Subscribers don't think about their subscription most of the time, and that's the point. The few moments they do think about it are when a message arrives: a reminder that an order is coming, a note that a card didn't go through, a confirmation that a skip worked. Get those messages right and the subscription feels effortless. Get them wrong, or skip them, and the next thing the customer feels is a surprise charge.
This guide lists the notifications every subscription brand should send, what each one needs to say, when to send it, and whether it belongs in email, text or both. It also covers the difference between transactional and marketing messages, and how to let subscribers manage their subscription by replying.
Transactional vs marketing messages
Subscription notifications are mostly transactional: they tell the customer about something they already bought or agreed to. Marketing messages promote something new. The difference matters because different rules apply.
- Email: The FTC's CAN-SPAM compliance guide says messages whose content is only transactional or relationship content are exempt from most of the Act's provisions, though they still can't carry false routing information. The FTC reads those categories narrowly, and once a message's main purpose is promotion, the marketing rules apply (checked October 18, 2026).
- Text: Texts need the customer's permission, and carriers and US law treat marketing texts more strictly than order and account texts. Collect consent at checkout or sign-up, honor STOP, and keep marketing out of your order texts unless the customer opted in to marketing. See our SMS opt-in examples and TCPA compliance page. This is general information, not legal advice.
The practical rule: keep notifications about the subscription. A small "add this to your next order" line can be fine; turning a payment notice into a sale flyer is not. Send your promotions separately.
The notifications every subscriber should get
| Notification | When | Channel | What it must say |
|---|---|---|---|
| Welcome | Right after sign-up | What they subscribed to, price, how often, next date, how to manage or cancel | |
| Upcoming order | A few days before each renewal | Email and text | What ships, the date, the price, links to skip, swap or change |
| Renewal confirmed | When the renewal is paid | Email, optional text | What was charged and what ships |
| Payment failed | First failed renewal | Email and text | What happened, one link to update the card |
| Retry and final notice | After later failed tries | Email, text for the last one | When the next try is, what happens if it fails |
| Bank confirmation needed | When the bank asks the customer to approve | Email and text | The step to approve the payment |
| Card expiring or expired | Before the renewal | Email and text | The card that needs updating and the link |
| Order delayed | When a renewal is held for stock | Email and text | What is out of stock, options to skip or swap |
| Price change | Before the new price applies | Email and text | Old and new price, when it starts, how to cancel |
| Change confirmations | After a skip, swap, pause, resume or restart | Email or text | What changed and the new next date |
| Cancellation | When the subscription ends | That it is canceled, any final order, how to restart |
Welcome and onboarding
The welcome message sets expectations, and it is often the first thing customers search for when they want to change something. Include the plan, price, frequency, next charge date and a direct link to the customer portal. Some brands send a short follow-up a couple of hours later with tips on using the product or how to get the most from the first delivery.
Upcoming order reminders
This is the most important subscription message you send. It turns a surprise charge into a choice. Three to five days ahead suits most monthly plans: enough time to skip or swap, close enough to remember. Send it earlier for prepaid and annual plans.
- Show the products, the date and the total.
- Put skip, swap and reschedule one tap away, ideally without a login.
- Mention anything waiting for them: unused credit, a reward or a new product.
- Keep the text version under two segments; put details in the email.
Our subscription reminder text examples have ready-to-use wording.
Payment and card messages
Failed payment messages recover subscribers who never meant to leave. Each one should say what happened in plain words, without blame, and link straight to the card update. Warn customers before a card expires, and send bank-approval requests right away so the order isn't held. Our guide to why subscription payments fail covers retry schedules and the wording for each stage.
Change confirmations
Every change the customer makes deserves a short confirmation: "Done. Your next order is now November 14." It proves the change worked, which stops a support ticket, and it is the record you'll want if there's a dispute later. Confirm skips, swaps, pauses, resumes, restarts and cancellations, and say what the next order date is now.
Decide when changes made by your team should notify the customer. A pause a customer asked for by phone should be confirmed. A correction your team made behind the scenes may not need a message.
Price changes and delays
Price increases need notice before they apply, with the old and new price and how to cancel. Some auto-renewal laws set the window; California's is 7 to 30 days. See our guide to automatic renewal laws. When an order is held because something is out of stock, say what is missing and offer a skip or a swap instead of letting the order sit.
Alerts for your own team
Some notifications are for you, not the customer. A short email to your team when a subscriber cancels, pauses or restarts, or when renewals are held for stock, helps you spot problems early. Alert on what customers do; changes your own team makes don't need to alert anyone.
Let subscribers manage by replying
The best notification invites a reply. "Reply SKIP to skip this order" is easier than finding a password. Two ways to do it:
- One-tap links: Links in the email or text that skip, swap or reactivate without a login.
- Conversational texts: Subscribers reply in plain words, such as "push it back a week" or "swap to decaf", and an AI agent or a teammate makes the change and confirms it in the thread. This is conversational SMS.
Remember that STOP ends texts, not the subscription. Say so in your confirmation, and keep sending required order and billing notices by email.
Timing, tone and testing
- Send texts at reasonable hours: In the customer's time zone, and not late at night.
- One message per event: If a renewal fails and the card expired, send one clear message, not three.
- Sound like your brand: Plain, friendly and short. Use the customer's name and the product name.
- Test what matters: Try two versions of the upcoming order reminder and compare skips, cancellations and support tickets, not just clicks.
- Check the links: Every link should open the right subscription on a phone without a login wall.
A notification checklist
- A welcome email with terms and a manage link.
- An upcoming order reminder before every renewal, by email and text.
- Renewal confirmations.
- Failed payment, retry, final notice and bank approval messages with a card update link.
- Card expiry warnings before the renewal.
- Order delay notices with skip and swap options.
- Price change notices ahead of the change.
- Confirmations for every skip, swap, pause, resume, restart and cancellation.
- Team alerts for customer cancellations and pauses.
- Text consent collected, STOP honored and marketing kept separate.
How Chargezen sends subscription notifications
In Chargezen Subscriptions, every subscription email and text is a ready-made workflow. You switch each one on or off, edit the wording, add a delay, add conditions, or build your own. They cover:
- Welcome: A welcome email when a customer subscribes at checkout, and a follow-up two hours later.
- Upcoming order reminders: By email and text, 1 to 30 days before each renewal (3 by default), with separate email versions for subscribers at higher risk of canceling.
- Renewals and payments: Renewal confirmations, card declined, retry notices, final notices, recovered payments, bank approval requests and card expiring or expired warnings up to 7 days before a renewal. See failed payment recovery.
- Delays and price changes: Order delayed messages when a renewal is held for stock, and price change notices before a new price applies.
- Change confirmations: Skip, swap, pause, resume, restart and cancel messages, by email and text.
- Team alerts: Emails to your team when a customer pauses, resumes, restarts or cancels, or when a renewal is held for stock. Changes your team makes don't alert you.
- Replies that get handled: Subscribers can skip, reschedule or swap by text, and Concierge makes the change and confirms it. One-tap quick actions work in SmartyTap and Klaviyo messages too.
Subscriptions is $199 a month or $1,990 a year for Shopify Advanced and Shopify Plus stores, with no commission. See pricing. Glossary: conversational SMS, dunning management and SMS opt-in.
Frequently asked questions
Do subscription notifications need an unsubscribe link?
Under CAN-SPAM, purely transactional emails are exempt from most requirements, including the opt-out. Once an email is mainly promotional, it needs one. Texts should always honor STOP.
Should notifications go by email or text?
Both for anything time-sensitive, such as reminders and failed payments, for customers who agreed to texts. Email is better for details and records; texts get seen faster.
How many notifications is too many?
One message per real event is the right amount. Customers complain about surprise charges far more than about a reminder they asked for.
Can I add offers to notifications?
A small, relevant add-on in an upcoming order reminder is common. Keep payment and cancellation messages free of promotions.
