🔍 Overview
If you are a publisher and the platform rejects a price change, you may have hit the maximum price allowed for that site. The same rejection also applies when you respond to a platform price offer. This article explains what that limit is, why the change is rejected, and what you can do about it.
📌 What Is a Pricing Cap?
The pricing cap is the highest price the platform allows for a specific site. It is calculated as 2.5 times that site's Domain Authority, using Moz Domain Authority when available and SEMrush authority otherwise. It is not shown next to the price field. If you enter a higher price, the platform rejects it immediately with the message "The price you set for publication {id} is too high for this site. Please lower it and try again."
This is not an error on your account. The platform is working as designed. The cap applies whenever you try to raise a site's price, whether you edit the listing or respond to an offer. A raise can also be blocked by a 30-day price lock, an open payout, or articles still assigned to the site.
❓ Why Was My Counteroffer Rejected?
The most common reasons are:
- The price is above the cap. Any requested price higher than 2.5 times the site's Domain Authority is rejected automatically. The rejection tells you the price is too high, but it does not tell you the maximum.
- The cap does not match your expectations. The limit may be lower than what you charge elsewhere, so a rate that is normal for you can still fall outside the allowed range.
- Your site details being out of date does not cause this rejection. The cap uses the site's Domain Authority, which the platform measures. Updating your description, categories, or other listing details does not change the maximum price.
- The amount must be a number greater than zero. Symbols and text are not accepted by the price field. Using the wrong currency or another field does not produce the pricing-cap rejection.
🛠️ How to Submit a Counteroffer That Is Accepted
- Sign in to the publisher portal. To change an existing site's price, open the site and use its Counter Offer field. To answer a price offer from the platform, open the Counter Offer section, where the offer shows a Request price and an Offered Price.
- For an existing site, enter the new amount in the Counter Offer field and save. For a platform offer, choose Decline, which opens a window titled "Make offer," or use Bulk Counter Offer when several offers are selected.
- The price field does not show a maximum or a price range. Keep the amount at or below 2.5 times the site's Domain Authority. If you do not know that number, submit a price and use the rejection message to tell you it is too high.
- Enter your price using numbers only, with no symbols or text.
- Check the amount, then save the listing or click "Make offer" for a single offer, or "Submit Offers" for a bulk counteroffer.
- If the rejection appears again, the amount is still above the cap. Lower it before trying again. Do not keep submitting small reductions: once a lower increase is accepted, the price is locked for 30 days and cannot be raised again until the lock ends.
💡 What to Do If You Want a Higher Price
Because the cap is set by the platform, you cannot raise it from the counteroffer form. Here are some steps you can take:
- Choose an amount at or below the cap. Any accepted increase locks that price for 30 days, so you cannot raise it again during that period. You can still lower it at any time.
- Updating your description, categories, or metrics does not raise the pricing cap. The cap is based only on Domain Authority measured by the platform. If the authority figure looks wrong, contact support and ask them to review it.
- This price change only sets what you are paid for a placement on your site. It does not include a content type, link placement, or other offer terms to review. If you are responding to a platform offer, compare your amount with the Request price and Offered Price shown on the offer.
- You cannot raise the cap yourself. If you believe the Domain Authority used for your site is wrong, contact support and ask them to review the metric. They can explain how the limit was calculated. Support cannot raise the cap for an individual site from the counteroffer form, and premium pricing above the cap is limited to marquee sites negotiated by the platform.
📝 What to Include When You Ask for a Review
Sharing these details helps our team respond faster:
- The URL of your site
- The price you tried to enter
- The exact wording of the rejection message
- The price you would like to charge
- Why you feel this rate is justified, such as traffic, niche, or audience
⚠️ Good to Know
- A rejected counteroffer is not sent to the advertiser, so no negotiation has started yet.
- Your original offer stays available until it expires, so you can still accept it or submit a new counteroffer within the allowed range.
- Pricing limits are designed to apply to all publishers, so a review does not guarantee that a limit will change.
🙋 Need More Help?
If you need further assistance, open the chat widget in the bottom-right corner of the platform and type human teammate to be instantly connected with a member of our team.