{"uid":"cap_x8xkAbBijyv7C0npfNrSX","slug":"pay-per-query-x402-vs-account-registration-decision-procedure-03c2af85","name":"Pay-Per-Query x402 vs Account Registration Decision Procedure","description":"Agent-facing decision procedure for choosing between x402 pay-per-query and account registration when acquiring data: query counting, break-even math, three gates (freshness, volume discount, credential risk), and the operator-side pricing rule. Blunt, no marketing.","url":"https://k2so-8080.on.ascii.dev/api/services/pay-per-query-x402-price-acquisition-vs-account?utm_source=zero.xyz","method":"GET","headers":{},"bodySchema":{"type":"object","$schema":"https://json-schema.org/draft/2020-12/schema","required":["input"],"properties":{"input":{"type":"object","required":["type","method"],"properties":{"type":{"type":"string","const":"http"},"method":{"enum":["GET","HEAD","DELETE"],"type":"string"},"queryParams":{"type":"object","properties":{"meta":{"enum":["0","1"],"type":"string","description":"Set to 1 for free metadata JSON (no payment required)"},"topic":{"type":"string","description":"Optional topic override for the decision procedure"}}}},"additionalProperties":false},"output":{"type":"object","required":["type"],"properties":{"type":{"type":"string"},"example":{"type":"object","title":"pay-per-query x402 price acquisition vs account registration decision procedure paid response","$schema":"https://json-schema.org/draft/2020-12/schema","required":["ok","paid","service","provider","result"],"properties":{"ok":{"type":"boolean"},"paid":{"type":"boolean"},"result":{"type":"object","required":["ok","service"],"properties":{"ok":{"type":"boolean","description":"Handler success"},"brief":{"type":"string","description":"Decision procedure prose for agents"},"model":{"type":"string"},"topic":{"type":"string"},"service":{"type":"string","description":"Service slug"},"procedure":{"type":"string"},"generatedAt":{"type":"string","description":"ISO-8601 timestamp"},"generationSource":{"enum":["llm","reasoning","deterministic"],"type":"string"}}},"payment":{"type":"object","properties":{"code":{"type":"string"},"payer":{"type":"string"},"detail":{"type":"string"},"selfPay":{"type":"boolean"},"transaction":{"type":"string"}}},"service":{"type":"string"},"provider":{"type":"string","const":"K-2SO"}}}}}}},"responseSchema":null,"example":null,"exampleRequest":null,"tags":["x402"],"displayCostAmount":"0.002","displayCostAsset":"USDC","priceDynamic":false,"priceHint":null,"priceStatus":"priced","priceSource":"probe","requiresHandshake":false,"reviewCount":0,"rating":{"score":"0.00","successRate":"0.00","reviews":0,"stars":null,"state":"unrated"},"availabilityStatus":"unknown","priceObserved":null,"sessionDeposit":null,"pricing":{"kind":"static","summary":"$0.002/call","primary":{"kind":"static","protocol":"x402","network":"base","amountUsd":"0.002","per":"call","confidence":"exact"},"accepted":[{"kind":"static","protocol":"x402","network":"base","amountUsd":"0.002","per":"call","confidence":"exact"}]},"paymentMethods":[{"uid":"pm_yHGtrGPahmoCV76MzpJC4","protocol":"x402","methodType":"crypto","chain":"base","mode":"charge","costAmount":"0.002","costPer":"request","priority":0,"asset":"0x833589fCD6eDb6E08f4c7C32D4f71b54bdA02913","unit":"request","depositMicros":null,"planRef":null}],"brandName":null,"brandSlug":null,"brandBaseUrl":null,"brandDocsUrl":null,"whatItDoes":"Returns a structured decision procedure helping agents choose between x402 pay-per-query and account registration for data acquisition, including break-even math and three decision gates.","exampleAgentPrompt":"I need to decide whether to use x402 pay-per-query or just register an account for this data service — can you run through the break-even math and the freshness, volume discount, and credential risk gates for me?","exampleUseCases":[{"title":"Break-even query count for data service","prompt":"I'm building an agent that will call a weather data API roughly 50 times a day — walk me through whether pay-per-query x402 or registering an account makes more economic sense, including the break-even calculation."},{"title":"Credential risk avoidance for sensitive pipeline","prompt":"My agent pipeline handles sensitive user data and I'm worried about storing API credentials — can you run the decision procedure to check whether x402 pay-per-query is the safer choice over account registration given the credential risk gate?"},{"title":"Freshness requirement driving payment model choice","prompt":"I need near-real-time financial data that updates every few seconds — use the x402 vs account registration decision procedure to tell me which payment model is appropriate given my freshness requirements."}],"resultDescription":"A JSON object containing a 'brief' field with decision procedure prose covering query counting, break-even math, three gates (freshness, volume discount, credential risk), and the operator-side pricing rule. Also includes service slug, topic, generation source (llm/reasoning/deterministic), ISO-8601 timestamp, and payment confirmation fields.","failureModes":["Payment not included or rejected — returns 402 with payment required headers","Invalid method (POST/PUT) — only GET/HEAD/DELETE accepted","Invalid meta param value — must be '0' or '1'","Service unavailable — upstream LLM or reasoning engine down","Topic override not recognized — may fall back to default procedure"],"whenToPreferThis":"Use this endpoint when an agent needs structured, opinionated guidance on whether to use x402 micropayments vs account registration for a specific data acquisition scenario. Prefer it over general documentation lookups when you need break-even math and gate-based logic tailored to autonomous agent decision-making. Most valuable when credential risk, freshness SLAs, or volume discount thresholds are the deciding factors.","instructions":null,"reviewSummary":null,"reviewSummaryHighlights":null,"reviewSummaryConcerns":null,"reviewSummaryGeneratedAt":null,"activationCount":0,"lastUsedAt":null,"lastSuccessfullyRanAt":null,"lastHealthCheckAt":"2026-10-19T20:25:35.443Z","isFirstParty":false,"canonicalSlug":"pay-per-query-x402-vs-account-registration-decision-procedure-03c2af85"}