# How payouts work (/docs/brands/payouts/how-payouts-work)
How Bloss turns a creator's posts into base pay and bonus, when amounts are locked, and how the money reaches creators.
Bloss calculates creator pay per set: one video posted to up to four platforms (Instagram, TikTok, YouTube, Facebook). Each set can earn two things: **base pay** for posting, and a **bonus** for views. You set the rules once in Settings › Rules, and Bloss prices every set the same way.
The app's rule labels say **pair** ("Amount per pair", "How is a pair
priced?"), and so does the API. A pair and a set are the same thing.
## What a set earns [#what-a-set-earns]
| Part | What decides it | Configure in |
| ----------------------------------- | ----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- | ------------------------------------------------------ |
| Base pay | Your pricing (one rate per pair, or a rate per platform), which platforms must have a post, and the minimum views | [Base pay rules](/docs/brands/settings/base-pay-rules) |
| Bonus | Tiered milestones or a linear CPM rate, optionally capped per set | [Bonus rules](/docs/brands/settings/bonus-rules) |
**A bonus needs base pay to qualify.** Base pay rules work as gates. A set that misses a required platform or falls short of the minimum views earns **$0 for both** base pay and bonus. This holds even if your base amount is $0 and you only pay bonuses.
A creator or a single set can have **custom pay** that replaces your brand rates: a custom base amount or their own bonus deal. Custom pay still has to pass the same gates.
## Which cycle a set belongs to [#which-cycle-a-set-belongs-to]
Money is grouped into [payout cycles](/docs/brands/payouts/pay-cycles), date ranges you create on Payouts & Cycles › Cycles. A set belongs to the cycle that contains the day its **first post** went up, in your brand's [timezone](/docs/brands/settings/timezone).
- **While a cycle runs**, its figures follow the latest sync and keep moving.
- **Once it ends**, figures freeze at the end date. Views earned after the end date don't count toward that cycle's bonus.
## When amounts are locked [#when-amounts-are-locked]
When a cycle is created, it takes a **snapshot** of your pay rules. Later rule changes apply to new cycles, not to that one, unless you choose **Update cycle rules**. See [Changing rules mid-cycle](/docs/brands/settings/changing-rules-mid-cycle).
**Money already paid is never taken back.** If a set is later re-priced lower (because a rule changed, or views were corrected), its base and bonus each stay at least at what has already been paid.
## How money reaches creators [#how-money-reaches-creators]
There are three ways to settle, and you can combine them:
| Way | When | Where |
| -------------------------------- | ------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- | ------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------ |
| **End of cycle** | After the cycle ends: pay through your payout provider, or mark it paid if you paid outside Bloss | [Running a cycle](/docs/brands/payouts/running-a-cycle) |
| **Instant base pay** | Mid-cycle, as soon as a set qualifies | [Instant base pay](/docs/brands/payouts/instant-base-pay) |
| **Per creator or per set bonus** | After the cycle ends, from the bonus board | [Bonus pay board](/docs/brands/payouts/bonus-pay-board) |
Whatever is paid early is subtracted from what the cycle still owes. A cycle's creator row always adds up:
```text
Base + Bonus = Paid early (instant base) + Bonus paid per set + Due
```
Transfers go through your [payout provider](/docs/brands/payouts/payout-providers), Whop or SideShift. If neither is connected, you pay creators yourself and record it with **Mark as Paid**.
## Cycle or ledger [#cycle-or-ledger]
Most brands use the **Cycle** payout model: each cycle is priced and paid as a unit. The **Ledger** model instead pays each set the _difference_ between what it has earned and what it has already been paid, for a set number of days after it was posted. See [Cycle vs ledger](/docs/brands/payouts/cycle-vs-ledger).
## Related [#related]
Pricing, required platforms and minimum views, with worked examples.
Tiered vs linear CPM, caps and pair-aggregate mode.
Create cycles and understand the rules snapshot.