Surprise, pay $1000
Points and comments are a snapshot, not live.
Blacksmith invoiced a startup $1081 for CI usage on a free trial without a credit card on file.
ForestWalk tried Blacksmith, a YC-backed GitHub Actions alternative, on a free trial. After using it heavily, they received warnings about approaching their 80% free limit but did not add a credit card. Blacksmith then sent an invoice for $1081.45, followed by an overdue notice demanding payment. The company's support clarified that they do not cut off service when free limits are exceeded; workflows continue accruing charges at published rates. The author notes this violates user expectations: most SaaS services cap free tiers as hard limits until payment information is provided. Blacksmith's terms did allow billing without prior credit card collection, but the practice is unusual. The author acknowledges Blacksmith's service is faster than GitHub Actions and remains a customer, while warning others to wind down trials before hitting limits.
What commenters are saying
Commenters broadly view the practice as unfair despite being technically legal. Top responses note this violates convention: users expect free tiers to hard-cap before billing, not invoice after. Several cite similar experiences with other SaaS providers (Infisical, OpenAI) that charge overage without explicit upfront consent. One commenter argues Blacksmith likely faces poor collection rates and destroyed goodwill, making the short-term revenue gain net-negative. Competing services (Depot, Namespace, WarpBuild) are mentioned as alternatives with clearer free trial terms. A minority view treats it as acceptable post-pay pricing, though most counter that billing statements disguised as marketing nudges crosses into dark patterns.