title: "Plans & billing" description: "How BoxWatch plans, upgrades, downgrades, and Stripe billing work." last_updated: "2026-05-24"

Plans & billing

BoxWatch is billed monthly through Stripe. Cancel anytime — access continues until the end of the paid period.

The plans

For full descriptions and tier-specific features see plan tiers & limits.

Upgrading

Dashboard → Billing → Upgrade. Pick a plan; Stripe Checkout opens. Enter a card (Stripe handles all card data — BoxWatch never touches it). The upgrade is immediate and pro-rated — Stripe credits the remaining time on your current plan against the new one.

After checkout you're redirected back to the dashboard. The plan switch happens via a Stripe webhook on our side; expect a few seconds before the new caps show up.

Downgrading

Downgrades take effect at the next billing cycle, not immediately. You keep your current plan's caps through the end of the paid period. If at downgrade time you'd be over the new plan's caps (e.g. you have 10 servers and you're moving to Pro's cap of 7), BoxWatch surfaces a warning in the dashboard. You'll need to remove resources to fit before the cycle rolls over, or the over-cap resources will be deactivated automatically.

Payment methods

Stripe accepts all major credit and debit cards. Apple Pay and Google Pay are available where Stripe supports them. SEPA Direct Debit and other regional methods may show up in Checkout depending on your country.

ACH, wire transfer, and purchase orders aren't supported today — email [email protected] if you need annual billing or a procurement-friendly arrangement.

Invoices

Stripe emails an invoice on every successful charge. Past invoices are available through the Stripe customer portal:

Dashboard → Billing → Manage subscription

This opens Stripe's portal where you can:

• Download invoice PDFs
• Update the card on file
• Update billing email and address
• View upcoming invoice
• Cancel the subscription

Coupons

If you have a coupon code, enter it at signup. The coupon discount applies to your first paid period (and any subsequent periods, depending on the coupon's configuration).

Coupons can also grant bonus servers above your plan's cap. If your coupon includes bonus servers, you'll see them counted under Plan → Bonus servers in the dashboard.

Existing accounts can't apply coupons retroactively today. If you're switching to a paid plan and have a code, contact support before checking out.

Cancellation

Dashboard → Billing → Manage subscription → Cancel. The cancellation is scheduled — your account continues at its current plan through the end of the paid period. After that, you drop to Hobby with its caps.

If you'd already paid for the period, you don't get a refund by default. For special cases (downgrades within 24 hours, double-charges, billing errors), email support — we're reasonable about it.

Refunds

Stripe handles refunds. We process them on request within one business day:

1. Email [email protected] from the account email.
2. Tell us the charge date and the reason.
3. Stripe refunds the card on file within 5-10 business days (banks vary).

We pro-rate refunds for accidental upgrades. Routine "I forgot to cancel" cases are decided on a case-by-case basis — we lean generous.

Trials

There's no time-limited trial. Sign up on Hobby, monitor a couple of servers free forever, upgrade when you outgrow it. Pro is $13/mo and includes everything Hobby does plus the 5-minute push interval and 7-day retention.

API

Billing is managed via the Stripe Checkout and Customer Portal — there's no direct billing API from BoxWatch. Programmatic plan info is available from the user endpoint:

Returns the current plan field along with profile data.

For subscription status (Stripe-side):

See also

• Plan tiers & limits — what each plan includes in detail
• Account overview