Changing the next billing or charge date

"Where do I set the date a customer is charged?" is one of our most common questions. The answer depends on whether you want to set a billing date for all new subscriptions on an offer, change the date for one customer's existing subscription, or let customers reschedule themselves. This guide covers all three.


Table of contents



Set a fixed billing date for new subscriptions (anchor dates)


If you want every subscriber on a subscription option to be billed on the same day (for example, the 1st of the month), turn on Renew on specific dates on that option:


  1. Go to Supr Bundles & Subscriptions > Offers and open the offer.
  2. Click the subscription option to open it. Under its main fields, each of its other settings is listed as a small chip that names it and, once it is on, shows On or its value. Click Renew on specific dates to open the option's Additional settings with that setting expanded.
  3. Turn on Renew on specific dates.
  4. Choose the date. The fields depend on the option's Order intervals:
    • Week: a Renewal day (e.g. Monday).
    • Month: a Day of month (e.g. the 15th).
    • Year: a Month and a Day (e.g. September and the 15th).
  6. Choose the First order behaviour (see below) and Save.


Renew on specific dates only affects new subscriptions created after you save. Existing contracts keep their current schedule, change those individually (see below). It is not available on options whose Order intervals is Day.


First order decides how the order placed at checkout lines up with your date:


  • Fulfil immediately: the first order ships right away, and the next charge falls on your chosen date, on the last one within one interval of the purchase. On a subscription option that repeats every 3 months on the 1st, a customer who subscribes on 10 September is next charged on 1 December.
  • Wait for the next date: the first order is held and ships on the next chosen date, and the next charge is one full interval after that. On a subscription option that repeats every 12 months on the 1st, a customer who subscribes on 22 September 2026 pays that day, the order ships on 1 October 2026, and the next charge is on 1 October 2027.


With Fulfil immediately on a weekly or monthly subscription option, a cutoff window also controls what happens to orders placed just before a renewal date. For the full set of worked examples, see A Beginner's Guide to Subscription Offers.


Renewing on specific dates never delays the first payment. Shopify always charges the first order in full at checkout, whichever First order option you pick. Wait for the next date only holds back the first shipment. To take a card now and charge it on a later date, combine a 100% discount limited to the first payment (Offering a free trial or discounted first order) with Renew on specific dates and Fulfil immediately. A $0 order is still created at signup. The steps are in Collect a card now, charge on a later date.


It isn't possible to bill on specific calendar months (e.g. only March, June, September) on a subscription option that repeats every few months. The day stays fixed, but the months follow when each customer joined. Options whose Order intervals is Year are the exception: you can pick a specific Month and Day, so every customer renews on the same calendar date.


Change the next billing date for one customer


To move the charge date on an existing subscription:


  1. Go to Supr Bundles & Subscriptions > Subscriptions and open the customer's subscription.
  2. In Upcoming renewals, click Edit schedule.
  3. Choose Set specific date and pick the new date (and, if you like, the time), or choose Shift by relative amount to move it forward or backward by a number of Days, Weeks, Months or Renewal cycles.
  4. Click Update schedule.


Changing the date here shifts all future orders to follow the new schedule. If you pick a date in the past, the renewal runs a few minutes later instead.


The Send a notification to the customer box is ticked by default and sends the Next billing date changed email. Untick it to change the date without emailing the customer.


Upcoming renewals is shown on active and paused subscriptions. On a paused subscription, set the date first and then click Activate subscription: it is billed on the date you set. If you activate a paused subscription whose date has already passed, it is billed within the hour.


Skip one order for a customer


There is no separate Skip button for merchants. To skip the next order without pausing:


  1. Open the subscription and click Edit schedule in Upcoming renewals.
  2. Choose Shift by relative amount, then Move forward, Amount 1, Unit Renewal cycles.
  3. Click Update schedule.


The next order then happens one full cycle later, and the schedule continues from there. To skip two orders, use 2.


Change the date on many subscriptions


On the Subscriptions list, tick the subscriptions (or use Select all in store after filtering, for example by Next billing date) and choose the Reschedule bulk action. It offers the same Set specific date and Shift by relative amount choices and the same notification checkbox, and it changes active, paused and failed subscriptions.


Let customers reschedule themselves


You can let subscribers move their own billing date from the customer portal:


  1. Go to Supr Bundles & Subscriptions > Settings > Customer portal.
  2. Under Next billing date, turn on Change subscription billing dates.
  3. Optionally set a Max reschedule window to limit how far ahead they can push it.


You can also turn on Skip next order in the same section so customers can skip a single delivery without changing the whole schedule. Skips customers make are counted in the Skipped orders chart on the Analytics page.


Good to know


  • The time of day renewals are processed is set separately in Settings > Billing and renewals, either at each subscription's original purchase time, or in a single daily batch at an hour you choose.
  • The billing (charge) date and the delivery date can differ, see When customers are charged vs when orders are fulfilled.
  • Changing the frequency does not move the next billing date. When you edit a subscription and switch, for example, from monthly to every 2 months, the order already scheduled stays on its date and the new frequency applies after it. Use Edit schedule if the next date should change too.
  • On a prepaid subscription, the Prepaid schedule card lets you Reschedule individual deliveries that are already paid for, see Prepaid Subscriptions.


Common questions


How do I skip a customer's next order as the merchant?
Edit schedule > Shift by relative amount > Move forward > 1 > Renewal cycles. There is no Skip button in the admin; the Skip next order setting is for customers in the portal.


I changed a customer's frequency but the next billing date didn't change. Why?
That is on purpose: editing the frequency keeps the order that is already scheduled. Use Edit schedule to move it.


Can I change the date without the customer getting an email?
Yes. Untick Send a notification to the customer in the Edit schedule dialog.


Can I bill every subscriber on the same day of the month?
For new subscribers, turn on Renew on specific dates on the subscription option (see the top of this article). For existing subscribers, move each date with Edit schedule, or use the bulk Reschedule action.



Updated on: 09/25/2026

Was this article helpful?

Share your feedback

Cancel

Thank you!