# Billing (/docs/agencies/billing)

Subscribe brands, change or cancel plans, use coupons, update your card and recover from a failed payment.

Each brand in your agency has its own monthly subscription, and all of them are charged to the agency's card. Payments are processed by Stripe.

Only the agency **owner** sees the **Billing** tab, so only the owner can change or cancel plans and update the card. Agency admins can subscribe brands from the **Brands** tab or when they create a brand.

<OpenInBloss to="agency/billing">Open Billing</OpenInBloss>

## The Billing tab [#the-billing-tab]

| Section                           | What it shows                                                                                                                                                                  |
| --------------------------------- | ------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------ |
| **Total monthly subscription**    | What the agency pays each month across all active brands, broken down by plan, with a status: **Subscription active**, **Payment past due** or **No active subscriptions**.    |
| **Brand subscriptions**           | Each brand with a subscription or complimentary access, with its plan, monthly cost and any pending change, such as **Switches to** a plan on a date or **Cancels** on a date. |
| **Brands without a subscription** | Brands that are locked until you subscribe them.                                                                                                                               |
| **Billing & payment method**      | **Manage payment method** opens the Stripe billing portal, where you update your card and see invoices.                                                                        |

<Screenshot name="agencies/billing-tab" alt={"Billing tab with the monthly total, two brand subscriptions and one brand without a subscription"} />

## Subscribe a brand [#subscribe-a-brand]

You can subscribe a brand when you [create it](/docs/agencies/creating-a-brand), or later:

1. Find the brand under **Brands without a subscription** (or on the **Brands** tab) and click **Subscribe**.
2. Pick a plan and click **Continue**.
3. Optionally enter a coupon under **Have a coupon code?**.
4. Check the charge details and your new agency total, then confirm:
   - With a card on file, click **Pay … and subscribe**. The card is charged straight away.
   - Without a card on file, click **Continue to payment** to add one on Stripe's checkout page. You come back to the **Billing** tab when it's done.

The brand unlocks as soon as the subscription is active.

## Change a brand's plan [#change-a-brands-plan]

1. Under **Brand subscriptions**, click **Manage** next to the brand.
2. Click **Change plan**, pick the new plan and click **Continue**.
3. Review what will happen and confirm.

| Change        | What happens                                                                                                                        | Confirm button                                         |
| ------------- | ----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- | ------------------------------------------------------ |
| **Upgrade**   | Your card is charged today for the prorated difference over the rest of the billing period. The brand then renews at the new price. | **Pay … and switch to** _plan_                         |
| **Downgrade** | No charge today. The brand keeps its current plan's features until the end of the billing period, then switches.                    | **Schedule downgrade to** _plan_ **— no charge today** |

A scheduled downgrade shows as **Switches to** _plan_ on the brand's row. To keep the current plan, open **Manage** and click **Cancel** next to the scheduled change.

You can't change plans while a payment is failing or while a cancellation is scheduled. Fix the payment, or resume the subscription, first.

## Cancel or resume a subscription [#cancel-or-resume-a-subscription]

1. Click **Manage** next to the brand, then **Cancel subscription**.
2. Confirm with **Cancel subscription**, or click **Keep subscription** to back out.

The brand stays active until the end of the period you've paid for, and its row shows **Cancels** with the date. After that it becomes unsubscribed and locked, and you're not charged again. Nothing in the brand is deleted.

To change your mind before that date, open **Manage** and click **Resume subscription**. After the date, subscribe the brand again.

## Coupons [#coupons]

If you have a coupon code, enter it under **Have a coupon code?** when you subscribe a brand or change its plan, then apply it. The review shows the **Discount** and what you pay **Today**.

## Update your card and see invoices [#update-your-card-and-see-invoices]

Click **Manage payment method** on the **Billing** tab. This opens the Stripe billing portal, where you can change the card and download invoices. The card is shared by every brand in the agency.

## Fix a failed payment [#fix-a-failed-payment]

When a payment fails:

- The brand's status becomes **Payment past due**, on the **Billing** tab and on the brand's page.
- The **Needs attention** panel on the agency **Overview** says "Payment failed — update your card before the subscription is cancelled."

Click **Update payment** (or **Manage payment method**) and update your card in the Stripe billing portal. The brand keeps working while the payment is past due, but if it isn't fixed the subscription is canceled and the brand is locked.

## Complimentary access [#complimentary-access]

A brand with <Term id="comp">complimentary access</Term> uses its plan free of charge until a set date.

- The brand's card shows **Free until** the end date. The pill turns amber in the last 3 days, and **Needs attention** reminds you: "Complimentary access ends in N days — subscribe to keep this brand running."
- To keep the brand running, click **Subscribe** and choose a plan, then **Start subscription — no charge today**. Billing starts when the complimentary access ends, and the card then shows _plan_ **billing starts** on that date.
- If the complimentary access ends without a subscription, the brand is locked.

## Paid until [#paid-until]

A brand can show **Paid until** a date instead of a monthly renewal. It's already paid for up to that date and keeps its plan until then. To keep it running after that date, add a payment card:

1. Click **Subscribe** on the brand and choose a plan.
2. Click **Start subscription — no charge today**, and add your card on Stripe's checkout page.

You're not charged until the **Paid until** date, so you never pay twice for the same days. The brand's card then shows _plan_ **billing starts** on that date.

- **Reminders:** in the last 7 days, **Needs attention** on the agency **Overview** says "Paid until … Add a payment card to keep this brand running." The agency owner also gets an email a week before and the day before.
- **If you'd already cancelled the brand,** there's nothing to do. It stops on that date, as you chose.
- **If no card is added,** the brand is locked after that date. Nothing in it is deleted, and you can subscribe it again later.

## Managed accounts [#managed-accounts]

If your brands use [managed accounts](/docs/brands/managed-accounts), they're paid with the agency's card too, separately from the brand subscriptions above:

- **What's charged:** each managed account's first month, its monthly plan, and any posts, top-ups and add-ons a full brand admin buys. They're separate payments from the brand's subscription.
- **Invoices:** every managed-account payment has its own invoice. It's listed on that account's **Billing** tab under **Card and invoices**, and with the agency's other invoices in the Stripe billing portal.
- **Who changes the card:** only the agency owner, the same as for brand subscriptions. Brand admins see **Paid by** _your agency_ on the account's **Billing** tab, without a way to change the card.
- **Emails:** receipts and payment problems for a brand's managed accounts go to the agency owner and the brand's full admins.

If a managed account's plan payment fails, the account pauses straight away. Update the card, then a full brand admin resumes the account from its **Billing** tab. See [If a payment doesn't go through](/docs/creators/managed-accounts/plan-and-account-states#if-a-payment-doesnt-go-through).

## When a brand has no subscription [#when-a-brand-has-no-subscription]

A brand with no subscription and no complimentary access is locked for everyone, admins and creators alike. Anyone who opens it sees **This brand is inactive** with a **Go to agency billing** button. Its data is kept, and subscribing unlocks it again.

## Related [#related]

- [Plans and features](/docs/agencies/plans-and-features)
- [Creating a brand](/docs/agencies/creating-a-brand)
- [Managing a brand](/docs/agencies/managing-a-brand)
- [Managed accounts for brands](/docs/brands/managed-accounts)