The verified tradeoff
Contributor is not merely a coupon applied to the same policy. Meta lists a separate model name, much lower rates, and the line “Used to improve our products.” Standard is labeled “Not used to improve our products.”
Meta: not used to improve products
Meta: used to improve products
| Question | Standard | Contributor |
|---|---|---|
| Input per 1M | $1.25 | $0.10 |
| Cached input per 1M | $0.15 | $0.002 |
| Output per 1M | $4.25 | $0.20 |
| Current Meta label | Not used to improve products | Used to improve products |
A decision sequence for code owners
- Classify the code. Is it public, personal, confidential, client-owned, export-controlled, or covered by another agreement?
- Check current Meta terms. A short product-page label is useful but not a substitute for the terms presented to the account using the product.
- Check organizational policy. Your employer or client may restrict which external tools can process source code regardless of price.
- Estimate the real saving. Use your expected input/output mix in the calculator, not the headline percentage alone.
- Record the choice. For team use, preserve the tier, terms version, approver, and review date.
What the current evidence supports
- Complete rate card
- Verified Input · cached · output
- Data-use distinction
- Official Current Meta wording
- Legal conclusion
- Not provided Read current terms
The official page supports quoting both full rate rows and their product-improvement labels. It does not support a blanket claim that one tier has zero retention, that Contributor is safe for every proprietary repository, or that either tier automatically meets a particular compliance regime.
For the wider set of questions—retention, access controls, account terms, incident handling—continue to Muse Code data and privacy. For cost-only examples, return to Muse Code pricing.