Side-by-side comparison
| ChatGPT Plus | Radvane | |
|---|---|---|
| Price model | Flat $20/month (about KES 2,850) | Pay as you go, from KES 150 |
| Payment | International card | M-Pesa (STK push) |
| Free start | None | 50,000 credits on signup |
| Expiry | Renews monthly; unused value is lost | Credits do not expire monthly |
| Models | OpenAI models | GPT-6 Sol/Luna, Claude Sonnet 5.5, DeepSeek V4.1, Gemini |
| Light user (a few chats a week) | KES 2,850 every month | Often under KES 300 for the month |
| Web search | Included | 8,000 credits (about KES 2.4) per search |
Prices checked October 2026; ChatGPT Plus pricing is set by OpenAI and may change.
What a message actually costs on Radvane
KES 150 buys 500,000 credits; KES 300 buys 1,000,000 (about KES 0.0003 per credit). Typical warm follow-up turns (conversation already cached):
| Model | Credits per follow-up | Approx. KES |
|---|---|---|
| GPT-6 Luna | ~200 | < 0.1 |
| DeepSeek V4.1 | ~350 to 830 | 0.1 to 0.3 |
| GPT-6 Sol | ~3,000 to 3,900 | 0.9 to 1.2 |
| Claude Sonnet 5.5 | ~10,600 to 15,900 | 3.2 to 4.8 |
Measured on short test conversations; long answers, attachments and web search cost more.
FAQ
Can I use GPT-6 without a $20 ChatGPT Plus subscription?
Yes. Top up from KES 150 via M-Pesa and pay only for what you send. GPT-6 Sol and Luna are included, and you start with 50,000 free credits.
Do Radvane credits expire at the end of the month?
No. Credits are not tied to a billing month and are never reset. Accounts left inactive for about six months are scheduled for deletion after email warnings.
How does prompt caching make follow-up messages cheaper?
The earlier part of your conversation is cached by the provider and re-read at a steep discount. Radvane bills the real discounted cost, so follow-ups cost far less than the first message.
How do I use Claude Sonnet 5.5 and GPT-6 with M-Pesa?
Sign in, open + Top Up in your avatar menu, enter an amount from KES 150 to 1,300, approve the M-Pesa prompt, then pick a model.
Try it before you pay
No card, no subscription.
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