyll get to it. Now waiting for 2 days.
What should I do? All suggestions and recommendations would be really appreciated.
Hey there!
I know it can be frustrating to be stuck but I’d give it a couple more days, especially if you have already contacted support.
If you are absolutely in need of a higher tier / higher token limits right away, then you also have the option to access OpenAI’s models via the Azure OpenAI Studio: https://azure.microsoft.com/en-us/products/ai-services/openai-service
Okey, I will check it out. Thank you!
Whats the difference between the 2?
Edit: Got it, thank you!
I have the same issue. Paid account, work normally last month (I have used $1), but be limited by 3 RPM since 1 Sept. I checked the limits page, it shows I am a Free account.
I have exactly the same issue. My account has been credited with $10 since August 25th, and I’m still on the free tier.
Did it update in the end?
A question to anyone still stuck on Free Tier even though they have funded their account with $5+. When you created your account, did you get some message about your phone number already having been used so you will not get free credits?
I am also stuck with Free tier even if I charged 5$ on my account
Same here;
I added $10 to my account, wrote a script to force usage to match the $5 criteria. My balance is now at $4.79 but I’m still on the “Free tier”.
OpenAI has confirmed that they identified the bug, rolled out a fix, and are working through the backlog of affected accounts.
Please take a look at the following topic and report back if the issue persists:
I will close this topic and ask you to continue the conversation there if needed.
