the price13 / 14
Budget
Takes a budget and works backwards to the cheapest option that still meets the brief.
apipod-budgetSKILL.md on GitHub
When to use it, and when not to
when to use it
- The user names a number and asks what is possible within it.
- The user asks for "the cheapest way" to get a specific result.
- The balance may not cover the plan and the trade-off has to be stated.
not for
- apipod-estimate-cost — One model, one number — no search needed.
- apipod-plan-video — The output is a shot list with timings, not a price comparison.
procedure
5 skillsWhat the skill does, in order.
- 01
Turn the brief into parameters
Modality, duration or resolution, count, and any model the user named. If a parameter is genuinely unknown and changes the price materially — a 5 s versus 30 s clip — ask once, not as a form.
- 02
Enumerate options the model actually accepts
list_models for the modality, then get_model_params for each candidate you intend to quote. A price for a duration the model does not support is fiction.
- 03
Quote two to four, never a wall of prices
At least two when they exist, no more than four. A table of twenty numbers does not help anyone choose.
- 04
Report the trade-off, not just the number
A short table — option, key settings, price, and one clause on what you give up ("cheaper, but no native audio") — then a recommendation in one sentence.
- 05
Say whether it fits, and what does not
Check get_balance and state whether the recommended option fits. If nothing fits, say the shortfall and name the cheapest option that does.
try it
Send it from here
example request
I have $2 to spend. What's the cheapest way to get a 10-second vertical clip with sound?
The buttons open a new chat with this prompt prefilled. If APIPod is not connected yet, the prompt tells your assistant to stop and help you connect first. In Claude Code or a terminal, copy the prompt instead.
Not set up yet? Wiring guides for Claude, ChatGPT, Codex and more →
call trace
list_models (category: "video")
→ candidates ranked by price
get_model_params (per candidate)
→ duration · generate_audio
estimate_cost (cheapest first)
→ $— · what the cheap one gives up
get_balance ()
→ $— · the pick fits
Illustrative: the tools this skill runs, in order, for the request on the left. Prices appear the way estimate_cost returns them live — this page itself quotes nothing.
what it will not do
The rules it holds itself to.
01
An estimate never authorizes a generation. If the user then wants it made, that is a separate request, and the generate skill prices it again at the moment of generation.
02
"What did that last job cost?" is answered by check_job's final figure, not the estimate. If you do not have it, say so.
03
This skill never generates — not even one cell to test the water.