Offer a free membership trial (optional)

Let new members try your benefits before paying the regular membership fee. Choose None, 1 month, 1 year (annual billing only), or Free until the next billing day in the tier's Free trial setting.

Set up a trial

1. Open Membership Tiers and edit the tier.

2. Open Pricing and choose the billing frequency. A one-year trial is available for Yearly and Both.

3. Choose a duration under Free trial.

4. Check the regular membership price and any joining fee, then click Save and Publish.

Changes apply to new signups. Existing subscriptions keep the pricing and trial agreed when they joined.

How billing works

Setting	Monthly billing	Annual billing
None	Regular monthly fee from signup	Regular annual fee from signup
1 month	First month's membership fee is free, then the regular monthly fee	First annual payment is reduced by one-twelfth, then the regular annual fee on renewal
Free until the next billing day	Available for Monthly-only tiers. No membership fee at signup; regular monthly price on the next selected billing day and on that day each month after	Not available
1 year	Not available on monthly-only tiers. On a tier offering Both, monthly billing remains at its regular price	First annual membership fee is free, then the regular annual fee from the first annual renewal

A joining fee, if configured, is charged once at signup, including during a trial. A trial with a joining fee is therefore not a no-charge signup. Shopify checkout shows the applicable payment terms.

For example, a $120 annual membership with a one-year trial and a $20 joining fee costs $20 at signup and $120 at the first annual renewal. The joining fee is not added again. This is an illustrative example before applicable taxes or discounts.

Members receive the configured membership benefits during the trial. Cancellation follows the tier's cancellation policy. A trial does not automatically end the subscription: it renews at the agreed price unless it is cancelled.

Renewals use the recurring price agreed on the member's subscription, including subscriptions created before later tier changes. If Fee to Store Credit is enabled, a successful paid renewal earns credit based on the amount charged. A $0 trial or renewal does not issue fee-to-store-credit credit.

If your referral program requires the first successful membership payment, an annual trial stays pending until a paid membership renewal succeeds. A joining fee alone does not qualify that trial referral.

The storefront explains the trial and applicable joining fee. On tiers offering Both, the one-year offer applies only to customers choosing annual billing; the default monthly upsell retains its regular price.

Choose a monthly billing day

Choose Monthly billing, enter the monthly price, then select Free until the next billing day under Free trial. Select a Day of the month (1–28) and click Save and Publish. Days 1–28 are offered because they exist in every month. This option includes the free signup period, so do not also select the one-month or one-year trial.

With a billing day of 5, a member who joins on September 2 pays no membership fee at signup, then pays the regular monthly fee on September 5, October 5 and each following month. If they join on September 5 or September 22, their first paid renewal is October 5. With a billing day of 1, someone joining September 22 first pays October 1, then November 1.

The free period lasts until the next selected billing day and can be shorter than a full month. Any joining fee is still due at signup. Examples exclude applicable taxes and discounts.

Shopify creates the billing schedule at checkout, so you do not need to change each new member’s next billing date manually. Payment failures can delay collection. Members see their actual next billing date in both the Member Hub for new Shopify customer accounts and the legacy member dashboard.

This setting affects new signups only. Existing subscriptions keep the day and pricing agreed at signup when you change the tier’s day or disable this option. Tiers previously configured to bill on the 1st keep day 1 until you edit them. The option is available for monthly-only tiers, not Yearly or Both.