5 Best WooCommerce Subscription Plugins in (2025)

WooCommerce subscription plugins handle automated payments—whether it’s every month, quarter, or year—without manual follow-ups or renewal reminders.

Consumers love this frictionless experience, which is why subscription-based businesses are thriving. According to Zuora’s Subscription Economy Index, subscription businesses have grown 4.6x faster than the S&P 500 in the last decade.

Yet, managing recurring payments on WooCommerce can quickly become overwhelming. With the right plugin, you can overcome the risk of facing payment failures, high customer churn, and administrative bottlenecks.

In this blog, we’ll explore the 5 best WooCommerce subscription plugins available today, showcasing their features, pros, cons, and pricing to help you choose the right one.

Does WooCommerce Have Default Subscription Options?

WooCommerce itself doesn’t come with built-in subscription management features as part of the core plugin.

However, it offers some basic functionality when paired with the WooCommerce Subscriptions plugin, which is a paid extension developed by WooCommerce.

Here are the limitations:

• No Native Subscription Management: Without the WooCommerce Subscriptions plugin, there’s no built-in support for recurring billing or subscription plans.
• Limited Flexibility: Basic WooCommerce without this plugin doesn’t handle complex subscription models (like variable subscriptions or automated renewal processes).

The Pain Point: Why Subscription Models Are Hard to Manage Without the Right Plugin

While the idea of subscriptions is lucrative, managing them manually in WooCommerce is a nightmare. Store owners struggle with:

• Missed Payments & Churn: Customers forget to renew, leading to revenue loss.
• Limited Payment Gateways: Not all subscription plugins support WooCommerce Stripe subscriptions or PayPal for automatic renewals.
• No Subscription Flexibility: Many basic solutions don’t offer WooCommerce variable product subscriptions (e.g., different pricing tiers).
• Lack of Subscription Management: Without a WooCommerce subscription management system, handling cancellations, upgrades, and renewals becomes chaotic.

The Solution: Choosing the Right WooCommerce Subscription Plugin

To cut all those pain points, you need the best plugin for WooCommerce subscriptions, which helps businesses:

• Automate Recurring Payments— No need to chase customers for renewals.
• Offer Flexible Plans— Whether it’s monthly, yearly, or custom billing cycles, you control it.
• Improve Customer Retention— Reduce churn with auto-renewals and retry failed payments.
• Increase Revenue Predictability— Know how much revenue to expect each month.

5 Best WooCommerce subscription plugins

The 5 Best subscription plugins for WooCommerce:

1. WooCommerce Subscriptions by Woo
2. YITH WooCommerce Subscription
3. Subscriptions For WooCommerce by WP Swings
4. WooCommerce Subscriptions by WebToffee
5. SUMO Subscriptions

Let’s look at all these plugins in detail along with their features, cons, pricing and verdict.

1. WooCommerce Subscriptions by Woo

Pricing: $279/year | Free version not available

WooCommerce Subscriptions is the best subscription plugin for WooCommerce which lets you create simple product and variable product subscriptions.

It supports both physical and virtual products, and basically, you can charge customers on a recurring basis—weekly, monthly, or annually.

You do get the option to allow users to manage their subscriptions and we can also synchronize their payment as well.

The plugin also enables customers to manage their own subscriptions, including changing billing details, upgrading or downgrading their plans, and pausing or canceling subscription

Also, you can purchase lots of different add-ons to further extend the functionality of this particular plugin depending on your need.

Key Features:

1. Recurring Billing & Multiple Payment Gateways
   • Automates recurring payments, supporting over 25 payment gateways, including Stripe, PayPal, and more.
   • Automatic rebilling for failed subscription payments ensures continuous revenue without interruptions.
2. Subscription Management
   • Store owners can easily manage subscriptions including adding items, taxes, and shipping, or modifying recurring totals.
   • Allows upgrades, downgrades, or cross-grading between subscription products, with proration options.
3. Trial Periods & Sign-Up Fees
   • Create free trials or charge sign-up fees for new subscribers, adding more flexibility to your subscription model.
4. Subscription Coupons
   • Offer recurring discount coupons or discount sign-up fees.
5. Customizable Email Notifications
   • Automated email notifications notify customers about upcoming renewals, subscription cancellations, and more.

Cons:

• The plugin may be seen as expensive, especially for small businesses
• Many users have reported dissatisfaction with support, citing slow response times

Verdict

Worth it if: You’re a medium/large WooCommerce store needing robust subscription features and can absorb the cost. Its deep Woo integration and flexibility for variable billing make it a strong choice.
Avoid if: You’re a small business on a budget or prioritize responsive support. The high price and mixed reviews about bugs/support are red flags.

2. YITH WooCommerce Subscription

YITH WooCommerce Subscription lets you offer recurring payment models, such as subscription boxes, digital products, or physical goods with regular deliveries.

You can easily set up recurring payments on a weekly, monthly, or yearly basis.
Also, you can add a sign up fee and offer a free trial.

Its pricing fall on the higher end, but the rich feature set provides great value for businesses that depend heavily on recurring revenue.

Key Features

1. Create Recurring Subscription Products
   • Easily set up subscriptions for physical, digital, or subscription boxes.
2. Free Trial and Sign-Up Fee
   • Offer free trial periods to entice customers to experience your product before committing to a subscription.
   • Add sign-up fees for initial setup costs, providing additional flexibility in pricing.
3. Subscription Box Support
   • Sell subscription boxes, where customers can select their own products for the box or choose from preset options.
   • Advanced configuration options such as minimum and maximum product values.
4. Flexible Subscription Plans
   • Create and manage different subscription plans, allowing customers to upgrade, downgrade, or switch between different plans.
   • Use product variations to offer multiple subscription options.
5. Synchronize Payments and Shipments
   • Synchronize subscription payments and shipping schedules.
   • Schedule shipments for subscription-based products on specific dates to ensure consistent delivery.
6. Customer Subscription Management
   • Customers can pause, cancel, or modify their subscriptions directly from their account dashboard.
7. Discount Coupons for Subscriptions
   • Create advanced WooCommerce discount coupons for subscription products, offering special deals on the first payment or recurring payments.

Cons:

• Some users have reported some support issues
• No free trial in the free version

Verdict

Worth it if: You sell curated subscription boxes, need membership integration, or want affordability without sacrificing flexibility.
Avoid if: You’re on a tight budget, as the $129.99/year pricing might be too much for smaller stores.

3. Subscriptions For WooCommerce by WP Swings

Pricing: $109.99/ year | Free version available

Subscriptions for WooCommerce is the best free WooCommerce subscription plugin for basic subscription management like eBooks, gym memberships, digital resources, subscription boxes, and more.

It integrates seamlessly with PayPal and Stripe, enabling smooth recurring payments, and it supports features like free trials, initial sign-up fees, and payment retry for failed subscriptions.

This plugin is designed to help you establish a sustainable subscription-based revenue model while making it easy for both you and your customers to manage subscriptions.

Its pro version has advanced subscription management features, manual subscription order creation, support for multiple payment gateways, and more.

Key Features:

1. Easy Recurring Revenue Setup
   • Offer recurring services or products on a set payment schedule (weekly, monthly, yearly).
2. Support for Multiple Payment Gateways
   • Works with popular gateways like PayPal, Stripe, and Mollie Payments.
3. Subscription Frequency and Trial Periods
   • Offer free trials to attract customers. You can customize the trial period duration and convert trials into full subscriptions automatically.
4. Subscription Product Flexibility
   • You can offer simple and variable subscription products, including physical goods, downloadable products, and more.
5. Automatic Payment Retry
   • The plugin allows you to automatically retry failed payments for recurring subscriptions.
6. Subscription Expiry & Renewal Settings
   • Set expiration dates for subscription plans, allowing you to define how long each subscription lasts and automate renewal processes.
7. Email Notifications
   • Get automatic email notifications for subscription renewals, failed payments, and canceled subscriptions.
8. Integration with Memberships
   • Integrates seamlessly with Membership for WooCommerce, enabling you to create subscription-based memberships

Cons:

• Limited Advanced Features in Free Version
• While it does allow free trials, the setup and management options are more basic.

Verdict

Worth it if: You’re a small business or course creator needing affordable subscriptions with LearnPress/Membership ties. The free tier is decent for testing.
Avoid if: You need advanced analytics or a non-technical setup.

4. WooCommerce Subscriptions by WebToffee

Pricing: $89/ year | Free version not available

WooCommerce Subscriptions by WebToffee supports both simple and variable subscription products, making it easy to set recurring payments and manage billing cycles.

You can offer a free trial period, charge a sign-up fee, and provide recurring discounts on renewals, making it a flexible solution for many types of businesses.

The plugin integrates seamlessly with Stripe and PayPal, allowing you to handle payments without any hassle.

It doesn’t have a free version to try out the features, but they provide a 30-day money-back guarantee.

Key Features:

1. Create Simple and Variable Subscriptions
   • Set up both simple and variable subscriptions with different intervals (daily, weekly, monthly, yearly). You can also offer variations, such as different product attributes for each subscription.
2. Free Trial and Sign-Up Fee
   • Provide free trial periods of various lengths (days, weeks, months, years). You can also set a sign-up fee.
3. Manage Renewal Intervals & Expiry
   • Set customizable renewal intervals (every 2nd, 3rd, 4th, up to the 6th interval). You can also set an expiry date for each subscription.
4. Offer Renewal Discounts
   • Easily offer renewal discounts by applying a fixed value or percentage discount to every subscription renewal.
5. Stripe & PayPal Integration
   • The plugin supports Stripe and PayPal for recurring payments, ensuring smooth transactions.
6. Subscription Synchronization & Pro-Rating
   • Synchronize subscription renewals to the same day for all subscribers, streamlining your billing cycles. You can also use prorated charges to apply a fair charge until the first renewal date.
7. Email Notifications
   • Automatic email notifications are sent for various subscription statuses (e.g., canceled, expired, renewal reminders, etc.).
8. Customer Self-Management
   • Allow customers to view and manage their subscriptions from their accounts. They can suspend, cancel, or adjust their subscriptions directly.
9. Multilingual Support
   • Supports translations in 10 languages out of the box and is compatible with most multilingual plugins.

Cons:

• Unlike some competitors, it does not offer a free version

Verdict:

Worth it if: You need a simple, no-fuss solution for creating subscription products on your WooCommerce store.
Avoid if: You’re looking for a free version to test out the plugin before purchasing

5. SUMO Subscriptions

Pricing: $49/ year | Free version available

SUMO Subscriptions is a basic subscription plugin for WooCommerce, that allows you to set up simple, variable, and grouped product subscriptions.

It supports various payment gateways, including Stripe and PayPal, and offers advanced features like subscription synchronization, manual renewal, and prorated payments.

Additionally, manual renewal can be made through any WooCommerce-supported payment gateway.

This plugin is ideal for businesses looking for a customizable and feature-rich solution for recurring billing.

Key Features:

1. Simple, Variable, and Grouped Product Subscriptions
   • Create simple, variable, and grouped subscriptions, allowing flexibility in the type of products you sell.
2. Order Subscription for Non-Subscription Products
   • You can create subscription orders for non-subscription and non-membership products.
3. Flexible Renewal Frequency
   • Set a custom renewal frequency and number of installments for your subscription orders, offering flexibility to your customers.
4. Multiple Payment Methods
   • Supports Stripe, PayPal, and SUMO Reward Points Payment Gateway for automatic subscription renewals.
5. Subscription Synchronization
   • Synchronize subscription renewals to the same date for all customers, simplifying the management of recurring billing.
6. Free Trial and Paid Trial Support
   • You can offer both free and paid trials, giving potential customers the chance to experience your products or services.
7. Sign-Up Fees & Coupons
   • Set sign-up fees and apply discount coupons for the first payment or ongoing renewals.
8. Drip Digital Content
   • You can drip downloadable content or additional digital files.
9. Advanced Reminder Emails
   • Multiple reminder emails can be sent for renewals, overdue payments, and suspensions.

Cons:

• There is no free version of SUMO Subscriptions.
• While highly customizable, the setup process may be a bit complex for beginners.

Verdict

Worth it if: You need a feature-rich subscription system that can handle simple, variable, and grouped product subscriptions.

Avoid if: You need a quick and simple setup—this plugin may require more time and technical knowledge to fully configure.

Key Features to Look for in a WooCommerce Subscription Plugin

When choosing the best subscription plugin for WooCommerce, focus on these essential features:

1. Recurring Billing and Payment Integration

The subscription plugin should handle recurring payments automatically. It must support popular payment gateways like Stripe, PayPal, and Authorize.net.

2. Flexible Subscription Plans

Look for a plugin that offers flexible subscription options. It should let you create different billing cycles like weekly, monthly, or yearly. You should also be able to offer variable subscriptions with different tiers.

3. Trial Period and Sign-Up Fees

A WooCommerce subscription plugin should allow you to set up free trials or discounted rates for the first billing cycle. Additionally, some customers prefer to pay a one-time sign-up fee for a subscription.

4. Automated Subscription Renewals and Retry Failed Payments

The plugin must automate renewals and retry failed payments. This ensures customers don’t accidentally miss a payment.

5. Subscription Reporting and Analytics

Look for a plugin with detailed analytics and reporting. You should be able to track active subscriptions, churn rates, revenue, and customer behavior.

6. Multi-Currency and Multi-Language Support

If you sell globally, choose a plugin that supports multiple currencies and languages. This will help you reach more customers worldwide without complicating payments.

7. Integration with Other WooCommerce Extensions

Ensure the plugin integrates well with other WooCommerce extensions like WooCommerce Memberships or WooCommerce Stripe Subscriptions.

Final Words

Choosing the right WooCommerce subscription plugin can significantly impact your store’s revenue and customer retention.

From basic subscription models to advanced features like trial periods, payment synchronization, and subscription box management, the plugins we’ve covered offer a variety of solutions to meet the needs of different eCommerce businesses.

Remember to consider factors like payment gateway compatibility, subscription management flexibility, and the level of customer support you’ll need when making your decision.