🎯 Quick Answer
Atlas Agent AI credits are not limited to Golden Loops. Both Golden Loops and Playbooks can use your credits, because both are powered by Atlas Agent. Whenever the agent does AI work for you, such as researching, analyzing, writing, or completing a task, that work draws from your available credits.
🤖 What Are Atlas Agent Credits?
Atlas Agent credits (sometimes called AI points) measure how much AI work the agent does on your behalf. Think of them as fuel. The more the agent does, and the more complex the work, the more fuel it uses.
Credits are used for actions like:
- Chatting with Atlas Agent and asking it to complete tasks
- Running Golden Loops
- Running Playbooks
- Generating content, recommendations, or analysis as part of those workflows
🔁 How Golden Loops Use Credits
A Golden Loop is an ongoing, repeating workflow. The agent keeps working toward a goal by carrying out a series of steps and checking results along the way.
- Each time a loop runs, the AI work inside it can use credits.
- Loops that run more often or have more steps will generally use more credits over time.
- Because loops repeat, usage can add up gradually even if each single run feels small.
📘 How Playbooks Use Credits
A Playbook is a guided, step-by-step set of actions the agent follows to complete a specific job, such as an SEO task or routine.
- When you run a Playbook, the AI steps inside it use credits.
- Playbooks with more steps, larger tasks, or more content to produce generally use more credits.
- Running the same Playbook multiple times uses credits each time.
⚖️ Golden Loops vs. Playbooks at a Glance
- Golden Loops: repeating workflows. Credits are used on each run, so total usage depends on how often the loop runs.
- Playbooks: guided workflows. Credits are used when you run them, so total usage depends on how many Playbooks you run and how large they are.
- Regular agent chats: also use credits when the agent performs AI work for you.
📈 What Affects How Many Credits Are Used?
The exact amount varies from task to task. These factors have the biggest influence:
- Task size: bigger or more detailed requests need more AI work.
- Number of steps: workflows with more steps use more.
- Frequency: the more often a loop or Playbook runs, the more it uses.
- Output length: longer content or reports generally cost more than short ones.
- Number of projects or sites: running the same workflow across several sites multiplies usage.
🔎 How to Check Your Credit Usage
- Log in to your Search Atlas account.
- Open Atlas Agent.
- Look for your remaining credit balance or usage information in the agent area or in your account and plan settings.
- Compare your balance before and after running a workflow to see roughly how much it used.
Tip: if you want to understand the cost of a specific Golden Loop or Playbook, run it once and note the change in your balance.
🛠️ Tips to Get More From Your Credits
- Start small: test a new Golden Loop or Playbook on one project before rolling it out to many.
- Review your active loops: pause or remove any loops you no longer need.
- Be specific: clear, focused requests help the agent finish with less back-and-forth.
- Avoid unnecessary re-runs: check the results of a run before starting it again.
- Check your balance regularly: especially after setting up new recurring workflows.
❓ Common Questions
Do only Golden Loops use credits?
No. Playbooks and agent conversations can use credits too.
Do idle loops or Playbooks use credits?
Credits are used when the agent is actually doing AI work. A loop that is paused or a Playbook that is not running should not be using credits. If you are unsure whether a loop is still active, check its status in the platform.
Why did my credits go down faster than expected?
The most common reasons are loops running frequently, large Playbooks, or the same workflow running across several projects. Review your active workflows to find the cause.
Can I see exactly how much each run used?
Your balance in the platform is the best reference. Comparing it before and after a run gives you a good estimate.
💬 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.