# Generation and credits

> Check whose account a job uses and what you authorize an app to do.

Canonical: https://maru.audio/help/generation-and-credits
Documentation index: https://maru.audio/help/llms.txt

Generation can spend the credits of the Maru account authorized to submit the job. Buying an instrument and paying for its generation are separate: check whose account it uses before you approve access or start a request.

## Approving a connected app

A connected instrument or app may ask to generate on your behalf. Read Maru's consent screen and confirm that you recognize the app and the requested access. Generation inside an app can use your account's credits; purchasing that instrument does not itself settle generation costs.

See [connected apps and permissions](https://maru.audio/help/connected-apps.md) for managing access.

## Whose account pays?

When a creator module asks a player to connect their Maru account for generation, the player signs in and approves access to their own account. Their available balance and access apply. A creator's own server integration uses the account authorized for that service instead.

Do not assume that buying the instrument includes hosted usage, or that signing in grants spending permission. Creators should explain who pays before a player starts a job. [Generation in your products](https://maru.audio/help/generation-in-your-products.md) compares the approaches.

## Find your usage

Open [Usage](https://maru.audio/usage) to see which services and apps used your account. **By app** counts each app's requests; an app's name links to its connection so you can review or remove access. **Recent generations** shows what ran and whether it used hosted or local processing.

Usage shows each service's share of this month's allowance and your bought balance in dollars. When the page says limits are not active yet, usage is measured but not charged. [Credits and credit packs](https://maru.audio/help/credits-and-packs.md) explains the allowance, the balance and buying more.

A creator's aggregate report is a different view from your own account history; [creator reporting](https://maru.audio/help/creator-dashboard-and-earnings.md) explains its scope.

## Access and availability

Hosted generation requires an available service, the right account access and permission to spend credits. Check the message when a job cannot start. A sign-in problem, unavailable model and exhausted allowance need different remedies. When credits run out, the message comes with **Buy credits**; a member who reached an organization's monthly limit asks one of its admins to raise it.

Use [billing and usage](https://maru.audio/help/billing-and-usage.md) for plan and charge questions. Review your balance and activity on [Usage](https://maru.audio/usage), packs on [Credits](https://maru.audio/credits) and plans on [Pricing](https://maru.audio/pricing).

## When a request is slow or fails

For hosted audio generation, credits are reserved when you submit. If the service refuses the submission, that reservation is returned. A job blocked by insufficient credits or a usage limit does not spend credits.

If an accepted job fails, expires or is cancelled, saved results remain in your account. The unavailable share is refunded when Maru checks the results or clears the expired job; cancelling does not return the full cost immediately. For example, if one of two equally priced results is saved and the other is unavailable, half the credits are returned.

A dropped connection does not by itself refund or stop a job. The player reconnects to the existing job when it can. Check its status and saved results before starting again: a new submission can spend credits again, even with the same prompt.

A refund goes back to the allowance or the purchase it came from, and the balance on Usage reflects it. If the result or credit adjustment is missing, [contact support](https://maru.audio/contact#help) with the job reference and error message.

Return to [generative features](https://maru.audio/help/generative-features.md) for choosing and using the result.