How credits work
1 credit = 1 normalized core-minute of solve compute
Every other tool sells you opaque tokens. A ForgeCAD credit is a physical unit you can check — a minute of solver time on a declared reference core — not an invented one.
The reference core
one x86-64 vCPU as provisioned on the Modal OpenFOAM worker (~2.5 GHz). A measured core counts 1:1 against it, so the number you spend is the number the solver actually ran for.
What a solve costs
These are measured from real completed runs, not advertised:
- Draft ≈ 58 credits
- Standard ≈ 641 credits
- High ≈ 742 credits
So 500 free credits is about eight Draft solves — enough to try the product end to end.
The promise
Credits are prepaid. Your balance never goes negative, there is no invoice and no overdraft, and the number quoted on the card is the number charged. If you run out mid-study, the next job simply blocks until you top up.