Current plan level (Free, Team, Business, or Enterprise: Pricing | Retool ): Business
Monthly/Annual (if Team or Business): Monthly
Version of Retool (if self-hosted):
Question / Description:
I just noticed that we’ve been getting billed at the ‘Builder’ rate despite only have 1-2 users editing apps on a monthly basis. My understanding of the new process was that only users who edited an app would get billed as such. Who can I talk to in order to figure this out? Seems that at some point all support features were made into an enterprise-only feature? Kind of wild.
On a self-serve Business (Cloud) plan, there's confusion over being billed at the 'Builder' rate for more users than the 1-2 who actively edit apps each month, based on the understanding that only users who edit an app should be billed as Builders.
AI Response
Retool defines a 'Builder' as any enabled user who built or edited an app or workflow at any point during the billing cycle — so a user who has Edit access and opens the editor and makes even a minor change is counted as a Builder for that month, while enabled users who didn't edit anything are billed at the lower internal-user rate. Simply holding Edit permissions doesn't trigger Builder billing, but any editing activity does, and there's nothing stopping a user with sufficient access from flipping to Builder by opening the editor. On the Business plan, the documented way to keep costs down is to use permission groups to restrict users who shouldn't build/edit to Use-only access, ensuring they remain billed at the reduced internal-user rate. Reviewing which accounts have Edit/Own access and scoping them down accordingly should align the bill with actual usage.
Sources
Billing and usage | Retool Docs
Official billing reference defining Builder vs. internal user (Builders = enabled users who edited an app/workflow that cycle) and noting Business plans can use permission groups to keep non-editors at the lower internal-user rate. Restricting app editing permissions for internal users
Solved 2026 community thread confirming any user with edit access becomes a Builder just by opening the editor, and that the Business plan's permission groups are what let you actually govern who can edit.
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I took a quick look at your org in our system, it looks like you are on a legacy Business plan where all users are being charged at the same rate. This is an older subscription plan that was offered before May 2023, unlike our current billing system where we have different rates for Builders and internal users.
Could you reach out to Retool Support so they can assist with your account? They can provide assistance on transitioning to our current billing system and answer any other billing-related questions you have
Sorry for the confusion here - let me know if you need anything else!
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