Plan changes and renewals

Each product plan renews on its own subscription date, every month or year as its billing interval sets, and changes independently of your other plans. This page explains when plan changes take effect, how renewals are paid, and what happens after a missed payment.

Open Billing and payments > Overview. The Product plans section shows each plan's renewal date, status, and any scheduled change. Plan payments that still need action are listed on the Outstanding payments page; open it with View outstanding payments on the Overview page.

Buying a plan

On a product's plans page, select Choose plan on the plan you want, then Continue to payment. If the product already has a plan, the card shows Upgrade to plan or Switch to plan instead. Before a paid checkout, the dashboard asks for your billing address and VAT status, because tax on a plan fee depends on them.

Pay by card or another instant payment method offered for your wallet currency. Bank transfer is not available for plan payments, and your wallet balance cannot pay for a plan. Until the full payment succeeds, the plan shows Payment pending and the product keeps its current plan or pay-as-you-go terms. The plan starts when the payment succeeds; a funding plan's deposit is added to your wallet at the same time.

An unpaid checkout stays open for up to seven days. You can finish it from Outstanding payments or cancel it there and start again.

Upgrades take effect after payment

An upgrade to a higher paid plan with the same billing interval charges the full price difference between the two plans, without prorating by time. The new plan's benefits, such as higher rate limits or more concurrent calls, apply as soon as that payment succeeds, and the renewal date does not change. For a funding plan, the difference is added to your wallet.

An upgrade from a free plan, or to a plan with a different billing interval, starts a new period at the full price of the new plan. Its renewal date moves to match the new period.

The dashboard shows the amount, the timing, and what the change adds to your wallet before you confirm. Until the payment succeeds, your current plan stays active. You can cancel an unpaid upgrade from Outstanding payments.

Downgrades and cancellation land at period end

Moving to a lower plan, to a free plan, or to pay-as-you-go is scheduled for the end of the current period. The current plan and its benefits remain active until then, and the current period is not charged again. The plan row shows the scheduled change.

Canceling a plan also takes effect at the end of the current period. The product then returns to its free plan where one exists (Email always has one), or to pay-as-you-go. If the next renewal was already paid before you canceled, the plan continues through that paid period and ends after it.

Cancellation does not refund a partial period. Balance a funding plan has already added to your wallet stays there.

How renewals are paid

Five days before a plan renews, Bird prepares its renewal payment for the plan's full price for the next billing period and charges your default card automatically. The payment appears under Outstanding payments until it succeeds, and you can pay it there with another card or instant method.

Existing wallet balance does not reduce a renewal payment. When a funding plan's renewal is paid early, its full deposit is added to your wallet straight away and can be spent before the renewal date. The renewal date stays the same, and Bird does not charge or credit that renewal again.

To keep renewals from failing, keep a valid default card on file as described in Payment methods & wallet.

When a renewal payment fails

If a renewal is not fully paid by the renewal date, only that product changes:

1. The product returns to its free plan or to pay-as-you-go at the renewal date. Email returns to the Email Free plan. The paid plan's rates and limits end for that product.
2. Your wallet and other plans are unchanged. Balance already in the wallet, including earlier deposits, stays available for any product.
3. Charges already posted stay as they are. Usage before the renewal date keeps the rate it was charged at.

A payment that arrives after the renewal date does not restore the plan automatically. To return to the paid plan, choose it again on the product's plans page.

Legacy Email plan renewals

A legacy Email plan, marked Legacy plan on its card, keeps its original terms until you switch to a current Email plan. It renews from your wallet. Five days before the renewal date, Bird sets the plan price aside from your wallet balance and charges your default card for any shortfall, retrying the card daily until the renewal date. Overage is charged from the wallet during the period, and any remainder when the period closes.

If the renewal is not funded by the renewal date, the legacy plan ends and your organization moves to the Email Free plan. A payment that arrives later adds to your wallet but does not restore the legacy plan.

A negative prepaid wallet balance blocks sending, including sends within a legacy plan allowance, until you add enough funds. The Overview page shows the amount due.

To switch from a legacy plan, open the Email plans page and choose a current plan. A switch from legacy Free starts the new plan once its payment succeeds. A switch from a paid legacy plan takes effect once the new plan's payment succeeds and ends the rest of the legacy term, or at renewal when fewer than two days of the term remain. The dashboard shows which applies before you confirm.

Next steps

• Plans & pricing: funding and capacity plans and what each tier raises.
• Payment methods & wallet: cards, top-ups, and auto top-up.
• Usage, spend & invoices: where plan payments and charges show up.
• Refunds and your wallet balance: why payments are not refunded, and how to stop future charges.