Subscriptions and Payment Control Complete Comparison of Five Alternatives

Most billing and subscription management tools allow:

• Make a selection of subscription and trial models (e.g. whether it's a paid or free trial , or usage-based fixed price subscriptions).
• Control active subscriptions (e.g. upgrade or downgrades , as well as the deletion or addition of services).
• Payment or invoice notifications could be issued.
• Offer your clients an online self-service portal through which they are able to manage their accounts.
• Discover the most important factors that affect revenue.

Many businesses find that they have to utilize additional software for various aspects of the process, including:

• Payment processing
• Tax collection for VAT and sales tax
• Look over the many versions.
• Conversion of currency
• Chargebacks
• and much more...

If you're in need of one of these options then you'll have to be sure they're included in the bill software that you pick (or effortlessly integrate with different software options).

In this guide, we compare five alternatives by taking a look at the features for billing and subscription available, as well with additional options that they provide. Start by looking at our product that's targeted at SaaS companies, .

Table of Contents Table of Contents

1.       Chargebee
2.       Recurly
3.       Chargify
4.       Zoho Subscriptions

1. It is the Subscription Management Process, Payment Processing, and More to SaaS Companies

It offers many options for managing subscriptions (which we'll discuss in the next section), however, it's more than just a subscription management platform -We're also an Merchant of Record (MoR) for software businesses.

     MoR as MoR, acting as MoR assume the responsibility for transaction for us. That means:

• Make sure you collect and make sure you pay the correct amount of VAT, sales tax and GST on behalf of your business.
• Check that all the necessary processes and documentation are in place so that you're in compliance to the laws of transactions in every location the product you're selling.
• We set the standard for audits.

Plus provides a variety of products that will cover the whole process of making an exchange. The services include:

• Localized checkout (i.e. Translations of languages, currency conversions Custom designs, and more)
• Payment processing on the world market (for various payment options)
• Fraud detection
• Chargebacks
• Reports and analytics
• There's plus...

In the following sections, we will explore the various options and services in greater in-depth.

Custom Subscriptions and Recurring Billing Models for B2C as well as B2B

makes it easy to set up nearly any subscription in a matter of a few clicks. It is possible to set up the vast majority of subscriptions without having to write code, however you can create more complex subscriptions by using our API or webhooks library.

Below is a list of options available to you:

Trials

Certain subscription management applications can collect payment details whenever new customers sign-up for trial periods, and even during trial periods. Certain potential customers may get intrigued by the thought of losing interest and may not complete the registration process. It is your choice whether or not to record information on the amount of money paid after each test.

Also:

• Trials of all lengths can be made.
• Design and create paid, free or trial-based, use-based models.
• You can choose to bill members after their trial has ended or allow the user to sign up for a new membership on their own.
• Reactivate accounts for subscribers that were cancelled.
• Choose the date and time that you make reminders regarding closing trials (e.g. three days prior to the date the trial will be set to close).
• Automatically detect when a user wants to take part in more than one trial and permit the trial to be conducted on one account.

     Subscriptions Subscribers    

Every business and product in a business could benefit more from the different subscription options. For instance, low-end products may benefit by being sold under the option of a subscription plan that runs month-to-month, while high-end items might perform better in the case of an annual subscription.

What was successful at a particular point might not be a viable approach in the near future.

We'll inform you:

• Pick the duration of the subscription and the date for the bill (or allow your clients to pick).
• Create subscriptions that auto-renew and need manual renewal (i.e. the customers have to input the payment information each when they are charged), or have your staff begin the process of charging using one of the API API (this can be a good option for usage-based billing).
• Discounts and coupons are available.
• Provide prorated billing for customers who wish to alter, decrease or even stop the process at any point during the process of billing.
• Include one-time purchases on the initial invoice. However, do not include the recurring bills.
• You can control cross-sell and upsell products at checkout.
• Customers may choose to save the information about their transactions (or decide to keep it in the name of every customer).
• Automate the renewal of certain subscriptions and other subscriptions (e.g. after you end a product or service).

Invoicing and recurring bill

It allows you to handle B2B order and B2C purchase using digital Invoicing.

Digital Invoicing may help

• Design and manage customized quotes that can be continuously updated (including custom tags coupons discount coupons and other things).
• Set expiration dates for quotes.
• Notes for your clients or prospective client.

Self Service Features that are Branded Fully that are Branded to your customers

provides a self-service portal through the customers can:

• Renewal of subscriptions
• Controlling billing times
• Modify payment details
• View payment history
• There's more ...

We handle everything that is needed to maintain the backend for this website to make sure that the team you are working with doesn't have to.

In your role as your MoR you will take charge of any questions you receive from customers about their bills and other issues, including request for cancellation, billing issues and queries regarding the subscription, among others. Our platform comes with a user portal that makes easy for users to manage their subscriptions.

The picture below illustrates the basic design of this self-service website. In order to offer a better user experience, all of the website can be tailored to reflect your company's image.

Also, you can make it possible for customers to make quotations. Buyers can make a quote based on the products they've put on their wishlist without having to reach the sales department. This can be extremely beneficial for attracting potential customers who require prior approval before purchasing.

Local Transactions and Indirect Tax Compliance Made Simple

Two key aspects that must be adhered with regular transactions

1. The accuracy of the transaction (i.e. systems that you employ to process payments).
2. Sales tax, VAT , and GST in conformity (i.e. how you pay and transfer taxes that are indirect).

For the sake of avoiding penalties and fines To avoid penalties and fines, you need to be aware of the taxes and transaction regulations that are applicable to all area you operate in. In this section we'll look at:

• Some examples of rules governing transactions which affect subscription-based companies.
• Software companies should be in a position to collect taxes on sales as well as VAT, in addition to GST.
• What do you do about what do you think about .

Transaction Compliance

Every state, nation and each province has its own rules and laws regarding what companies are permitted to conduct with regard to payment as well as store customer data. Most companies have a clear grasp of the rules regarding privacy, such as GDPR. But there are a lot of transactions regulations which aren't well-known.

Some regions, like Canada and Korea customers in specific countries, such as Korea and Canada can receive the proportionate amount of refunds when they cancel their subscription before the date of expiration of the payment. This is just one example of a single aspect of the complete subscription cycle, which is the reason why the regulations and rules are constantly changing.

In the case of the majority of the subscription management tools It is your responsibility to understand the laws and regulations that govern transactions, then follow the appropriate actions. In addition, certain subscription programs aren't able to provide the alternatives to meet the requirements of the law and laws (e.g., some software does not allow the prorated refund method).

On the other hand, takes care of everything in your name. Our legal team is up-to-date with relevant regulations and laws, as well as helping you to adopt the correct methods to ensure that you're legally compliant. We are also able to support all mandatory subscription options to make sure you're in the compliance of your subscription model.

GST Sales Tax, GST Tax and GST Tax Compliance

Software firms weren't required to cover sales tax or GST or VAT. But in some jurisdictions, this is currently in effect. But the tax laws governing digital products and services differ extensively across several nations.

Numerous countries are requiring software companies to pay some kind indirect tax. Furthermore, certain countries are currently requiring businesses that utilize digital technology to submit tax reports regardless of whether they are eligible to be tax exempt.

The last step is to settle sales tax. This can be more challenging than filing a tax form before sending the cash. In the last few years, more nations are requiring additional requirements to make sure that they are in compliance.

Example:

• Some countries like Colombia, Japan, Mexico, Serbia, and others are controlled with having a local representative, meaning you have an employee with physically present within the country to handle taxes. It can range from $5k-$15k annually.
• Certain countries such as Serbia, United Kingdom, Taiwan and many others need electronically invoices to all companies that sells its goods within their territories. The EU has started rolling out the all-encompassing requirement for electronic invoices by 2028.
• Certain countries like Taiwan, Indonesia, Nigeria, Vietnam, and others require you to pay income tax in addition to indirect taxes.

manages the entire procedure of tax collection and payment of VAT, sales tax along the GST to you .

We check to ensure that the right amount (and type) of indirect tax is to be collected when you make your payment (including transactions that are tax-free within the US and any reverse charge that is permitted in other countries).

Our team then pays taxes to you, and makes sure that the proper procedures have been put into place to ensure total tax compliance.

If a state or country has questions regarding tax compliance, we will provide you with the best approach to take in the event that you need to provide copy and paste responses.

International Pay Processing and hundreds of payment options

Most processing companies focus their efforts around a particular area, and they are limited in terms of the range of payment methods they can accept. For instance, some payment processors are geared towards helping facilitate transactions which are accepted in the U.S. Therefore, they will only support payments that are accepted across the U.S. (e.g., Mastercard or Apple Pay) and they do not accept anything similar to UnionPay that is widely used in China.

In addition, many payment processors can only accept payments in specific currencies or regions. For example, they could take payments from Amazon Pay but will not accept payment from Turkey.

SaaS companies that want to accept payment from any around the world must be equipped to manage and connect multiple processors for payments. This could be an overwhelming task.

In the case of SaaS enterprises, businesses automatically connect to a variety of payment processors that are specialized in international transactions. It has relationships with several payment processors, as well as dozens of card networks , therefore it is not necessary to. Turn on localized payments so that you are able to accept international payments as soon as you can.

There are a number of features that make sure that payments are successful and minimize involuntary churn. One example:

• Payment gateways that are local They are more likely for transactions to be approved when the payment gateway used to process payments is located within the same area that the client (e.g. the transaction that originated in Germany passes through a gateway that is located in Germany). Automatically transfers payment to the payment gateway which has the highest approval rates in that region.
• Rerouting payments to the gateway responsible for processing payments: If a payment fails or fails in its initial attempt, the payment gateway will attempt to process the payment again through another gateway. The need is for or any of the members of the team of support to step in. This process usually allows to resolve payment issues because of connection issues or problems within the system.
• Reminders for payments that are proactive. If a customer's card is due to expire, inform the person who holds the card prior tothe time limit so they can update the payment details. It is possible to use our ready-to-use templates to send notifications or make your own notifications.
• Multiple follow-up notifications. If a recurring payment is unsuccessful it is possible to program multiple failure notification notifications to be sent out two days, 5 , or 7, 14, and 21 days following the first error. After sending each reminder, the system will attempt to complete the transaction.

A Custom-Made Checkout that reflects your own personal image as a company.

A lot of payment providers offer a checkout option that comes with various options of personalization, such as adding the logo of your business, or choosing the color scheme. These customization options do not always provide like a reflection of the company's image for creating an easy buying experience for customers. These options also help make your checkout faster for conversion.

     offers customizable branding tools as well as CSS-overrides, allowing for a range of customization choices to control the style and appearance of the shopping cart.    

Additionally, you'll have the ability to access also access to Store Builder Library -- it's an JavaScript library that lets users to customize the shopping experience prior to checkout.For instance, you could make a cross-sell and upsell funnel. This lets you improve the customer experience, resulting in greater conversion rates.

The checkout is offered in three forms three ways including popups, embedded and as a website storefront. Your storefront online redirects customers to a different site which is controlled by .

If you select one of these options (including the storefront online) You can modify the checkout process with branding tools and CSS overlays that are in line with the style and visual appeal of your brand.

Other choices that will assist you with optimizing your shopping experience:

• Localized CheckoutsLet clients choose the preference of their preferred language, along with their preferred currency. Or let them select the appropriate currency and language that corresponds to where the customer is. It is compatible with 19 languages, and more than 23 currencies.
• Developer support that is personalized:Our team is always willing to support you to provide the best checkout experience that is possible for your business. Some companies provide only personal support to their top clients , while ignoring smaller firms. We think that each business requires the same care and consideration.

Comprehensive Analysis and Reporting

• Who are some of my most profitable clients?
• Which items generate the greatest volume of income?
• What discounts generate income in comparison to. those that drain the revenue?
• There are many more...

The reports are divided into two dashboards main ones: Revenue Overview and Subscription Overview.

If you're not able to find the report you're searching for It is possible to modify the report you'd like and place it on your dashboard. Our support staff will assist you with creating your own customized reports and will provide you the information you need.

Webhooks and APIs for data make it easy to pull the data on the revenue and subscriptions into any software you use for business intelligence, or CRM that you use. The reports can download as CSV, PNG or CSV or PNG file in PNG, CSV or XLSX format.

All-in-One Pricing (No Hidden Fees)

Many payment system providers will cost a flat fee for processing payment, along with specific of their main features like the embeddable checkout. However, you'll typically have pay extra to get additional services like exchange rates or fraud detection. A few payment processors offer an entire solution, but companies often need to spend in other software. It's difficult to expand global as your business expands as costs rise with the addition of choices and options.

is a fully-fledged payment option that is ideal for SaaS businesses that includes all the features for only one cost which is calculated based on the amount of transactions you complete . Plus, you'll only be paid when transactions have been executed.

Next, we cover four alternative payment methods for companies that use subscriptions.

2. Chargebee

These are some of the Highlights of Chargebee Highlights:

• Automated invoicing, utilization-based billing proration, and many more
• Automated processes for receivables
• Revenue recognition that is compliant and a subscription model
• Support for in-app purchases
• Portal for self-service available for customers
• Smart dunning

You can use the Chargebee platform free of charge, beginning with an initial $100,000 in profits. The following months, they'll offer various pricing plans that provide different levels of per month income.

3. Recurring

Recurly is a recurring-billing platform built for optimizing your growth strategies. It's simple to integrate multiple merchant accounts as well as payment gateways . However, you will have be able to handle and pay for other services in addition to the Recurly subscription.

Here are some other highlights from Recurly's offerings:

• Customizable subscription models
• Automated and regular invoicing
• Resources for recovering revenue
• Intelligent retention
• Analytics on customer subscriptions

Recurly offers three pricing options, however, you have contact Recurly's team in order to inquire about pricing.

4. Chargify

Chargify is a subscription-based bill application currently trying to merge with SaaSOptics it is a Revenue management system. This combination can enable automatization of accounting for charges and subscriptions, as well as revenue and SaaS monitoring of metric information of the revenue management software.

Here are some examples of the top points of the benefits Chargify provides:

• Usage-based and global billing
• Revenue recognition and billing management instruments
• Statistics and analytics to help the billing system
• Integration with other programs (e.g. accounting software like QuickBooks and Xero)
• Payment gateways from all over the world

Chargify has a cost plan that allows businesses to reach $750k and more in each month. If your business has more revenue or has access to all the functions offered, then you'll need to discuss it with Chargify's staff.

5. Zoho Subscriptions

Zoho Subscriptions can be one of the elements of Zoho Subscriptions is among the components that make up Zoho platform (a suite of applications which is suitable for all aspects of your company, e.g., CRMs and ERPs). If you're already using this module inside Zoho, or are already using it in the Zoho platform, then it may be a great alternative. For new users, they generally find it an unforgiving curve to learn.

Some of the benefits of Zoho Subscriptions comprise:

• Multiple pricing models
• Customized invoices that are tax-compliant
• Multi-currency conversions
• Over 30 reports pre-built which keep track of every step in the lifecycle of a subscription
• You can pay with cash or check (in addition to payment via credit card)
• Integrations in the box that connect with a variety of bill-paying system (e.g., Stripe, PayPal, etc.)
• Workflow tools that can be created using specific rules of toolkits

Every component of the Zoho platform is priced per component and includes Zoho Subscriptions which creates a cost-effective and difficult for creating an end-to end payments solution.

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