Licensing
Updated September 29, 2026
Getting a license key
When you purchase crystl, a license key is generated and emailed to you automatically. A key is one long string in two parts joined by a dot: a signed payload and its signature. Copy the whole thing.
No account or login required, just the key.
Activating your license
crystl works on the free plan without a license key. Once your key is in, Mastering the Guild tours what it unlocks. To activate a Guild license:
- Open crystl
- Go to Settings > License
- Paste your license key
- crystl verifies the key and you’re good to go
Your key is stored locally on your Mac, readable only by your user account. You won’t need to enter it again unless you reinstall or switch machines.
What the key includes
Each license key is tied to:
- Your email: the one used at checkout
- A plan: determines which features are available
- An expiry date: one billing period from purchase (a year for annual, a month for monthly)
Plan comparison
| Free | Guild ($170/year or $18/month) | |
|---|---|---|
| Prompt Library integration | None | Full access |
CLI: read-only commands & crystl copy |
Yes | Yes |
| CLI: control commands (open/close, shard create/rename, send, approve, quest…) | None | Full access |
| Formations | None | Full access |
| Scheduling (agent or command) | Up to 3 schedules | Unlimited |
| iPhone app: from anywhere (relay) | None | Full access |
| iPhone app: same Wi-Fi | Yes | Yes |
| Gems & shards (unlimited on every tier) | Yes | Yes |
| Facet Inserts (unlimited on every tier) | Yes | Yes |
| Isolated shards | Yes | Yes |
| MCP server config | Yes | Yes |
| API key storage | Yes | Yes |
| Split view | Yes | Yes |
| Conversation history | Yes | Yes |
| Action panels (approvals, questions, alerts) | Yes | Yes |
| Agent activity panel | Yes | Yes |
| Token tracking | Yes | Yes |
| Workbench | Yes | Yes |
| Project optimizer & agent file editor | Yes | Yes |
| Screenshot bar & copy bar | Yes | Yes |
| Remote development over SSH | Yes | Yes |
| Metal-accelerated GPU rendering | Yes | Yes |
Checking your license
You can check your license status at any time from the crystl menu bar:
crystl > license…
This opens the license page in Settings, which shows your membership status, the account email, and the expiration date.
Renewal
crystl uses auto-renewing subscriptions through Stripe, yearly or monthly depending on the plan you chose. Here’s how it works:
- Automatic renewal: Your subscription bills automatically on your billing cycle — you won’t be asked to pay again by hand.
- New key on renewal: crystl checks your license by the expiry date stored locally on each Mac, and that date doesn’t update itself. Each renewal emails a new key to your purchase address from [email protected], and you need to paste it into Settings > License to keep Guild features active — on every Mac your license covers, not just one.
- A short grace window: A license stays valid through the end of the calendar day it’s dated to expire, so you won’t lose access before your subscription actually renews that day.
- Cancel any time: You can cancel your subscription from Stripe’s customer portal. After cancellation, your current license remains active until the end of the billing period.
If your license expires and your subscription has been cancelled, crystl drops back to the free tier. Nothing is deleted: your gems, shards, settings, and history all keep working, and the Guild features unlock again the moment you paste a new key.
Switching between yearly and monthly
Change your plan any time from Stripe’s customer portal (the same place you manage billing or cancel) — there’s no need to cancel and re-subscribe.
The switch takes effect immediately, not at your next renewal. Stripe prorates the difference automatically: switching from yearly to monthly partway through the year credits your unused annual time toward future monthly invoices rather than refunding it to your card right away, and switching from monthly to yearly charges the difference immediately. A new license key, dated for the new plan, is emailed to you as soon as the switch goes through — paste it into Settings > License the same way you would a renewal.
If you cancel while you still have unused credit from an earlier yearly-to-monthly switch, that credit is refunded automatically to your original payment method — nothing to request.
Offline use
crystl verifies your key locally, by its signature. It never needs to phone home to keep working, so you can use crystl offline indefinitely. The server is only contacted when you activate a key, to enforce the device limit.
Moving to a new machine
Copy your license key to your new machine by entering it in Settings > License. If you no longer have your key, check the original email from [email protected] or contact support.
Troubleshooting
| Issue | Fix |
|---|---|
| “Invalid license key” | Make sure the whole key was pasted, both parts around the dot. Email clients sometimes wrap or truncate it. |
| “License expired” | Renew at crystl.dev. A fresh key is emailed to you; paste it into Settings > License. |
| Device limit reached | Guild covers up to 3 devices. Contact support to free one up. |
| Lost your key | Search your email for a message from [email protected], or contact support. |