Editorial Trust · Spend Receipts · Updated May 2026
The $2,400 Receipts
What we actually paid to test the AI tools you read about here.
The “$2,400 personally tested” number gets repeated on every review on this site. This is the audit. Every dollar accounted for: tool name, plan, months paid, dollars spent. If you want to verify a specific receipt, email srivastava.mithun@gmail.com with the line item and we’ll send the actual PDF (redacted card number).
Total: $2,418 (rounded down to $2,400 in copy)
Breakdown by category, in approximate descending order. Months paid varies because we cancel as soon as scoring is complete.
AI Writers ($742 total)
| Tool | Plan | Months | Spent |
|---|---|---|---|
| Jasper | Creator | 3 | $147 |
| Copy.ai | Pro | 2 | $98 |
| Writesonic | Small Team | 2 | $66 |
| Koala AI | Hobby + Pro | 4 | $76 |
| Claude Pro | Pro | 6 | $120 |
| ChatGPT Plus | Plus | 6 | $120 |
| Frase | Basic | 3 | $115 |
SEO Tools ($684 total)
| Tool | Plan | Months | Spent |
|---|---|---|---|
| Ahrefs | Lite | 2 | $258 |
| Semrush | Pro | 1 | $140 |
| Surfer SEO | Essential | 3 | $267 |
| SE Ranking | Pro | 1 | $19 |
Email & Automation ($524 total)
| Tool | Plan | Months | Spent |
|---|---|---|---|
| ConvertKit (Kit) | Creator | 6 | $90 |
| Make.com | Core | 4 | $36 |
| Zapier | Starter | 3 | $87 |
| Brevo | Starter | 3 | $75 |
| Pabbly Connect | Standard (LTD) | — | $236 |
Video, Design & Misc ($468 total)
| Tool | Plan | Months | Spent |
|---|---|---|---|
| InVideo AI | Plus | 3 | $72 |
| Canva Pro | Pro | 6 | $72 |
| Grammarly Premium | Premium | 3 | $60 |
| Pictory | Standard | 2 | $58 |
| Originality AI | Credits pack | — | $30 |
| Various trials (12 tools) | Free + small charges | — | $176 |
Grand total: $2,418
Rounded to “$2,400” everywhere on the site because it’s closer to the actual spend cadence (we cancel and re-subscribe based on testing windows). The complete categorized total: AI Writers $742 + SEO Tools $684 + Email & Automation $524 + Video/Design/Misc $468 = $2,418.
What this number does NOT include
- Free-tier tools (those don’t count as “tested with money”)
- Tools the vendor offered for free in exchange for review — we don’t accept these
- Tools used on InvestWithMithun (Mithun’s separate stock-education site)
- Hardware, hosting, or domain costs (those are infrastructure, not tested tools)
Verifying a specific receipt
Email srivastava.mithun@gmail.com with the tool name and rough date. We’ll send a redacted PDF of the actual receipt or vendor invoice. This is the same offer we make to any journalist or backlink editor who asks for verification before linking.
Why we publish this at all
Most affiliate sites repeat headline numbers (“we tested 100+ tools!”) and never source them. This page is the source. If we ever update the $2,400 figure — up or down — the change will land here first with the new line items.
Receipts page last reviewed: 28 May 2026 · See our testing methodology · Editorial contact: srivastava.mithun@gmail.com