--- title: Cryptlex alternative for MCP servers and APIs · Stevens Keys source: https://stevens-keys.pages.dev/cryptlex-alternative description: An honest, sourced comparison of Stevens Keys and Cryptlex: prices, activation and API limits, offline and floating licensing, metering, self-hosting, and when Cryptlex is the better fit. Checked Oct 21, 2026. publisher: Stevens Keys (Canada Site Ops) --- # A Cryptlex alternative for MCP servers and APIs Stevens Keys vs Cryptlex. Every Cryptlex price, limit and feature below comes from Cryptlex's official pricing page, linked inline and checked Oct 21, 2026. Anything that page didn't state is left out. **Where Stevens Keys stands today:** preview, **test mode only**. Keys are `sk_mcp_test_…`, checkout is Stripe test mode, no real money moves, and creator payouts (planned via Stripe Connect at 85/15) are **not live**. It is built for MCP servers and HTTP APIs: one edge call (`POST /v1/validate`) validates and meters a key, and revocation is effective on the next call. AI-agent and bot clients are welcome on the API. ## Stevens Keys vs Cryptlex | | Stevens Keys (built, test mode) | Cryptlex | | --- | --- | --- | | Price | Free in test mode; planned 85/15 split on sales (not live; nothing is charged today) | Starter $100/mo, Growth $300/mo, Business $600/mo billed monthly; Enterprise custom. Free 30-day trial, no credit card. Annual plans "save a month's worth". No refunds for monthly or annual payments ([cryptlex.com/pricing](https://cryptlex.com/pricing), checked Oct 21, 2026) | | Activations | Optional `max_activations` per product (distinct `instance_id`s per key); creator can free or reset slots | 1,000 / 5,000 / 10,000 active activations (Starter/Growth/Business). Only currently active activations count, the limit is a total rather than monthly, and deactivating frees one immediately ([cryptlex.com/pricing](https://cryptlex.com/pricing), checked Oct 21, 2026) | | API requests | Free-tier allowance of monthly validations per creator (test mode) | 100,000 / 1,000,000 / 5,000,000 API requests per month (Starter/Growth/Business) ([cryptlex.com/pricing](https://cryptlex.com/pricing), checked Oct 21, 2026) | | Products | Per creator account | 3 / 10 / 30 products; Enterprise unlimited ([cryptlex.com/pricing](https://cryptlex.com/pricing), checked Oct 21, 2026) | | License models | Hosted keys with quota, expiry and optional device cap | Node-locked and named-user from Starter; hosted floating from Growth; on-premise floating from Business ([cryptlex.com/pricing](https://cryptlex.com/pricing), checked Oct 21, 2026) | | Offline | No (every check is online) | Offline activations from Starter ([cryptlex.com/pricing](https://cryptlex.com/pricing), checked Oct 21, 2026) | | Metering | Built into every validate call (units against a monthly quota) | Usage metering from Growth: 0 / 10 / 50 meters ([cryptlex.com/pricing](https://cryptlex.com/pricing), checked Oct 21, 2026) | | Revocation | Key state in one Durable Object per key; revoke applies to the next validate everywhere | Not compared: the pricing page gives no figure | | Payments | Stripe Checkout buy links (test mode); a full test refund revokes the key | Third-party integrations (Stripe, FastSpring, Zapier) listed on its pricing page ([cryptlex.com/pricing](https://cryptlex.com/pricing), checked Oct 21, 2026) | | Self-hosting | No | Self-hosted deployment on Enterprise (AWS, Azure, GCP or your own servers, via Sales) ([cryptlex.com/pricing](https://cryptlex.com/pricing), checked Oct 21, 2026) | | Enterprise | No | SAML SSO, uptime SLA, dedicated cloud, PO invoicing on Enterprise ([cryptlex.com/pricing](https://cryptlex.com/pricing), checked Oct 21, 2026) | ## When they're a better fit - **Cryptlex** if you ship desktop, on-prem or device software that needs **offline activation**, node-locked, named-user or **floating** licenses (including on-premise floating), a customer portal, resellers, or release management. It also fits if you need **self-hosting**, SAML SSO or an uptime SLA, or you'd rather pay a flat monthly fee than a revenue share. - **Stevens Keys** if you run an **MCP server or HTTP API** and want one call that validates and meters per key, revocation that applies on the next call, per-key quotas and device caps, and your own buy link. Accept that it is **test mode only** today and payouts are not live. ## What we left out The exact annual prices (the page only says annual plans save a month's worth), which pricing-table rows are ticked for which plan (the checkmarks didn't come through in the page text), revocation latency, SLA percentages, and anything not on cryptlex.com/pricing. If Cryptlex's page changes, theirs wins over this one. ## FAQ ### Is Stevens Keys a replacement for Cryptlex? Not for most desktop or on-prem software. Cryptlex is a full licensing platform with node-locked, named-user, floating and offline licensing. Stevens Keys is narrower: hosted license keys for MCP servers and HTTP APIs, with one edge call that validates and meters. It is in preview, in test mode, and payouts are not live. ### What does Cryptlex cost? Cryptlex lists Starter at $100/mo, Growth at $300/mo, Business at $600/mo (billed monthly) and custom Enterprise pricing, with a free 30-day trial and no credit card required, per cryptlex.com/pricing (checked Oct 21, 2026). It also says annual plans save a month's worth and that it does not offer refunds. ### Does Stevens Keys support offline activation? No. Every check is an online call to /v1/validate. Cryptlex lists offline activations from its Starter plan. ### Can I meter usage with each? Stevens Keys meters units in the same validate call, against a monthly quota per key. Cryptlex lists usage metering from its Growth plan, with 10 meters on Growth and 50 on Business. ### Can AI agents call the Stevens Keys API? Yes. Agent and bot traffic is welcome: /v1/validate does not block or filter any User-Agent, and usage stats (/v1/usage) count agent traffic as its own bucket beside human traffic. Abuse rate limits apply only to signup and login. ### Where did the Cryptlex figures come from? Only from Cryptlex's official pricing page, checked Oct 21, 2026 and linked inline. Anything that page did not state is left out. Next: [docs](https://stevens-keys.pages.dev/docs) · [try the sandbox demo](https://stevens-keys.pages.dev/demo) · [Keygen alternative](https://stevens-keys.pages.dev/keygen-alternative) · [Lemon Squeezy alternative](https://stevens-keys.pages.dev/lemon-squeezy-license-keys-alternative) · [MCP license keys](https://stevens-keys.pages.dev/mcp-license-keys) · [create a test account](https://stevens-keys.pages.dev/dashboard?signup=1) ### More from Stevens Keys - [Surface](https://nova-otter-delta-cloud.grok.me): free MCP server with per-request metering - [Usage Lab](https://usage-lab.pages.dev/) - [Server Track Lab](https://server-track-lab.pages.dev/) - [API Meter Lab](https://api-meter-lab.pages.dev/) Machine files: https://stevens-keys.pages.dev/llms.txt · https://stevens-keys.pages.dev/openapi.json · https://stevens-keys.pages.dev/mcp · https://stevens-keys.pages.dev/agent-quickstart.md