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Who Is This For?

This guide is for merchants who sell subscription-based services or products with recurring billing. Common examples include:
Business TypeExamples
SaaS ProductsProject management tools, CRM, analytics platforms
Content PlatformsOnline learning, premium newsletters, media access
Digital ServicesCloud hosting, API access, design tools
MembershipCommunity access, premium support, exclusive content

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Subscription Lifecycle

Before setting up, it helps to understand how subscriptions flow: 
Trial → Active → (Renew each period) → Canceled → Expired
                       ↑                     ↓
                       └───── Reactivate ────┘
StatusWhat It Means
trialingCustomer is in a free trial period
activePaying customer, subscription is active
past_duePayment failed, Waffo is retrying automatically
cancelingCustomer canceled, but still has access until period ends
canceledSubscription has fully ended

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Step 1: Create Subscription Products

You’ll typically create multiple products for different pricing tiers (e.g., Free, Pro, Enterprise).
1

Go to Products

In your Dashboard, navigate to Products from the sidebar.
Products list page
2

Create a Subscription Product

Click Create Product and select Subscription as the product type.
Create subscription product form
3

Configure Pricing

  • Name: Your plan name (e.g., “Basic Plan”, “Pro Plan”)
  • Billing Period: Choose monthly, quarterly, or yearly
  • Price: Set the recurring price
  • Description: What’s included in this plan
Create separate products for each billing period. For example, create both a monthly and yearly version of the same plan.
4

Save and Activate

Click Save. The product starts in test mode. Activate it when ready.

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Step 2: Organize Plans with Product Groups

If you have multiple tiers (Free, Pro, Enterprise), use Product Groups to organize them.
1

Create a Product Group

Go to Products and create a new product group (e.g., “Pricing Plans”).
2

Add Products to the Group

Select the subscription products that belong together. This helps manage pricing tiers as a unit.
3

Configure Group Settings

  • Shared Trial: If enabled, a customer who used a trial on one plan can’t get another trial on a different plan in the same group.
Product groups are optional but recommended if you offer multiple pricing tiers. They prevent trial abuse and simplify management.

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Step 3: Share and Start Selling

Just like one-time products, subscription products get a checkout link. Copy the checkout link from the product detail page: 
https://checkout.waffo.ai/your-store/my-product

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Build a Pricing Page

Create a pricing page on your website that links to each plan’s checkout URL:
Prices below are examples only. Set them based on your actual business.
PlanPriceCheckout Link
Basic$9/monthhttps://checkout.waffo.ai/your-store/basic-plan
Pro$29/monthhttps://checkout.waffo.ai/your-store/pro-plan
Enterprise$99/monthhttps://checkout.waffo.ai/your-store/enterprise-plan

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Step 4: Monitor Subscriptions

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Subscriptions Dashboard

Navigate to Subscriptions in the sidebar to see all active, trialing, and canceled subscriptions.
Subscriptions list page
Each subscription shows:
  • Customer email
  • Current plan
  • Status (active, trialing, past_due, etc.)
  • Current period start and end dates
  • Next billing date

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Subscription Detail

Click on any subscription to view details:
  • Payment history
  • Plan changes
  • Cancellation details (if applicable)

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Step 5: Handle Cancellations

When a customer cancels, the subscription enters a canceling state. The customer keeps access until the current billing period ends, then it becomes canceled.

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What Happens Automatically

  • Customer receives a cancellation confirmation email
  • You receive a notification
  • Access continues until the period ends
  • No further charges are made

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View Cancellations in Dashboard

Filter subscriptions by Canceling or Canceled status to see who has left.

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Business Scenarios

The following are example scenarios. Adjust them to match your actual business.

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Scenario 1: SaaS with Monthly and Yearly Plans

  1. Create products: Create both monthly and yearly versions of the same plan
  2. Group them: Create a product group to link them together
  3. Pricing page: Link each option on your website
  4. Monitor: Track MRR and churn in the Analytics page

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Scenario 2: Content Platform with Free Trial

  1. Create product: Set up your subscription plan and price
  2. Enable trial: Set a 14-day free trial period
  3. Share link: Customer signs up and starts trial immediately
  4. After trial: Automatically converts to paid subscription, or expires if they don’t add payment

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Scenario 3: API Service with Tiered Plans

  1. Create products: Create a subscription product for each tier with different API call quotas and prices
  2. Group them: Create a product group with shared trial
  3. Integrate webhooks: Grant appropriate API limits based on which plan the customer subscribes to

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Going Further: Code Integration

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When You Need Code

  • Access control: Check subscription status in your app to gate features
  • Automated provisioning: Use webhooks to automatically create accounts or adjust limits
  • Custom cancellation flows: Build in-app cancellation with feedback collection

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Key Webhook Events

EventWhen It Fires
subscription.activatedNew subscription started
subscription.updatedPlan changed or renewed
subscription.canceledSubscription fully ended
order.completedRecurring payment processed
subscription.past_duePayment attempt failed
For webhook setup, see the Webhooks guide. For API details, see the API Reference.

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Testing

1

Enable Test Mode

Toggle to test mode in your Dashboard.
2

Subscribe with Test Card

Use 4242 4242 4242 4242 to simulate a successful subscription.
3

Check Subscription

Verify the subscription appears in your Subscriptions page with the correct plan and status.
4

Test Cancellation

Cancel the test subscription and verify it transitions to canceling → canceled.

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Launch Checklist

  • Subscription products created for each plan/tier
  • Product group set up (if multiple tiers)
  • Pricing page links to correct checkout URLs
  • Test subscription flow works end-to-end
  • Cancellation flow tested
  • Notification emails look correct
  • Products published to production

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Next Steps

Set Up Webhooks

Automate access control with subscription event notifications

Usage-Based Billing

Combine subscriptions with metered usage