Claude API uses prepaid or pay-as-you-go billing: if the account has no balance or credit, requests fail. For users in mainland China, the common problems are inconvenient official top-up methods, opaque exchange rates and fees, and invoices that are difficult to obtain.

This article explains the two top-up paths, what to check, and the questions that come up most often. Specific prices, exchange rates, and invoice policies are subject to the official provider or the site.

Note: Claude and Anthropic are trademarks of their respective owners. This article is for technical discussion only.

1. Two top-up paths

Path A: An official Anthropic account

Attach a payment method in the Anthropic Console and purchase credit or enable auto-reload. This suits teams that have an overseas payment method and can access the official service reliably.

Confirm:

  • Which payment methods are supported.
  • Whether auto-renewal is enabled.
  • The billing address and tax information.
  • How to download invoices and receipts.

Path B: Top up through the ZSQH gateway

  1. Open the ZSQH AI Gateway and sign up or log in.
  2. Go to "Wallet" or "Top up."
  3. Choose the amount and payment method.
  4. Complete payment and confirm the balance arrives.
  5. Call Claude models with an API key from the same account.

This suits teams that use domestic payment methods, need unified billing, or use several model providers at once.

2. What to check when topping up

Item What to confirm
Currency USD or RMB, and whether conversion is automatic
Exchange rate Which point in time is used, and whether fees are included
Arrival Real-time or delayed, and how failures are refunded
Minimum amount Whether there is a minimum top-up
Invoice Whether it can be issued, what type, and how long it takes
Refund Whether unused balance can be refunded and under what rules
Validity Whether the balance expires

Do not look only at "top up X and get Y free." Confirm the usable balance and the refund rules first.

3. Configuration after top-up

Once the balance arrives, call the API with your key:

export ANTHROPIC_API_KEY="sk-你的密钥"

curl "https://ai.zhongshangqihang.com/v1/messages" \
  -H "x-api-key: $ANTHROPIC_API_KEY" \
  -H "anthropic-version: 2023-06-01" \
  -H "content-type: application/json" \
  -d '{
    "model": "claude-sonnet-4-5",
    "max_tokens": 128,
    "messages": [{"role": "user", "content": "只回复 OK"}]
  }'

If the response is insufficient quota, check the account balance and the key's spending limit first, then confirm that the model is enabled for your account.

4. Cost control

  1. Create a separate key for each project and set a spending limit.
  2. Use Haiku or Sonnet for simple tasks, and reserve Opus for complex work.
  3. Avoid putting an entire repository into the context window.
  4. Summarize long logs before sending them.
  5. Monitor retries and 429 responses.
  6. Review usage logs weekly and identify high-consumption projects.
  7. Allocate costs by team member or project.

For current unit prices, see model pricing. For the estimation method, see Claude Code pricing: subscription vs API.

5. Invoices and compliance

Enterprise procurement usually requires:

  • Invoice type, such as standard or special VAT invoices.
  • A contract or order.
  • Payment records.
  • Data usage terms.

Policies differ between providers, so ask before topping up. Individual users who are only testing should start with a small amount to avoid leaving idle balance.

6. FAQ

Why does it still say insufficient balance after top-up?

It may be a delay in crediting, a key-level spending limit, a model that is not enabled, or a request to a more expensive model. Check the console balance and usage logs first.

Does the balance expire?

It depends on the provider's policy. Confirm the validity period and refund rules when you top up.

Can I get a refund?

It depends on the platform's terms. The rules for unused balance, promotional credit, and consumed credit may differ.

Is official top-up or gateway top-up cheaper?

Not necessarily. Compare after including exchange rates, fees, invoices, access reliability, and operations cost.

Does topping up require identity verification?

It depends on the payment channel and provider. Enterprise procurement usually requires company information.

7. Security reminders

  • Do not enter an API key on a non-official page.
  • Confirm the domain and payee before topping up.
  • Keep the order number and payment records.
  • Do not trust "cheap top-up" offers that ask for your account password.
  • Use corporate payment and contract processes for business purchases to avoid personal-transfer risk.

Next steps

If you need domestic top-up, unified billing, or multi-model access, sign up for the ZSQH AI Gateway, run a small top-up first, and then create keys per project. Models and prices are subject to model pricing.

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