User Guides & Documentation<\/a><\/p>\n\nWhat makes ArraySubs different?<\/strong><\/p>\n\nMost WooCommerce subscription plugins lock essential features like membership access control, retention flows, member discounts, and customer self-service behind expensive paywalls. ArraySubs includes all of these in the free version. You get a complete subscription management system \u2014 not a crippled demo that forces an upgrade before you can actually run your business.<\/p>\n\n
All Free Features at a Glance<\/h4>\n\n\n- Subscription products<\/strong> \u2014 simple and variable with per-variation billing configuration<\/li>\n
- Flexible billing<\/strong> \u2014 daily, weekly, monthly, yearly, custom days, or lifetime subscriptions<\/li>\n
- Free trials<\/strong> \u2014 configurable trial days with one-trial-per-customer enforcement<\/li>\n
- Signup fees<\/strong> \u2014 one-time charges at checkout alongside any billing cycle<\/li>\n
- Different renewal pricing<\/strong> \u2014 change the recurring amount after a set number of cycles<\/li>\n
- Renewal sync<\/strong> \u2014 align all renewals to a shared calendar date (monthly, weekly, or yearly)<\/li>\n
- Automated recurring billing<\/strong> \u2014 renewal invoices, trial conversion, and grace period enforcement<\/li>\n
- Two-phase grace periods<\/strong> \u2014 configurable active grace and on-hold grace before cancellation<\/li>\n
- Skip next renewal<\/strong> \u2014 let customers skip upcoming cycles with max skip and cutoff rules<\/li>\n
- Pause \/ vacation mode<\/strong> \u2014 temporary subscription freeze with auto-resume and cooldown<\/li>\n
- Plan switching<\/strong> \u2014 upgrades, downgrades, and crossgrades with 3 proration methods<\/li>\n
- Retention flow builder<\/strong> \u2014 cancellation reasons, 4 retention offer types, and save-rate analytics<\/li>\n
- Customer subscription portal<\/strong> \u2014 full self-service inside WooCommerce My Account<\/li>\n
- Member access control<\/strong> \u2014 6 rule types, 9 condition types, 12 operators, nested AND\/OR logic<\/li>\n
- Role mapping<\/strong> \u2014 assign WordPress roles based on subscription status<\/li>\n
- Member-only discounts<\/strong> \u2014 percentage or fixed discounts by product, category, or cart<\/li>\n
- Members-only commerce<\/strong> \u2014 hide products, block purchases, or restrict visibility for non-members<\/li>\n
- Content restriction<\/strong> \u2014 restrict posts, pages, custom post types with content dripping<\/li>\n
- URL restriction<\/strong> \u2014 block URLs by exact match, prefix, contains, or regex pattern<\/li>\n
- Download restriction<\/strong> \u2014 secure downloadable files with signed URLs and access tracking<\/li>\n
- 16 email notifications<\/strong> \u2014 13 customer + 3 admin emails with 50+ placeholders<\/li>\n
- Refund management<\/strong> \u2014 prorated refunds, full refunds, and configurable cancellation refund policy<\/li>\n
- Subscription management admin<\/strong> \u2014 list, search, create, edit, filter, and export subscriptions<\/li>\n
- Subscription notes<\/strong> \u2014 4 author types and 21 automated note events<\/li>\n
- Retention analytics<\/strong> \u2014 8 KPI cards, churn reasons chart, save rate tracking<\/li>\n
- Reports hub<\/strong> \u2014 central dashboard with 40+ report links across 12 categories<\/li>\n
- Easy setup wizard<\/strong> \u2014 9-step guided configuration with 7 business type profiles<\/li>\n
- Settings export and import<\/strong> \u2014 JSON backup with section-level import control<\/li>\n
- Custom profile fields<\/strong> \u2014 6 field types on My Account and admin user profiles<\/li>\n
- Avatar upload<\/strong> \u2014 custom profile photo that replaces Gravatar site-wide<\/li>\n
- My Account editor<\/strong> \u2014 reorder, rename, hide menu items, add custom endpoint pages<\/li>\n
- Content restriction shortcodes<\/strong> \u2014
[arraysubs_restrict]<\/code> with 15 attributes for content gating<\/li>\n- Visibility shortcodes<\/strong> \u2014
[arraysubs_visibility]<\/code> for login-state-based content control<\/li>\n- Account shortcodes<\/strong> \u2014
[arraysubs_login]<\/code>, [arraysubs_logout]<\/code>, [arraysubs_user]<\/code><\/li>\n- Hide admin bar<\/strong> \u2014 clean frontend for non-admin users<\/li>\n
- Restrict wp-admin access<\/strong> \u2014 block customer roles from the WordPress dashboard<\/li>\n
- Login page redirect<\/strong> \u2014 redirect
\/wp-login.php<\/code> to WooCommerce My Account<\/li>\n- Login as User<\/strong> \u2014 admin impersonation from 6 locations with nested session support<\/li>\n
- One-click checkout<\/strong> \u2014 skip the cart and send customers straight to checkout<\/li>\n
- Block checkout and classic checkout<\/strong> \u2014 full support for both WooCommerce checkout types<\/li>\n
- CSV and JSON export<\/strong> \u2014 export subscription data with 15 fields<\/li>\n
- Price locking<\/strong> \u2014 product price changes never affect existing subscribers<\/li>\n
- WooCommerce HPOS compatible<\/strong> \u2014 works with High-Performance Order Storage<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n\n
Subscription Products<\/h4>\n\n
Turn any WooCommerce simple or variable product into a subscription product. Configure billing periods (daily, weekly, monthly, yearly, or custom day intervals), billing intervals from 1 to 12, subscription length for automatic expiration, free trial days, one-time signup fees, and a different renewal price that kicks in after a configurable number of billing cycles. Variable products support independent subscription configuration per variation \u2014 create tiered plans like Basic at $9\/month and Premium at $29\/month with different trial periods, signup fees, and billing schedules.<\/p>\n\n
Subscription pricing is displayed clearly across the product page, cart, mini-cart, checkout, and order confirmation \u2014 so customers always understand what they are paying and when.<\/p>\n\n
Product prices are locked at the time of purchase. If you change the price later, existing subscriptions continue at the original price.<\/p>\n\n
Recurring Billing and Renewal Engine<\/h4>\n\n
ArraySubs automates your entire billing workflow with three background jobs that run continuously:<\/p>\n\n
\n- Generate Upcoming Renewals<\/strong> \u2014 creates renewal invoices 6 hours before the due date<\/li>\n
- Check Overdue Renewals<\/strong> \u2014 enforces the two-phase grace period on unpaid invoices<\/li>\n
- Process Trial Conversions<\/strong> \u2014 converts expired trials to active paid subscriptions daily at 2 AM<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n\n
Renewal invoices are standard WooCommerce orders linked to the subscription. Customers receive an email with a Pay Now link. When they pay, the subscription is automatically extended.<\/p>\n\n
Renewal sync<\/strong> aligns all subscription renewals to a shared calendar date \u2014 perfect for subscription boxes, weekly delivery programs, cohort-based memberships, and annual billing cycles. Choose monthly (specific day 1-28), weekly (specific day), or yearly (specific day + month) sync with two first-payment options: prorate the first payment or extend the first billing period.<\/p>\n\nDifferent renewal pricing<\/strong> lets you override the recurring amount after a set number of cycles \u2014 ideal for introductory pricing, graduated pricing, or loyalty discounts.<\/p>\n\nTwo-Phase Grace Period<\/h4>\n\n
When a renewal goes unpaid, ArraySubs does not cancel the subscription immediately. Instead, it moves through a configurable two-phase timeline:<\/p>\n\n
\n- Active grace<\/strong> (default 3 days) \u2014 subscription stays fully active, customer retains full access<\/li>\n
- On-hold grace<\/strong> (default 7 days) \u2014 subscription moves to on-hold with restricted access<\/li>\n
- Cancellation<\/strong> \u2014 subscription is cancelled after both grace phases expire<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n\n
Payment at any point during the grace period \u2014 active or on-hold \u2014 restores the subscription to active status.<\/p>\n\n
Skip and Pause<\/h4>\n\n
Give subscribers flexibility without forcing cancellation:<\/p>\n\n
\n- Skip next renewal<\/strong> \u2014 customers can skip 1-3 upcoming cycles (configurable), with a cutoff that prevents skipping too close to the renewal date. Customers can undo a skip or change the skip count at any time.<\/li>\n
- Pause \/ vacation mode<\/strong> \u2014 freeze a subscription for up to 30 days (configurable) with a maximum of 2 pauses per subscription and a 30-day cooldown between pauses. Subscriptions auto-resume after the pause duration.<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n\n
Plan Switching<\/h4>\n\n
Let customers upgrade, downgrade, or crossgrade between subscription products without cancelling and resubscribing. Configure upgrade\/downgrade\/crossgrade targets per product, choose from 3 proration methods (Prorate Immediately, Apply at Renewal, or No Proration), and set optional switch fees per direction.<\/p>\n\n
Plan direction is determined automatically using a normalized daily rate comparison with 5% tolerance. Customers see a proration preview in the portal before confirming.<\/p>\n\n
Free Trials<\/h4>\n\n
Offer free trial periods per product or per variation. Trials convert to active paid subscriptions automatically via a daily batch job. Add a signup fee during trial to offset risk. Enforce one trial per customer<\/strong> to prevent trial abuse. Configure whether a payment method is required for $0 trial orders.<\/p>\n\nRetention Flow Builder<\/h4>\n\n
When a customer clicks Cancel, they enter a guided 3-step flow designed to save the subscription:<\/p>\n\n
\n- Select reason<\/strong> \u2014 7 default reasons (too expensive, not using, found alternative, missing features, technical issues, temporary break, other) plus unlimited custom reasons<\/li>\n
- Retention offers<\/strong> \u2014 targeted offers matched to the selected reason<\/li>\n
- Confirm cancellation<\/strong> \u2014 final confirmation if no offer is accepted<\/li>\n<\/ol>\n\n
4 retention offer types:<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n- Discount<\/strong> \u2014 percentage off for a configurable number of cycles (one per subscription)<\/li>\n
- Pause<\/strong> \u2014 temporary pause with automatic resume<\/li>\n
- Downgrade<\/strong> \u2014 redirects to the plan switching flow<\/li>\n
- Contact Support<\/strong> \u2014 links to a configurable support page<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n\n
Each offer can be triggered by specific cancellation reasons, so \"Too expensive\" shows the discount offer while \"Technical issues\" shows the contact support offer. Eligibility conditions check subscription value, customer lifetime spend, and remaining days before showing offers.<\/p>\n\n
Supports end-of-period cancellation<\/strong> with a \"Keep My Subscription\" button that lets customers undo a scheduled cancellation.<\/p>\n\nRetention Analytics<\/h4>\n\n
Track the effectiveness of your retention flows with a dedicated analytics dashboard:<\/p>\n\n
\n- 8 KPI cards<\/strong> \u2014 total cancellations, retention offers shown, offers accepted, save rate, discounts given, pauses given, downgrades given, support redirects<\/li>\n
- Churn reasons pie chart<\/strong> \u2014 see why customers cancel<\/li>\n
- Retention offer distribution<\/strong> \u2014 see which offers are most accepted<\/li>\n
- Trend line chart<\/strong> \u2014 cancellations vs saves over time<\/li>\n
- Activity logs<\/strong> \u2014 per-entry details with customer, subscription, reason, offer, and outcome<\/li>\n
- Product filter<\/strong> \u2014 break down retention data by product<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n\n
Customer Subscription Portal<\/h4>\n\n
Customers get a full-featured subscription management portal inside WooCommerce My Account:<\/p>\n\n
\n- Subscription list<\/strong> \u2014 status badges, product name, recurring amount (with discount\/coupon display), next payment date, start date, and View Details button with pagination<\/li>\n
- Subscription detail page<\/strong> \u2014 9-row overview table with status, product, recurring amount (showing original + discount), billing cycle, start date, end date, next payment date, trial end date, and last updated<\/li>\n
- Related orders<\/strong> \u2014 all linked WooCommerce orders with Pay Now links for pending invoices<\/li>\n
- Refund history<\/strong> \u2014 date and amount for each refund<\/li>\n
- Notes timeline<\/strong> \u2014 chronological subscription events with Customer, Admin, System, and Gateway author badges<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n\n
Self-service actions available in the portal:<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n- Cancel subscription (immediate or end-of-period)<\/li>\n
- Undo scheduled cancellation<\/li>\n
- Accept retention offers during cancellation<\/li>\n
- Change plan (upgrade, downgrade, crossgrade with proration preview)<\/li>\n
- Skip next renewal (with undo and modify)<\/li>\n
- Pause subscription (with duration, auto-resume, and cooldown)<\/li>\n
- Reactivate cancelled or expired subscriptions<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n\n
Member Access Control<\/h4>\n\n
A powerful rules engine with 6 rule types, 9 condition types, 12 comparison operators, nested AND\/OR condition groups, and scheduled content dripping \u2014 all in the free version.<\/p>\n\n
6 rule types:<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n- Role mapping<\/strong> \u2014 assign or replace WordPress roles based on subscription status (7 status behaviors with Add Role or Replace Role modes)<\/li>\n
- Discount rules<\/strong> \u2014 percentage or fixed discounts, per-item or per-cart, with \"best discount wins\" logic and product\/category targeting<\/li>\n
- Ecommerce restriction<\/strong> \u2014 allow purchasing, block purchasing, hide products, or modify pricing based on membership conditions<\/li>\n
- URL restriction<\/strong> \u2014 restrict any URL using exact match, prefix, contains, or regex patterns with 4 actions (redirect, 404, access denied, login form) and a priority system (1-100)<\/li>\n
- Post type \/ content restriction<\/strong> \u2014 restrict all posts of a type, specific posts, or taxonomy-based content with 3 archive behaviors (hide, show teaser, show normally), per-post overrides, and content dripping<\/li>\n
- Download restriction<\/strong> \u2014 control access to WooCommerce downloadable files with signed URL delivery and usage tracking<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n\n
9 condition types:<\/strong><\/p>\n\nSubscription status, has active subscription, subscription variation, purchased product, purchased variation, purchased from category\/taxonomy, lifetime spend, user role, and nested groups for recursive AND\/OR logic.<\/p>\n\n
12 comparison operators:<\/strong><\/p>\n\nEquals, not equals, greater than, greater than or equal, less than, less than or equal, contains, not contains, in, not in, empty, not empty.<\/p>\n\n
16 Email Notifications<\/h4>\n\n
13 customer emails and 3 admin emails \u2014 all built on the WooCommerce email framework with configurable subject, heading, and additional content per email.<\/p>\n\n
Customer emails:<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n- New Subscription<\/li>\n
- Trial Started<\/li>\n
- Trial Converted<\/li>\n
- Renewal Reminder (configurable days before payment)<\/li>\n
- Renewal Invoice<\/li>\n
- Payment Successful<\/li>\n
- Payment Failed<\/li>\n
- Subscription On-Hold<\/li>\n
- Subscription Cancelled<\/li>\n
- Subscription Expired<\/li>\n
- Subscription Reactivated<\/li>\n
- Auto-Downgrade<\/li>\n
- Retention Discount Accepted<\/li>\n<\/ol>\n\n
Admin emails:<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n- Admin \u2014 New Subscription<\/li>\n
- Admin \u2014 Subscription Cancelled<\/li>\n
- Admin \u2014 Payment Failed<\/li>\n<\/ol>\n\n
50+ unique placeholders<\/strong> across all email types. Template override support via your theme or child theme. HTML, Plain Text, and Multipart formats.<\/p>\n\nRefund Management<\/h4>\n\n
3 refund-on-cancellation policies: Allow Immediate, Refund at End of Period, or No Automatic. Configure automatic gateway refund, set a minimum refund amount, and offer prorated refunds calculated using a daily rate for the unused billing period with a preview before processing.<\/p>\n\n
Refund history is recorded on the subscription with date, amount, and type for full audit visibility.<\/p>\n\n
Subscription Management Admin<\/h4>\n\n
A dedicated admin interface for store owners, support teams, and operations staff:<\/p>\n\n
\n- Subscription list<\/strong> \u2014 5 columns with 7 status filter tabs (All, Active, Trial, On-Hold, Cancelled, Expired, Pending)<\/li>\n
- Search<\/strong> \u2014 by subscription ID, customer name\/email, or product name<\/li>\n
- Export<\/strong> \u2014 CSV with 15 fields and JSON endpoint<\/li>\n
- Create subscriptions<\/strong> \u2014 manually create subscriptions with customer, product, status, dates, and billing configuration<\/li>\n
- Edit subscriptions<\/strong> \u2014 edit any field including status, dates, billing config, customer, and product<\/li>\n
- Subscription detail screen<\/strong> \u2014 17 information cards covering overview, customer, product, billing schedule, dates, orders, refunds, notes, and logs plus conditional cards for cancellation details, sync details, skip\/pause history, and coupon discounts<\/li>\n
- Subscription notes<\/strong> \u2014 4 author types (Customer, Admin, System, Gateway) with 21 automated note events including status changes, payments, renewals, trial events, product changes, and plan switches<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n\n
Subscription Checkout<\/h4>\n\n
A 3-phase checkout flow (Cart Validation \u2192 Payment Processing \u2192 Subscription Creation) with 5 cart validation rules:<\/p>\n\n
\n- Mixed cart control \u2014 allow or disallow mixing subscription and regular products<\/li>\n
- One per customer \u2014 prevent duplicate subscriptions for the same product<\/li>\n
- One per product \u2014 limit one subscription per product in the cart<\/li>\n
- Billing cycle compatibility \u2014 ensure compatible billing cycles in multi-subscription carts<\/li>\n
- Gateway capability \u2014 verify the payment gateway supports subscriptions<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n\n
One-click checkout<\/strong> with 3 modes (default product only, subscription products only, or all products) plus a Disable Cart Page option. Full support for both WooCommerce classic checkout and block checkout (Store API). Customer accounts are automatically created at checkout for subscription purchases.<\/p>\n\nEasy Setup Wizard<\/h4>\n\n
Configure your entire subscription engine in minutes with a 9-step guided wizard. Choose from 7 business type profiles (SaaS, Subscription Box, Membership, Digital Content, Professional Services, Nonprofit, or Custom) and answer questions about billing, checkout, cancellation, access control, emails, and features. Each profile preloads smart defaults that you can customize before applying.<\/p>\n\n
Settings export<\/strong> downloads your entire configuration as JSON with automatic stripping of sensitive gateway credentials. Settings import<\/strong> lets you upload a JSON file and …<\/p>\n\n\n\n- Upload the plugin files to the
\/wp-content\/plugins\/arraysubs<\/code> directory, or install directly from the WordPress plugin repository<\/li>\n- Activate the plugin through the 'Plugins' menu in WordPress<\/li>\n
- Run the Easy Setup Wizard from the ArraySubs dashboard to configure your subscription settings in minutes<\/li>\n
- Create your first subscription product under Products > Add New<\/li>\n<\/ol>\n\n
For detailed setup instructions, visit the ArraySubs User Guides<\/a>.<\/p>\n\n\n\nIs ArraySubs really free?<\/h3><\/dt>\nYes. ArraySubs includes subscription products, recurring billing, customer portal, plan switching, retention flow builder, member access control, member discounts, 16 email notifications, refund management, admin tools, profile builder, shortcodes, toolkit settings, and more in the free version. No trial period, no feature limit on number of subscriptions, no surprise paywall.<\/p><\/dd>\n
How do I create a WooCommerce subscription product?<\/h3><\/dt>\nNavigate to Products > Add New (or edit an existing product), and enable subscription mode. Configure the billing cycle, amount, free trial, signup fee, and other subscription parameters. ArraySubs supports both simple and variable subscription products with independent per-variation configuration.<\/p><\/dd>\n
Can I create variable subscription products with different plans?<\/h3><\/dt>\nYes. Variable products support per-variation subscription configuration. Each variation gets independent billing period, interval, subscription length, free trial duration, signup fee, different renewal price, and pricing. Create tiered plans like Basic, Standard, and Premium with different pricing and trial periods.<\/p><\/dd>\n
Does ArraySubs support free trials and signup fees?<\/h3><\/dt>\nYes. Configure free trial days per product or per variation. Add a one-time signup fee charged at checkout. Enforce one trial per customer to prevent trial abuse. Trials convert to active subscriptions automatically.<\/p><\/dd>\n
How does recurring billing work?<\/h3><\/dt>\nArraySubs creates renewal invoices 6 hours before the due date via automated background jobs. Customers receive an email with a Pay Now link. When paid, the subscription extends automatically. Unpaid invoices enter a two-phase grace period (Active \u2192 On-Hold \u2192 Cancelled) with configurable days for each phase.<\/p><\/dd>\n
Can customers manage their own subscriptions?<\/h3><\/dt>\nYes. The built-in customer portal in WooCommerce My Account lets customers view subscriptions, cancel (with retention offers), undo cancellation, switch plans with proration preview, skip renewals, pause subscriptions, reactivate expired subscriptions, and pay pending invoices.<\/p><\/dd>\n
What is the retention flow builder?<\/h3><\/dt>\nWhen a customer tries to cancel, they enter a 3-step flow: select a reason, see targeted retention offers (discount, pause, downgrade, or contact support), and confirm cancellation. Each offer can be matched to specific reasons. The retention analytics dashboard tracks save rate, churn reasons, and offer acceptance.<\/p><\/dd>\n
Does ArraySubs support plan switching (upgrades and downgrades)?<\/h3><\/dt>\nYes. Configure upgrade, downgrade, and crossgrade targets per product. Choose from 3 proration methods: Prorate Immediately, Apply at Renewal, or No Proration. Set optional switch fees per direction. Customers see a proration preview before confirming.<\/p><\/dd>\n
Can I let customers skip or pause their subscription?<\/h3><\/dt>\nYes. Skip next renewal lets customers skip upcoming billing cycles (configurable max skips and cutoff). Pause \/ vacation mode freezes subscriptions temporarily with auto-resume, max pause duration, max pauses per subscription, and cooldown between pauses.<\/p><\/dd>\n
How does member access control work?<\/h3><\/dt>\nArraySubs includes a powerful rules engine with 6 rule types (role mapping, discounts, ecommerce restriction, URL restriction, content\/post type restriction, download restriction), 9 condition types, 12 comparison operators, and nested AND\/OR logic. Restrict content, products, URLs, and downloads based on subscription status, product ownership, lifetime spend, roles, and more.<\/p><\/dd>\n
Can I restrict content to members only?<\/h3><\/dt>\nYes. Restrict posts, pages, and custom post types using 3 targeting modes (all of type, specific posts, or taxonomy-based). Choose archive behavior (hide, show teaser, or show normally). Support content dripping with date-based scheduling and per-post overrides.<\/p><\/dd>\n
Can I create member-only discounts in WooCommerce?<\/h3><\/dt>\n