How to Change a Customer’s Subscription Billing Date in Stripe

This tutorial explains how to change the billing date for a customer’s subscription in Stripe.

Written By bookthatin

Last updated About 4 hours ago

Whether you are correcting a mistake or aligning all customers to pay on the same day of the month, Stripe provides two methods to update the billing cycle.

This guide walks you through both approaches step by step, so you can choose the one that best fits your situation.

Video Tutorial:

Step by Step Instructions

Step 1: Log in to Stripe and Find the Customer

  1. Log in to your Stripe account.

  2. Use the search bar at the top of the dashboard.

  3. Enter the customer’s email address and press Enter.

  4. Review the search results and locate the Subscriptions section.

  5. Click on the relevant subscription to open it.

Step 2: Review the Current Billing Details

  1. Inside the subscription page, locate the Next Invoice section.

  2. Confirm the current billing amount and date for the next payment.

    • Example: £25 on the 26th of May.

  3. Decide the new billing date you want to set.

    • Example: moving it to the 1st of June.

Method 1: Reset the Billing Cycle (Immediate Charge)

When to Use This Method

Use this option if you are happy for the customer to be charged immediately and then continue billing from that new date each month.

Steps

  1. Click Update Subscription.

  2. Tick the option Reset Billing Cycle Anchor to Now.

  3. Review the updated billing date shown on the right-hand side.

  4. Click Update Subscription to confirm.

What Happens

  • The customer is charged immediately.

  • The billing cycle resets from that day.

  • Future payments occur monthly from the new date.

Important Consideration

Avoid this method if the customer has recently paid, as it may result in them being charged again too soon.

Method 2: Add Trial Days (Delay the Next Payment)

When to Use This Method

Use this option if you want to delay the next payment without charging the customer again too soon.

Steps

  1. Click Update Subscription.

  2. Select Add Trial Days.

  3. Calculate the number of days between today and the new billing date.

  4. Enter that number into the trial days field.

    • Example: Enter 33 days to move billing from 29 April to 1 June.

  5. Confirm that the trial end date matches your desired billing date.

  6. Click Update Subscription.

  7. Choose to apply the update immediately if prompted.

What Happens

  • The next payment is postponed until the end of the trial period.

  • The billing cycle resets to the new date.

  • Future payments occur monthly from that date.

Step 3: Confirm the Update

  1. After updating, check the Next Invoice section again.

  2. Ensure the new billing date is correct.

    • Example: £25 on the 1st of June.

  3. The subscription will now continue billing on this new schedule.

Conclusion

You can change a customer’s subscription billing date in Stripe using either an immediate reset or by adding trial days. The best method depends on whether you want to charge the customer straight away or delay their next payment. By following these steps, you can easily align billing dates across all your customers.