What are payer and member accounts?
A payer account manages billing for a group of accounts. Member accounts are the accounts your teams use to run Bright Data products. This setup fits companies with several teams, departments or subsidiaries that need separate workspaces and one billing owner.
The payer account is for billing only: the payer account has no zones and cannot send traffic. If you only need to separate usage by project, use multiple zones or API keys in one account instead.
How is pricing set for member accounts?
Pricing is set on the payer account only, and every member account uses the payer’s pricing plan. Member accounts cannot have different pricing. To change pricing, contact your account manager, who updates the pricing plan on the payer account. If your accounts had different pricing before they were linked, Bright Data reviews this with you before linking them.How do invoices, payments and tax work?
The payer account handles all billing for its member accounts.- Payment methods: held on the payer account only. Member accounts cannot add, edit or view payment methods.
- Invoices: the payer account receives one invoice covering the usage of all member accounts. Member accounts do not receive separate invoices. The invoice shows usage by member account.
- Tax: calculated on the payer account only, based on the billing address set on the payer account. A payer account has one billing address, so member accounts in different countries are not supported yet.
- Emails: billing emails (low balance, payments, declined payments, invoices) go to the payer account’s recipients, not to member accounts. Usage alerts set on a zone, such as a daily limit, are still sent for each member account.
- Visibility: the payer account can see usage and cost for each member account in Costs Explorer. The payer account cannot see member accounts’ zones, credentials or request data.
How does KYC work for payer and member accounts?
KYC is completed for each member account, not on the payer account. Residential zones and other products that require KYC unlock for a member account only after that member account passes KYC.- An existing account keeps its current KYC status when it becomes a member account.
- If KYC is revoked or fails review on one member account, only that member account is affected.
What happens to my existing account when it becomes a member account?
Your account keeps its users, zones, API keys, products and usage history. Credentials and IPs do not change. Billing moves to the payer account:- Payment method: the member account’s payment methods are removed, and the payer account’s payment method is used.
- Pricing: the member account uses the payer’s pricing plan.
- Balance: the member account’s balance, including manual credits, moves to the payer account.
- History: earlier invoices, credits and payments stay on the account where they were created.
- Timing: if an account is linked part-way through a month, the payer’s invoice for that month includes the member account’s charges from the start of the month. Bright Data recommends linking at the start of a month.
How do I set up a payer account, and can a member account leave?
Setup is not self-serve. Bright Data sets up the payer account with your account manager. The payer is a new, billing-only account, so an account that already runs products becomes a member account instead.- Tell your account manager which accounts will become member accounts.
- Provide the payer’s billing address, and name the finance users who will manage billing.
- Bright Data creates the payer account and links your accounts to it.
- Check the pricing plan on the payer account together with your account manager.