wǒ zhídào kàn le bàojià, cái jiǎofèi.

This pattern means not until... then... or only after... did....

So:

• 我直到看了报价，才缴费。
• = I didn’t pay until I had looked at the quote.
• = Only after seeing the quoted price did I pay.

The combination 直到 + event, 才 + main action strongly emphasizes that the second action happened late, only then, or not before that point.

才 often means only then, not until then, or only after that.

In this sentence, it marks that 缴费 happened after the speaker looked at the quote, and not earlier.

Compare:

• 我看了报价，就缴费了。
  = I looked at the quote and then paid.
  This sounds like a normal sequence.

• 我直到看了报价，才缴费。
  = I didn’t pay until I looked at the quote.
  This emphasizes delay or a condition being met first.

So 才 is important because it gives the sentence its not until feeling.

Here 直到 introduces the point in time up to which the main action did not happen.

Structure:

• 我 = I
• 直到看了报价 = not until I had looked at the quote
• 才缴费 = did I pay

So the sentence is organized around a time boundary:

• before looking at the quote → no payment
• after looking at the quote → payment happened

In English we often say I didn’t pay until I saw the quote, but Chinese commonly uses 直到……才…… to express that idea directly.

The 了 after 看 shows that looking at the quote was completed before the payment happened.

So:

• 看了报价 = looked at the quote / finished looking at the quote

As for 缴费, Chinese does not always need 了 on every completed action. The sentence already clearly presents a sequence, and 才 helps show that the payment happened afterward.

So 才缴费 is natural.

You could also say:

• 我直到看了报价，才缴了费。

That also works, and it may sound slightly more explicitly completed. But the original sentence is perfectly normal.

Yes, but the nuance changes a little.

• 看了报价 = looked at the quote / checked the quote
• 看到报价 = saw the quote / came to see the quote

So:

• 我直到看了报价，才缴费。
  emphasizes examining or reading the price quote

• 我直到看到报价，才缴费。
  emphasizes the moment of seeing it

If the idea is I paid only after checking the quoted price, then 看了报价 is very natural.

报价 usually means a price quote, quotation, or quoted price.

It is often used in business, services, purchases, and negotiations.

Examples:

• 请给我报价。 = Please give me a quote.
• 这个报价太高了。 = This quote is too high.

In this sentence, it most likely means the speaker looked at the quoted amount before deciding to pay.

Not exactly.

• 付钱 = pay money, a general everyday expression
• 缴费 = pay a fee, often something official, required, or formal

缴费 is commonly used for:

• school fees
• membership fees
• utility fees
• registration fees
• service charges

So 缴费 sounds more formal and specific than 付钱.

Chinese often expresses the same idea without a direct negative word by using a pattern instead.

English:

• I didn’t pay until I saw the quote.

Chinese:

• 我直到看了报价，才缴费。

The combination 直到……才…… already implies that the payment did not happen before that point.

So even though there is no 不 or 没, the meaning naturally includes not until.

Yes, it often can.

You may see both:

• 我直到看了报价，才缴费。
• 我直到看了报价才缴费。

Both are fine. The comma just makes the pause and structure clearer, especially for learners.

Yes, and that is also natural.

• 我看了报价才缴费。
  = I paid only after looking at the quote.

This version is a little simpler and still means that the payment happened only after that action.

Adding 直到 gives stronger emphasis to the idea of not before then:

• 我直到看了报价，才缴费。

So both work, but 直到……才…… sounds more emphatic.

Not always.

If the subject is already clear from context, Chinese often drops it:

• 直到看了报价，才缴费。

This could still mean Only after looking at the quote did I pay or ...did he/she pay, depending on context.

Including 我 makes the subject explicit and is especially helpful in isolated example sentences.

A useful way to see it is:

• 我 = subject
• 直到看了报价 = time boundary / condition
• 才缴费 = main action

So the pattern is roughly:

Subject + until/not until phrase + 才 + main verb

This is very common in Mandarin when one event must happen before another.

It sounds mostly neutral, with slightly formal vocabulary because of 报价 and 缴费.

• 报价 is common in business or service contexts.
• 缴费 is more formal than everyday 付钱.

So the grammar is normal and natural, but the vocabulary suggests a practical or somewhat official situation rather than casual conversation about buying a snack, for example.