Fair Use Policy
Last updated: December 18, 2025
Tillage's offering is designed to be generous and accessible. We expect the usage of most agencies to fall well within our free plan limits. Our goal is to keep pricing simple and limits permissive—we don't want you worrying about hitting arbitrary caps.
However, when usage causes significant pressure on our infrastructure or indicates commercial-scale operations, we'll work with you to create a custom plan that better fits your needs.
Our Philosophy
We built Tillage to help agencies quote profitably and get paid what they're worth. The Free plan includes everything—all features, unlimited quotes, unlimited clients, unlimited invoices. The only difference with Premium is the platform fee.
We maintain this approach because:
- We want you to succeed - No feature restrictions means you can use Tillage fully from day one
- Simple pricing - Choose based on payment volume, not feature checklists
- Transparent limits - We're upfront about what constitutes "fair use"
Fair Use Guidelines
What's Included for Everyone
✓ Unlimited:
- Quotes and proposals
- Contracts and digital signatures
- Clients and projects
- Team members and collaboration
- Integrations (Harvest, QuickBooks, Xero)
- AI quote generation
- Variance and profit protection
- Invoice generation
- Analytics and reporting
Platform Fees:
- Free Plan: 1% platform fee on payments processed
- Premium Plan ($49/month): 0% platform fee (only Stripe's ~2.9% + $0.30 applies)
Examples of Extensive Usage
While we don't impose hard limits, here are scenarios where we'd reach out to discuss a custom plan:
High Invoice Volume Without Online Payments
Tillage's free plan is designed for agencies collecting payments online (where we earn our 1% platform fee). If you're consistently generating significant invoice volumes but rarely collecting payments through Tillage, this indicates you're using the platform primarily as an invoicing tool rather than a payment solution.
Examples that would trigger a conversation:
- Generating substantial monthly invoices while collecting very few payments online through Tillage
- Using Tillage to generate invoices, then collecting payments outside the platform (checks, wire transfers, other payment processors)
- Exporting invoices to send through other systems
Why this matters: Our free plan is sustainable because agencies collect payments online and we earn a small platform fee. When you generate high invoice volumes without processing payments, we're providing infrastructure and support without any revenue to sustain it.
Large Team on Free Plan
If you're running a substantial team on the free plan, this typically indicates an established business that would benefit from Premium features. Premium ($49/month per team) eliminates the 1% platform fee, which often pays for itself quickly at scale.
We may reach out to discuss Premium if:
- You have a large team using Tillage
- Your team size suggests established operations
- Premium would likely save you money based on your payment volume
Why this matters: Large teams typically process significant payment volumes. At that scale, Premium's 0% platform fee usually costs less than the 1% fee on the free plan—so we're helping you save money while ensuring sustainable revenue for us.
High Payment Volume
Threshold: $500,000+/month in payments processed
Processing half a million dollars or more monthly through Tillage indicates you're running significant operations. We'll want to ensure you have the support and infrastructure reliability your business requires—and discuss volume pricing that makes sense for your scale.
Excessive API Usage
Threshold: Automated requests beyond normal platform use
If you're making thousands of API calls per hour or using Tillage in ways that resemble data scraping or automated bulk operations, we'll need to discuss appropriate usage.
Organization Sharing Violations
Threshold: Sharing Premium subscription across multiple unrelated businesses
Tillage Premium subscriptions are meant for a single organization. Sharing your Premium account features with external companies, reselling access, or using one subscription for multiple separate businesses is prohibited.
This doesn't apply to: Adding clients to your Tillage account, collaborating with contractors on your projects, or having your accounting team access your account.
Custom Plans
When your usage surpasses our Fair Use guidelines, we'll reach out proactively to discuss options. Here's how it works:
The Process
- We contact you - No surprises. We'll email when we notice sustained high usage
- We understand your needs - Brief conversation about your business and usage patterns
- Custom quote - We'll propose a fair price based on your actual usage
- Quarterly billing - Custom plans are typically billed quarterly in advance
- Additive pricing - Custom plans are in addition to your base subscription
What You Get
Custom plans aren't just about paying more—you get tangible benefits:
- Dedicated support - Direct line to our team
- Infrastructure priority - Dedicated resources for reliability
- Custom limits - Tailored to your actual needs
- Volume discounting - Fair pricing for scale
- Early feature access - Beta access to new capabilities
If You Decline
We understand Tillage might not be the right fit at certain scales. If you decide not to continue with a custom plan:
- 90 days to transition - We provide ample time to move to another solution
- Full data export - Easy export of all your data in standard formats
- Migration support - We'll help ensure a smooth transition
- No hard feelings - We're grateful you chose Tillage and wish you success
Real-World Examples
✓ Within Fair Use
Small Agency (Free Plan)
- 50 clients
- 150 invoices/month
- $50,000/month in payments collected online
- 5 team members
- Status: Perfect fit for Free plan. 1% platform fee = $500/month
Growing Agency (Premium Plan)
- 100 clients
- 300 invoices/month
- $150,000/month in payments collected online
- 10 team members
- Status: Premium makes sense. Saves $1,450/month vs. Free (1% of $150k - $49)
Established Agency (Free Plan)
- 200 clients
- High invoice volume
- Strong online payment collection through Tillage
- 8 team members
- Status: Still within fair use! Generating revenue for both of us. Premium might save money at this scale.
⚠️ Custom Plan Discussion
High Invoice, Low Payment Agency
- Large client base
- Substantial monthly invoice generation
- Minimal payments collected online through Tillage
- Exporting most invoices to collect payments elsewhere
- Status: We'd reach out to discuss. High infrastructure usage with minimal revenue suggests you need a different pricing model.
Large Team on Free Plan
- 25+ team members
- Processing moderate payment volumes on free plan
- Paying more in 1% platform fees than Premium would cost
- Status: We'd reach out to suggest Premium—you'd likely save money! At $49/month, you break even at $4,900 in monthly payments.
Enterprise Scale Agency
- 500+ clients
- $800,000+/month in payments processed online
- 50 team members across divisions
- Status: We'd reach out to discuss custom plan with volume pricing and dedicated support.
Frequently Asked Questions
Will I get a warning before being charged?
Yes. We'll always contact you before any changes to your plan or pricing. No surprise bills.
What if I have one really big month?
That's totally fine! Spikes happen. We only reach out about sustained patterns over multiple months (typically 3+ months in a row).
What if I sometimes collect payments outside Tillage?
That's completely normal! Many agencies have clients who prefer checks or wire transfers. We're talking about patterns where you're consistently generating significant invoice volumes but rarely using the payment collection features that make our free plan sustainable.
Can I monitor my usage?
Yes! Your account dashboard shows your current month's invoices, payment volume, and other key metrics.
What if I can't afford a custom plan?
We'll work with you. Our goal is fair pricing, not to price anyone out. We can discuss:
- Phased transitions
- Volume-based discounting
- Feature optimization to reduce usage
- Extended Free plan with fair limitations
Does this mean Tillage isn't really "Free Forever"?
No—Tillage remains free forever for agencies using it as designed: to quote profitably and collect payments online. The vast majority of users (99%+) will never exceed fair use limits. This policy exists for:
- Sustainability of the free plan (we need some revenue to cover infrastructure)
- Protection against using Tillage solely as a free invoicing tool while collecting payments elsewhere
- Ensuring reliable service for all users
- Fair pricing for genuine enterprise-scale operations
How do I contact you about custom plans?
Use our contact page to get in touch. We'll respond within 1 business day.
Our Commitment
We promise to:
- Be transparent - Clear communication about usage and costs
- Be fair - Reasonable limits and pricing for everyone
- Be proactive - Contact you before any issues arise
- Be flexible - Work with you to find solutions
- Be honest - If Tillage isn't the right fit, we'll tell you
Tillage was built by agency owners who've felt the pain of hidden fees and surprise charges. We're committed to straightforward, honest pricing that lets you focus on growing your business.
Changes to This Policy
We may update this Fair Use Policy from time to time. We'll notify you of material changes via email and by updating the "Last updated" date at the top of this page.
Contact Us
Questions about fair use or need a custom plan? Contact us.
We typically respond within 1 business day.