WritingmateWritingmate Documentation

Fair Use Policy

Unlimited applies to normal, non-file-related chats. The moment you start attaching large files — especially inside Projects — you will likely consume messages fast enough to hit the fair-use cap.

The short version

  • Unlimited = normal chatting. Writing, brainstorming, coding questions, explanations, back-and-forth with a model — all of this is genuinely unlimited for typical daily use on Ultimate.
  • Files invalidate unlimited. As soon as a chat carries a large attached file, every turn re-sends that file. The bigger the file or the longer the chat, the faster you burn quota.
  • Projects amplify this. A Project attaches files to every chat inside it. Every message in every project chat re-sends the full set of project files as context. A project with many or large files can drain a daily quota very quickly — even from short chats.

When "unlimited" stops behaving like unlimited

Two patterns are responsible for almost every fair-use hit:

1. Large files attached to a chat

Uploading a multi-hundred-page document and chatting about it is not "one message" — it's the entire document re-sent on every turn you ask a follow-up. A dozen back-and-forths on a large PDF can count as many times more than a dozen plain-text messages.

2. Projects with many or large files

Projects share their attached files across every chat inside the project. That's their feature. It's also how fair-use gets used up:

  • 10 files × 30 pages each means every single message in every project chat sends 300 pages of context plus your question plus the reply.
  • A 10-turn conversation in that project can consume more of your daily quota than hundreds of normal-chat messages combined.

If you find yourself hitting daily limits on Ultimate, a heavy Project is almost always the cause.

How message counting works

Writingmate counts usage in blocks of 16,000 tokens (~12,000 words / ~24 pages). See Message Limits for the exact formula. Every turn's token count includes:

  • your new message
  • the model's reply
  • the entire chat history so far (re-sent every turn)
  • every file attached to the chat or Project

Normal chat without files generates a few hundred tokens per turn. A chat with large files can generate tens of thousands of tokens per turn — which is why the same "number of messages" uses vastly different amounts of quota.

How to stay within fair use

  • Keep files out of chats that don't need them. Most conversations don't require an attachment at all.
  • Upload only the relevant section of a document — not the whole book.
  • Split your Projects. Don't pile unrelated files into one large Project. Every file counts against every message in every chat in that project.
  • Use one-off chats outside a Project when you don't need the project's full file context for a given question.
  • Start a new chat when the earlier history is no longer useful — history is re-sent every turn, so tokens stack.
  • Use a basic model for quick tasks that don't need a Pro model.

What happens if you hit the fair-use limit

You'll see a Daily message limit reached banner for that model. Options:

  • Switch to a basic model to keep working that day
  • Wait until tomorrow — the quota resets daily
  • Upgrade if you're on Pro and want Ultimate's higher limits

Starting a new chat after you've hit the cap won't unlock more messages that day. Starting fresh only helps before you hit it, by preventing future turns from dragging along old history and files.

Why we have this policy

Fair-use exists so one heavy account can't degrade service for everyone else. The vast majority of Ultimate users — the ones using it for normal chatting — never come close to the limit. The policy only affects extreme file-heavy usage patterns.

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