Last 10 days · as of Oct 11, 2026
$2.78AI cost us this much per active player, per month
Active means signed in at least once in the last 30 days (38 players). The heaviest daily players cost several times that.
Every time a rival GM answers, a coach replies or a reporter writes up your night, we pay an AI provider for that text. Pro (from $8.24 a month) pays for it, and the battery keeps it fair.
Are there ads or pay-to-win purchases?
No ads, and nothing that buys an edge. What HoopSim sells is AI: HoopSim Pro, which turns on the AI conversations, and AI Boosts, which top up Pro's monthly AI battery. A commissioner can also buy a League Pass, which turns their league's shared AI on for everyone. None of it touches a roster, a rating or the sim. Today's prices are on Free vs Pro.
Collectible ability cards are earned, not bought. You open packs with Participation Points (PP), which you get for running your team: submitting a depth chart or game plan before a sim, bidding in free agency, drafting, answering trade offers, posting in the league feed. Rookie, Mystery, Pro and Hall of Fame packs unlock as your Legacy level grows, and Legacy comes only from results on the court. No money changes hands for cards, points or players. See Points & Side Games.
What is HoopSim Pro?
HoopSim Pro is the AI upgrade. The game is free; Pro turns on the parts that run on a large language model: talking to rival AI GMs in plain words, the coaching-staff room, player DMs and agents, and the reporters and The Show. Without it you still trade with AI GMs, through deal cards instead of chat.
Pro runs for 1 month or 6 months of real time (not league days), covers every league you play, and renews automatically until you cancel. Cancel any time from the Pro sheet in the game: you keep Pro until the end of what you paid, and you're never charged again. New accounts get a 7-day free trial. Pro includes a monthly AI allowance, shown in the game as a battery that refills on the 1st. Heavy users can top it up with AI Boosts, or once a month with PP. Prices are on Free vs Pro.
I was invited to a friend's league. Do I have to pay?
No. Joining and playing is free. A new multiplayer league runs with full AI for every GM for its first 30 days, so you won't see a price. After that, your own 7-day trial covers you, and the league's news, stories and media stay on if the commissioner has a League Pass or enough GMs have Pro.
If nobody does, the league plays on exactly the same: only the AI conversations switch off, after a notice and a grace period. See League AI and friend leagues.
Why does AI cost money?
Because every AI message is paid for. When a rival GM answers your offer, your coach answers a question or a reporter writes up your night, HoopSim pays an AI provider for that text. Across everyone who plays, that comes to a few dollars per active player a month, and the heaviest daily players cost several times that.
We publish the real number, dated, on Free vs Pro. Pro pays for it, and the monthly battery keeps it fair: one heavy user can't eat what ten others use.
Do cards or points give paying players an edge?
No. Nobody can pay for cards or points, and HoopSim Pro buys conversation, not strength: an AI GM prices a deal the same whether you send it as a card or haggle in chat.
Cards give small in-game boosts, and the total power you can have equipped is capped by your Legacy level, which only rises through results: games played, playoff runs, titles and your players' awards. PP is spent on packs, crafting and upgrades and comes from effort in the game, with daily limits on the repeatable sources. Spending PP never lowers your engagement tier. AI-run clubs are given matching parity cards so that cards do not tilt a league toward its human GMs, and the commissioner can switch cards off for the whole league. Everything else, including the salary cap and the scouting fog, applies to every team the same way.
More in the FAQ.