Frequently Asked Questions
Everything you need to know about letting your AI agent pay securely.
Getting Started
What is AgentCard?
AgentCard lets your AI agent pay for things online, securely, using the card you already have. Mastercard holders pay through Mastercard Agent Pay; any other card works too. Your agent can run the entire flow itself — sign up, request a payment for a purchase, and check out — or you can do it on your agent's behalf. Either way, it works at supported online merchants that accept card payments.
Is there a waitlist for AgentCard?
No. AgentCard removed its waitlist — signup is open to everyone and nobody has to approve your account. Install the CLI with "npm install -g agentcard", run "agentcard signup --email you@example.com", and click the magic link. You can be set up the same day.
How do I get started?
Install the CLI with "npm install -g agentcard", run "agentcard signup --email you@example.com" and click the magic link, then run "agentcard setup" and choose the card you'll pay with — Mastercard holders connect it through Mastercard Agent Pay; any other card works too. That takes about 30 seconds. New accounts also complete a one-time identity check before their first purchase — run "agentcard identity" to start it.
Do I need to verify my identity (KYC)?
Yes, once. New direct accounts complete a one-time identity check before their first purchase — this is a regulatory requirement for card payments, so we can't skip it. Run "agentcard identity" and the CLI opens a hosted verification link if one is needed. Installing the CLI, signing up, and running setup all happen before this step. Grandfathered accounts and manually provisioned partner accounts are exempt.
How much does AgentCard cost?
Signing up is free and there are no monthly fees or subscriptions. You pay only for what your agent buys. With Mastercard Agent Pay the merchant charges your Mastercard directly. With any other card, each purchase gets a one-time card number of up to $150, backed by a temporary hold on your saved card — you're only charged if a merchant actually uses it, and unused holds release within 7 days.
How It Works
Does my agent pay with my real card?
Yes. With Mastercard Agent Pay, your agent gets a network token for each purchase instead of your actual card number. The token is scoped to the merchant and amount, you approve it with a passkey, and the merchant charges your Mastercard directly — AgentCard holds no funds. With any other card, AgentCard provides a one-time card number capped at the purchase amount (up to $150), funded by a hold on your saved card and live for 7 days. Both are accepted at supported online merchants.
How does my AI agent use the card?
Your agent runs the AgentCard CLI to request a payment for a specific purchase — the merchant, the item, and the total. With Mastercard Agent Pay you approve it with a passkey in your browser; otherwise the credential is ready instantly. The agent then uses the one-time credential it receives to complete checkout. No manual handoff of your card details is needed.
Which AI agents work with AgentCard?
All of them. Claude Code, Cursor, Devin, OpenAI Codex, GitHub Copilot, Windsurf, ChatGPT, Gemini, your own custom agents — if it can run a shell command or an MCP tool, it can pay with AgentCard.
Can I use AgentCard with Claude Code or Cursor?
Yes. AgentCard works natively with Claude Code, Cursor, and any MCP-compatible client. Install the CLI and your agent can request payments for purchases directly. AgentCard also exposes a skill endpoint at agentcard.ai/skill for AI-native integrations.
Where can my agent pay with AgentCard?
AgentCard payments are accepted at supported online merchants that accept card payments, including services like Vercel, GitHub, Figma, AWS, Namecheap, Amazon, and DoorDash.
Security & Spending Limits
What if my agent goes rogue and overspends?
It can't spend more than you allowed. Every payment is scoped to one purchase: a Mastercard Agent Pay token is limited to the merchant and amount you approve with a passkey, and a one-time card number is capped at the amount requested — ask for $25 and $25 is the hard ceiling. Further limits sit on top: a $150 maximum per one-time card number, account-level spend limits (default $100, adjustable with "agentcard limit"), and a hard $200-per-day ceiling for normal direct accounts that the CLI cannot raise. You can also cancel an unused one-time card number instantly.
How do I set spending limits on my AI agent?
Request each payment for exactly the amount the task needs — that per-purchase amount is the hard ceiling your agent cannot exceed. For account-wide control, run "agentcard limit --amount <dollars>" to set your account-level limit. Normal direct accounts also have a $200 daily ceiling that applies regardless. Request a separate payment per task to keep budgets isolated.
Is my card data secure?
Yes. AgentCard is built by Alchemy. Card details (PAN, CVV) are encrypted at rest with AES-256-GCM. Authentication uses HTTPS-only session tokens. We never sell your data to third parties.
Can I freeze or cancel a card?
Yes. You can freeze or revoke any card instantly from the CLI. Once frozen, all future transactions are declined immediately.
Future & Integrations
What is Visa Intelligent Commerce?
Visa Intelligent Commerce is Visa's initiative for AI-initiated transactions. It uses tokenized payment credentials scoped to specific merchants and transaction types, so an agent's payment method can't be used outside its intended context. AgentCard supports Visa Intelligent Commerce for a limited subset of Visa cards today.
What is MasterCard Agent Pay?
Mastercard Agent Pay is Mastercard's framework for secure AI agent transactions. It is enabled for Mastercards globally, and it is live on AgentCard today: connect your Mastercard during "agentcard setup", and each purchase your agent makes uses a network token scoped to the merchant and amount you approve. It is the recommended way to pay for Mastercard holders.
Does AgentCard support native agentic payment protocols?
Yes. Mastercard Agent Pay is live and is the default for Mastercard holders. Visa Intelligent Commerce is supported for a limited subset of Visa cards today. Both add tokenized credentials, merchant-level controls, and network-enforced policies. For any other card, AgentCard falls back to a one-time card number capped at the purchase amount.
Billing, Refunds & Crypto
What payment methods are accepted?
Any credit or debit card. During "agentcard setup" you choose the card you'll pay with. Mastercard holders connect it through Mastercard Agent Pay. Any other card is saved through a Stripe Checkout setup session, and each purchase places a hold on it for the requested amount. No charge is made at setup.
Am I charged when my agent requests a payment?
Only when the merchant charges. With Mastercard Agent Pay, the merchant charges your Mastercard at checkout like any purchase. With a one-time card number, the request places a temporary hold on your saved payment method, not a charge. You're only charged for what a merchant actually captures. Cards are live for 7 days, and unused holds release back to your payment method within that window. Run "agentcard request cancel <id>" to close an unused card and release its hold immediately.
Does AgentCard support crypto or USDC?
Yes, for agent-to-agent payments. Every account gets a Base USDC wallet for x402 payments, managed with "agentcard wallet info", "agentcard wallet balance", and "agentcard wallet send". Card payments themselves are funded by your card, not the wallet.
Can I get a refund?
Yes. Because card requests are holds rather than prepaid balances, cancelling an unused card releases the hold immediately, and unused holds expire on their own within 7 days. For anything already captured by a merchant, email support@agentcard.ai.
Can I increase a payment's amount after requesting it?
No. Each payment is for one purchase at a fixed amount. If you need more, cancel an unused one-time card number with "agentcard request cancel <id>" (Agent Pay approvals simply expire) and request a new payment for the right total.
Still have questions?
Check out the quickstart docs or get started in about 30 seconds.
npm install -g agentcard