Why real dollars, not tokens
We looked hard at the "tokens that feel cheaper than dollars" model other platforms use, and rejected it. Pricing something in an invented currency — 500 gems, 1,200 coins — is a well-documented way to make spending feel smaller than it is. Our wallet does the opposite on purpose: it's marketed like an Amazon gift-card balance or an airline-miles bonus — honest, disclosed, and denominated in the same dollars as everything else on the network.
Top-up packs, bonuses disclosed up front
Bigger top-ups carry a bonus — stated as a plain percentage, not a hidden multiplier:
| You pay | You get | Bonus |
|---|---|---|
| $10 | $10.00 | — |
| $25 | $27.50 | 10% |
| $50 | $57.50 | 15% |
| $100 | $120.00 | 20% |
The bonus is the marketing lever, plainly labeled — not a pricing-perception trick. Wallet balance spends exactly like a card on file: normal payouts, normal revenue split, no separate rules for creators being paid in wallet dollars.
Send it to a friend
Wallet balance can be gifted to another registered IndieStarlight user — top up a friend's account directly, or send them money to spend on the platform. Same honest-dollar rules apply: what you send is exactly what they receive.
Give $5, get $5
Every account gets a personal referral code at signup. When the person you referred makes their first real purchase, you both get $5 credited to your wallet automatically — no waiting period, no manual claim.
You share your referral code with a friend. They sign up, buy a $9.99 album a week later, and $5 lands in your wallet and $5 lands in theirs — the same day, automatically.
Where wallet balance comes from
Beyond top-ups, referrals, and gifts, a wallet also receives contest prize money for creators who win, credited from the ecosystem fund once staff finalize the contest after voting closes. Every dollar in the wallet, regardless of source, is worth exactly one dollar.