---
name: perplexity-cost-tuning
description: |
  Optimize Perplexity costs through tier selection, sampling, and usage monitoring.
  Use when analyzing Perplexity billing, reducing API costs,
  or implementing usage monitoring and budget alerts.
  Trigger with phrases like "perplexity cost", "perplexity billing",
  "reduce perplexity costs", "perplexity pricing", "perplexity expensive", "perplexity budget".
allowed-tools: Read, Grep
version: 1.0.0
license: MIT
author: Jeremy Longshore <jeremy@intentsolutions.io>
---

# Perplexity Cost Tuning

## Overview
Optimize Perplexity costs through smart tier selection, sampling, and usage monitoring.

## Prerequisites
- Access to Perplexity billing dashboard
- Understanding of current usage patterns
- Database for usage tracking (optional)
- Alerting system configured (optional)

## Pricing Tiers

| Tier | Monthly Cost | Included | Overage |
|------|-------------|----------|---------|
| Free | $0 | 1,000 requests | N/A |
| Pro | $99 | 100,000 requests | $0.001/request |
| Enterprise | Custom | Unlimited | Volume discounts |

## Cost Estimation

```typescript
interface UsageEstimate {
  requestsPerMonth: number;
  tier: string;
  estimatedCost: number;
  recommendation?: string;
}

function estimatePerplexityCost(requestsPerMonth: number): UsageEstimate {
  if (requestsPerMonth <= 1000) {
    return { requestsPerMonth, tier: 'Free', estimatedCost: 0 };
  }

  if (requestsPerMonth <= 100000) {
    return { requestsPerMonth, tier: 'Pro', estimatedCost: 99 };
  }

  const proOverage = (requestsPerMonth - 100000) * 0.001;
  const proCost = 99 + proOverage;

  return {
    requestsPerMonth,
    tier: 'Pro (with overage)',
    estimatedCost: proCost,
    recommendation: proCost > 500
      ? 'Consider Enterprise tier for volume discounts'
      : undefined,
  };
}
```

## Usage Monitoring

```typescript
class PerplexityUsageMonitor {
  private requestCount = 0;
  private bytesTransferred = 0;
  private alertThreshold: number;

  constructor(monthlyBudget: number) {
    this.alertThreshold = monthlyBudget * 0.8; // 80% warning
  }

  track(request: { bytes: number }) {
    this.requestCount++;
    this.bytesTransferred += request.bytes;

    if (this.estimatedCost() > this.alertThreshold) {
      this.sendAlert('Approaching Perplexity budget limit');
    }
  }

  estimatedCost(): number {
    return estimatePerplexityCost(this.requestCount).estimatedCost;
  }

  private sendAlert(message: string) {
    // Send to Slack, email, PagerDuty, etc.
  }
}
```

## Cost Reduction Strategies

### Step 1: Request Sampling
```typescript
function shouldSample(samplingRate = 0.1): boolean {
  return Math.random() < samplingRate;
}

// Use for non-critical telemetry
if (shouldSample(0.1)) { // 10% sample
  await perplexityClient.trackEvent(event);
}
```

### Step 2: Batching Requests
```typescript
// Instead of N individual calls
await Promise.all(ids.map(id => perplexityClient.get(id)));

// Use batch endpoint (1 call)
await perplexityClient.batchGet(ids);
```

### Step 3: Caching (from P16)
- Cache frequently accessed data
- Use cache invalidation webhooks
- Set appropriate TTLs

### Step 4: Compression
```typescript
const client = new PerplexityClient({
  compression: true, // Enable gzip
});
```

## Budget Alerts

```bash
# Set up billing alerts in Perplexity dashboard
# Or use API if available:
# Check Perplexity documentation for billing APIs
```

## Cost Dashboard Query

```sql
-- If tracking usage in your database
SELECT
  DATE_TRUNC('day', created_at) as date,
  COUNT(*) as requests,
  SUM(response_bytes) as bytes,
  COUNT(*) * 0.001 as estimated_cost
FROM perplexity_api_logs
WHERE created_at >= NOW() - INTERVAL '30 days'
GROUP BY 1
ORDER BY 1;
```

## Instructions

### Step 1: Analyze Current Usage
Review Perplexity dashboard for usage patterns and costs.

### Step 2: Select Optimal Tier
Use the cost estimation function to find the right tier.

### Step 3: Implement Monitoring
Add usage tracking to catch budget overruns early.

### Step 4: Apply Optimizations
Enable batching, caching, and sampling where appropriate.

## Output
- Optimized tier selection
- Usage monitoring implemented
- Budget alerts configured
- Cost reduction strategies applied

## Error Handling
| Issue | Cause | Solution |
|-------|-------|----------|
| Unexpected charges | Untracked usage | Implement monitoring |
| Overage fees | Wrong tier | Upgrade tier |
| Budget exceeded | No alerts | Set up alerts |
| Inefficient usage | No batching | Enable batch requests |

## Examples

### Quick Cost Check
```typescript
// Estimate monthly cost for your usage
const estimate = estimatePerplexityCost(yourMonthlyRequests);
console.log(`Tier: ${estimate.tier}, Cost: $${estimate.estimatedCost}`);
if (estimate.recommendation) {
  console.log(`💡 ${estimate.recommendation}`);
}
```

## Resources
- [Perplexity Pricing](https://perplexity.com/pricing)
- [Perplexity Billing Dashboard](https://dashboard.perplexity.com/billing)

## Next Steps
For architecture patterns, see `perplexity-reference-architecture`.