This page explains how plans work as a concept. For step-by-step instructions on creating and managing plans in the app, see Plans in the Product Catalogue section.
What is a plan?
A plan is the pricing blueprint for a subscription. It defines what you charge, how you charge it, how often, and in which currency. Every subscription must be linked to a plan. The plan determines the billing amount at every renewal. Plans are reusable. One plan can power hundreds of subscriptions simultaneously. When you need to change pricing, you create a new plan rather than editing an active one.What a plan defines
Each plan sets four things:- The price structure: how the billing amount is calculated (see plan types below)
- The billing period: how frequently subscriptions on this plan renew
- The unit: what is being counted and how it appears on invoices
- The Xero account mapping: which account codes revenue posts to, by revenue type
Plan types
The plan type determines how the subscription amount is calculated at each renewal.Flat Fee
Flat Fee
A single fixed price per billing period, regardless of usage. The amount never changes based on quantity.Best for: fixed-price subscriptions where units don’t affect price (e.g. a base platform fee).
Per Unit
Per Unit
Price is multiplied by the number of units on the subscription. Scales linearly, two units costs twice as much as one.Best for: simple usage-based billing (e.g. $50 per user per month).
Tiered
Tiered
Units are split into tiers, and each tier has its own price per unit. The price applies only to the units that fall within that tier, not to the whole quantity.Best for: graduated pricing that rewards growth without retroactively discounting earlier units.
Volume
Volume
The total unit count determines a single price per unit, applied to all units. Higher quantities unlock lower per-unit rates across the board.Best for: incentivising bulk purchases with a single blended rate.
Stairstep
Stairstep
Customers pay a fixed price per tier, based on which tier their unit count falls into. The entire tier price applies regardless of how many units within that tier they use.Best for: packaging-style pricing where customers choose a tier and pay a flat amount for it.
Billing period
The billing period on a plan sets the renewal cadence for every subscription attached to it. When a subscription is created, the renewal date is calculated from the start date based on the plan’s period (monthly or annual). The billing period is fixed at plan creation and cannot be changed once the plan is in use. If you need a different cadence, create a new plan.Units
Units represent what is being billed: licences, users, seats, transactions, or any other measure that makes sense for your product. The plan defines:- Unit type: the label shown on invoices (e.g. “Licence” / “Licences”)
- Minimum units: the floor quantity that any subscription on this plan must meet
Units are not used on Flat Fee plans.
Xero account mapping
Plans map each revenue type to a specific Xero account code. This is what keeps your revenue reporting in Xero clean without manual categorisation.| Revenue type | When the invoice is classified this way |
|---|---|
| New | The first invoice raised on a subscription linked to this plan |
| Renewal | All subsequent renewal invoices |
| Expansion | When units increase on an existing subscription |
Plan status
A plan’s status controls whether it can be used for new subscriptions and whether its pricing can still be edited.| Status | Meaning |
|---|---|
| Draft | Created but not yet used in any subscription |
| Active | In use and available for new subscriptions |
| Legacy | In use on existing subscriptions but closed to new ones |
| Inactive | Not in use and not available for new subscriptions |
Once a plan has been used in a subscription, at any point in the past, its fee structure cannot be edited. This protects the integrity of existing subscriptions and historical invoices. If you need different pricing, create a new plan and set the old one to Legacy or Inactive.