How to create fixed-term installment plans vs indefinite subscriptions in 4Geeks Payments

4Geeks Payments is a robust revenue growth platform designed to streamline recurring billing for businesses ranging from SaaS companies to membership organizations. When configuring your billing logic, it is essential to understand how to structure your plans to fit your business model—whether you need an indefinite subscription (billing forever until cancelled) or a fixed-term installment plan (billing for a set number of cycles).

This article explains how to configure and manage these two distinct billing models using the 4Geeks Console.

Prerequisites

• A verified account on the 4Geeks Console.
• Access to the Sales or Payments module within the dashboard.
• (Optional) Developer resources if automating fixed-term logic via API.

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1. Creating Indefinite Subscriptions

An indefinite subscription is the default behavior for recurring plans in 4Geeks Payments. This model is ideal for services that provide continuous value, such as software access, gym memberships, or ongoing maintenance.

How to Configure

1. Log in to the 4Geeks Console.
2. Navigate to Sales > Recurring Plans in the left-hand menu.
3. Click the Create Plan button in the top-right corner.
4. Fill in the required fields:
   • Name: E.g., "Pro Membership - Monthly".
   • Amount: The cost per cycle (e.g., $29).
   • Interval: Select the billing frequency (e.g., Monthly or Yearly).
5. Confirm Creation.

Once subscribed, the customer will be charged automatically at the selected interval indefinitely. The subscription only stops if the customer cancels it via the Customer Portal, or if you manually cancel it from the Console.

2. Creating Fixed-Term Installment Plans

A fixed-term plan charges the customer a set number of times (e.g., "3 monthly payments of $100") and then stops. Because 4Geeks Payments plans do not have a native "expiration date" setting in the basic UI, a fixed-term plan is technically an indefinite subscription that is cancelled after the final payment is collected.

Strategy A: API Automation (Recommended)

For seamless management, use the 4Geeks Payments API to automate the cancellation.

1. Create a Plan as described above (e.g., "Equipment Installment - $100/mo").
2. Subscribe the customer to this plan.
3. Configure Webhooks to listen for successful payment events.
4. Count the payments in your internal database.
5. Once the target number of payments (e.g., 3) is reached, programmatically send a DELETE request to the Subscription API endpoint to cancel the subscription immediately.

Strategy B: Manual Management (Low Volume)

If you do not have developer resources, you can manage this via the Console:

1. Create the Plan and subscribe the user.
2. Monitor Invoices: Use the Invoice History or Subscription details to track the number of successful payments.
3. Cancel Manually: After the final agreed payment is processed, navigate to the specific subscription in the Console and click Cancel Subscription to prevent future charges.

Common Use Cases

Scenario 1: SaaS Platform Access (Indefinite)

Context: You run a talent management platform using 4Geeks Talent and want to charge companies a monthly fee for access.

Setup: Create a "Corporate Tier" plan with a Monthly interval.

Outcome: The company is billed automatically every month. If their credit card fails, 4Geeks Payments' smart dunning logic will retry the charge to recover revenue before you need to intervene.

Scenario 2: High-Value Asset Purchase (Fixed-Term)

Context: You are selling physical medical equipment managed via 4Geeks Asset. The total cost is $3,000, but you offer a payment plan of $500/month for 6 months.

Setup: Create a plan named "Asset Financing - 6 Months".

Outcome: The customer subscribes and pays $500 monthly. Your backend system tracks the payments via webhooks. Upon the 6th successful payment ($3,000 total), your system automatically cancels the subscription so the customer is not charged a 7th time.

Troubleshooting

• Issue: Customer continued to be charged after their installment period ended.
  • Solution: This occurs if the subscription was not cancelled. Ensure your API logic correctly triggers the cancellation after the Nth payment, or set a calendar reminder to cancel it manually if you are not using automation.
• Issue: Customer wants to update their card details.
  • Solution: Direct the customer to their unique Customer Portal link. From there, they can click "Edit Payment Method" to update their credentials securely without your staff needing to handle sensitive data.
• Issue: A payment failed mid-cycle.
  • Solution: 4Geeks Payments will attempt to retry the charge based on its dunning settings. You can monitor the status in the Console; if it remains unpaid, the subscription may eventually be suspended depending on your configuration.

FAQs

For more details on integrating these flows into your application, refer to the API Reference in the 4Geeks Documentation or explore other products like 4Geeks Payroll for managing worker payments.