Create a Subscription

Learn how to create a subscription in Maxio by selecting a customer, adding products or offers, and configuring billing and payment settings. Understand how to set schedules, define collection methods, and preview charges to ensure accurate billing before activation. Follow this process to confidently complete subscription setup and verification.

Before You Begin

Make sure you have the details needed to complete the Subscription setup.

• A Customer record, or the information needed to create one
• A Plan, Product, or Offer to bill, or planless billing enabled if you are using Products only
• Your preferred billing setup, such as automatic collection, invoice, or prepaid billing

Open the Subscription Form

1. Go to Subscriptions.
2. Click Create Subscription.

How the Subscription Form Works

The form is divided into several key sections that update based on your selections.

Select or create a Customer

1. In the Customer section, select Select Existing Customer or Create Customer.
2. Search for the Customer or enter the new Customer details.
3. Review the Customer information and update it if needed.

Choose who will pay for the Subscription (If available)

If payer hierarchy is enabled on your site, select the account responsible for payment.

• Customer, separate invoice
• Customer, consolidated invoice
• Parent or ancestor account, if available

If consolidated billing applies, review the available invoice consolidation timing options.

Configure Subscription Items

The Items section uses a responsive table to show your selected catalog entries. You can filter the catalog by Product Family using the filter in the top-right corner.

1. In the Items section, use the Find catalog item... combo box to search for a Plan, Product, or Offer.
2. Select the item from the available tabs.
3. Choose one of these setup paths:
   • Use an Offer
     • Select a preconfigured Offer.
     • Review the included pricing and discounts.
   • Build a custom configuration
     • Select a Plan, if needed.
     • Add Products.
     • Apply coupons and trials, if needed.
   • Create a planless subscription, if your site supports it
     • Do not select a Plan.
     • Add Products only, if your configuration allows it.
     • Continue with the remaining billing and payment settings.
4. Adjust Quantity for quantity-based Products. Plan quantities are fixed at 1.
5. Review the Price and Total columns.
6. To remove an item, click the trash can icon at the end of the row.

When an Offer is selected, its bundled items appear as indented, non-editable rows. Remove the entire Offer if you need to change its included items.

Set the Subscription Schedule

1. Enter a Start Date and optional End Date.
2. Select when billing should begin:
   • Immediately
   • On a future date
   • Calendar-based billing, if available
3. Toggle Set to Evergreen if the Subscription should not have a fixed expiration.
4. Click Add Auto-Renewal to configure renewal profiles and factors, if needed.
5. Configure Calendar Billing if you need billing aligned to specific dates.

Finalize Payment Details

1. Select the Gateway, if multiple gateways are enabled.
2. Choose the Currency for the Subscription.
3. Set the Collection Method:
   • Automatic to charge a stored payment method
   • Invoice to collect payment manually
   • Prepaid, if this option is available
4. Add or select a Payment Method, if one is required for the selected collection method or payer setup.
5. Choose an Invoice Email preference:
   • Use site default
   • Always send
   • Never send
6. Define Net Terms if you are using an invoice-based workflow.

Configure Prepaid Settings (If applicable)

Complete these settings only if the Subscription uses prepaid billing.

1. Enter the Initial Charge.
2. Optionally enable Automatically refill subscription.
3. If auto-refill is enabled, configure:
   • Minimum Balance, the balance that triggers a refill
   • Refill Amount, the amount added when the refill occurs

Review Metadata Settings

1. Complete any required custom fields that appear.
2. Review the payer, billing date, payment settings, and item configuration.

Related article: Add Metadata and Custom Fields to a Subscription

Preview Charges

Use the cost preview to confirm that the Subscription will bill as expected.

1. Click Preview Cost.
2. Review the expected charges for Plans, Products, coupons, and taxes.
3. Make any needed changes before continuing.

Related article: Using the Subscription Preview

Create the Subscription

1. Click Create Subscription.
2. Confirm that the Subscription was created successfully.
3. Save or copy the Subscription details for your records.

Verify the Subscription

After the Subscription is created, confirm that it is set up the way you expect.

• Check the Subscription status.
• Confirm the next billing date.
• Confirm the payer and invoice routing.
• Verify the payment method and invoice email preference.
• If prepaid billing is used, confirm the balance and refill settings.