Business Model Preferences
These are organizational preferences. Apply them when designing or reviewing any billing integration.
Philosophy
Keep it simple. Complexity in pricing confuses customers and creates engineering debt.
Pricing Model
Single tier or nothing. Either:
- Free and open source (no billing)
- One price point with full access
No multiple tiers. No Basic/Pro/Enterprise. No feature gating. No usage-based pricing.
If annual pricing exists, it's simply "2 months free" — same features, discounted rate.
Free Trial, Not Free Tier
Offer a trial (14 days standard). After trial: pay or lose access.
No freemium. No "free forever with limits." Trial is the only free path.
Credit Card Upfront
Require payment method at trial signup. This is the standard SaaS pattern:
- User enters credit card during signup
- Trial starts immediately (no charge)
- If user cancels before trial ends → no charge
- If trial ends without cancellation → automatic charge, subscription begins
Why upfront:
- Higher conversion (commitment at signup)
- Qualified leads (real intent to pay)
- Smoother UX (no second checkout flow)
- Less support burden (no "how do I upgrade?" questions)
Stripe implementation:
await stripe.checkout.sessions.create({
mode: 'subscription',
payment_method_collection: 'always', // Require card
subscription_data: {
trial_period_days: 14, // Or use trial_end for specific date
},
});UX messaging:
- "Start your 14-day free trial"
- "You won't be charged until [date]"
- "Cancel anytime during trial"
Trial Completion on Upgrade
When a user upgrades mid-trial, honor the remaining trial days.
Pass trial_end to Stripe with the remaining time. User finishes their trial, THEN billing starts. Never charge immediately on mid-trial upgrade — that's confusing and feels like a bait-and-switch.
Simplicity Tests
When reviewing pricing or checkout:
- Can you explain the pricing in one sentence?
- Is there only one "upgrade" button?
- Does the pricing page have comparison tables? (It shouldn't.)
- Would upgrading mid-trial surprise a user with an immediate charge? (It shouldn't.)
Application
Reference these preferences when:
- Designing new Stripe integrations
- Reviewing checkout flows
- Auditing subscription logic
- Evaluating pricing page designs