--- title: "What is pay-per-lookup pricing? a clear definition – Invenitor" description: "Pay-per-lookup pricing defined: you pay when a find returns email, phone, or both. Timeouts and errors do not spend." url: https://invenitor.com/blog/what-is-pay-per-lookup-pricing agents: https://invenitor.com/llms.txt mcp: https://api.invenitor.com/mcp --- [Blog](https://invenitor.com/blog) Oct 21, 2026 · 9 min read · Product # What is pay-per-lookup pricing? What is pay-per-lookup pricing? On this page 1. [Pay-per-lookup vs lookalikes](#pay-per-lookup-vs-lookalikes) 2. [What "lookup" means here](#what-lookup-means-here) 3. [How packs express pay-per-lookup](#how-packs-express-pay-per-lookup) 4. [Product and trust checklist](#product-and-trust-checklist) 5. [Agents still pay-per-lookup](#agents-still-pay-per-lookup) 6. [What should you do next?](#what-should-you-do-next) 7. [Teaching the definition in one slide](#teaching-the-definition-in-one-slide) 8. [Anti-definitions](#anti-definitions) **Pay-per-lookup pricing** means you pay when a lookup returns usable contact outcomes – not when you merely call an HTTP endpoint, and not when a seat sits idle. In enrichment, the honest version is found-only: email, phone, or both. Invenitor is a people search and lookup API, not a sales cloud. Coverage varies – we do not publish hit-rate percentages. Category: [What a Contact Lookup API Actually Does](https://invenitor.com/blog/what-is-a-contact-lookup-api). Credits primer: [What Are API Credits in Enrichment Products?](https://invenitor.com/blog/what-are-api-credits-in-enrichment-products). LinkedIn definition: [What Is a LinkedIn Profile URL Lookup?](https://invenitor.com/blog/what-is-a-linkedin-profile-url-lookup). ## Pay-per-lookup vs lookalikes | Model | What you pay for | Risk | | ---------------- | ---------------- | ----------- | | Per seat / month | Logins | Quiet seats | Seat contrast: [Seat Subscriptions vs Pay-Per-Lookup Credits](https://invenitor.com/blog/seat-subscriptions-vs-pay-per-lookup-credits-a-cost-model). PAYG: [Pay-As-You-Go Contact APIs](https://invenitor.com/blog/pay-as-you-go-contact-apis-for-teams-that-hate). Free-plan traps: [The Hidden Cost of "Free Plan" Enrichment Tools](https://invenitor.com/blog/the-hidden-cost-of-free-plan-enrichment-tools-for-small). ## What "lookup" means here A lookup is a profile-URL find – LinkedIn or GitHub person URL in; contact fields out **when we have them**. Hub: [LinkedIn or GitHub Profile URL → Contact Lookup API](https://invenitor.com/blog/linkedin-github-contact-lookup-api). ## How packs express pay-per-lookup You buy prepaid INR credits; each found outcome spends one. Pack windows are typically **30 days**. Sizing: [25 to 1,000 Credits](https://invenitor.com/blog/25-to-1-000-credits-choosing-an-inr-pack-size). Commercial: [INR Credit Packs](https://invenitor.com/blog/inr-credit-packs-for-contact-lookup-how-razorpay-pricing-feels), [Razorpay, UPI, Cards, Wallets](https://invenitor.com/blog/razorpay-upi-cards-wallets-payment-reality-for-india-api-buyers), . No-monthly: [No Monthly Plan Contact Enrichment](https://invenitor.com/blog/no-monthly-plan-contact-enrichment-who-it-fits-and-who). ## Product and trust checklist Layer: [Contact Lookup API vs CRM vs Sequencer](https://invenitor.com/blog/contact-lookup-api-vs-crm-vs-sequencer-pick-the-right). ## Agents still pay-per-lookup MCP finds share the same found-only billing pool – , [Agent-Readable Docs](https://invenitor.com/blog/agent-readable-docs-why-mcp-md-matters-for-contact-apis). ## What should you do next? Read found-only billing aloud to finance. Sample the free signup credits via . Size a pack on . ## Teaching the definition in one slide Title: Pay-per-lookup (found-only). Spend when email, phone, or both return. Timeouts/errors do not spend. Coverage – no fake %. Found-only billing: 1 credit only when we return an email, a phone, or both. Timeouts and errors do not spend. Primer: [What Are API Credits](https://invenitor.com/blog/what-are-api-credits-in-enrichment-products). Trust: [Trust Checklist](https://invenitor.com/blog/trust-checklist-before-you-buy-any-contact-api). Packs: [25 to 1,000 Credits](https://invenitor.com/blog/25-to-1-000-credits-choosing-an-inr-pack-size). Commercial: [INR Credit Packs](https://invenitor.com/blog/inr-credit-packs-for-contact-lookup-how-razorpay-pricing-feels), [Razorpay, UPI, Cards, Wallets](https://invenitor.com/blog/razorpay-upi-cards-wallets-payment-reality-for-india-api-buyers). Seat contrast: [Seat Subscriptions vs Pay-Per-Lookup Credits](https://invenitor.com/blog/seat-subscriptions-vs-pay-per-lookup-credits-a-cost-model). Hub: [LinkedIn or GitHub Profile URL → Contact Lookup API](https://invenitor.com/blog/linkedin-github-contact-lookup-api). Agents: , Cousins: [What Is a LinkedIn Profile URL Lookup?](https://invenitor.com/blog/what-is-a-linkedin-profile-url-lookup). · . ## Anti-definitions ## Questions What is pay-per-lookup pricing?+ A pricing model where you pay for lookup outcomes – in the honest form, when email, phone, or both are returned – not for idle seats. When does a credit spend?+ 1 credit only when we return an email, a phone, or both. Timeouts and errors do not spend. Is every API call a lookup spend?+ No. How is this different from seat subscriptions?+ Seats tax logins monthly. Pay-per-lookup (found-only) scales with found contact work. Where do I buy packs?+ /pricing; India rails via Razorpay/UPI posts. Do MCP agents use the same pricing?+ Yes – same credit pool and found-only billing rule; start at /mcp.md. ## Find the person you need Describe who you need in one sentence. Your first search is free, and you pay only for contacts we find [Find people free](https://invenitor.com/login?from=https%3A%2F%2Fpeople.invenitor.com%2Fsearch&x=w7&q=c5&z=g1)[See pricing](https://invenitor.com/pricing?x=w7&q=c5&z=g2) ## Keep reading - [Nov 4, 2026 · ProductNever make one up: Editorial standards for enrichment content teamsNever make one up: editorial standards for enrichment content teams – ban invented demo contacts, hit-rate claims, and marketing that contradicts the API.](https://invenitor.com/blog/never-make-one-up-editorial-standards-for-enrichment-content-teams) - [Oct 26, 2026 · Product"When we have them": Writing honest marketing for contact APIs"When we have them": writing honest marketing for contact APIs – coverage claims, empty means not found, and found-only billing without vanity hit-rate percentages.](https://invenitor.com/blog/when-we-have-them-writing-honest-marketing-for-contact-apis) - [Oct 15, 2026 · ProductTrust checklist before you buy any contact APITrust checklist before you buy any contact API – found-only credits, written billing.](https://invenitor.com/blog/trust-checklist-before-you-buy-any-contact-api)