FAQ | Billing Cycle and Reward Delivery | Part 1

Hey friends,

We promised to address most of your concerns regarding the recent changes, so here we are. As always: no bullshit, only honesty, even if it paints us in a bad light.

I don't understand the new billing system on Patreon. Can you explain it to me?

Up until November 2026, Patreon subscriptions were tied to calendar months. Your active subscription always ended once the current calendar month was over, regardless of the start date, and then you were charged again on the 1st of the next month. For example, if you subscribed on August 30, you'd pay for the subscription, and then you'd pay again two days later on September 1st for the next calendar month. It may seem unfair to you, but it was actually a great system that allowed creators to release monthly packs and make sure all subscribers received the same things irrespective of their start date.

As of November 2026, all creators have been forced to switch to the new subscription billing cycle. Even though we call it the 30-day cycle, it's not exactly true, because a person is charged on the same date every month depending on when they subscribed. So, if you subscribed on Nov 25, your subscription remains active until Dec 25, then Jan 25, then Feb 25, and so forth. The main problem with this approach is how difficult it is to create and release monthly packs. Patreon has introduced a "reward eligibility tool", which essentially allows creators to continue tying their releases to calendar months, while billing people every 30 days. For subscribers, it means you’re eligible from your payment date until the end of that calendar month, and then you stay inactive, but not charged until your renewal date is up. So, if you subscribed on Nov 25, you will receive all your rewards as usual before Dec 1. And then you won't be receiving anything until Dec 25, when you renew your subscription and thus confirm you have paid for another billing period, which will renew your eligibility until Jan 1, and then you'll become inactive again until Jan 25. The only thing you can really do about it is skip a month and adjust your renewal date so it comes at the beginning of the month. But of course, you may lose some rewards if you skip a month, so if you don't want to... well, too bad, because that's how Patreon does things now!

This change is largely what forced us to come up with a new reward eligibility and distribution system that relies heavily on our own website and multple loyalty reward tiers.

I don't understand what I get with your new reward system. Can you explain it to me?

Here is a simple comparison.

This is what you used to receive on the old system tied to calendar months:

• 19 models on your first month:

  • 7 models from the current welcome pack (updated annually), available immediately.

  • 5 models released last month, available immediately.

  • 7 new models, released throughout this month.

• 7 models on your second month in a row:

  • 7 new models, released throughout this month.

• 8-9 models on your third month in a row:

  • 7 new models, released throughout this month.

  • 1-2 models from the current 3-month Loyalty Reward, updated every 5-6 months.

• 7 models on your future months in a row:

  • 7 new models, released throughout this month.

And this is what you receive now on the new system tied to the 30-day billing cycle.

• 15-16 models on your first month:

  • 7 models from the current welcome pack (updated annually), available immediately.

  • 4 latest models from the regular queue, available immediately.

  • 4-5 new models from the regular queue, released by the end of your billing period.

• 7-9 models on your second month in a row:

  • 4-5 new models from the regular queue, released by the end of your billing period.

  • 2 latest models from Loyalty Reward 1 queue, available immediately.

  • 1-2 new models from Loyalty Reward 1 queue, released by the end of your billing period.

• 9-10 models on your third month in a row:

  • 4-5 new models from the regular queue, released by the end of your billing period.

  • 1-2 new models from Loyalty Reward 1 queue, released every 28 days.

  • 3 latest models from Loyalty Reward 2 queue, available immediately.

  • 1-2 new models from Loyalty Reward 2 queue, released every 28 days.

• 9-10 models on your fourth month in a row:

  • 4-5 new models from the regular queue, released by the end of your billing period.

  • 1-2 new models from Loyalty Reward 1 queue, released every 28 days.

  • 1-2 new models from Loyalty Reward 2 queue, released every 28 days.

  • 2 latest models from Loyalty Reward 3 queue, available immediately.

  • Up to 1 new model from Loyalty Reward 3 queue, released every 56 days.

• 6-9 models on your future months in a row:

  • 4-5 new models from the regular queue, released by the end of your billing period.

  • 1-2 new models from Loyalty Reward 1 queue, released every 28 days.

  • 1-2 new models from Loyalty Reward 2 queue, released every 28 days.

  • Up to 1 new model from Loyalty Reward 3 queue, released every 56 days.

You may notice how you receive fewer models on the first month now than before, which is then compensated in the upcoming months.

The actual model count within each month is not exact, because it heavily depends on your subscription renewal date. From now on, we operate on a full production cycle of 28 days, whereas before it was 30 days. Because of this, you may occasionally receive an extra model or two within a single billing period, but on average we still make 7 models a month, same as before. So if you were a long-term subscriber on the old system, you will not notice any difference in the average model count each month.

You said your new reward system was fair. How so?

First of all, let's define the term itself. "Fair" isn't equal to "good for everyone", which is where most complaints seem to fall into. "Fair" means everyone is treated equally, without letting anyone game the system. The essence of the new approach is "you get what you pay for", which lands at at 7-8 models a month without much room to game the system and receive more for less. We fully realize why people hate it, but we don't plan on getting rid of it, because it works exactly as intended.

The core idea behind the new design was to fix the already existing exploits in the reward system that allowed people to skip every other month without losing much. And yes, this old system was indeed unfair to the long-term supporters who had to pay much more but got the same amount as those who only popped in occasionally. And frankly, to the creators themselves, whose work was devalued by having to offer more for less.

Now, let's discuss what was wrong with the old system and how it became the industry standard, without throwing any particular names around. Back in 2021, when most fanart Patreons were only starting out and there were at least 50 times fewer studios than now, one studio started making several models a month, spreading releases throughout the month. They quickly ran into the problem that the last model of the month was only available through subscription for a very short time, and people complained they couldn't get a model they first saw just a day ago. So the obvious choice was to start offering models from the last month as well as the current one, making sure each model stays available long enough to be claimed by everyone who wanted it. This, in turn, allowed for the introduction of grasshopping - the ability for subscribers to skip every other month without losing any models, effectively cutting the cost per model in half. Then, many more studios began opening up and copying that studio. Apart from its primary function, offering last month's models also allowed creators to appear to offer more value than everyone else and encourage people to pick them over the other 100 creators. Of course, very soon, everyone else had to start doing that as well to stand a chance of surviving the model race. And thus this approach solidified its place in the reward system, and grasshopping became an integral part of our industry along with it.

If you think that, up until now, all creators just accepted it and never tried to do anything about it, that's not the case. To start with, loyalty rewards first emerged as a means to combat grasshopping. But what can the prospect of losing a single model every 3-6 months achieve against saving dozens of dollars by skipping months over the same period? Especially when you can immediately get that "exclusive loyalty reward" from scalpers or pirates anyway. So creators started inventing other ways, such as "bonus models" or monthly exclusives, which we also used to have. Those sure worked better, but had the same flaw of having to be released early in the month to give people enough time to grab them. Eventually, some larger studios stepped away from last month's rewards in favor of packing everything and releasing at the beginning of the month all at once. But it's not exactly a great approach either, as it breaks the natural flow of releasing new models individually. Which is why, when Patreon's new billing cycle shook things up, we saw an opportunity to try and come up with a new approach. Is it perfect? Probably not, and we might make further adjustments as time goes on. But it is more fair to all parties involved than what we have seen so far from others, so we do not regret it.

Now, you may be thinking "Thanks for the history lesson, but what does it all have to do with me when I'll be getting fewer models because you are a bunch of greedy dicks?" Well, firstly, it matters if you want your favorite creators (not just us) to keep making great models in times of AI, rampant levels of piracy and scalping, and an ever increasing supply that vastly outweighs demand. Despite what you may think, we don't all live in ocean-view villas sipping cocktails and thinking of new ways to milk our audience, and many of us work over 100 hours a week just to stay afloat. So yes, every bit helps. As for greed, this particular greedy dick writing these words has just been presented with an $800 bill to ship a single 40kg box of desk mats and pins to the first proxy (no, I'm not kidding), which is already more than its contents are worth, and I'm already preparing to spend at least another $3000 for shipping costs and outside help before everyone gets their prizes. If we were as greedy as people make us seem, why didn't we do what everyone else does and simply not offer physical prizes for the painting contest? And not once, but twice in a row at that. Surely, the first time could be written off as stupidity and not knowing what we're getting into, but the second one can hardly be explained by greed.

The same billing change was forced on many other creators, yet none of them changed their approach the same way you did. Why?

A simple answer is that we had the resources (tech, design, time, and money) and they didn't. The way we see it, the reason other studios didn't do anything like that isn't that they love the new billing system with all its flaws and potential exploits, but that, unlike us, they chose to make peace with it instead of trying to fix the entire world.

We keep tabs on what the others do, and frankly, so far we haven't found a single good approach to the new reality. Let's look at what the others did and why each one falls short:

• Offer X past models on subscription start + everything released since.

  • This takes the existing grasshopping scheme and dials it up to 11, actively encouraging subscribers to skip every other month without losing anything. Any loyal subscriber would have to wonder at least once whether they want to maintain their subscription and pay twice as much as people who skip every other month, while getting the exact same models.

• Pack everything together and release once a month.

  • This makes people wait up to a whole month for all the hot models they want ASAP, while said models sit there looking pretty, waiting for the day they are all dumped at once and people have to pick which ones to print first.

• Use Patreon's reward eligibility tool.

  • Read our reply to the first question in this post if you have no idea how bad it is for people who subscribe later in the month. At best, it's an improved version of the monthly dump approach, but only if you are happy with everyone else regularly getting all models 1-4 weeks ahead of you.

I was a subscriber on the old billing system, before November 2026. Do I have to start building my renewal streak from zero?

Absolutely not! Our website carries your streak over from the old system. For example, if you were first subscribed in October 2026 and renewed your subscription by November 5th, you would start November with a renewal streak of 1. And if you have maintained your subscription for a 4 months, you will start with a streak of 4 and won't even notice much difference, as you will keep unlocking all models on their release date just as before.

You can check your current renewal streak and loyalty reward eligibility on the website "Releases" page after logging in with your Patreon account. It will show you how many renewals in a row you currently have and when you will receive each of the available models from your active subscription.

Does my loyalty reward streak continue if I cancel and resubscribe within the same month?

There is one important caveat to consider. In the old system, you kept your loyalty reward streak as long as you were subscribed at some point in each calendar month. You could subscribe on August 25th, then cancel on September 5th, subscribe again on October 20th, and you would still have a streak of 3 active months - August, September, October.

For any billing periods starting November 2026, on the new Patreon 30-day billing cycle, this is no longer the case, because any gaps between subscriptions effectively extend your next 30-day paid cycle. To smooth your experience out and account for any payment processing problems, we added a grace period - your streak is broken if you don't renew your subscription within 5 days after your last period ends.

How does your website tie into the new reward system?

Not going to lie, our new reward system is complex enough to be an utter nightmare to calculate eligibility manually and send out rewards every day, right as each person hits their required period. Not to mention how difficult it is to maintain the current reward list, which changes a couple times a week as new models are released and old ones are pushed out. And that's even before having to explain to each subscriber when exactly they will unlock a particular model.

This is where the website comes in. To start with, the "Releases" page shows our upcoming release schedule and the latest models. It helps each person see which models they can or cannot unlock from their current or potential subscription, and when exactly the unlock will happen. Just log in with your Patreon account, and the page shows everything from the perspective of your particular subscription, making it very easy to understand what you will receive and when.

Next, the "Library" page stores all models you have ever received from your Patreon subscription in a convenient format that makes search very straightforward for both former and active subscribers. That's right. Even if you were subscribed for a single month back in 2022 and haven't followed us since, you can still access the page and download the models you received from us way back then. And the people who have tried downloading from the library so far report much higher speeds than they ever got from Google Drive, Cults3D, or MyMiniFactory.

And the best part - each new model is automatically added to your library as soon as you qualify for it. No need to click any links, redeem coupons, search for emails, etc. Just open the library and download it. Or not, because it’s not going anywhere.

The website is still in its early stages, and we have a lot of improvements planned over the coming months, such as the ability to subscribe or buy models directly on the website or sync your library with other platforms beyond just Patreon.

I purchased some models separately on Cults3D or MyMiniFactory. Will they be available in my library on the Bulkamancer website?

Not for the time being, but rest assured it is in our plans for the next year's development plans. This is not something easily achievable, but not impossible either, and we fully intend to do it.

I don't want to register on a third-party website of unknown quality. Why can't I keep receiving models on MyMiniFactory like before?

This is really several topics in one, so let's break it down.

First of all, the Bulkamancer website is owned and hosted by us, not by a third party. If anything, we are moving away from third-party sites in favor of something managed by us. If you have ever had a problem with your Patreon subscription status, Cults3D purchase, or MMF library, you know we normally had to ask you to bring it up to the third party support, because most of the time there was really nothing we could do on our side.

With the new website, we got most of those problems covered. No more coupon that failed to apply, no more models missing from a monthly pack, no more annual subscription cancelled mid-term because you disabled renewal. And if anything does happen: you can bring it up to us rather than a third-party service that couldn't care less about your troubles.

And believe us, originally, we had no intention of building the website. Instead, we wanted to find a service that would offer all the features and platform integrations we needed without having to involve ourselves in its development. Alas, all our numerous attempts to find one or persuade any already existing platform to add the necessary features fell flat, and we were forced to make our own. We do not regret this decision and sincerely hope you will defer your judgement until after you give our website a chance and see its work for yourself. Because really, what alternatives are there? Cults3D does not have a user library where you can sort by creators and see everything you own. And it only uses coupons to redeem models, which are not even user-locked. Yes, we have talked to creators who use it for distribution. Our favorite story is "I have only 50 subscribers and the coupon was redeemed 100 times". So... no, thanks. Same for Gumroad, not to mention the platform barely gets any traffic by now.

As for MyMiniFactory, there are two reasons for dropping its library usage for Patreon subscribers. First and most importantly, it's a matter of convenience. MMF does not have a Patreon integration, because why would they support a subscription platform when they have their own? As such, any reward assignment has to be done manually, which I used to do myself once a month. And now with the dynamic multi-tiered loyalty reward system, if I have to start each day by extracting a subscriber list, calculating eligibility and importing into MMF, all the while replying to messages like "I subscribed 5 full minutes ago. Where are my models?", I'm going to start hating my life in just about a week.

The second reason is MMF's stance on fanart. They have always made it clear that they do not want fanart models on their platform. In fact, in 2023 they nuked almost our entire library without any warning. There was no DMCA notice, they just thought it was the right thing, as hosting fanart models was against their terms of service. Later that same year they invited us to open a Tribe, then kept chasing us for 3 months about it until we finally agreed. And ever since they kept removing our models at random over "potential IP infringement", never because they received an actual DMCA report, but because they thought it was the right thing. Ever run into a model from your library you can't open? Chances are, that's because MMF marked it as "potential IP infringement" and removed it from the store. Of course, there are still ways of downloading it, but let me be clear - that's because of MMF's own lack of oversight over how their platform works rather than intentional. Last year, MMF removed us from their trusted creator list, meaning they must manually approve each model we upload there. If you still think MMF is a much better choice for storing your models, you can always switch your subscription to the Tribe, which continues to use MMF library. Just please don't complain to us when MMF nukes another model or finally patches the loophole for downloading removed models. Which, frankly, hasn't happened in over a year, but who knows when they might finally notice?

As for getting rid of Google Drive links, this one is a no-brainer. Those links were always temporary and never kept for more than two months. Not to mention that they frequently hit the "quota exceeded" error when many people tried to download a new model. Frankly, those links were only used as a crutch to spare us the need to manually extract and upload the subscriber list to MMF several times a day, and we are not sorry to see them gone.

Conclusion

This post has grown much longer than I anticipated, so we will continue to cover any other questions in a separate one. Don't hesitate to leave your questions in the comments!

Chevrolets!
Des