6 best recurring subscription billing software

Buyer’s Overview

Choosing the right recurring subscription billing software isn’t just an operational decision—it’s a strategic move that enhances customer lifetime value and ensures predictable revenue streams. 

For finance teams, automating repetitive tasks like invoicing, payment processing, subscription management, dunning, and financial reporting is critical. Manual workflows drain resources and introduce risks that hinder scalability.

In a recent webinar where we hosted Mountu Jinwala, who built billing systems for Netflix and eBay, he reiterates:

This buyer’s guide explores how an ideal recurring billing software can help you scale confidently, adapt to complex pricing models, and deliver seamless customer experiences. After evaluating 20+ leading solutions, we’ve identified 6 standout platforms that are designed to meet the unique needs of businesses at every size and growth stage.

1. Zenskar

Zenskar’s no-code recurring billing infrastructure automates billing and invoicing workflows, usage monitoring, dunning, payment collection, and SaaS reporting with zero engineering effort for B2B SaaS companies, PLG, and SLG. It supports every imaginable subscription, usage-based, and hybrid pricing model, including tiered, volume, milestone, dynamic pricing, custom sales contracts, and more.

Pricing:

Zenskar’s pricing is not tied to revenue percentage. The exact quote depends on the complexity and scale of your revenue automation needs. A free sandbox and commitment-free pilot program are available, where the team configures sample contracts, data flows, and invoices.

2. Maxio

Maxio is best-suited for PLG SaaS companies with simple usage-based pricing models like tiered, stair-step, events-based, and metered billing. However, it requires engineering bandwidth to work with complex pricing. It supports complex UBP scenarios like wallet-based transaction options and hybrid billing only, limiting its scalability for sales-led SaaS companies.

Pricing:

Maxio's pricing model starts at $599/month for SaaS subscription billing with up to $100k monthly billing, after which overage fees apply. Add-ons like Account Receivables, Payments, and Metering are extra, significantly increasing costs and making it an expensive choice for many businesses. While it offers a sandbox for testing, it is only suitable for developers.

3. Chargebee

Chargebee is ideal for automating subscription billing workflows for eCommerce and B2C/B2B SaaS companies. While it handles one-time, flat/seat-based, and recurring billing cycles, it has limitations in managing usage-based pricing scenarios like milestone-based contracts.

Pricing:

Chargebee's pricing can become expensive as your business scales. It starts at $599/month for up to $100k in monthly billing and then adds a 0.75% fee. While a free plan is available for startups with early traction, the cost can escalate due to add-ons. Furthermore, self-driven sandboxes are only available on the Performance and Enterprise plans.

4. Zuora

Zuora is API-first recurring billing software ideal for enterprise-grade PLG and SLG companies with high transaction volumes. It supports various subscription, usage-based, and hybrid pricing models but is limited by its legacy subscription-first structure.

Pricing:

Zuora provides a 30-day free trial, but its robust functionalities come with a premium price tag. Hidden fees further complicate budgeting as businesses scale.

5. Stripe Billing

Stripe Billing is suitable for B2C and eCommerce businesses with straightforward subscription models.

Price:

0.7% fee on billing volume, with invoicing and tax support as paid add-ons. Self-driven sandbox requires technical expertise.

6. Recurly

Recurly is a subscription-first platform suitable for B2C/B2B SaaS companies. It lacks support for complex usage-based and tiered pricing models.

Price:

Custom quotes based on business needs. A sandbox environment is available for testing limited features and integrations.

Challenges faced by teams with recurring subscription billing

1. Finance teams

• Manual reconciliation: Finance teams often rely on spreadsheets or outdated systems to reconcile subscription data, leading to time-consuming and error-prone processes. Discrepancies between billing systems and accounting software can result in revenue leakage or compliance issues.

• Handling prorations and adjustments: Subscription changes, upgrades, downgrades, or cancellations require prorated billing adjustments, which can be difficult to manage manually and often lead to billing inaccuracies.
• Churn and retention tracking: Monitoring churn rates and customer retention is critical for forecasting revenue, but many finance teams lack the tools to analyze this data effectively, leading to inaccurate financial projections.
• Tax and compliance burdens: Managing tax calculations across different regions and ensuring compliance with local tax laws adds another layer of complexity, especially for businesses operating globally.

2. C-suite

• Customer lifetime value (CLV) optimization: Identifying the right pricing strategy and subscription tiers to maximize CLV requires continuous testing and iteration, which can be resource-intensive.
• Operational costs: The reliance on engineering and finance teams to manage billing processes inflates operational costs and diverts resources from core business objectives.
• Churn management: High churn rates can erode revenue, but addressing churn requires insights into customer behavior and effective retention strategies, which are often lacking.
• Competitive pricing pressure: In highly competitive markets, setting the right subscription price while maintaining profitability is a constant challenge.

3. Tech teams

• Custom billing logic: Building and maintaining complex subscription billing logic, such as tiered pricing, discounts, and trial periods, can consume significant engineering bandwidth.
• Integration with financial tech stack: Engineers are tasked with integrating billing systems with CRM, payment gateways, ERP, and accounting software, which can be time-consuming and prone to errors.

• Handling subscription lifecycle events: Managing events like upgrades, downgrades, cancellations, and renewals requires robust systems to ensure accurate billing and revenue recognition.
• Scalability issues: As the customer base grows, existing billing systems may struggle to handle increased transaction volumes, leading to performance bottlenecks and system failures.
• Data synchronization: Ensuring real-time synchronization between billing systems, payment processors, and accounting software is critical but often challenging, leading to discrepancies and revenue leakage.

4. Auditors and compliance teams

• Audit trail accuracy: Ensuring a clear and accurate audit trail of invoices is critical but often complicated by fragmented systems.
• Tax compliance: Ensuring compliance with regional tax laws, especially for global businesses, adds another layer of complexity to the auditing process.
• System vulnerabilities: Auditors often flag vulnerabilities in billing systems that could lead to revenue leakage or non-compliance, requiring costly fixes.

Must-have features in the best recurring subscription billing software

Selecting the right recurring subscription billing software can feel overwhelming. To simplify the process, focus on these essential features to ensure the solution aligns with your business needs:

1. Customization options

• Tailor billing cycles: Support for monthly, quarterly, annual, or custom billing cycles.
• Modify invoice design: Ability to customize invoice templates to reflect your brand.
• Customize notifications: Automated alerts for upgrades, downgrades, or cancellations.
• Handle multiple currencies and tax regulations: Support for global businesses with diverse invoicing standards.
• Support various payment methods: Credit cards, digital wallets, bank transfers, and more.
• Manage multi-business entities: Consolidate billing, invoicing, and reporting across subsidiaries or divisions.

2. Flexible pricing models

• Support diverse billing structures: Ramp deals, credits, overages, and minimum commitments.
• Accommodate multiple pricing models: Traditional subscriptions, usage-based billing, and custom pricing units.
• Automate complex workflows: Reduce manual effort and enable sales/product teams to experiment with pricing.

3. Integration with your tech stack

• Seamless integration: Connect with CRM (e.g., Salesforce), ERP, accounting systems (e.g., QuickBooks, NetSuite), and marketing automation tools (e.g., HubSpot).
• Eliminate manual data entry: Ensure smooth data flow across sales, finance, and other departments.
• Provide visibility: Access customer balances, entitlements, and transaction histories in real time.

4. Transparent invoicing

• Itemize charges clearly: Break down subscription fees, usage-based charges, and one-time costs.
• Highlight savings: Show discounts or commitments to improve customer satisfaction.
• Minimize disputes: Clear invoicing reduces payment delays and disputes.

5. Self-service customer portal

• View and update payment details: Allow customers to manage their payment information via the customer portal.
• Access billing history: Enable customers to review past invoices and transactions.
• Manage subscriptions: Support upgrades, downgrades, or cancellations without manual intervention.
• Download invoices and statements: Provide easy access to financial documents.

6. Detailed reporting and analytics

• Track key metrics: Monitor churn rate, Monthly Recurring Revenue (MRR), Annual Recurring Revenue (ARR), and Customer Lifetime Value (CLTV).
• Identify trends: Use real-time analytics to optimize subscription offerings and improve retention.
• Revenue recovery: Tools to recover lost revenue from failed payments or billing errors.

7. Subscription lifecycle management

• End-to-end lifecycle management: Handle customer journeys from sign-up to renewal or cancellation.
• Proration and adjustments: Automatically manage charges for upgrades, downgrades, or add-ons.
• Dunning management: Retry failed payments, send reminders, and notify customers to update payment details.

8. Security and compliance

• Adhere to industry standards: Ensure compliance with PCI-DSS, GDPR, SOC 2, and regional tax laws.
• Robust encryption: Protect sensitive customer data with secure storage and transmission.
• Regular audits: Maintain a clear audit trail of usage events, pricing calculations, and invoices.

9. Churn management

• Reduce involuntary churn: Automate retries for failed payments and allow customers to update payment details easily.

10. Payment options and error handling

• Support multiple payment methods: Credit cards, ACH payments, digital wallets, and more.
• Automate prorations: Handle mid-cycle subscription changes accurately.
• Invoice splitting and refunds: Manage complex billing scenarios like backdated invoices, credit notes, and prepaid/postpaid terms.
• Dunning systems: Minimize missed or late payments to maintain consistent revenue flow.

Questions to ask vendors to choose the right recurring subscription billing software [checklist]

This checklist ensures you cover all critical aspects when evaluating recurring subscription billing software vendors.

Get your recurring revenue to soar with Zenskar

As you scale, you need a system that supports global expansion, adapts to evolving pricing models, and ensures flexibility in your billing strategies. Zenskar offers all that and more, making it easier than ever to manage your subscription business. Its no-code, drag-and-drop editor gives your finance team complete control, eliminating dependence on engineering and enabling faster, more efficient operations. The built-in dunning system further enhances efficiency by minimizing missed payments, reducing churn, and boosting cash flow.

It equips you with a powerful, scalable platform to handle complex billing scenarios—whether usage-based pricing or custom-tiered models. With built-in features like seamless integration with your existing tech stack, and a 360° view of your business through ready-to-use reporting dashboards, Zenskar is more than just your billing software; it's your business's growth partner.

‍Take an interactive product tour to see us in action. Or, book a custom demo to learn how we can help streamline your recurring billing.