Pricing decision: 3-tier subscription model with solo dev free tier

## Pricing Decision — VCTRL V1

### Context
Evaluated pricing models for a developer tool targeting solo devs and small engineering teams.

### Options Evaluated

**Option A: Usage-based (per alert/per build)**
- Pros: Fair, scales with value
- Cons: Complex to explain, anxiety-inducing for users, hard to predict revenue
- Verdict: Too early for this. Not in V1.

**Option B: Simple flat tiers**
- Pros: Easy to understand, predictable, easy to implement
- Cons: Might leave money on the table at scale
- Verdict: Right call for V1.

**Option C: Per-seat**
- Pros: Scales with team size
- Cons: Creates friction for team adoption, hard to justify for solo devs
- Verdict: Considered for Team tier but not primary model.

### Decision: 3-Tier Flat Pricing

| Tier | Price | Projects | Alerts/Day | Notes |
|------|-------|----------|------------|-------|
| Free | $0 | 1 | 5 | Solo dev, no CC required |
| Pro | $12/mo | 5 | Unlimited | Team features, Slack integration |
| Team | $49/mo | Unlimited | Unlimited | SSO, audit logs, priority support |

### Rationale
- Free tier must be genuinely useful to drive adoption and word-of-mouth
- Pro price point is impulse-buy range for devs with any budget
- Team tier anchors perception and captures real B2B value
- Annual discount: 20% off (implement in V2)

### Open Questions
- Should Pro include Slack integration or gate it to Team?
- How do we handle repo count vs project count?

### Next Step
Build Stripe integration in V2 milestone.