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Founder at SODP
The subscription economy has experienced significant growth in recent years. As of 2024, premium U.S. streaming platforms (SVOD) grew 10.4% year-over-year, reaching over 260 million subscriptions . Subscription businesses have outpaced S&P 500 revenues nearly sixfold, marking a pivotal turning point across industries . The subscription market is projected to continue growing, with forecasts estimating it will reach $1.5 billion by 2025.
However, challenges persist for digital publishers. Signs indicate growing consumer concern about spending. A Deloitte survey found that 40% of U.S. consumers cancelled an SVOD service in the past six months, a slight improvement from 44% the previous year, suggesting churn rates are moderating. Despite this, the average monthly churn rate for 2024 netted just under 3% when accounting for resubscriptions .
To navigate these challenges, digital publishers can leverage subscription management platforms. These tools can help businesses manage subscriptions effectively, reduce churn, and enhance customer retention.
Subscription management software automates the routine aspects of subscription management. It handles and executes a wide range of subscription-related tasks to streamline recurring revenue streams and improve customer relationships.
Given the evolving needs of diverse customer bases, managing a large volume of subscriptions manually has become increasingly impractical. Automation through subscription management software is essential to efficiently handle these complexities. Recent insights from the Reuters Institute for the Study of Journalism highlight this shift. In their 2024 survey, 80% of publishers identified digital subscriptions and memberships as their primary revenue focus, surpassing display advertising, which stood at 72%. This emphasis on subscription models underscores the necessity for automated systems that can adapt to individual user behaviours and preferences, ensuring scalability and personalised user experiences.
Following the cost of living crisis, however, a joint research project between FT Strategies and Minna Technologies found that 93% of consumers were aware of their subscription expenses, up from 86% the previous year. This uptick in audience awareness means publishers must provide tangible value to reduce churn rates.
Greater subscription volumes also present challenges, however, including:
This is exactly where subscription management software can help.
Subscription management software automates tasks that take place between a business and its customers. The software functions by maintaining a continuous “finger on the pulse” of the relevant interaction and responding accordingly. It achieves this through several key principles, which include:
Let’s consider a sports publisher as an example. The business may want to attract new readers by offering a 15% discount on annual print subscriptions. As the number of new readers steadily grows, the magazine’s editors notice that a rival publication is also targeting new readers with a 15% discount on its annual print subscription.
Keen to avoid competition solely on retail price, the publisher decides to maintain its current subscription discount but, unlike its competitor, provides customers with the option to pay either in quarterly installments, annually, or biennially. This pricing information is listed on the magazine’s website, where prospective subscribers can sign up using the magazine’s subscription management software.
As the months progress, some new readers’ credit cards expire. This is where the software executes dunning management — an automated payment recovery mechanism triggered when a payment fails. The subscription platform sends emails or text messages, based on the customer’s contact preferences stored in the software, to inform them of the payment failure. Each email or text message invites the customer to log in to the self-service portal in the subscription management software, allowing them to update their credit card information.
The software does more than track subscriptions; it integrates with other commonly used platforms. For example, if the sports publisher uses Salesforce’s Customer 360 suite of CRM tools, the magazine’s subscription management software can export customer data to the marketing team via the Customer 360 suite.
Choosing the right subscription management software is essential for publishers aiming to optimize recurring revenue, enhance user experience, and ensure seamless billing and customer retention. Here are the key criteria to consider when evaluating subscription management solutions:
By considering these criteria, publishers can choose a subscription management solution that boosts revenue growth, enhances customer retention, and streamlines operations.
Here is how we rated each platform for different parameters out of 5:
| Tool/Platform | Core Functionality | User Experience | Integration Capabilities | Pricing Flexibility | Analytics & Reporting | Compliance & Security | Customer Support & Vendor Reliability | Innovation & Roadmap | Overall score |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Recurly | 4.5 | 4.3 | 4.3 | 4.3 | 4.6 | 4.8 | 4.4 | 4.1 | 4.7 |
| Zuora | 4.7 | 4.5 | 4.8 | 4.3 | 4.7 | 4.8 | 4.5 | 4.5 | 4.7 |
| Chargebee | 4.5 | 4.5 | 4.5 | 4 | 4.5 | 4.5 | 4 | 4 | 4.6 |
| Poool | 4.2 | 4 | 4.3 | 3.8 | 4 | 4.5 | 4 | 4.2 | 4.6 |
| Aptitude Software | 4 | 3.5 | 4 | 4 | 4.5 | 4.5 | 4 | 3.5 | 4.4 |
| SubscriptionFlow | 4.2 | 4 | 4.3 | 4 | 4.2 | 4.5 | 4 | 3.8 | 4.4 |
| Viafoura | 3.8 | 4 | 4.2 | 3.5 | 4 | 4.5 | 4 | 4.3 | 4.4 |
| Omeda | 4 | 3.8 | 4.2 | 3.7 | 4 | 4.3 | 4 | 4 | 4.4 |
| Pelcro | 4 | 3.8 | 3.5 | 3.5 | 3 | 3.8 | 3.5 | 3 | 3.8 |
| Rainex | 3.5 | 3 | 3 | 2.5 | 3 | 3.5 | 3 | 2.5 | 3.4 |
| SimpleCirc | 3.5 | 3 | 2.5 | 3 | 2.5 | 3 | 2.5 | 2 | 3.1 |
Reurly, which is used by the likes of TIME and Paramount+, offers its clients a variety of pricing models, gift cards, coupons and other promotional tools, depending on their strategy. Recurly’s billing software integrates with various accounting, tax and fraud prevention software, as well as major CRM and payment platforms. Recurly’s analytics provide both a big picture and granular detail on business performance. As with other options on the list, the software can send out automated email reminders to subscribers ahead of a subscription’s expiry.
Recurly offers three plans — Core, Professional and Elite.
The Core plan, aimed at businesses with annual subscription revenue of up to $1 million, includes quantity and usage-based pricing, as well as integrations with Zendesk and MailChimp. Recurly does waive monthly platform fees on a total payment volume (TPV) of up to $40,000 for the first 12 months of a new Core plan, after which prices start at $249 per month.
The Professional and Elite plans, which target businesses with annual revenue greater than $1 million and $25 million respectively, feature multiple gateways, payment methods, advanced analytics and tax management. Interested parties need to contact Recurly directly to determine the exact plan fees.
Our rating: ★★★★☆ 4.7 stars
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Zuora acquired subscription and paywall solutions provider Zephr in 2022, folding it into its product lineup. Zephr has attracted the likes of Forbes, The Irish Times and The New York Post to its client ranks.
Zephr is a no-code tool, meaning even non-technical team members can create personalized customer journeys. Its dynamic rules builder allows campaigns to be tested and optimized without disrupting existing workflows. This approach should enable publishers to create subscription and retention journeys in minutes rather than days or weeks.
The platform’s Dynamic Offers Module allows users to create personalized offers to convert freemium subscribers and reduce churn with product bundling experimentation. The module also comes with strategic pricing and targeted messaging.
Zephr also offers seamless integration with users’ tech stacks using HTML, JSON or SDK, eliminating the need for complex integrations. It also boasts a rich analytics tool that leverages data to enable personalized campaigns for each user. Prospective customers can request a demo to discuss pricing based on their needs.
Our rating: ★★★★☆ 4.7 stars
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Chargebee offers a range of subscription management functions suited for SaaS, PaaS and other subscription businesses. Scaling is Chargebee’s forte, and it achieves this through several revenue-tapping and automation functions, as well as by synchronizing a business’s accounting and other financial tools.
Chargebee’s recurring billing software accepts payments in more than 100 currencies from multiple payment gateways. The platform also proactively addresses card expiration and problems customers may have with a preferred payment gateway. In addition, Chargebee allows customers to suspend or extend their subscriptions.
From flat pricing to stair-step pricing and everything in between, Chargebee’s subscription management allows businesses to try a panoply of pricing models — a key step in maximizing recurring revenue and uncovering untapped revenue.
Chargebee offers three plans: a. Starter b. Performance and c. Enterprise plans.
The Starter plan operates on a pay-as-you-go basis. Users won’t be charged on their first $250,0000 of cumulative billing, at which point they’ll be charged 0.75% on billing after that. Features include offline invoicing, calendar billing and usage-based (metered) billing.
Performance costs $599 per month, charged annually, and covers the first $100,000 of monthly billing, with 0.75% charged after that. The plan unlocks features such as advance invoices, gift subscriptions and consolidated invoicing.
Enterprise — which unlocks account hierarchy, contract terms and on-demand discounting — requires prospective clients to content Chargebee directly.
Our rating: ★★★★☆ 4.6 stars
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Poool is a subscription management platform that empowers digital media companies to effectively engage, convert, and retain their audiences. Trusted by prominent publishers such as TF1, The Irish News, Le Parisien, L’Équipe, and Elle, Poool offers tailored solutions to enhance consumer revenue strategies. With a strong emphasis on flexibility, Poool enables publishers to implement paywalls, registration walls, and engagement tools that align with their business goals and audience behavior.
Unlike rigid subscription models, Poool provides a modular approach, allowing businesses to test and iterate strategies for maximizing conversions. The platform’s data-driven insights help media companies understand audience behaviors and optimize user journeys in real time. By offering diverse access control options, such as content metering, dynamic paywalls, and personalized subscription pathways, Poool ensures that publishers can strike the right balance between revenue generation and audience engagement.
In addition to its paywall and engagement tools, Poool seamlessly integrates with existing CMS platforms, marketing automation systems, and analytics solutions, enabling publishers to create a unified ecosystem for their digital business. Its ability to deliver real-time modifications and A/B testing ensures that media organizations can refine their strategies without relying on extensive development work. As the digital publishing industry continues to evolve, Poool provides the agility and technological backing necessary for long-term audience monetization and growth.
Our rating: ★★★★☆ 4.6 stars
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Aptitude Software acquired MPP Global in 2021, integrating its expertise in subscription billing for media and entertainment enterprises into its portfolio. Today, publishers such as Sky and L’Équipe use Aptitude Subscriber Management—Aptitude’s flagship platform for end-to-end subscriber lifecycle solutions. Case studies with organizations like Times Online, The Daily Mail, and The Irish Times demonstrate the platform’s capabilities in customer acquisition, retention, and business model optimization. Aptitude Software now delivers these features under its unified focus on “powering the subscriber lifecycle”, combining advanced billing, analytics, and monetization tools tailored for digital publishers.
Aptitude’s many features include recurring and transactional models, identity and subscriber management, payment optimization and churn prevention, and revenue management — to name a few. Aptitude is certified to PCI-DSS Level 1 standards, the most stringent regulations governing eCommerce companies. Maintaining this standard requires the company to undergo independent audits every year. Prospective customers can request a callback to discuss pricing.
Our rating: ★★★★☆ 4.4 stars
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SubscriptionFlow is an end-to-end subscription management solutions provider that caters to various businesses in multiple niches. The platform’s users can offer a range of dynamic customer-centric features such as freemiums, coupons, gift subscriptions, rewards, etc. that can improve customer acquisition and retention metrics.
For businesses, it provides end-to-end subscription lifecycle management and add-ons, such as sales tax management, that increase day-to-day operational efficiencies. SubscriptionFlow comes with a built-in CRM and integration with tax management tools such as Avalara to help businesses stay tax-compliant irrespective of where they expand geographically.
It also facilitates partnerships with all major payment gateways, including PayPal and Stripe, and allows businesses to provide billing models to their subscribers based on their needs, including flat fee billing, pay-per-use billing, recurring billing, hybrid billing and more.
SubscriptionFlow offers four pricing plans: Startup, Rise, Scale, and Enterprise.
The Startup plan, designed for teams of up to three with an annual revenue of $100,000, starts at $99 per month. The Rise plan, geared toward businesses that need up to 10 users and generate $600,000 in annual revenue, costs $199 per month. The Scale plan best suits businesses with up to 25 users and $1.2 million in annual revenue. It costs $299 per month. All three plans offer discounts for annual purchases. Finally, the Enterprise plan is meant for businesses with more than $1.2 million in annual revenue and requires prospective clients to contact SubscriptionFlow directly for a quote.
Our rating: ★★★★☆ 4.4 stars
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Viafoura is a digital engagement and audience development platform that helps media companies, publishers, and brands foster meaningful interactions with their users. Leading organizations, including major news outlets and digital content providers, rely on Viafoura to enhance audience retention, drive subscriptions, and build thriving online communities. The platform offers a comprehensive suite of tools that facilitate real-time engagement, content personalization, and first-party data collection.
With its AI-powered moderation and customizable engagement solutions, Viafoura enables publishers to maintain a safe and interactive user environment while driving revenue through subscription growth. The platform seamlessly integrates with content management systems (CMS), paywall solutions, and marketing tools, making it an essential asset for businesses looking to optimize their digital strategy.
Our rating: ★★★★☆ 4.4 stars
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Omeda is a comprehensive audience management and marketing automation platform designed to serve media companies, publishers, and event organizers. Trusted by professional media, publishing, and content leaders, Omeda assists businesses in consolidating customer data, optimizing engagement, and driving revenue growth through targeted marketing strategies. The platform offers an all-in-one solution for subscription management, email marketing, audience segmentation, and event registration, making it a go-to choice for companies seeking to streamline their audience development efforts.
With its robust data management capabilities, Omeda allows businesses to unify first-party data from multiple sources, enabling more personalized user experiences. The platform integrates seamlessly with customer relationship management (CRM) tools, content management systems (CMS), and advertising platforms, ensuring smooth operations across different digital ecosystems.
Our rating: ★★★★☆ 4.4 stars
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Pelcro is a leading subscription management and paywall platform designed to help publishers, media companies, and content creators monetize their digital offerings. It powers subscription-based models for well-known brands, including newspapers, magazines, and membership-driven businesses. With its robust feature set and seamless integrations, Pelcro provides businesses with a scalable and flexible solution to manage their recurring revenue streams effectively.
The platform offers a no-code solution, enabling teams to implement paywalls and manage subscribers without the need for extensive technical knowledge. Pelcro also supports a variety of payment gateways, making transactions easier for global audiences. Its user-friendly interface, coupled with automation tools, allows businesses to create, test, and optimize subscription models with minimal effort.
Our rating: ★★★☆ 3.8 stars
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Rainex is a comprehensive subscription management and billing platform designed to help businesses automate recurring payments, manage customer subscriptions, and optimize revenue growth. With over 14 years of expertise in FinTech, Rainex operates in 47 countries and supports 135 currencies, making it a robust solution for global enterprises. The platform caters to businesses of all sizes, from startups to large-scale corporations, streamlining billing processes and enhancing customer engagement.
Trusted by digital publishers and SaaS innovators to streamline paywalls, subscriptions, and audience analytics, Rainex empowers companies with its versatile suite of tools. By consolidating subscription lifecycle management, billing automation, and customer self-service options, it enables businesses to focus on growth while ensuring seamless payment processing. The platform’s multilingual support and compatibility with various payment gateways make it an ideal choice for companies seeking international expansion.
Our rating: ★★★☆ 3.4 stars
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SimpleCirc was created in 2015 by a group of publishers that struggled to find a cloud-based alternative to installed software with hefty up-front costs. SimpleCirc counts the likes of Circuit Cellar, OYLA Magazine and PI Magazine among its list of clients.
The platform pitches itself as having everything a publisher needs, with none of the bloat. This means it offers the expected subscriber management features such as automatic renewals, data analytics, invoice tracking and the means to upsell and cross-sell merchandise, back issues and other publications to new subscribers.
SimpeCirc supports all major payment gateways, including Stripe, PayPal and PayWay. Platform users can integrate with any software platform thanks to its API and Webhooks. The company prides itself in offering the best support for publishers in the industry, offering free support in any aspect of the platform including staff training.
SimpleCirc offers a tiered pricing system based on the number of active subscribers a publisher has and doesn’t charge for expired subscribers, which it will store until they can be re-activated.There are two plans, Essential and Pro, with prices starting at $99 and $199 per month respectively for up to 2,000 active subscribers. Pricing increases with subscriber numbers, hitting $649 and $799 monthly for up to 80,000 subscribers. After that, prices need to be negotiated with the platform’s sales team.
Our rating: ★★★☆ 3.1 stars
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The subscription business is a challenging path to navigate successfully, particularly during times of economic uncertainty. In such situations, having the right software running in the background can mean the difference between surviving and thriving.
For those assessing their subscription management software options, the above list indicates that automated billing and flexible payment choices are prevalent features. However, each platform varies in providing specialized features tailored to particular business needs.
Choosing from a range of popular subscription management software is a matter of finding the right fit between its specialized capabilities and the business’s specific needs. This may require some research to find that sweet spot. We recommend testing as many different tools as possible. While the features of one tool might seem ideal, it’s impossible to predict how team members might interact with it.
Investing time and effort in this area is worthwhile, as finding the right subscription services will better position publishers to enhance their monetization strategies.
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