Use Cases

T402 enables a wide variety of payment scenarios across web services, AI agents, and digital content.

Quick Examples

// AI agent pays for API access via MCP
import { t402Client } from "@t402/fetch";
 
const client = new t402Client();
registerExactEvmScheme(client, { signer });
 
// Agent pays automatically when accessing paid APIs
const weather = await client.fetch("https://weather-api.com/forecast");
const analysis = await client.fetch("https://ai-analysis.com/process");

// Monetize your API with one middleware
import { paymentMiddleware } from "@t402/express";
 
app.use(paymentMiddleware({
  "GET /api/data": {
    accepts: [{ scheme: "exact", price: "$0.01", network: "eip155:8453", payTo: "0x..." }],
  },
}));

// Gate premium content
app.use(paymentMiddleware({
  "GET /articles/:id": {
    accepts: [{ scheme: "exact", price: "$0.25", network: "eip155:8453", payTo: "0x..." }],
    description: "Premium article access",
  },
}));

// Enable micro-payments with gasless UX
import { createBundlerClient, createPaymaster } from "@t402/evm/erc4337";
 
const bundler = createBundlerClient({ provider: "pimlico", apiKey, chainId: 8453 });
const paymaster = createPaymaster({ provider: "pimlico", apiKey, chainId: 8453 });
// Users pay $0.001 without needing ETH for gas

AI Agent Payments

AI agents need a way to pay for services programmatically. T402 enables autonomous payments through:

• MCP Integration: Claude, GPT, and other AI agents can pay via the Model Context Protocol
• No human intervention: Agents sign and submit payments automatically
• Budget controls: Set spending limits and approval workflows

Typical pricing: $0.001 - $0.10 per API call

Learn more about AI Payments →

API Monetization

Turn any API endpoint into a paid service with a single line of middleware:

• Per-request pricing: Charge exactly what each request is worth
• No subscriptions needed: Users pay only for what they use
• Global payments: Accept USDT/USDC from anywhere in the world

Typical pricing: $0.01 - $1.00 per request

Learn more about API Monetization →

Premium Content Access

Gate articles, media, or downloadable content without subscription fatigue:

• Micro-transactions: Charge $0.10 for an article instead of $10/month
• No account required: Pay with any supported wallet
• Instant access: Content unlocks immediately after payment

Typical pricing: $0.10 - $10.00 per item

Learn more about Content Access →

Micro-Payments

Enable payments as small as fractions of a cent for IoT, data, and compute:

• Sub-cent transactions: Pay $0.0001 for a single data point
• Gasless payments: ERC-4337 enables zero-gas transactions
• High throughput: Process thousands of payments per second

Typical pricing: $0.0001 - $0.01 per transaction

Learn more about Micro-Payments →

Why T402?

Network Recommendations

Implementation Complexity

Get Started

1. Choose your use case from the table above
2. Pick an SDK (TypeScript, Python, Go, Java)
3. Follow the quickstart to add payments in minutes

Quick Start Guide →

Industry Applications

Real-World Examples

Benefits by Industry

AI/ML Services: No API key management needed, pay-per-token or pay-per-request pricing, built-in budget controls for AI agents, multi-model marketplace enabled, and cross-provider payments standardized.

Data Providers: Monetize APIs without requiring subscriptions, enable real-time micro-payments for live data, no minimum commitment from users, global reach without traditional payment processors, and instant settlement directly to your wallet.

Content Publishers: A practical alternative to subscription fatigue, readers pay only for what they read, no account creation required, works with any crypto wallet, and typically achieves higher conversion rates than traditional paywalls.

Choosing the Right Approach

• API Service with < $0.01 per call → Micro-Payments + Gasless
• API Service with $0.01 - $1 per call → API Monetization
• API Service with > $1 per call → Premium API
• Content → Content Access
• AI Integration → AI Payments + MCP

Resources

• Protocol Specification - Technical details of the t402 protocol
• Supported Chains - Full list of supported blockchains
• Advanced Configuration - MCP, extensions, and more
• Quick Start - Get started in 5 minutes