Which plans are eligible?

Decide whether pause applies to all plans or a subset. You may want to exclude trial plans, introductory-priced plans, or plans where pausing conflicts with your product access model. Eligibility is enforced at the point of the API call — there is no global on/off switch for pause in the Admin Console.

How long can a subscriber pause?

Set a minimum and maximum pause duration in billing cycles. Recurly recommends starting with a single billing cycle (e.g. one month) and testing from there. Avoid indefinite pauses — open-ended pauses reduce the urgency to return and make forecasting harder. A maximum of three cycles is a reasonable starting point for most programs.

How many times can a subscriber pause?

Decide whether to limit the number of pauses per subscriber per year. Unlimited pausing can become a substitute for cancellation rather than an alternative to it — a subscriber who pauses every other month is effectively using it as a discount mechanism. Set a reasonable annual limit and monitor the data before adjusting.

What happens to product access during a pause?

Recurly pauses billing — it does not control feature access, content entitlements, or physical shipments. You need to update your own entitlement or fulfillment system to reflect the paused state. Use Recurly's webhooks to trigger those updates automatically when a pause begins and ends.

Navigate to the subscriber's account

Go to Accounts and search for the subscriber by name, email, or account code.

Open the subscription details

From the account page, locate the active subscription and click through to its detail view.

Select Pause from the Subscription Action dropdown

In the subscription detail view, open the Subscription Action dropdown menu and select Pause.

Set the number of billing cycles to pause

Enter the number of billing cycles for the pause. The pause activates at the subscriber's next billing date — not immediately. Confirm the upcoming billing date shown on screen before submitting.

To resume early, use the same dropdown

If a subscriber wants to resume before the pause period ends, return to their subscription detail view, open the Subscription Action dropdown, and select Resume. Billing restarts at the next cycle.

Pause a monthly subscription — pause_subscription endpoint

Use the pause_subscription endpoint and pass the subscription UUID along with remaining_pause_cycles set to the number of billing cycles to pause. The pause activates at the next billing date.

Full reference: Pause subscription API

Pause an annual subscription — update_subscription endpoint

Use the update_subscription endpoint and set next_bill_date to the desired resume date — for example, one month from the current next billing date. Update your entitlement system separately to downgrade access for that period. Do not use pause_subscription for annual plans unless you intend a full annual cycle pause.

Full reference: Update subscription API

Resume a paused subscription — resume_subscription endpoint

Use the resume_subscription endpoint to end a pause early. Billing resumes at the next cycle after the resume call is made. In SCA regions, this call must be initiated with subscriber authentication — not triggered server-side without subscriber involvement.

Full reference: Resume subscription API

Subscription paused

Fires when the pause is confirmed. Use this to send a pause confirmation email to the subscriber — set expectations around when billing resumes and what access continues.

Pause scheduled / pause cancelled

Fires when a pause is scheduled for a future billing date, and again if that scheduled pause is cancelled before it activates. Use these to keep your CRM and support queue in sync.

Subscription resumed

Fires when billing restarts — either after the pause period ends automatically or after an early resume. Use this to re-grant product access and send a welcome-back message.

Resume reminder (mid-pause)

Send a mid-pause reminder email to re-engage subscribers before their billing resumes. This is not a Recurly webhook — build this as a scheduled outreach triggered a set number of days before the resume date, using the remaining_pause_cycles field to calculate timing. Reference new features, upcoming content, or anything that reinforces the value of returning.

In the cancellation flow — highest impact

Present pause as an alternative at the moment a subscriber initiates a cancellation. This is where it has the most retention effect — the subscriber has already signaled intent to leave, and pause directly addresses the most common temporary reasons for cancellation. Make it low-friction: one tap or click to pause, with a clear statement of what resumes when.

In account settings — for proactive use

Surface pause in account or subscription management settings so subscribers can find it before they reach the cancellation flow. Subscribers who pause proactively — before deciding to cancel — tend to have higher reactivation rates than those who pause as a last resort.

Communicate the value, not just the option

When presenting pause, tell the subscriber what they keep: their locked-in price, their account history, their access to exclusive perks or loyalty benefits. "Pause your subscription" is less effective than "Pause and keep your current rate — resume whenever you're ready." The benefit statement reduces the perceived cost of pausing and increases the likelihood they return.