: of or relating to a system or policy of paying bills when due or of paying for goods and services when purchased

Examples of pay-as-you-go in a Sentence

Recent Examples on the Web
Examples are automatically compiled from online sources to show current usage. Read More Opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback.
Under Social Security’s pay-as-you-go structure, today’s payroll taxes flow directly to today’s retirees—a transfer that carries the same economic drag as explicit Treasury borrowing but doesn’t show up on the federal balance sheet. Nick Lichtenberg, Fortune, 19 Mar. 2026 Lucky for Trump, most AI billionaires (Anthropic’s Dario Amodei perhaps excluded) now love him for his pay-as-you-go approach to federal policies on the industry. Los Angeles Times, 5 Mar. 2026 Regardless of provider, all calls, texts, and data usage will be treated as international maritime roaming— and charged at expensive pay-as-you-go rates. Erica Silverstein, Travel + Leisure, 6 Feb. 2026 The company does lead live classes in-person that are pay-as-you-go, but a $19 per month on-demand subscription gets you continuous access to both live and on-demand dance sessions. Adrienne So, Wired News, 3 Jan. 2026 For residents in busy states like California or New York, pay-as-you-go policies appeal to urban dwellers who drive sparingly but still need proof of coverage. Maria Williams, USA Today, 13 Nov. 2025 Whenever caps on discretionary spending or pay-as-you-go requirements threaten to bite, the label becomes something more. Veronique De Rugy, Oc Register, 7 Nov. 2025 If consumers balk enough at paying more, especially if use cases prove to be underwhelming to many, there will be a future where AI is pay-as-you-go, Tzuo said. Kevin Williams, CNBC, 31 Oct. 2025 The platform model transforms what were once capital-intensive AI capabilities into pay-as-you-go services. Sajal Singh, Forbes.com, 18 Sep. 2025

Word History

First Known Use

1840, in the meaning defined above

Time Traveler
The first known use of pay-as-you-go was in 1840

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Cite this Entry

“Pay-as-you-go.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/pay-as-you-go. Accessed 20 Mar. 2026.

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