Lambda (Lambda Labs) runs Lambda Cloud, a GPU platform where you rent NVIDIA GPUs by the hour for training and inference. Billing is usage-based rather than a fixed monthly subscription, so before you add any card you should understand how Lambda charges and, importantly, which card types it will accept. This guide walks through what you need, the sign-up and checkout flow, and the most common reasons a card gets declined.
Before you start: an important card-type check
Lambda's self-service billing documentation states that it accepts major credit cards and that debit and prepaid cards are not accepted. This is a merchant policy set by Lambda, not by Coinepay. Because of it, you must confirm that the card you intend to use meets Lambda's requirement before you try to launch anything.
Contact Coinepay support to confirm your Coinepay virtual card meets Lambda's "major credit card, no debit or prepaid" requirement before you buy. You can reach the team from the support page or on Telegram.Lambda does not publicly name which card networks it accepts, so treat acceptance of any specific network as something to verify in practice. A $10 pre-authorization (described below) is effectively the test of whether your card will work.
If you do not yet have a Coinepay card, you can register for Coinepay and complete identity verification (KYC) first. Card issuance and fund services are provided by licensed partner financial institutions, and some services are not available in every jurisdiction. Services related to virtual assets are not available to residents of mainland China.
What you'll need
- A verified Coinepay account with an active virtual card (card number, expiry and CVV are issued instantly in the app).
- Enough available balance on the card to cover Lambda's $10 pre-authorization plus your expected usage.
- Your real billing address, matching the details on your Coinepay account.
- A Lambda Cloud account and a purchasing location that Lambda supports (see the region note below).
Understand what you are paying for
Lambda names three cloud offerings: Instances, 1-Click Clusters™, and Superclusters. These are product offerings, not monthly tiers.
- Instances are self-service, pay-as-you-go GPU configurations (1, 2, 4 or 8 GPUs). Charges accrue from a successful launch until you terminate, including while the instance is running but idle. Usage is metered in one-minute increments and invoiced weekly.
- 1-Click Clusters™ use a reservation wizard that shows a billing summary before you submit a request; once approved, Lambda emails an invoice payable within 10 days.
- Superclusters are sales-led, multi-year contracts handled directly with Lambda.
At the time of writing (October 2026), listed Instance prices ranged from about $0.69/hour for an NVIDIA Quadro RTX 6000 (1 GPU) up to $6.99/hour for an NVIDIA B200 SXM6 (per GPU), with 8-GPU rates such as $3.99/GPU-hour for NVIDIA H100 SXM. Published 1-Click Cluster rates for NVIDIA H100 started around $6.16/GPU-hour. Prices vary by GPU, configuration and region and change over time, so always confirm the current figure on Lambda's official pricing page before you launch. Fees are quoted and payable in USD and exclude applicable sales tax, VAT or GST, which Lambda bases on your billing location.
Step-by-step: add your card and launch
- Create your Lambda account. On Lambda's site, choose Create account for self-service cloud access and complete the registration steps Lambda shows you.
- Open a Coinepay virtual card. In the Coinepay app, create or select a card and note the card number, expiry date and CVV. Having a card dedicated to Lambda makes it easy to track spending.
- Go to Billing. In the Lambda Cloud console, open Billing. This is where payment method, billing address, credits, invoices, payment history and Pay open invoice live; your spending detail is under Usage.
- Add the card. Enter the card number, expiry, CVV and a billing address that matches your Coinepay account details exactly, including ZIP/postal code.
- Clear the pre-authorization. Lambda places a $10 pre-authorization that it says is refunded within a few days. Make sure your card balance comfortably covers it. If this hold is rejected by the issuer, the card will not be added.
- Launch an Instance. Go to Instances → Launch instance, select your configuration, review the terms, then click Confirm and launch. Remember this starts usage billing immediately, not an upfront monthly charge.
- Pay invoices on time. Instance usage is invoiced weekly; a 1-Click Cluster invoice is payable within 10 days. Use Pay open invoice on the Billing page to settle anything outstanding.
Troubleshooting: why a card gets declined
Some users have reported the exact message “Your card has been declined.” when adding a card. Lambda lists the following decline causes in its billing guide:
Cause What to do Debit or prepaid card Lambda does not accept these. Confirm with Coinepay support that your card meets Lambda's credit-card requirement before trying again. Issuer rejected the $10 pre-authorization Check your Coinepay balance and recent activity in the app; make sure there is enough to cover the hold, then retry. Incorrect CVV or ZIP code Re-enter the CVV from the Coinepay app and use the exact billing ZIP/postal code on your Coinepay account. Billing-address mismatch Make the Lambda billing address match your Coinepay details character for character. Unsupported purchasing country Confirm your location is on Lambda's purchase-supported list (below). Purchase attempted through a VPN Lambda flags VPN purchases. Do not use a VPN to place the order or to work around any regional restriction — use your real location and identity. One user also reported a decline after completing 3-D Secure in their bank app; whether that specific checkout issue still occurs is not confirmed. If a 3-D Secure prompt appears, approve it promptly in the Coinepay app, and if the payment still fails, wait a moment and retry rather than resubmitting repeatedly.
Supported purchasing regions
Lambda's published purchase-supported locations include Australia, Canada, Chile, the EU (except Lithuania), Iceland, Israel, Japan, New Zealand, Norway, Puerto Rico, Singapore, South Africa, South Korea, Switzerland, Taiwan, Turkey, the UAE, the UK and the US. This is a billing-eligibility list, not a list of data-center locations. Lambda also restricts access under applicable export-control and sanctions rules, and holding a card does not by itself establish that you are eligible to purchase. Always use your real identity and billing details.
Stopping charges, cancellation and refunds
To stop Instance charges, you must terminate the instance in the console or API. Simply shutting down the operating system is not termination, and billing can continue. A pending 1-Click Cluster reservation request can be canceled from the Instances page, but whether an approved, paid reservation can be refunded is not stated in the public guide.
Lambda's cloud terms say payment obligations are non-cancelable and paid fees are non-refundable except as expressly provided, and any fees still owed become due on termination. When Lambda does issue a cloud refund, it takes the form of service credits (not cash), which cannot buy other Lambda products and generally expire after 12 months. Lambda's separate 30-day hardware return policy is unrelated to cloud billing.
Managing it all in Coinepay
You can monitor the Lambda pre-authorization and ongoing charges anytime from the 24/7 Coinepay dashboard or the mobile app on iOS and Google Play. If a charge looks wrong, cross-check Lambda's Usage and Billing pages first, then contact Coinepay support through the Coinepay site if you still need help.
Get your Coinepay virtual card: Sign up · App Store · Google Play · Customer support
FAQ
Can I pay for Lambda Cloud with a Coinepay virtual card?
Lambda's billing documentation accepts major credit cards and states that debit and prepaid cards are not accepted. Because card type matters here, contact Coinepay support to confirm your card meets Lambda's requirement before you add it, and treat the $10 pre-authorization as the real-world test of whether it works.
Why does Lambda show "Your card has been declined"?
Lambda lists these causes: a debit or prepaid card, a purchase attempted through a VPN, the issuer rejecting the $10 pre-authorization, an incorrect CVV or ZIP code, or an unsupported purchasing country. Check each one, make your billing address match your Coinepay details, and ensure enough balance for the hold.
What is the $10 charge from Lambda?
Before you can launch cloud services, Lambda adds a payment method on the Billing page and places a $10 pre-authorization that it says is refunded within a few days. Make sure your Coinepay card balance covers it, or the card will not be added.
Is Lambda a monthly subscription?
No. Instances are pay-as-you-go: charges accrue from launch until you terminate, are metered in one-minute increments, and are invoiced weekly. To stop charges you must terminate the instance in the console or API, not just shut down its operating system.
Will I get a refund if I stop using Lambda?
Lambda's cloud terms say paid fees are generally non-refundable. When Lambda does issue a cloud refund it is given as service credits that cannot buy other Lambda products and usually expire after 12 months. Check the official terms for the current policy.
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