The templates
Each one copies with its subject line. The parts in brackets are the parts to change; everything else can go out as written.
Subject: New pricing for [Product], and why yours is not changing
Subject: [Product] price change on [date]
Subject: Your [Product] renewal on [renewal date]: new price
Subject: What is new in [Product], and a price change on [date]
Subject: Keep [old price]: switch to annual before [date]
Subject: A small price change for [Product]
Subject lines that do not hide the news
Put the word “price” in the subject. A subject like “An update from [Product]” gets opened, and then reads as a trick, and the trick is what people remember. A charge nobody saw coming is the kind that gets disputed.
- [Product] price change on [date]
- New pricing for [Product], and why yours is not changing
- Your [Product] renewal on [renewal date]: new price
- Keep [old price]: switch to annual before [date]
- What is new in [Product], and a price change on [date]
What makes one of these land
- Give notice, in days. Thirty is a common minimum for a monthly plan. Some places, app stores and payment platforms set their own rules for subscription price changes, so check yours before you pick a date.
- Say the number. Old price, new price, and the date of the first charge at the new one. “Our pricing is changing” with no figure sends them off to find it, and they will not come back in a better mood.
- Keep the why to two sentences. What you have built or what it costs to run is a reason. A paragraph of it is a defence, and a defence invites an argument.
- Do not apologise for the whole email. One “I know nobody enjoys a price change” is plenty. Apologising in every paragraph says you think the new price is wrong.
- Answer “can I keep my old price?” before they ask. Yes, no, or how (switch to annual before the date). Leave it out and it is the question you answer by hand, one reply at a time.
- Say how to leave. A visible way to cancel makes the rest of the email believable. Hiding it keeps nobody; it turns cancellations into refund requests.
The announcement is one email. The replies are the work
Moorline does not send the announcement; use whatever you already send product email with. What it is for is what comes back. A price change produces a few weeks of replies, and most of them need one fact before you can answer: what does this person pay now, and on which plan? Are they grandfathered, on annual, or the customer whose card failed last month?
With Stripe connected, Moorline shows that beside the conversation, read-only: the plan, the payments, any failed charge. It cannot change a price or cancel anything, so the action still happens in Stripe, but the answer does not need a second tab. The replies you write ten times, “yes, you keep your price” and “it applies at renewal”, belong in a snippet one shortcut away (⌘;), with the customer’s first name filled in. If those replies currently land in a plain inbox, using Gmail for customer support covers where that setup starts to lose people.
Questions people ask
How much notice should I give before a price increase?
Thirty days is a common minimum for a monthly subscription. For an annual plan, send it well before the renewal date, so the customer has time to decide before the charge rather than after it. Some countries and states have their own rules on notice for subscription price changes, and app stores and some payment platforms have theirs, so check what applies where you sell before you pick a date. When in doubt, give more notice than you think you need.
Should existing customers keep their old price?
It is the kindest option and the one least likely to start an argument, but it costs you the increase on every customer you already have. The middle ground is to grandfather for a fixed period, six or twelve months, and say so in the email. Whatever you decide, say it plainly: "can I keep my current price" is the first question the email will raise, and it should already be answered.
How do I justify a price increase to customers?
In one or two honest sentences, not a paragraph. What you have built since the last price, or what the product costs you to run, is a reason. A list of your expenses, or a vague line about inflation, reads like an excuse. You do not owe anyone a business case; you owe them the number, the date and a way out.
Should I apologise in a price increase email?
Once at most, and it is fine to skip it. An email that apologises in every paragraph tells the customer you think the new price is wrong, which is an invitation to argue it. A plain, respectful tone does more than an apology: here is the change, here is why, here is what you can do.
What should I do when customers reply to complain or cancel?
Answer every one of them, personally and soon. Most replies are questions about what exactly they will pay and when, which you can answer in a line. For a cancellation, confirm it without arguing and without a guilt trip. For someone asking for a deal, decide your policy once and give everyone the same answer.