Superhive requires an active paid subscription to publish free products, so this is listed at $1 with a 100%-off coupon available for anyone who wants it at no cost — see the banner at the top of this page. Buying at $1 instead of using the coupon is entirely optional and just goes toward supporting development. Every feature is fully unlocked either way, no functionality is gated behind payment.

Locally, in Blender's user config directory on your machine. Never uploaded, never synced, never sent anywhere. You can export it to CSV anytime, or clear it entirely from the panel.

Yes. EEVEE and EEVEE Next use a resolution-based method suited to how EEVEE spends render time. Cycles automatically switches methods when adaptive sampling is detected

No. Resolution and sample settings used during the test pass are automatically restored to your original values the moment the estimate finishes — verified directly, including under adaptive sampling.

Yes, briefly. The estimate runs two quick test render passes to measure your scene accurately, and Blender's UI pauses during those passes (typically a matter of seconds, occasionally longer on heavy scenes). You'll always see a confirmation dialog first, so it's never a surprise. A fully non-blocking version is planned for a future update.