Pricing tiers

DisplaySync uses a platform fee + per-sign-day metered billing model that aligns with how AV equipment and labor are billed on event production budgets. Marketing pricing lives at displaysync.live/pricing; this page is the docs-side reference with the full enforcement detail behind each limit.

Tier table

Pilot and Managed are admin-assigned tiers. Pilot is for demos and trials (usage tracked, not billed). Managed is for DisplaySync-operated fleets (no preset limits — soft caps only). Neither is self-serve.

Additional tier limits

These limits aren't in the headline marketing comparison but matter for orgs choosing a tier or hitting an enforcement edge.

The Agency-only platform limits cap the totals across all managed orgs an Agency operator runs — independent of any single org's per-tier cap.

What a "sign-day" is

A sign-day is any calendar day during which a sign was linked to an event. Mechanics:

• A sign linked at 11:55 PM and unlinked at 12:05 AM the next day counts as 2 sign-days (each calendar day touched is one sign-day).
• A sign powered off but still linked to the event still counts — it's the link that triggers metering, not on/off state.
• An unlinked sign (in the dashboard's Unlinked state) does not count.
• Sign-days are computed in your org's time zone (set in Org → General).

This mirrors how equipment rental is billed: you pay for the full day a piece of gear is on the show, regardless of how many hours it was actually powered.

Limits and how they're enforced

Limits are enforced server-side by the enforceTierLimit(resource) middleware. When you trip a limit, the API returns:

HTTP 403
Content-Type: application/json

{
  "success": false,
  "message": "You've reached your plan limit of <label>. Upgrade your plan to add more.",
  "limit": <number>,
  "current": <number>,
  "resource": "<events|signs|members|storage>"
}

The limit and current fields make it straightforward for client code to compute headroom or surface a useful upgrade prompt.

Total signs

The signs resource is org-wide — it counts every Sign record in the org, regardless of which event it's in or whether the kiosk is currently online.

• Tripped on sign creation (claim or pre-register).
• Unlinking a sign does not drop its Sign record (the record stays as unlinked), so unlinking alone doesn't free a slot. Delete the Sign record from the dashboard to free one.

Concurrent events

The events resource counts events in active state across the org. upcoming, completed, and archived events don't count.

• Tripped when activating an event (start date arrives, or manual activation).
• Move stale events to archived to free slots.

Team members

The members resource counts all org-level memberships (owner + admin + member combined).

• Tripped on invitation acceptance.
• Pending invitations don't count toward the cap until they're accepted.
• Removing a member frees a slot immediately.

Storage

The storage resource caps the bytes of content uploaded to the org (configured in GB per tier). Counted in bytes by the middleware.

• Tripped on content upload.
• Today, content is webpage URLs only (v1) — storage is effectively unused. Image, video, and playlist uploads in v2 will be the first time most orgs touch this limit.

Feature gates

Some features are tier-gated by capability flag rather than usage-metered. The flags are checked via requireFeature() middleware on the relevant routes.

Billing mechanics

• Platform fee is billed monthly upfront in advance, prorated to the day on tier upgrades/downgrades. Stripe handles the proration.
• Sign-day usage is billed in arrears at the end of each monthly billing cycle. You see the usage tally in the dashboard's Organization → Billing view in real time.
• Failed payment triggers a 7-day dunning period. After that, the org transitions to read-only — signs continue displaying content (they're already deployed) but no new claims, content changes, or settings updates apply. Resolving the payment restores write access. See Dunning + downgrade blocking below for the full sequence.

Dunning + downgrade blocking

When a Stripe payment fails, the account enters dunning — a 3-attempt retry sequence on the Stripe side, paired with a grace window before suspension on the DisplaySync side.

Tier downgrades are blocked while in dunning — operators must resolve dunning (Stripe Customer Portal → update payment method) before downgrading. The meter continues to accrue during dunning; sign-day usage isn't paused.

To resolve: open Profile → Billing → Manage in Stripe and update the card / pay the outstanding invoice. The dashboard re-enables write operations within ~1 minute of a successful retry.

Active event — precise definition

Tier sign limits enforce against signs assigned to events with status: 'active'. Understanding when an event becomes active matters for self-service users planning multi-day events.

Date-driven transitions:

• upcoming → active happens when the current date falls between startDate and endDate (inclusive, in event-display TZ)
• active → completed happens the day after endDate
• A manual archived transition is possible from any state — operator-initiated

The meter ticks for the whole event window, not just hours-on. A 3-day conference is 3 sign-days per assigned sign, regardless of whether you power them off overnight.

Tier limit enforcement is at claim/link time — adding a sign that pushes you over the tier's maxSigns is rejected with a clear error referencing the tier's cap. Existing claims aren't ejected mid-event; the next claim is the gating moment.

Upgrades and downgrades

• Upgrades take effect immediately. New limits apply right away — useful when you need to add capacity mid-event.
• Downgrades take effect at the next billing cycle to avoid disrupting in-flight events. The downgrade fails up front if your current usage exceeds the target tier's limits ("you have 12 active events; downgrading to Starter would breach the 1-event cap").

Pilot and Managed tiers

These two are admin-assigned overrides:

These tiers can't be self-served — they're set by [email protected] as part of an evaluation or contract.

Free tier specifics

The Free tier is permanently free, no credit card required. The hard caps:

• 3 signs total (not per-event — 3 across the whole org)
• 1 event (concurrent or otherwise — must complete or archive before starting the next)
• 2 team members including the owner
• All v1 features available — claim, assign, monitor, mobile app, remote control, notifications, Tailscale
• Best-effort support: 1-3 business days, docs first

Useful for: learning the platform, side projects, single-day single-display events. Production deployments usually outgrow it within the first project.

See also

• Pricing on the marketing site — the public-facing version with FAQ
• Roles & permissions — billing actions are gated to org owners only
• Getting support — for tier upgrades, custom Enterprise quotes, or Pilot tier requests