How membership billing and renewals work
Initial purchase
When a customer purchases a recurring membership, they save a payment card to their account. The card is charged immediately for the first billing period.
The renewal date is anchored to the membership's billing start date, not necessarily the day they bought it:
- If the membership starts on the day they purchase it, that purchase date becomes their renewal date for all future billing cycles.
- If the membership has a future start date, the customer pays for the first period at checkout, but billing cycles run from the start date. Their next charge happens when that first paid period ends. For example, a monthly membership bought on 26 August with a start date of 1 October is charged once at checkout (covering 1 October to 1 November), then renews on 1 November.
If the membership has a sign-up fee, that one-time charge is included in the first payment only. Renewals cover the recurring price. See How to add a sign-up fee to a recurring membership.
Billing intervals
Memberships can be set to bill on different intervals:
- Monthly – Charged once per month on the renewal date
- Yearly – Charged once per year on the same day of the year
How renewal dates work
The system automatically charges the saved card when each paid period ends. For example:
- A customer who purchases on January 15th will be charged on the 15th of each month
- A customer who purchases on January 15th for a yearly membership will be charged on January 15th of each year
End-of-month dates: If a customer signs up on the 29th, 30th, or 31st, they will be charged on the last day of shorter months. For example, a membership purchased on January 31st will renew on February 28th (or 29th in a leap year), then March 31st, April 30th, and so on.
Memberships with and without an end date
A recurring membership does not need an end date. If you leave the expiration date off, it keeps renewing on each renewal date until the customer cancels.
If you do set an end date, renewals stop after that date. The customer keeps access until the end of the period they have already paid for, then the membership ends without renewing again.
Cancellations
When a recurring membership is cancelled at the end of the period (by the member themselves, or by an admin choosing Cancel at end of period), the customer keeps access until the end of their current billing period. No further charges are made after cancellation.
Admins can also choose Cancel immediately, which ends benefits right away and stops renewals. See How can I cancel a membership.
Declined payments
If a renewal payment is declined, for example because of an expired card or insufficient funds, the membership will not renew for that period. We email both the customer and the venue so you can follow up and arrange payment.
When you change the membership price
If you edit a recurring membership that already has subscribers and raise or lower the price, the new amount applies from each member's next renewal. Their saved card is charged the updated price on that date. Benefit changes (such as included hours or member prices) apply immediately.
Alba asks you to confirm that you will notify members before saving these changes. See How to edit a live recurring membership.