# Payment Architecture

Cluster supports three concurrent payment methods:

**x402 (for agents and Web3 developers)** Pay USDC per request via HTTP-native micropayments. No account required. Settlement is instant on Base. Zero protocol fees from x402 itself - Cluster retains 100% of the payment.

**Balance System (for regular users and teams)** Deposit USDC or ETH via the platform. Balance is deducted per API call on a pay-as-you-go basis. Suitable for users with budgets who prefer a traditional deposit-and-spend flow.

**Direct On-Chain Payment (for dataset purchases)** One-time payment via the PaymentRouter smart contract. Buyer sends ETH/token → contract splits revenue → buyer receives access. Suitable for high-value, one-off purchases.

All three methods coexist. The gateway detects which payment method is present in the request and routes accordingly.


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