Short answer: the price on the pricing page is usually before tax. At checkout, sales tax or VAT is added for your billing address, so a $20 plan can be charged $21.20 to $24.00 and a $200 plan $210 to $220. The amount is decided by the billing address on the card, it stays the same every month, and the card needs to hold the taxed amount, not the list price. Most declines we see on ChatGPT and Claude subscriptions are the balance being short for that one charge.
Written by the Pink Card team (pinkcard.cc). Tax rules come from claude.com/pricing (“Prices shown don’t include applicable tax”), the Claude Help Center articles on billing address and tax, and the OpenAI Help Center articles on ChatGPT Plus and billing, checked between 2026-10-20 and 2026-10-28. Charge data covers every ChatGPT and Claude subscription charge on our own cards from 2026-07-30 to 2026-10-27 (UTC, the last 90 days). Fees are those on the purchase and top-up pages on 2026-10-28. Pink Card is not affiliated with OpenAI or Anthropic.
Why the charge is more than the list price
- Claude: the pricing page says prices do not include applicable tax, and tax is worked out from the billing address. For Pro, the billing address is taken from the card you pay with.
- ChatGPT: the Help Center lists Plus at $20 a month and supports several currencies, but does not publish how tax is calculated. Our charge data shows a share of Plus charges above $20 in the same pattern as tax.
- Neither company publishes a list of tax rates by country or state. The last line on the checkout page is the amount that will be charged.
- Subscribed in the iPhone or Android app? Apple or Google bills it in the local currency and price, so the dollar amount on the card has odd cents and can differ from the web price.
Real ChatGPT and Claude charges on our cards (last 90 days)
- ChatGPT subscriptions (OPENAI *CHATGPT SUBSCR): 199 successful charges on 120 cards. 154 were billed in US dollars, 45 in another currency (Philippine pesos 15, yen 11, won, pounds and kroner 3 each, and others).
- Plus-sized charges billed in US dollars: 96. Exactly $20.00: 66 charges on 45 cards. Above $20: 30 charges on 19 cards, from $21.20 to $24.00.
- The most common taxed amounts: $21.20 (6 times, 6%), $21.25 (4, 6.25%), $21.80 and $21.82 (3 each, about 9%), $22.06 (3, about 10%), and one $24.00 (20%).
- ChatGPT Pro: 24 charges of exactly $100.00 and 2 taxed ($106.00, $108.10); 17 charges of exactly $200.00 and none taxed.
- Claude subscriptions (ANTHROPIC* CLAUDE SUB): 40 successful charges on 28 cards, all in US dollars. About $20: 8 exact, 3 taxed ($21.00, $21.78 twice). About $100: 7 exact, 3 taxed ($105.00 twice, $106.25). About $200: 12 exact, 4 taxed ($210.00, $218.00 twice, $220.00).
The taxed amount stays the same every month
- Of the 19 cards with a taxed Plus charge, 8 were charged more than once in the 90 days, and 7 of them paid exactly the same amount every time (for example $21.25 three times, $21.80 three times).
- One card went from $21.20 twice to $21.78, so a rate can change, but rarely.
- None of those 19 cards ever had a plain $20.00 Plus charge. Tax follows the account and its billing address, not the month.
- So after the first successful charge, that amount is the one to plan for.
Charged in pesos, yen or euros on a USD card
If the account is set to a local currency, the merchant charges that currency and the card converts it at the day’s rate, so the dollar amount moves a little each month. On our cards the same 982.14 Philippine pesos came out between $15.83 and $16.48, 3,000 yen between $18.75 and $19.55, and 23.00 euros at $27.17 and $27.34. Keep a few dollars extra for that.
How a foreign-currency charge turns into a dollar amount: Foreign-currency charges on a USD prepaid card
The billing address: copy it, do not invent one
- Enter the billing address the card issuer gave you, exactly as written. It decides the tax, and it is also what the issuer checks the payment against.
- Anthropic asks that the billing address matches the card’s country and what the bank has on file; small differences can lead to a decline.
- OpenAI’s decline checklist starts with card number, expiry, CVC and billing address including the postal code.
- Do not type a “tax-free” address that is not the card’s. A mismatch can turn a taxed charge into a declined one.
- ChatGPT invoices: business details for future invoices can be edited under Settings → Billing → Billing information.
How much to keep on the card
- Use the taxed amount from the checkout page or from last month’s charge, not the list price.
- First time and you cannot see the taxed amount yet: keep 10%–20% above the list price, for example $24 for a $20 plan.
- On a Pink Card, add $1 per charge and the $2.50 monthly fee on the 1st. ChatGPT Plus at 10% tax: $22 + $1 + $2.50 = $25.50 a month.
- Claude Max 20x at 10% tax: $220 + $1 + $2.50 = $223.50 a month.
- Declined for low balance? Do not retry until the top-up shows “On card”. Each failed attempt is $1 (at most 3 per card per month).
ChatGPT Plus renewal declined and the plan downgraded: ChatGPT Plus renewal payment failed
Claude Max at $105–$220 and what an upgrade from Pro charges: Claude Max payment declined
Top up the same card
- Open pinkcard.cc/en, click “Balance & Top Up” at the top, and enter the 16-digit card number and the 3-digit lookup code (the card’s CVV).
- Choose an amount (minimum $30). A $30 top-up costs $36.75 in total and covers one taxed $20 plan for the month.
- Pay with USDT on ERC-20 or BEP-20, USDC on ERC-20, or Alipay.
- Wait until the top-up shows “On card” (usually within 5–10 minutes), then retry once. The card number does not change, so the subscription keeps billing the same card.
Already have a Pink Card? Enter the card number and lookup code to top up this card
Pink Card fees (as of 2026-10-28)
- Card issuance: $10 one-time, plus a 3% service fee on (card amount + $10). Presets start at $110 ($123.60 in total); custom amounts from $100.
- From the card balance after activation: $1 per transaction and $2.50 per month. Failed authorizations are charged $1 too (at most 3 failed charges per card per month).
- Top-up of the same card: $5 plus 5% of (top-up amount + $5), minimum $30: $30 → $36.75, $100 → $110.25. Full fee table: pinkcard.cc/en/fees.
- Pay for a new card with USDT (BEP-20 or ERC-20) or USDC (ERC-20). The card number, expiry, CVV and billing address are emailed about 1–2 minutes after payment.
Claude Code on Pro or Max, and why those charges get declined: Claude Code payment failed
Chinese version (中文版，付款方式按中文站): AI 订阅为什么比标价多扣钱