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Nov 5, 2025
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docs: reorganize monetization section #1995

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5f46049
docs: reorganize monetization section
TC-MO Oct 10, 2025
8dd6ecb
reorder actor marketing playbook monetization
TC-MO Oct 10, 2025
2c3b37a
add link to PPR docs
TC-MO Oct 10, 2025
82559e9
example updates
TC-MO Oct 23, 2025
9963bb2
Merge remote-tracking branch 'origin/master' into reorganize-monetiza…
TC-MO Nov 5, 2025
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4 changes: 2 additions & 2 deletions ...es/academy/build-and-publish/apify-store-basics/how_actor_monetization_works.md
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Expand Up @@ -36,13 +36,13 @@ Monetizing your Actor on the Apify platform involves several key steps:
- `Page opened with a browser` at $0.002 - this is on top of `Pages scraped`
- _Example_:
- User A:
- Started the Actor 10 times = $0.05
- Started the Actor with 10GB of memory = $0.05
- Scraped 1,000 pages = $2.00
- 500 of those were scraped using residential proxy = $1.00
- 300 of those were scraped using browser = $0.60
- This comes up to $3.65 of total revenue
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@stetizu1 stetizu1 Oct 10, 2025

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[Note / question]: Even-though I get why we want to have "more complicated" examples in docs, so devs know that they can create that - maybe having only "start" / "result" and for example "call 3rd party API" or "call AI model" can make it clear that you can do simple things with it? From my PoV, for customer less events make pricing more clear.
Or maybe just mention it to developer somewhere? That more simple & transparent pricing make Actor more attractive to customers
WDYT?

Or maybe add second example with only start + result?

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@TC-MO TC-MO Oct 10, 2025

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I think both approaches can work, perhaps we should in each case have a simple start & more advanced example so users can see what is the happy path, and what is a bit more complex scenario?

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@TC-MO TC-MO Oct 10, 2025

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But perhaps this is getting out of scope of this PR. Maybe we focus here on just reorganization & I'll open separate issue to work further on simplified examples?

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@stetizu1 stetizu1 Oct 10, 2025

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Yes, probably a separate issue

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@mhamas mhamas Oct 13, 2025

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+1, let's reorganize here, and we can add simple vs complex examples later on.

- User B:
- Started the Actor 5 times = $0.025
- Started the Actor with 5GB of memory = $0.025
- Scraped 500 pages = $1.00
- 200 of those were scraped using residential proxy = $0.40
- 100 of those were scraped using browser = $0.20
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6 changes: 3 additions & 3 deletions sources/platform/actors/publishing/monetize/index.mdx
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Expand Up @@ -19,9 +19,9 @@ Apify Store allows you to monetize your web scraping, automation and AI Agent pr
Actors in Apify Store can be published under one of the following pricing models:

1. _Free_: Users can run the Actor without any additional charges beyond the platform usage costs generated by the Actor.
1. _Rental_: Users pay for the platform usage costs. However, after a trial period, they need to pay a flat monthly fee to the developer to continue using the Actor.
1. _Pay per result (PPR)_: Users don't pay for the platform usage costs. Instead, they pay the developer based on the number of results produced by the Actor.
1. _Pay per event (PPE)_: Users don't pay for the platform usage cost the Actor generates. Instead, they pay based on specific events that are programmatically triggered from the Actor's source code. These events are defined by the developer and can include actions such as generating a single result or starting an Actor.
1. _Pay per result (PPR)_: Users don't pay for the platform usage costs. Instead, they pay the developer based on the number of results produced by the Actor.
1. _Rental_: Users pay for the platform usage costs. However, after a trial period, they need to pay a flat monthly fee to the developer to continue using the Actor.

For a detailed comparison of pricing models from the perspective of your users, refer to [Actors in Store](/platform/actors/running/actors-in-store) page.

Expand All @@ -36,7 +36,7 @@ The following table compares the two main pricing models available for monetizin
| User cost predictability| Unpredictable (rental + usage) | Predictable | Predictable |
| Store discounts | ❌ Single price only | ✅ Store discounts available | ✅ Store discounts available |
| Marketing boost | Standard visibility | Standard visibility | Priority store placement |
| Commission opportunities| Standard 20% | Standard 20% | Promotional 0% periods (until 01/11/2025) |
| Commission opportunities| Standard 20% | Standard 20% | Standard 20% |
| Custom event billing | Not available | Not available | ✅ Charge for any event |
| Per-result billing | Not available | ✅ Charge per dataset item | Optional (via event; automatic via `apify-default-dataset-item`) |

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4 changes: 2 additions & 2 deletions sources/platform/actors/publishing/monetize/pay_per_event.mdx
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Expand Up @@ -2,7 +2,7 @@
title: Pay per event
description: Learn how to monetize your Actor with pay-per-event (PPE) pricing, charging users for specific actions like Actor starts, dataset items, or API calls, and understand how to set profitable, transparent event-based pricing.
slug: /actors/publishing/monetize/pay-per-event
sidebar_position: 3
sidebar_position: 1
---

**Learn how to monetize your Actor with pay-per-event (PPE) pricing, charging users for specific actions like Actor starts, dataset items, or API calls, and understand how to set profitable, transparent event-based pricing.**
Expand All @@ -12,7 +12,7 @@ sidebar_position: 3
import Tabs from '@theme/Tabs';
import TabItem from '@theme/TabItem';

The PPE pricing model offers a flexible monetization option for Actors on Apify Store. Unlike pay per result, PPE allows you to charge users based on specific events triggered programmatically by your Actor's code.
The PPE pricing model offers a flexible monetization option for Actors on Apify Store. Unlike [pay per result](/platform/actors/publishing/monetize/pay-per-result), PPE allows you to charge users based on specific events triggered programmatically by your Actor's code.

PPE lets you define pricing for individual events. You can charge for specific events directly from your Actor using the [JS](/sdk/js/reference/class/Actor#charge)/[Python](/sdk/python/reference/class/Actor#charge) SDK, or by calling the [PPE charging API](/api/v2/post-charge-run) directly. Common events include Actor start, dataset item creation, and external API calls.

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2 changes: 1 addition & 1 deletion sources/platform/actors/publishing/monetize/pricing_and_costs.mdx
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Expand Up @@ -2,7 +2,7 @@
title: Pricing and costs
description: Learn how to set Actor pricing and calculate your costs, including platform usage rates, discount tiers, and profit formulas for PPE and PPR monetization models.
slug: /actors/publishing/monetize/pricing-and-costs
sidebar_position: 3
sidebar_position: 4
---

**Learn how to set Actor pricing and calculate your costs, including platform usage rates, discount tiers, and profit formulas for PPE and PPR monetization models.**
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4 changes: 2 additions & 2 deletions sources/platform/actors/publishing/monetize/rental.mdx
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Expand Up @@ -2,7 +2,7 @@
title: Rental pricing model
description: Learn how to monetize your Actor with the rental pricing model, offering users a free trial and a flat monthly fee, and understand how profit is calculated and the limitations of this approach.
slug: /actors/publishing/monetize/rental
sidebar_position: 1
sidebar_position: 3
---

**Learn how to monetize your Actor with the rental pricing model, offering users a free trial and a flat monthly fee, and understand how profit is calculated and the limitations of this approach.**
Expand Down Expand Up @@ -46,7 +46,7 @@ We recommend using the [pay-per-result](/platform/actors/publishing/monetize/pay
You make your Actor rental with _7-day free trial_ and then _$30/month_. During the first calendar month, three users start to use your Actor:

- _User 1 (paid plan)_: Starts free trial on the 15th
- _User 2 (paid plan)_: Starts free trial on the 25th
- _User 2 (paid plan)_: Starts free trial on the 25th
- _User 3 (free plan)_: Starts free trial on the 20th

The first user pays their first rent 7 days after the free trial, i.e., on the 22nd of the month. The second user only starts paying the rent next month. The third user is on the Apify free plan, so after the free trial ends on the 27th of the month, they are not charged and cannot use the Actor further until they get a paid plan.
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