Pricing & plans 101: Trials
Optimize your subscription conversion funnel with Recurly's free trial management. Learn to configure automatic trial-to-paid conversion, implement pre-expiration notifications, and navigate the strategic business decision between card-required and cardless trials.
Acquire · Pricing & Plans 101
Trials
Trials reduce signup friction by letting subscribers experience your product before their first charge. This page covers how trials work in Recurly, the card-required vs. cardless decision, and what trials can and can't do for conversion.
Navigation Menu
Navigate Home
Trials
How trials work in Recurly
A trial is a period at the start of a subscription during which the subscriber is not charged. It is set in days or months on the plan. When the trial ends, the subscription converts automatically to paid — no manual step required.
Recurly also sends an automatic notification three days before the trial ends, giving subscribers a heads-up before their first charge. This is built in and requires no additional configuration.
Note: A trial must be at least four days long for this email to trigger. Additionally, pre-renewal webhook notifications for trial expiration can be configured to fire a customizable number of days in advance.
Set in days or months
Configure trial duration in days (e.g., 14 days) or months (e.g., 1 month) at the plan level. The setting applies to all new subscriptions created from that plan.
Automatic conversion
When the trial period ends, the subscription converts to paid automatically. Recurly sends a three-day notice (for trials longer than four days) before conversion — no action needed on your part.
Trial extends the subscription term
A trial adds time to the total subscription term. An annual plan with a 30-day trial results in a 13-month subscription. Account for this when setting billing expectations.
No invoice during the trial
Subscription changes made during a trial period don't generate an invoice. The first invoice is issued when the trial ends and the paid period begins.
The card-required vs. cardless decision
When you configure a trial on a plan, you choose whether to require billing information at signup. This is one of the most consequential decisions in your trial setup — it affects both conversion volume and payment quality at the end of the trial.
| Approach | Signup friction | Trial-to-paid conversion | Payment failure risk |
|---|---|---|---|
| Card required | Higher — subscriber must provide payment details upfront | Lower volume of trial starts; higher intent and quality | Lower — card is already on file and pre-authorized at trial start |
| Cardless trial | Lower — subscriber signs up without payment details | Higher volume of trial starts; more drop-off at conversion | Higher — subscriber must add a card before the trial ends to convert |
Cardless trials attract more signups but convert at a lower rate — and payment failure at conversion is a real risk. Unless your acquisition strategy specifically depends on removing all friction at the top of the funnel, requiring a card at signup gives you higher-quality trial starts and a cleaner conversion path.
If a plan has a setup fee configured, that fee is charged at subscription creation regardless of the trial or billing information settings. To bypass this on a cardless trial, cover the setup fee with a coupon, gift card, or account credit before the subscription is created.
How to configure a trial on a plan
Open the plan
Go to Configuration → Plans and open the plan you want to add a trial to. Click Edit.
Set the trial duration
In the plan settings, enter the trial length in days or months. Choose the unit that best matches your product's activation timeline — enough time for the subscriber to experience real value before being charged.
Set the billing information requirement
Choose whether to require billing information at signup or allow a cardless trial. This setting determines what happens at trial start — card-required plans can authorize the card immediately; cardless plans collect payment details before conversion.
Save
Click Save Changes. The trial settings apply to new subscriptions only. Existing subscriptions are not affected. Changes to trial settings made after subscriptions are created apply to new signups going forward.
What trials can and can't do
Trial conversion rates in subscription benchmarks average around 34%. That number is shaped more by product experience, onboarding, and pricing clarity than by trial mechanics alone. Trials reduce the barrier to entry — they don't replace the work of making your product valuable within the trial window.
Trials work best when:
- Your product has a meaningful "aha moment" reachable within the trial window. If it takes longer than the trial to understand the value, shorten onboarding — not the trial.
- You have a plan for the last 3 days. Recurly sends the pre-trial-end notification automatically; your team or email flows should reinforce the value during this window.
- Card-required trials are paired with a low-friction first billing experience. If the card is on file, the first charge should be predictable — correct amount, clear invoice, no surprises.
Trials don't fix:
- A product that doesn't deliver value quickly. A longer trial extends the decision — it doesn't make a weak product stronger.
- Pricing that feels misaligned with value. If subscribers cancel after the first paid charge, the issue is usually pricing perception, not trial length.
- Poor onboarding. A subscriber who reaches the trial end without understanding your product is unlikely to convert regardless of how long the trial runs.
Designing your trial strategy?
The card-required vs. cardless decision and trial length are worth testing carefully. Bring your setup to Global Office Hours — our CSMs can share what works across different subscription models.
Register for Office Hours →