Definition

Key benefits

Key details

Proration and coupon behavior

When active coupon redemptions are applied to new charges, Recurly prorates any fixed-amount discounts at the same rate as the charge. For example, if a customer is 50% through their billing cycle and being charged 50% of the plan price, they'll also receive 50% of the fixed discount amount. Percentage discounts are automatically prorated since they're calculated as a percentage of an already-prorated charge.

It's not possible to apply a fixed-amount coupon redemption without proration in an immediate change. If you need this, consider using custom credits instead — and contact Recurly Support to express your interest in this capability.

Aggregate invoices

Aggregate invoices merges subscriptions that share the same bill date into a single invoice. It's ideal for customers with multiple subscriptions billed on the same day and best suited for physical goods merchants.

Eligible subscriptions

For subscriptions to be combined into one renewal invoice, they must:

• Share the same bill date — down to the second. The best way to achieve this is by purchasing multiple subscriptions together
• Use one payment method — since the invoice merges all charges, it must be paid with a single method
• Use the same collection method — all subscriptions must use either manual or automatic billing; mixed methods result in separate invoices
• Follow a supported billing cadence — monthly (minimum 30 days), quarterly, or annual
• Have the same shipping address — subscriptions with different shipping addresses result in separate invoices

Editing the account bill date

Once aggregate invoices is activated, Recurly combines all subscriptions sharing a bill date onto one invoice. Manual overrides within a group of aggregated subscriptions aren't possible. To invoice a subscription separately, adjust its bill date to differ from the account's.

To move all subscriptions on an account to a new bill date, use the postpone feature via API.

Expiring or canceled subscriptions

Subscriptions in their last billing cycle, or those canceled before the bill date, won't be included in the renewal invoice.

Promotional subscriptions

Promotional subscriptions — those purchased with a gift card or using cardless free trials — expire if there's no valid payment method or sufficient credit to cover the total cost.

If promotional and non-promotional subscriptions are set to bill together with no payment method on file, gift card subscriptions will expire and cardless trial subscriptions will enter dunning.

Aligning renewals

Aligning renewals consolidates subscriptions into one invoice by adjusting a new subscription's bill date to match the account's established bill date. This results in a one-time prorated invoice, after which all subscriptions renew together. Best suited for digital goods and services.

Bill date

The account bill date determines when all subscriptions on an account renew together. It's set by the account's first non-trial invoice.

• For existing accounts when the feature is activated, the oldest subscription's bill date becomes the account bill date
• For new customers, the bill date is set by the first non-trial invoice after activation
• A $0 invoice still counts as a non-trial invoice
• If a gift card or promotional credit covers the full cost, that invoice date still sets the bill date

The bill date is visible on the Accounts page and displays down to the second.

For subscriptions billed on the last day of the month, if that day doesn't exist in the following month, the last day of that month is used (e.g., January 31st → February 28th).

The table below shows how bill dates are determined based on subscription start dates:

Editing a bill date

The account bill date is read-only and can't be changed directly. To adjust the bill date for a specific subscription or group of subscriptions, use the postpone feature via API.

Once all subscriptions share the same bill date, they'll renew on a single invoice. If you adjust a subscription's bill date, it won't automatically re-align to the account's original bill date — it will renew separately unless Subscription Alignment is enabled.

When Subscription Alignment is on, the account bill date is cleared once the last active subscription expires. If a new subscription is created with no other active subscriptions, the account bill date updates to match the new subscription's creation date.

Clearing a bill date

An account always has a bill date while subscriptions are active. To clear it, use the Subscription Alignment feature after all active subscriptions have expired.

How alignment works

When a new subscription is purchased on an account with a bill date, Recurly identifies the subscription's regular billing cycle start and end dates, then adjusts the bill date to match the account's.

Non-trial subscriptions

A new non-trial subscription prorates to the account's existing bill date, or sets the account's bill date if none exists. If a subscription is created with a past date and the account has a bill date, the invoice uses the account's bill date as the due date and prorates accordingly.

Example: Monthly + monthly

An existing customer has a monthly Silver plan ($5) billing on the first of each month. They buy a monthly Gold plan ($10) on March 15th.

• Gold's regular billing cycle: March 15th – April 15th
• Gold's bill date is adjusted to April 1st
• A prorated Gold invoice of $5 is generated for March 15th – April 1st
• The April 1st invoice includes both Silver and Gold ($15 total)

Example: Monthly + annual

An existing customer has a monthly Silver plan billing on the 15th. They buy an annual Gold plan on January 10th, 2017.

• Gold's regular billing cycle: January 10th, 2017 – January 10th, 2018
• Gold's bill date is adjusted to December 15th, 2017
• Gold prorates for January 10th, 2017 – December 15th, 2017
• Both subscriptions appear on the December 15th, 2017 invoice

Example: Annual + annual

An existing customer has an annual Gold subscription starting January 10th, 2017.

• A second annual subscription purchased before February 10th, 2017 aligns to the same January 10th, 2018 renewal
• A second subscription purchased after February 10th renews one year from its own start date and won't align

Upgrades and downgrades

When an immediate subscription change includes a billing period change, the subscription resets to the current date and must realign. As long as Aligning Renewals is active, any immediate subscription change will consider the account's bill date and maintain alignment.

Example: Monthly upgrade to annual

An existing customer has monthly Bronze and Silver plans billing on the first of each month. They upgrade Silver to an annual Gold plan on January 15th.

• Gold's regular billing cycle: January 15th – January 15th of the following year
• Gold's bill date is adjusted to January 1st
• A prorated Gold invoice is generated for January 15th – January 1st
• Both subscriptions appear on the January 1st invoice

Immediate changes that don't involve a billing period change won't require proration — the current billing period and alignment are maintained.

Expiring or canceled subscriptions

Subscriptions in their last billing cycle, or those canceled before the bill date, won't be included in the next invoice.

Promotional subscriptions

The same behavior as Aggregate Invoices applies. Promotional subscriptions expire if there's no valid payment method or sufficient credit. If promotional and non-promotional subscriptions are set to bill together without a payment method, gift card subscriptions expire and cardless trial subscriptions enter dunning.

Trial subscriptions

A few rules apply when trial subscriptions are involved:

• If an account has no bill date (new customer) and they purchase a trial subscription, the bill date won't be set until the trial ends and the first non-trial invoice is generated
• If a new customer purchases multiple trial subscriptions of different lengths, the one that ends first sets the account bill date

Example: Trial subscription without a bill date

A new customer purchases a seven-day trial subscription on January 15th.

• The trial ends January 22nd and the subscription enters its regular billing cycle
• The account bill date is set to January 22nd
• All subsequent non-trial subscription purchases or activations align to this date

Example: Trial subscription with an existing bill date

An existing customer has a bill date of the 10th. They purchase a monthly Gold plan with a seven-day trial on February 15th.

• The trial ends February 22nd and the first non-trial invoice is generated
• Gold's regular billing cycle: February 22nd – March 22nd
• Gold's bill date is adjusted to March 10th
• A prorated Gold invoice is generated for February 22nd – March 10th
• The March 10th invoice includes both subscriptions

Renewal emails

When automatic email templates are enabled on your site or plans, the following templates send renewal-related emails. Each email is sent once per subscription if the template is enabled at the site level and at least one subscription plan has the automatic email enabled:

• Renewal Reminder
• Payment Confirmation
• Invoice Past Due

Enable calendar billing

Contact [email protected] to request activation. Three configuration options are available.

Once activated, follow the steps below to complete setup.