Skip to main content

Subscriptions

Subscriptions are a Revup module for managing recurring payments.

Unlike token-based payments, where the merchant controls when subsequent payments are created using a payment token, subscriptions allow Revup to manage the recurring payment schedule.

A subscription is associated with a plan previously created and configured in the Revup Back Office. The plan determines when recurring payments are made and the amounts to be charged.

A subscription can be created using either:

  • Revup SDK / Payment Form — the customer completes an initial payment and the subscription is created from that payment.
  • An existing payment token — the merchant creates the subscription using a payment token from a previously tokenized payment method.

In both cases, once the subscription is associated with a plan, Revup manages the subsequent recurring payments according to the plan.

The merchant is responsible for:

  1. Creating the subscription.
  2. Providing the payment method through the SDK / Payment Form or an existing payment token.
  3. Completing the initial payment when required.
  4. Managing the subscription through the Subscription API when required.
  5. Receiving and handling subscription events.

Subscription flow​

Plans​

Before creating a subscription, a subscription plan must be created and configured in the Revup Back Office.

The plan defines the configuration used by Revup to manage the recurring payments, including when the recurring payments take place and the amounts associated with those payments.

Plan configuration is managed in the Back Office rather than through the merchant's integration.

info

The subscription plan is the source of the recurring payment schedule. The merchant does not need to calculate the dates or amounts of future rebills in their integration.

Creating a subscription​

There are two ways to create a subscription, depending on how the customer's payment method is available.

Using the SDK / Payment Form​

When the customer is present and needs to provide their payment details, the merchant can create the subscription and use the Revup SDK or Payment Form to collect the payment details and process the initial payment.

This is the standard subscription flow for a new customer.

The initial payment follows the same general checkout flow used for other Revup payments:

  1. Create the subscription.
  2. Load the Revup SDK on the payment page.
  3. Collect the customer's payment details.
  4. Submit the initial payment.
  5. Handle the payment result.

You can use either:

  • Revup Form — a complete payment form.
  • Revup Frames — individual payment fields for a custom checkout.

For complete information about configuring and using these integrations, see the SDK.

info

Revup Form and Revup Frames are reusable checkout integrations. They can be used for one-off payments, token-based payments, and the initial payment of a subscription.

Using a payment token​

If the customer already has a tokenized payment method, the merchant can create the subscription using the existing payment token.

In this flow, the customer does not need to enter their payment details again. The token identifies the payment method that will be used for the subscription's initial payment and subsequent recurring payments.

For the technical details of token-based subscription creation, see the Subscription API reference.

info

The payment token is used to establish the payment method for the subscription. Once the subscription is created, Revup manages the subsequent recurring payments according to the subscription plan.

Recurring payments​

Once the initial payment has been completed and the subscription is associated with a plan, Revup manages the recurring payment schedule.

Revup determines the dates and amounts of future rebills according to the associated plan and creates the corresponding recurring payment attempts.

The merchant does not need to create each recurring payment manually.

The recurring payment lifecycle is:

  1. The subscription is created and associated with a plan.
  2. The initial payment is completed.
  3. Revup determines the next recurring payment according to the plan.
  4. Revup attempts the recurring payment.
  5. The subscription is updated according to the result.
  6. Revup sends the relevant event to the merchant's configured URL.

Subscription events​

Subscription-related activity generates events that are sent to the URL configured by the merchant.

Events can be generated for:

  • Recurring payment attempts.
  • Fees.
  • Changes to the subscription.
  • Other subscription-related events.

Your integration should process these events to keep your application synchronized with the subscription state and its recurring payments.

For the complete list of subscription events and their payloads, see the Subscription API reference.

Managing a subscription​

After a subscription has been created, the merchant can manage it through the Subscription API.

The API provides operations to:

  • Get a subscription.
  • Get the payments associated with a subscription.
  • Cancel a subscription.
  • Pause a subscription.
  • Resume a subscription.
  • Change the subscription plan.

For the technical details of these operations, see the Subscription API reference.

Subscriptions vs. token-based payments​

Subscriptions and token-based payments both allow subsequent payments without requiring the customer to enter their payment details again, but they work differently.

Token-based payments give the merchant control over subsequent transactions. The merchant decides when to create a payment and uses the payment token to identify the customer's stored payment method.

Subscriptions are managed by Revup according to a plan configured in the Back Office. The plan determines the schedule and amounts of the recurring payments, while Revup manages the subsequent rebills and sends events to the merchant.

A subscription can use a payment token when it is created, but this does not make the subscription a token-based payment flow. The token is used to establish the payment method for the subscription; the subsequent recurring payments remain managed by Revup according to the subscription plan.

Use token-based payments when your application needs to control when subsequent payments are created.

Use subscriptions when payments follow a predefined recurring plan that can be managed by Revup.

Technical reference​

The Subscription API provides the technical documentation required to integrate and manage subscriptions, including:

  • Create a subscription.
  • Create a subscription using a payment token.
  • Get a subscription.
  • Get subscription payments.
  • Cancel a subscription.
  • Pause a subscription.
  • Resume a subscription.
  • Change the subscription plan.
  • Subscription events.

See the Subscription API reference for the complete technical documentation.

What's next?​

Once you have integrated subscriptions, you can continue with the payment management features required to handle the results and lifecycle of your payments.