Copilot Shifts to Usage Billing

GitHub is overhauling its billing for Copilot, moving to a usage-based model effective June 1, 2026. This significant shift from premium request units (PRUs) to GitHub AI Credits aims to align costs with actual compute and inference demands.

AI Credits Replace Premium Requests

Under the new system, every Copilot plan will receive a monthly allocation of AI Credits. Usage is calculated by token consumption—input, output, and cached tokens—using API rates specific to each model. This change is framed as essential for maintaining service reliability and sustainability as Copilot evolves into a more agentic platform capable of complex, repository-wide coding sessions.

This move affects how developers and organizations manage their AI coding assistant expenses.

Pricing and Plan Adjustments

While base plan prices are static—Copilot Pro at $10/month, Copilot Pro+ at $39/month, Business at $19/user/month, and Enterprise at $39/user/month—additional usage beyond the included AI Credits will incur charges. Code completions and Next Edit suggestions remain free of credit consumption.

Fallback to lower-cost models will cease; usage will be strictly governed by available credits and administrator-set budgets. Copilot code reviews will also consume GitHub Actions minutes, billed separately.

Business and Enterprise Features

For businesses and enterprises, monthly seat pricing remains consistent. However, existing customers will receive promotional AI Credits for June, July, and August 2026. A key addition is pooled usage across organizations, preventing stranded credits, alongside new budget controls for administrators at enterprise, cost center, and user levels.

Organizations can opt to allow overage at published rates or cap spending entirely.

Individual Plan Considerations

Monthly Copilot Pro and Pro+ subscribers receive AI Credits equivalent to their subscription cost. Annual plan holders will maintain their current PRU-based pricing until renewal but will see increased model multipliers on June 1, 2026. Upon expiration, they will transition to the free tier unless they upgrade to a monthly paid plan, with prorated credits offered for early conversion.

GitHub is also introducing a preview billing experience in early May to help users anticipate costs before the transition date. This initiative represents a fundamental change in how developers will interact with and pay for AI-powered coding tools, reflecting the escalating costs of advanced AI models.

For more details on these GitHub Copilot pricing changes, refer to GitHub's updated documentation.