Z.ai subscriptions
GLM Coding Plan subscription pricing
Compare 3 GLM Coding Plan plans, included models, usage notes, and when it makes more sense to use API token pricing instead.
Data updated .
GLM Coding Plan limits and pricing at a glance
The GLM Coding Plan is Z.ai's flat-fee subscription for using GLM-5.2 (and GLM-5-Turbo, GLM-4.7, GLM-4.5-air) inside coding tools like Claude Code, Cline, Roo Code, OpenClaw, and 20+ other supported clients. Instead of paying per token through the Z.ai API, you pay one monthly fee and get a fixed quota of prompts.
- Lite — $18/mo ($12.60/mo promo, $151.20/yr): up to ~80 prompts per 5 hours and ~400 prompts per week, plus 100 MCP web-search/reader calls per month.
- Pro — $72/mo ($50.40/mo promo, $604.80/yr): up to ~400 prompts per 5 hours and ~2,000 prompts per week, plus 1,000 MCP calls per month. ~5x Lite usage.
- Max — $160/mo ($112/mo promo, $1,344/yr): up to ~1,600 prompts per 5 hours and ~8,000 prompts per week, plus 4,000 MCP calls per month. ~20x Lite usage.
All three tiers include the same model lineup (GLM-5.2 flagship, GLM-5-Turbo, GLM-4.7, GLM-4.5-air). The only differences are quota size, MCP allowance, and priority during peak hours.
How GLM Coding Plan quota actually counts
One "prompt" is one user turn in your coding tool, not one token. Quota is consumed at 3x during peak hours and 2x off-peak on GLM-5.2 and GLM-5-Turbo — except for a limited-time promotion through September 2026 that drops off-peak usage to 1x. Older models (GLM-4.7, GLM-4.5-air) are cheaper to run. Hit the cap and the plan stops; it does not auto-upgrade or pay-as-you-go overage.
GLM Coding Plan vs the Z.ai API
If you fire off occasional calls from a script, the Z.ai API (pay per million tokens) is cheaper. If you live inside an agent IDE for hours a day, the GLM Coding Plan caps your bill and almost always wins on $/token. Use the subscription vs API calculator to model your personal break-even point based on daily prompt count and average tokens per call.
How does GLM Coding Plan compare to Claude Max and ChatGPT Pro?
At $160/mo, GLM Coding Plan Max sits well below ChatGPT Pro ($200/mo) and Claude Max's higher tiers. For pure coding workloads where you're happy with GLM-5.2 instead of Claude or GPT-5, it is currently the cheapest high-quota plan we track for agentic IDE use. For general chat, research, multimodal, or non-coding work, Anthropic and OpenAI subscriptions still cover more ground.
Cheapest paid plan
GLM Coding Lite
$18/mo
Highest self-serve plan
GLM Coding Max
$160/mo
Cheapest related API model
GLM-5.2
$1.4/1M input tokens
| Plan | Price | Included models | Usage notes |
|---|---|---|---|
| GLM Coding Lite lite | $18/mo | glm-5.2, glm-5-turbo, glm-4.7, glm-4.5-air | GLM Coding Plan is limited to officially supported coding tools. Lite includes up to about 80 prompts per 5 hours and 400 prompts per week. GLM-5.2 and GLM-5-Turbo consume 3x quota during peak hours and 2x off-peak, with a limited-time 1x off-peak benefit through September. |
| GLM Coding Pro pro | $72/mo | glm-5.2, glm-5-turbo, glm-4.7, glm-4.5-air | GLM Coding Plan is limited to officially supported coding tools. Pro includes up to about 400 prompts per 5 hours and 2,000 prompts per week, about 5x Lite usage. |
| GLM Coding Max max | $160/mo | glm-5.2, glm-5-turbo, glm-4.7, glm-4.5-air | GLM Coding Plan is limited to officially supported coding tools. Max includes up to about 1,600 prompts per 5 hours and 8,000 prompts per week, about 20x Lite usage. |
Break-even calculator
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Frequently asked questions
What are the GLM Coding Plan limits?
GLM Coding Plan Lite ($18/mo) allows roughly 80 prompts per 5 hours and 400 prompts per week, with 100 MCP web-search/reader calls per month. Pro ($72/mo) raises that to ~400 prompts per 5 hours, ~2,000 per week, and 1,000 MCP calls. Max ($160/mo) gets ~1,600 prompts per 5 hours, ~8,000 per week, and 4,000 MCP calls. Quota is consumed at 3x during peak hours and 2x off-peak for GLM-5.2 and GLM-5-Turbo, with a 1x off-peak promo running through September 2026.
How much does the GLM Coding Plan cost?
GLM Coding Plan Lite is $18/month, Pro is $72/month, and Max is $160/month. Z.ai also offers an introductory 30% discount that drops the prices to $12.60, $50.40, and $112 per month respectively, plus yearly billing at $151.20, $604.80, and $1,344 per year for the three tiers.
Which models are included in the GLM Coding Plan?
All three GLM Coding Plan tiers (Lite, Pro, Max) include the same model lineup: GLM-5.2 (the current flagship), GLM-5-Turbo, GLM-4.7, and GLM-4.5-air. Tier differences are about quota size, MCP allowance, and priority during peak demand — not about which models you can call.
Which coding tools support the GLM Coding Plan?
The GLM Coding Plan ships an OpenAI-compatible endpoint that drops into 20+ supported coding assistants, including Claude Code, Cline, Roo Code, OpenClaw, and other IDE integrations. The plan is restricted to officially supported coding tools — it is not a general Z.ai API key replacement.
Is the GLM Coding Plan cheaper than the Z.ai API?
It depends on usage. The Z.ai API is pay-per-token, so light or bursty usage is cheaper through the API. The GLM Coding Plan caps your bill at $18, $72, or $160 per month, so heavy daily coding sessions are almost always cheaper on a subscription. The break-even is roughly when your daily token spend on the API exceeds the monthly cap divided by 30 — use the subscription vs API calculator to model your specific workload.
How does GLM Coding Plan Max compare to Claude Max and ChatGPT Pro?
GLM Coding Plan Max is $160/month, slightly cheaper than ChatGPT Pro at $200/month and Claude Max 20x. For pure coding workloads where GLM-5.2 quality is acceptable, GLM Coding Plan Max is currently the cheapest high-quota agentic IDE plan we track. Claude Max and ChatGPT Pro cover broader use cases (research, multimodal, general chat) and bring Claude Sonnet/Opus and GPT-5 respectively.
Can I use the GLM Coding Plan for production API workloads?
No. The GLM Coding Plan is restricted to officially supported coding tools and IDE assistants. For programmatic, production, or customer-facing workloads, use the Z.ai API, which is metered per million tokens and has no tool restriction.