Refund & Billing Policy

This Refund & Billing Policy explains how payments, plan changes, usage-based charges, cancellations, and refunds are handled for subscriptions to the platform operated by Aperture Labs Inc. ("Aperture," "we," "us," or "our"). It applies to the Free, Plus, and Pro plans. Enterprise plans are instead governed by the payment, invoicing, and refund terms set out in the applicable order form or master agreement, which will control over this policy to the extent of any conflict.

All payments are processed by Stripe, Inc. ("Stripe"), our third-party payment processor, and your use of a payment method through Aperture is also subject to Stripe's own terms of service.

By adding a payment method to your Aperture account and subscribing to a paid plan, you authorize Aperture, acting through Stripe, to charge that payment method, or any replacement or updated payment method you later provide, for all amounts owed under your subscription. This authorization covers, without limitation, recurring subscription fees on each renewal date, prorated charges resulting from a plan upgrade, charges for additional interviews or seats you purchase, and any surplus usage charges described in Section 8.

This authorization remains in effect until your subscription is fully canceled and any outstanding balance owed to Aperture has been paid. You represent that you are authorized to use the payment method you provide, and you agree to keep your payment and billing information current and accurate. If a charge cannot be completed because your payment information is out of date, incorrect, or otherwise invalid, you remain responsible for the amount owed, and Aperture may pursue the remedies described in Section 12.

All subscription payments are handled through Stripe. Aperture does not receive or store your full card number or other sensitive payment credentials; that information is collected and held directly by Stripe in accordance with Stripe's own security practices and applicable card network rules.

When you add a payment method, your bank or card issuer may place a temporary authorization hold on your account to verify the card; this is not a charge for your subscription and is released automatically by your bank or card issuer according to its own timelines, which Aperture does not control. Aperture is not responsible for delays, declines, or errors caused by Stripe, your bank, or your card issuer, and any dispute regarding how Stripe processed a transaction is subject to Stripe's own terms and dispute procedures in addition to this policy.

The Free plan does not require a payment method and does not result in any charge. Because no payment is collected, the Free plan is not subject to the billing, refund, or overage terms described elsewhere in this policy.

Plus and Pro subscriptions begin with a fourteen (14) day free trial, during which no charge is made to your payment method unless we clearly notify you otherwise as part of a specific promotion. We may require a valid payment method before your trial begins so that your subscription can convert automatically when the trial ends. You may cancel at any time before the trial ends without being charged.

If you do not cancel before the end of the fourteen-day period, your account converts automatically into a paid subscription at the plan's then-current listed price, and the first billing cycle begins immediately. Each company is entitled to one free trial per plan; if we reasonably determine that trial access is being used repeatedly by the same company, an affiliated company, or the same individual under different accounts to avoid payment, we may deny the trial or convert the account to a paid subscription immediately.

Paid subscriptions are billed monthly, in advance, and renew automatically at the start of each billing cycle unless canceled before the renewal date in accordance with Section 11. Fees are charged to the payment method on file through Stripe on the applicable renewal date.

If Aperture changes the price of a plan, we will provide at least thirty (30) days' notice before the new price applies to your subscription. Continuing to use a paid plan after that notice period constitutes acceptance of the new price beginning with your next renewal; if you do not agree to the new price, you may cancel your subscription before it takes effect in accordance with Section 11.

When you upgrade from a lower plan to a higher plan (for example, from Plus to Pro), the change takes effect immediately, and you gain access to the higher plan's interview allowance, seat allowance, and features right away. You will be charged a prorated amount for the remainder of the current billing cycle, calculated based on the difference between your previous plan and the new plan and the time remaining in the cycle, and this prorated charge is billed immediately to the payment method on file through Stripe pursuant to the authorization described in Section 2.

When you downgrade from a higher plan to a lower plan (for example, from Pro to Plus, or from Plus to Free), the downgrade takes effect at the start of your next billing cycle, and you retain the features and allowances of your current, higher plan through the end of the period you have already paid for. A downgrade does not, by itself, entitle you to a refund or credit for the current billing period.

Your monthly interview allowance is determined by the plan that was actually active at the time each interview was conducted, not by whichever plan you may be subscribed to later in the same billing cycle. If, while subscribed to a higher plan, you conduct a number of interviews that exceeds the monthly allowance of a lower plan, and you subsequently downgrade to that lower plan (or to any plan with a smaller allowance) before or at your next renewal, the interviews conducted in excess of the lower plan's allowance are treated as surplus usage and billed as a separate, one-time charge.

The rate applied to surplus usage is calculated by Aperture's system based on your company's plan, configuration, and usage at the time; it is not a fixed or published rate and may vary from company to company and from one instance of surplus usage to another. Where a rate is available for your account in advance, it will be shown in your dashboard; where it is not available in advance, Aperture will calculate the applicable charge and communicate it to you before it is billed. This surplus usage charge is billed to the payment method on file, either at the time the downgrade takes effect or on your next billing date, pursuant to the authorization described in Section 2, and applies whether or not the plan you have downgraded to otherwise makes additional interviews available for self-serve purchase, because it reflects usage that already occurred while a higher plan was active, not a new purchase.

Not every plan allows you to exceed its monthly interview allowance. The Free and Plus plans do not include a self-serve option to purchase additional interviews; once the monthly allowance on those plans is reached, you must upgrade to a plan with a larger allowance to continue conducting interviews that month.

The Pro plan allows you to purchase additional interviews beyond its monthly allowance directly from your dashboard. The rate for these additional interviews is determined by Aperture's system based on your company's plan, configuration, and usage; it is not a fixed rate, may vary from company to company, and may change over time. Where your dashboard allows you to purchase additional interviews directly, the applicable rate is shown to you before you confirm the purchase. Usage that falls outside what your dashboard allows you to purchase directly is billed individually, meaning Aperture will contact you to arrange pricing and terms for that additional usage, which may differ from the rate ordinarily shown in your dashboard and may be handled similarly to Enterprise terms.

Additional seats on Plus and Pro plans are billed per seat at a rate shown in your dashboard before you confirm the purchase, calculated on the same company-specific, system-determined basis. Charges for additional interviews and additional seats are billed immediately upon purchase and, once the interview credits or seats have been added to your account, are non-refundable except as required by applicable law.

Except as expressly described in this policy or where a refund is required by applicable law, all subscription fees, upgrade charges, additional interview and seat charges, and surplus usage charges are non-refundable once billed. We do not provide refunds, credits, or offsets for partial billing periods, interviews or seats you did not use, or days remaining in a billing period following a cancellation or downgrade.

You may cancel your subscription at any time through your account settings or by contacting [email protected]. Canceling stops future automatic renewal charges. Your subscription and its associated features remain active through the end of the billing period you have already paid for, after which your account moves to the Free plan. We do not issue a prorated refund for the unused portion of a billing period when you cancel.

If a renewal or other charge fails, Stripe will automatically attempt to retry the charge according to its standard retry schedule, and we will email the account owner to request an updated payment method. If payment continues to fail after these attempts, Aperture may suspend access to paid features, downgrade your account to the Free plan, or both, until a valid payment method is provided and any outstanding balance is paid. You remain responsible for any amounts owed regardless of whether a charge attempt fails.

If you believe a charge to your account was made in error, contact [email protected] within thirty (30) days of the date of the charge, describing the charge you are disputing. We will review your account and billing history and, if we determine a billing error occurred, issue a correction or refund.

Initiating a chargeback or payment dispute with your bank or card issuer without first contacting us may result in the suspension of your account while we investigate, and does not relieve you of your obligation to pay any amounts properly owed under this policy.

Rewards issued under an Aperture Rewards promotion are governed by the applicable Promotion Terms and not by this policy. Promotional rewards are not refundable and may not be exchanged for cash.

Billing, invoicing, payment terms, and refund terms for Enterprise plans are set out in the applicable order form or master services agreement between Aperture and the customer, which govern instead of this policy.

You are responsible for any sales, use, value-added, or similar taxes applicable to your subscription. Where required by applicable law, such taxes are calculated and added to your invoice or checkout total at the time of charge.

Aperture may, in its sole discretion, issue a refund, credit, or other accommodation outside the circumstances described in this policy. Doing so on one occasion does not create an obligation for Aperture to do so again in the same or similar circumstances.

Aperture may update this policy from time to time. Changes will not apply retroactively to charges already made, unless a retroactive change is required by applicable law. This policy should be read together with our Terms of Service.

For questions about billing, payment authorization, plan changes, or refunds, contact [email protected]