Pause subscriptions
Explore the comprehensive guide to configuring pause subscriptions, allowing merchants to temporarily suspend billing and service delivery without losing subscribers. Learn how to set duration parameters, maintain user account history, reduce voluntary churn, and understand the critical differences between pausing and postponing subscriptions.
Retain • Pause Subscriptions
Pause subscriptions
Give subscribers a break without losing them. Learn how pause works, when to use it, and how to configure it to reduce voluntary churn.
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What is Pause Subscriptions?
Pause Subscriptions lets you temporarily suspend billing and service delivery for a subscriber — without canceling their subscription. When the pause period ends, billing resumes automatically and the subscriber picks up exactly where they left off: same plan, same price, same account history.
It's the right tool when a customer wants a break, not a breakup. Common reasons subscribers pause include travel, budget pressure, seasonal use, or temporary excess inventory — situations where cancellation is permanent but the underlying need isn't.
Billing stops temporarily
No invoices are generated during the pause period. The subscription stays active and resumes at the next billing cycle after the pause ends.
Subscriber keeps their terms
Original pricing, loyalty perks, and account history are preserved. The subscriber doesn't need to re-subscribe or re-negotiate when they return.
Resumes automatically
After the pause duration you define, billing resumes without any action required from the subscriber — reducing friction at the reactivation moment.
You control the parameters
You set which plans are eligible, the minimum and maximum pause duration, and how many pauses a subscriber can use — giving you flexibility without losing control.
Pause suspends billing for a set number of billing cycles and stops MRR contribution during that window. Postpone shifts the next billing date forward without a formal pause state — useful for one-off date adjustments but it does not stop MRR tracking. Use pause when the intent is a deliberate break; use postpone for minor date corrections.
Learn more about how to postpone a subscription.
What's in this path
This path walks you through everything you need to evaluate, configure, and measure Pause Subscriptions — in about eight minutes.
Why pause reduces churn
Understand the business case — benchmarks, subscriber behavior data, and a real-world proof point from a Recurly merchant.
Things to consider before you enable
Eligibility rules, the monthly vs. annual plan distinction, HAM limitations, and key caveats to know before you configure anything.
How to enable pause
Step-by-step configuration — how to set up pause via the Admin Console and API, and where to surface it in your subscriber experience.
Tracking your pause impact
The three metrics that tell you whether your pause strategy is working — and how to find them in Recurly.
Review & resources
A quick knowledge check and all the resources referenced throughout the path in one place.
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