ChaiBuilder is shipped as code, not a hosted service: the chaipro package runs on your own database and hosting. Your developers can evaluate it with a 30-day free trial; to keep running it after that, your platform needs a yearly Pro license, and its key in your environment keeps the product unlocked. Every license includes the full feature set: no tiers, no feature flags, no AI credits. Building a site or two rather than a platform? The open-source core needs neither; see below.

The 30-day free trial

• 30 days, no credit card, no email.
• The trial begins the moment you deploy the starter to your server - there's no signup step to start the clock.
• During the trial the entire feature set is available. Nothing is gated.

To start, pick either path in the Quickstart: one-click deploy the starter and finish setup through the browser wizard, or run npx chaibuilder-app create locally (it asks the required questions and generates a fully functional project), then deploy.

The trial exists so your developers can validate that the builder fits your platform before you sign - see Refunds below.

Getting a license

chaipro is licensed as a Pro license: one yearly fee for your whole platform, however many sites it runs, quoted to you. There is no per-site fee, no public price list and no feature tiers. Every Pro license includes the entire feature set, the MCP server for AI agents (agents run on your own AI tool, so there are no AI credits to buy), and your own logo and colors inside the builder with no ChaiBuilder branding shown. The license covers the chaipro packages as published; it does not include their source code.

Hosting

The Pro license runs ChaiBuilder inside your own product, under your brand, for all of your tenants. It is always self-hosted: you run it on your own infrastructure and database.

Build services (integration, custom blocks, migration, rollout) are billed separately under the same agreement. To get a quote, book a demo or contact us.

Building a site or two?

You don't need a license. The open-source core, chaicore, is free under the BSD-3-Clause license and covers sites for yourself or for clients. See Open source.

Adding the license key

The license key lives in your environment variables, alongside your database and app config. It's optional during the trial and required after 30 days to keep the product unlocked.

# ChaiBuilder license key - required after the 30-day trial
CHAIBUILDER_LICENSE_KEY=your_license_key_here

Confirm the exact variable name against the env file your setup produced (the CLI writes it to .env; the setup wizard includes it in the generated variables) - set it to the key ChaiBuilder issues to you once your Pro license agreement is signed.

Restart the app after setting it. For where this fits alongside the rest of your configuration, see Environment & License.

How the license period works

Eligibility is tied to the version / release window, not to a moving subscription date:

• A license signed today is valid through the end of its year.
• You're eligible for any chaipro version released within that period.
• When the license expires, newer versions are no longer eligible. The builder shows a message to either renew or downgrade to the last eligible version to keep working.

So an expired license doesn't break an existing deployment - it stops you from moving to versions released after your window until you renew.

Refunds

No refunds. The 30-day trial (no credit card, no email) and a scoped pilot are how you confirm the builder works for your platform before signing. Validate fit during the trial.

Related

• Quickstart - get a site live either way and start the trial.
• FAQ - common first-run questions.
• Environment & License - full env configuration.