Wavespeed API for Developers: Models, Pricing and Policy Notes
Wavespeed is the only tool in our ranking built around a public API. This note collects what a developer needs before integrating it: per-run pricing, retrieval, retention window and the legal duties the API does not enforce.
Wavespeed is a model platform whose developer API, documented in English with webhooks, bills every call per run — $0.12 for the clothes-changer in our Aug 16, 2026 test, other models from $0.07 per image, video from $0.10 per second. Outputs expire within 7 days. Integrations may process only images of consenting adults 18+ (Responsible AI).
What does the API cost and how are runs billed?
There are no API tiers or monthly seats: one credit balance pays for console runs and API calls. We checked the endpoint against the documentation on Aug 16, 2026 but did not load-test it, so throughput figures are not part of this note.
| Item | Finding | Source / date |
|---|---|---|
| Billing unit | Per run, drawn from the prepaid credit balance; no subscription, no minimum. | Pricing page, accessed Sep 3, 2026 |
| Clothes-changer model | $0.12 per run (about 83 runs per $10). | Editorial test note, Aug 16, 2026; pricing page, Aug 25, 2026 |
| Other models | Image models from $0.07 per image; video from $0.10 per second, varying by resolution and parameters. | Pricing page, accessed Sep 3, 2026 |
| Retrieval | Webhooks deliver outputs; the console keeps a run history for manual checks. | API documentation, accessed Sep 3, 2026 |
| Payment | Card or PayPal top-ups; wire transfer for enterprise; credits do not expire, non-refundable. | Pricing page, accessed Sep 3, 2026 |
| Trial | $1 credit for eligible new accounts without a card — about 8 runs. | Editorial test note, Aug 16, 2026 |
How should an integration handle parameters and retries?
The biggest cost driver is the pass count, not the list price. Default parameters produced inconsistent garment boundaries, and usable output needed two or three passes. A pipeline should budget two to three runs per accepted result and log the parameter set that produced it.
Speed scored 9.0/10 with stable uptime and no priority lanes; support scored 7.0/10 — documentation and an email, not an engineering desk. The how-it-works note covers the console side, the inpainting explainer the masked-region mechanics.
What does the 7-day expiry mean for your storage design?
“Generated media files are temporary and generally expire within 7 days. This includes generated images, generated videos, generated audio, any other model outputs.”
— Wavespeed data retention policy, accessed Sep 3, 2026
Treat the platform as a compute layer, not a store. Fetch outputs on webhook delivery and persist them yourself; prediction metadata and account data remain until deletion, and residual backups may persist for a limited period.
The safety check and the retention comparison put these terms next to other tools.
Deletion on the Wavespeed side goes through the support email named in the privacy policy — there is no documented deletion endpoint.
Which legal duties does the API leave to you?
The terms of service are public and extensive, but the privacy policy sets its threshold at children under 13 and adds no adult-only gate. Nothing in the API verifies age or consent of depicted people; the Wavespeed review deducted privacy points for that, and an integrator inherits the gap.
In the US, the TAKE IT DOWN Act makes publishing an intimate image of a real person without consent a federal offense; covered platforms must remove reported images within 48 hours, and the FTC may seek up to $53,088 per violation. States add their own rules — see state deepfake laws.
Any product built on this API needs its own consent flow, age assurance, an NCII reporting route and, for EU users, the Art. 50 synthetic-media label. Not legal advice.
Where can you read the full Wavespeed review?
Disclosure: “Visit Site” is a sponsored affiliate link; a commission never changes an editor score — see How we rate and the affiliate disclosure.
Sources
- Federal Trade Commission — Complying With the Take It Down Act (accessed Sep 3, 2026)
- Pub. L. 119-12, TAKE IT DOWN Act (govinfo) (accessed Sep 3, 2026)
- Regulation (EU) 2024/1689, Art. 50 (EUR-Lex) (accessed Sep 3, 2026)
- Black Forest Labs — FLUX model repository (GitHub) (accessed Sep 3, 2026)
- Wan-Video — Wan 2.2 open video model repository (GitHub) (accessed Sep 3, 2026)
- Wavespeed pricing page and policies, accessed Sep 3, 2026 (via the “Visit Site” link above).
Consent note
FAQ about Wavespeed
Does Wavespeed charge separately for API access?
No. API calls and console runs draw on the same prepaid credit balance and are billed per run — $0.12 for the clothes-changer model, other image models from $0.07, video from $0.10 per second. There are no seats or monthly API plans; account tiers Bronze, Silver, Gold and Ultra follow cumulative top-up.
How are outputs delivered through the API?
Through webhooks described in the English-language documentation, with the console run history as a manual fallback. The editorial team checked the endpoint against the documentation on Aug 16, 2026 but did not load-test it. Outputs expire within 7 days, so integrations should persist files on delivery.
Is there a sandbox or trial for testing an integration?
Eligible new accounts receive a $1 trial credit without a card, which covers about 8 runs of the $0.12 clothes-changer model — enough for a smoke test of authentication, a run and a webhook callback. Beyond that, the smallest card or PayPal top-up funds development; credits never expire but are non-refundable.
Does the API enforce consent or age rules?
No. The terms prohibit non-consensual and minor-related content, but the privacy policy only excludes children under 13 and the API performs no age or consent check on depicted people. An integrator must add its own consent flow, age assurance and an NCII reporting route to comply with the TAKE IT DOWN Act and state laws.