Licenses vs. Credits🔗

This article will outline the difference between HP Tuners licenses and credits.

Requirements🔗

MPVI/RTD Device
VCM Editor (VCM Suite)

What are Credits?🔗

Credits serve as the digital currency in the HP Tuners ecosystem, used to purchase licenses for tuning vehicles. They are like prepaid minutes on a cell phone — once used to license a vehicle, they're consumed and cannot be refunded or reused.

Note

Brand specific credits (e.g., MPVI credits) are limited to specific manufacturers like GM, Ford, or Dodge and apply only to vehicles from those brands.
Universal Credits are not tied to any specific vehicle; they can be applied across different makes and models — ideal for users with multiple vehicles.

What are Licenses?🔗

A license grants permission for your HP Tuners interface (e.g., MPVI device) to write tuning files to a specific vehicle. Licenses are vehicle specific and are tied to three key identifiers:

Vehicle Identification Number (VIN)
Module Serial Number (e.g., ECM)
Operating System (OS) of the controller

Note

A license is only needed when you want to write (flash) a new tune to the vehicle. You can still use functions like VCM Scanner for data logging and diagnostics without a license.
Once purchased, a license remains stored permanently on your device and cannot be deleted or transferred, meaning you can tune that specific vehicle indefinitely as long as the VIN, module, and OS remain unchanged.

Additional Notes🔗

Most vehicles require between 2-6 credits per license (this may vary).
There is no swapping or deleting — once a license is assigned, it's permanent and cannot be reassigned or removed from the device.
If you exchange devices (e.g., upgrade), credit recovery may be possible — contact our support team.

Still Need Help?🔗

If issues persist, please contact our support team through the Help Portal.

Please include the following when contacting support:

Screenshot or log of the error
Your device serial number
Vehicle year, make, and model
Summary of the issue