An invoice discrepancy occurs when a charge appears on your payment statement or is referenced by an invoice ID, but does not match what you see inside your Search Atlas billing history. Common examples include:
An invoice ID (e.g. 6DQ4LPSA-0009) that you cannot locate in your account
A charge for a plan or service (e.g. Starter (VIP)) that you do not recognise
An amount billed that differs from your expected subscription cost
A charge showing on your bank or card statement with no matching record in Search Atlas
These situations can result from ghost invoices, billing system sync delays, or charges associated with a secondary account. The steps below will help you investigate before contacting support.
Start by reviewing every billing tab in your account to make sure you are not missing a record.
Click your avatar in the top-right corner of the platform.
Select Billing from the dropdown menu.
Open the Invoices tab and use the Search field to look up the invoice ID or amount in question.
Switch to the Activity Log tab to see a chronological record of all billing events, including top-ups and plan changes.
Check the Plans & Top-ups tab to confirm your current active plan and any recent plan changes.
If the invoice or charge does not appear on any of these tabs, it may be linked to a different account.
A charge that does not appear in your billing history is sometimes tied to a separate Search Atlas account — for example, an account created with a different email address or a team workspace you were previously a member of.
Check your email inboxes (including secondary or work addresses) for any Search Atlas welcome or receipt emails.
Ask colleagues whether a team account was set up on your behalf.
If you find a second account, log in and repeat the billing check in Step 1.
To review team members on your current account, go to your avatar → Team Members and confirm who has access.
Cross-reference the invoice amount and date with your bank or card statement.
Note the exact charge amount, currency, and transaction date.
Look for the merchant name — Search Atlas charges typically appear as Search Atlas or Search Atlas / Stripe.
If the merchant name is different, the charge may not be from Search Atlas at all.
Check whether the amount matches a known plan price, a top-up, or an implementation service fee.
Our engineering team has identified and resolved several billing edge cases that can produce unexpected charges. Being aware of these will help you describe your situation accurately when you contact support.
Ghost invoices: Invoices generated in our billing system that are not yet visible in the account UI due to a sync delay.
Bundled top-up charges: In some cases, OTTO AI or credit top-ups were bundled into a subscription renewal, creating a combined charge that looks unfamiliar.
Early service charges: Implementation or onboarding services occasionally billed before the expected start date.
Duplicate records: Rare cases where a payment processor created duplicate invoice records, resulting in apparent double charges.
Our team actively monitors and corrects these issues. If your charge matches one of these patterns, a support agent can look up the invoice by ID and confirm its status immediately.
Having the following details ready will allow our team to resolve your case as quickly as possible:
The invoice ID (e.g. 6DQ4LPSA-0009)
The charge amount and date from your statement
The email address associated with your Search Atlas account
Any additional email addresses that might be linked to a second account
A screenshot of the charge on your bank or card statement, if available
If you have completed the steps above and still cannot identify or resolve the charge, our billing team can investigate the invoice directly using the ID and your account details.
If you need further assistance, open the chat widget in the bottom-right corner of the platform and type human teammate to be connected with a member of our team.