Paying for Claude with Satispay: the API and Claude Code without a credit card

The Claude Pro subscription cannot be paid for with Satispay: for plans purchased on the Anthropic website, it accepts only credit or debit cards and does not accept PayPal. The Claude API and Claude Code with an API key, however, can be paid for with Satispay through Kunavo. Kunavo is an independent gateway compatible with the OpenAI and Anthropic APIs that uses a prepaid balance: you top up from $10, the Stripe checkout displays the amount in euros, and Satispay appears among the methods alongside card, Apple Pay, Google Pay, and Link. PayPal and SEPA direct debit are unavailable, and Klarna is reserved for those paying from the United States. The balance does not expire, there is no monthly fee, and failed requests are not charged. Prices and payment methods checked on October 3, 2026.

Short answer: can you pay for Claude with Satispay?

It depends on which Claude product you are paying for: the subscription and API are different products with separate payments.

• Claude Pro or Max on claude.ai: no. Per gli abbonamenti comprati sul web Anthropic accetta solo carte di credito o di debito (Anthropic help center, letto il October 3, 2026), e non accetta processori di terze parti come PayPal (article about declined cards).
• Subscription through the Claude app for iPhone or Android: il pagamento lo gestiscono l'App Store di Apple o Google Play (same page), con i metodi che il tuo account dello store accetta. Quali siano, lo vedi nello store.
• Claude API and Claude Code with an API key: yes, through Kunavo. You top up a prepaid balance with Satispay in euros, and it is deducted based on usage, token by token. This is not the Pro subscription: it is API access to the same Claude models, which explains the rest of the page.

What about PayPal?

No, neither from Anthropic nor from Kunavo. Anthropic scrive che accetta carte di credito e di debito per tutti gli acquisti e che non accetta processori di pagamento di terze parti come PayPal o Venmo (help center, letto il October 3, 2026). Nel checkout di Kunavo PayPal non c'è, e mancano anche l'addebito SEPA e Klarna, che è riservato a chi paga dagli Stati Uniti.

Chi non vuole usare una carta di credito ha comunque quattro strade nello stesso checkout: Satispay, Apple Pay, Google Pay e Link. Apple Pay, Google Pay e Link usano una carta salvata, che può essere anche di debito. E una carta di debito o prepagata vale come carta: funziona anche la carta Satispay, che è una Mastercard di debito (Satispay support).

Se invece il problema è una carta rifiutata su claude.ai, Anthropic indica come cause più comuni l'indirizzo di fatturazione diverso da quello registrato in banca, un paese non supportato, la verifica 3D Secure non completata, fondi insufficienti e problemi tecnici temporanei (same page).

What you need

Three things, and none is a credit card:

• an email address, or a Google account, to register;
• l'app Satispay con abbastanza Availability. Satispay paga dalla Disponibilità, che si ricarica dall'IBAN collegato: la ricarica istantanea costa 1 € e arriva in pochi secondi, quella standard è gratuita ma richiede da 1 a 5 giorni lavorativi (Satispay support, letto il October 3, 2026). Se devi ricaricare, fallo prima di aprire il checkout;
• $10, the minimum top-up, which you already see converted into euros at checkout.

For a test, $10 is more than enough: Claude Haiku 4.5 costs $0,70 per million input tokens and $3,50 per million output tokens, so one hundred short requests (1,000 input tokens and 300 output tokens each) cost approximately $0,18.

Step by step

1. Create the account

Sign up for Kunavo with email or Google. No card is requested during registration, and you reach the dashboard without paying anything.

2. Open Billing and choose the amount

In the dashboard, go to Billing and choose a top-up. The amounts are in dollars because the per-token rates are in dollars; the euro amount appears in the next step, before you confirm anything.

3. Choose Satispay in the Stripe checkout

The button opens the Stripe-hosted checkout. If you pay from Italy, Stripe displays the amount in euros, and with the page in euros, Satispay appears among the methods alongside card and Link; in Safari or on iPhone, Apple Pay is also available, and in Chrome or on Android, if you have configured Google Pay, Google Pay is available as well. Check the amount in euros: that is what will be deducted from your Disponibilità.

4. Confirm with Satispay

Scelto Satispay, Stripe ti porta sulla pagina di Satispay per completare il pagamento (Stripe documentation). Lì inserisci il numero di cellulare collegato al tuo account oppure inquadri il QR code con l'app, poi tocchi Submit (Satispay support, letto il October 3, 2026).

5. The balance arrives once payment is confirmed

Con Satispay, Stripe riceve subito l'esito del pagamento (Stripe documentation), e la ricarica viene accreditata solo a pagamento confermato: a quel punto il nuovo saldo compare in Billing. Se tarda, aggiorna la pagina prima di pagare di nuovo: ogni pagamento viene registrato una sola volta, quindi un secondo pagamento diventa saldo in più, non una correzione.

6. Create the key and make the first call

With the balance available, create a key at /app/keys. It starts with sk-kn- and is shown only once: copy it immediately. Then all you need is a curl:

# Quando il saldo è arrivato, la prima chiamata è questa.
curl https://api.kunavo.com/v1/chat/completions \
  -H "Authorization: Bearer $KUNAVO_API_KEY" \
  -H "Content-Type: application/json" \
  -d '{
    "model": "claude-sonnet-5",
    "messages": [{"role": "user", "content": "Rispondi in una riga: funziona?"}]
  }'

If you already have code written for the OpenAI SDK, the API is compatible with that format: change the key and the base_url.

# Codice già scritto per l'SDK di OpenAI: cambiano solo chiave e base_url.
from openai import OpenAI

client = OpenAI(
    api_key="sk-kn-...",                    # la crei su kunavo.com/app/keys
    base_url="https://api.kunavo.com/v1",   # l'unica riga che cambia
)

resp = client.chat.completions.create(
    model="claude-sonnet-5",
    messages=[{"role": "user", "content": "Ciao!"}],
)
print(resp.choices[0].message.content)

For Claude Code, a few environment variables are enough; the cost comes from the same balance, charged per token based on usage:

# Claude Code con la stessa chiave (formato Anthropic Messages)
export ANTHROPIC_BASE_URL=https://api.kunavo.com   # senza /v1
export ANTHROPIC_AUTH_TOKEN=sk-kn-...
export ANTHROPIC_MODEL=claude-sonnet-5
export ANTHROPIC_DEFAULT_OPUS_MODEL=claude-opus-5-5
export ANTHROPIC_DEFAULT_SONNET_MODEL=claude-sonnet-5
export ANTHROPIC_DEFAULT_HAIKU_MODEL=claude-haiku-4-5
claude

The three ANTHROPIC_DEFAULT_* lines set Claude Code's aliases to models served by Kunavo. Without ANTHROPIC_DEFAULT_SONNET_MODEL, the sonnet alias requests Sonnet 5.5, which Kunavo does not offer: the /model sonnet command, the execution phase of opusplan, and subagents set to sonnet would receive a 404 error. The opus alias points to Claude Opus 5.5, which requires Claude Code v2.1.280 or later (with an earlier version, run claude update). The other details, including the model for background calls, are in the Claude Code integration guide.

What it really costs in euros

Rates are in dollars per million tokens: Claude Sonnet 5 costs $1,40 for input and $7,00 for output, Claude Haiku 4.5 $0,70 and $3,50. All models are listed on the pricing page.

La conversione in euro la fa Stripe al checkout, e il suo tasso di cambio include una 2–4% conversion fee, a carico di chi paga (Stripe, Adaptive Pricing, letto il October 3, 2026). Su una ricarica da $10 vuol dire tra $0,20 e $0,40. Se paghi in dollari la commissione di Stripe non c'è, anche se la tua banca può applicare il proprio cambio e le proprie spese; ma con il checkout in dollari Satispay non compare, e restano carta, Apple Pay, Google Pay e Link.

One example, arithmetic based solely on tokens: an internal assistant making 1,000 requests per month, each with 2,000 input tokens and 500 output tokens, on Claude Sonnet 5 consumes 2 million input tokens ($2,80) and half a million output tokens ($3,50), or $6,30 per month before the conversion fee. With your own numbers, you can recalculate it in the Claude token cost calculator.

Larger top-ups include a bonus: $100 diventano $110, $1.000 diventano $1.200, $5.000 diventano $6.250 in account credit.

Anche nella Console di Anthropic l'API di norma si paga in anticipo, con crediti prepagati (alcune organizzazioni hanno invece la fatturazione mensile concordata con Anthropic), ma quei crediti scadono un anno dopo l'acquisto e non sono rimborsabili (Anthropic help center, letto il October 3, 2026). Il saldo Kunavo non scade.

Checkout methods for customers paying from Italy

Pay by Bank non è disponibile dall'Italia: il checkout lo mostra solo a chi paga dal Regno Unito, dall'Irlanda e dalla Finlandia, e Stripe lo tiene in anteprima privata per Francia e Germania (Stripe, Pay by Bank, letto il October 3, 2026).

For transparency: Satispay was added to the Kunavo checkout on October 3, 2026. Stripe offers it for euro payments, but so far no top-up has been made through Satispay. If it does not appear in your checkout, card, Apple Pay, Google Pay, and Link work as alternatives.

Limits to know

• Automatic top-up is available only with a card or Link. Nel checkout di Stripe Satispay è un metodo a uso singolo, non disponibile per salvare un metodo di pagamento (Stripe documentation), e la ricarica automatica di Kunavo addebita solo una carta salvata o Link: ogni ricarica con Satispay la fai a mano. Se vuoi che il saldo si ricarichi da solo, salva una carta (va bene anche la carta Satispay) o usa Link.
• No VAT invoice or electronic SDI invoice. Kunavo does not issue Italian invoices. Your top-up history, including the date, amount, and status, is available in Billing; for a document to give your accountant, write to contact@kunavo.com.
• This is a pay-as-you-go API, not Claude Pro. The balance pays for API calls and Claude Code with an API key; it does not activate a subscription on claude.ai and is not valid in the Claude app.
• The minimum top-up is in dollars. $10, with the euro amount depending on the day's exchange rate.

If Satispay does not appear

• VPN or proxy outside Italy. Stripe determines the currency and payment methods when the page loads: disable the VPN and reopen checkout from Billing.
• The checkout is in dollars instead of euros. Satispay funziona solo in euro (Stripe). Riapri il checkout dalla connessione da cui paghi e controlla che l'importo sia in euro.
• Insufficient balance. If the app declines the payment, top up the Balance and try again.

If that does not resolve the issue, card, Apple Pay, Google Pay, and Link remain available in the same checkout. The complete list of methods, country by country, is in the balance and payments documentation.

For the broader picture for developers using Claude from Italy, see the Claude API in Italy guide. To get started: create an account, top up $10 with Satispay, and make your first call.

Frequently asked questions