FAQ
Straight answers.
The desktop app is free. Cloud desks and a shared team floor are billed. The models are the ones you already pay for.
Is 8staff free?
The desktop app on this machine is free for macOS, Windows, and Linux. You bring Claude, Codex, Grok, or Cursor — 8staff does not markup those tokens. Cloud desks, and a team that shares a floor, are paid (Pro, Business, Scale).
Do I need the 8code app?
No. Sign in inside 8staff. The 8code app is not required. 8staff is its own app, with its own floor.
Which models can the staff use?
The CLIs you already signed in: Claude, Codex, Grok, and Cursor, plus Gemini, Copilot, or Kimi if they are on this machine. Each teammate uses the login you picked. Scout can research on Claude while Maker builds on Codex. Nothing is proxied. 8staff does not markup those tokens.
Is this locked to one model?
No. That is the point. Each desk picks the CLI you already pay for. One floor, every model you signed in — not a single-vendor bot.
Can they work at the same time?
Yes. Drag a chat beside — three windows, like a real floor. Each teammate has a computer of their own. You are not the router between tabs.
How is this different from a chatbot?
A chatbot is a reply. A teammate is a name, a standing job, and a computer of their own. Work chips show what they are doing. Mail and posts stop at Allow. The job is still there in the morning.
Do they keep working if I close the window?
On Mac, closing the window does not quit 8staff. Schedules run while 8staff is open on this machine. Open at login is what makes the night shift actually happen. Closing the laptop still sleeps the machine.
Where do my logins live?
On this machine. OAuth as the vendor built it. 8staff does not borrow tokens, does not proxy the CLI, and does not send your keys to an 8staff server.
Does the staff live in the cloud?
Not by default. The roster on this machine is local. Cloud desks are a paid offering: they keep the shift when this laptop sleeps. A shared team floor is billed the same way. Learning is still a notebook — not a model trained on you.
What do cloud and team cost?
Pro is $20/mo ($16 billed yearly) for hosted desks for one operator. Business is $120/mo ($96 yearly) for a shared floor — 3 seats included, $40/mo each additional. Scale is $200/mo ($160 yearly). Credits for hosted work are $0.01 each. Local CLI work never draws from them.
What happens on first run?
You meet 8staff, sign in, and the floor seeds Scout (research), Maker (builder), and Closer (outreach). Then you can hire by name: a new desk, a standing job, a computer of their own.
Can I hire more than three?
Yes. The starters are three desks, not a cap. “Make a bot named Riley who writes emails” creates Riley and starts the work. Drag a chat beside — three windows, like a real floor.