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Understand how billing works for a monthly or annual subscription

What you can expect to find on your invoice and what the charges mean.

Written by Beth-Ann Sher

This article refers to our new pricing plans. For information about one of our legacy plans, please log in to view these articles instead, or contact us through the Messenger.

Note: This article applies only to non-contract subscriptions. If your Intercom account is under a contract, please refer instead to Understand how billing works on contract.

There are two invoice experiences depending on whether you pay monthly or yearly for your subscription. We’ll cover each one below and what you can expect to see on your invoice.


Pay monthly subscriptions

If you pay monthly for your subscription (and are not on contract), you’ll receive one invoice each month that includes your core plan subscription and seats for the next month, as well as your usage from the previous month.

Your invoice summary groups charges into sections so they’re easy to read:

  • {Product} - Prorated Changes: When you change seats, add-ons or your plan mid-cycle, the prorated charges are grouped by product (for example, Full Seats (Expert) - Prorated Changes).

  • Additional Usage: Other usage-based charges such as Phone, SMS and Outcomes.

  • Subscription: This includes your core plan subscription, seats, and any add-ons.

A detailed breakdown of charges in each group will be shown below this summary.

Note:

  • To keep invoices easy to read, $0 line items (such as fully discounted prorations, unused products, or empty meters) are hidden.

  • If you are not on an annual contract and change your seat count mid-period, seat usage and proration charges are updated instantly, ensuring both the Subscription page and your invoice remain aligned and precise.

Prorations

A proration is a partial-period adjustment to your bill. It happens when you change your subscription part-way through the month (for example, adding more teammates with assigned seats, buying an add-on, or upgrading your plan).

Because the change takes effect mid-cycle, you're not charged the full monthly price for it. Instead, your invoice adds a Remaining Time charge for your new configuration (from the date of the change to your next billing date) and an Unused Time credit for what you'd already been billed over that same period. The net of the two is what the change actually costs — so you only pay for the time each configuration was active.

Prorated charges are grouped by product, each in its own section (for example, Full Seats (Expert) - Prorated Changes). Within each section, the Remaining Time and Unused Time lines appear below the invoice summary so you can see exactly how the net charge was calculated.

Note: This article covers non-contract subscriptions, so you're only charged for the periods during which each service was enabled. (If you're on a contract, see Understand how billing works on contract — there, you're billed for your committed seat count even if fewer seats are in use.)

Seats proration

Adding or removing seats from your monthly subscription is the most common proration. When you change your seat count during the month:

  • Adding seats creates a Remaining Time charge for the higher seat count (from the date of change to your next billing date), partly offset by an Unused Time credit for the seats you'd already paid for that month — so you're billed only for the added seats, only for the time they're active.

  • Removing seats works in reverse: the Unused Time credit for the seats you drop is larger than the Remaining Time charge, so the net is a credit.

Both lines appear in the Full Seats [plan] - Prorated Changes section of your invoice. The example below shows how this looks in practice.

Below is an example of an invoice which includes Prorated Changes for seats on the Advanced plan. This is only an example of how an invoice may appear, your invoice will vary depending on your own subscription and usage.

The summary shows the net charge — or credit — for each product, e.g. Full Seats (Advanced) - Prorated Changes.

The section beneath breaks out the individual Remaining Time and Unused Time lines that sum to that total. In this example the customer reduced their seats partway through the month, so the net is a credit:

  • Remaining time on 2 × Full Seats (Advanced) after 11 May 2026 — $76.8

  • Unused time on 4 × Full Seats (Advanced) after 11 May 2026 — −$153.7

  • Subtotal: −$76.85

Because monthly subscription seats are billed ahead, reducing them returns the unused portion to you as a credit on your next invoice.

Proactive Support Plus proration

If added to a monthly subscription, Proactive Support Plus will be prorated from the date added to the next billing date, and billed in arrears. Then billed in advance for the next period.

If removed from a monthly subscription, you’ll retain access to this add-on until the end of the current billing period and you won’t be billed for this in advance for the next period. This means no prorated charge will apply.

Proactive Support Plus channel usage over 500 messages will be charged monthly and billed in arrears. You’ll receive a monthly invoice for these Additional Usage charges. Your first 500 messages are included free, and this ‘First 500’ tier is shown on your invoice at $0 so you can see your free usage alongside any paid tiers.

Payments

Your invoice must be paid online using a credit card or with Google Pay / Apple Pay.


Pay yearly subscriptions

If you pay yearly for your subscription (and are not on contract), you’ll receive one invoice each year that includes your core plan subscription and seats for the year. You will also receive a monthly invoice with any Additional Usage charges or Prorations from the previous month.

Your annual invoice will show:

  • Subscription: This will include your core plan subscription, seats, and any add-ons.

A monthly invoice can show:

  • {Product} - Prorated Changes: When you amend your annual plan mid-term (increasing your committed seats, buying an add-on, or upgrading your plan), the change is prorated for the remainder of your annual term and grouped by product (for example, Full Seats (Expert) - Prorated Changes).

  • {Product} - Additional Seats: If you invite teammates beyond the seats committed in your annual plan, those extra seats aren't prorated against your annual term. They're billed as monthly overages at the standard seat price, in arrears at the end of each month they're assigned, in their own per-product section (for example, Fin AI Copilot unlimited usage - Additional Seats).

  • Additional Usage: Other usage-based charges such as Phone, SMS and Outcomes.

A detailed breakdown of charges in each group will be shown below this summary.

Note:

  • To keep invoices easy to read, $0 line items (such as fully discounted prorations, unused products, or empty meters) are hidden.

  • Additional Seats and Additional Usage is always charged at list price (annual discounts do not apply).

Prorations

A proration is a partial-period adjustment to your bill. It happens when you change your subscription part-way through a billing cycle (for example, adjusting your committed seats, buying an add-on, or upgrading your plan).

Because the change takes effect mid-cycle, you're not charged the full-period price for it. Instead, your invoice adds a Remaining Time charge for your new configuration (from the date of the change to your next billing date) and an Unused Time credit for what you'd already been billed over that same period. The net of the two is what the change actually costs — so you only pay for the time each configuration was active.

Prorated charges are grouped by product, each in its own section (for example, Full Seats (Expert) - Prorated Changes). Within each section, the Remaining Time and Unused Time lines appear below the invoice summary so you can see exactly how the net charge was calculated.

Note:

  • When you pay yearly for your subscription, it's not possible to downgrade your plan or remove seats or add-ons during the current billing period. However, these can be changed or removed when your subscription is up for renewal.

  • This article covers non-contract subscriptions, so you're only charged for the periods during which each service was enabled. (If you're on a contract, see Understand how billing works on contract — there, you're billed for your committed seat count even if fewer seats are in use.)

Seats proration

On a pay-yearly subscription, you can amend your plan to add seats at any time. The added seats are prorated for the remainder of your annual term and appear in a {Product} - Prorated Changes section on your next monthly invoice.

Example: You start a yearly Advanced subscription on April 25, 2026 with 2 seats. On April 29, 2026 you increase to 5 seats. Because the change happens mid-term, your invoice shows two prorated lines covering April 29 to the end of your annual term:

  • Remaining Time - a charge for the new 5-seat allocation, from April 29 to your renewal date.

  • Unused Time - a credit for the 2 seats you'd already been billed for over that same period.

The net of the two lines is the cost of the 3 added seats for the remainder of the year.

Additional seats over your plan

If all the seats included in your yearly subscription are already assigned and you invite more teammates, those extra seats aren't prorated against your annual term. Instead, when a teammate accepts the invite, you're billed for them as monthly overages at the standard seat price, at the end of each month they were assigned. On your invoice these appear in a {Product} - Additional Seats section.

Note:

  • If you manage multiple workspaces, seats are billed across all of them combined. The seat count shown for an individual workspace reflects only that workspace's usage, not your total across all workspaces.

  • Plans such as the Early Stage program require a minimum number of seats, which means reductions in seat count mid-term are often not possible. Customers on this program may need to switch to a more flexible plan if they wish to reduce their seat count.

  • After the first year of the Early Stage Program (which includes a 90% discount), you transition to Year 2 with a 50% discount. Invoices reflect these discounts along with any additional charges, such as add-ons or extra seats.

Proactive Support Plus proration

If you add Proactive Support Plus to an annual subscription (that is not on contract), you will be billed the base fee for the remaining months left on your annual subscription.

For example, if you add Proactive Support Plus at the start of your subscription, you would be billed ahead $99 x 12 months = $1,188.

If removed from a yearly subscription, you’ll retain access to Proactive Support Plus until the end of the current billing period and you won’t be billed for this in advance for the next period (i.e. the following year). This means no prorated charge will apply.

Proactive Support Plus channel usage over 500 messages will be charged monthly and billed in arrears. You’ll receive a monthly invoice for these Additional Usage charges. Your first 500 messages are included free, and this ‘First 500’ tier is shown on your invoice at $0 so you can see your free usage alongside any paid tiers.

Payments

Your invoice must be paid online using a credit card or with Google Pay / Apple Pay.


FAQs

Why are there two invoices during pricing transitions?

When you transition to a new pricing plan, you will receive two separate invoices. To cover charges for both the legacy and new plans. This one-time setup ensures that billing is synchronized with your subscription renewal cycle. A final invoice for charges under your legacy plan. A new invoice for upcoming charges under the revised pricing structure.

Can I receive a refund for prorated credits?

Prorated credits are adjustments, not overpayments, and aren't refundable. They're automatically applied to your next invoice to reduce the amount owed.

Why does my invoice include both a prorated charge and a full subscription charge?

An invoice that includes both a prorated charge and a full subscription charge is expected. When you add seats or upgrade mid-cycle, you may see a prorated charge for the remaining time in the current cycle and a full subscription charge for the upcoming cycle. This ensures accurate billing for both periods.

If I’m on an annual contract, can I add additional seats to my subscription?

Yes — If your subscription is under a contract, you can add more seats. However, you’ll need to reach out to your Account Manager to make the change. They’ll help update your seat count and ensure the change is reflected in your contract.

Are there any other reasons why I might be charged twice in the same month?

Payments for invoices are automatically retried. If we’re unable to collect payment for an invoice in the month it was issued, our system will keep retrying. This means that a previous month’s invoice may be successfully charged in a later month — resulting in two payments appearing in the same billing period.

What can I do to manage increased charges?

  • Review and adjust seat allocations in the Teammate Settings of your workspace.

  • Monitor your usage of additional features, such as Proactive Support Plus, and align them with your budget.

  • Switch to a lower-tier plan if additional features are not required.

  • Monitor seat and usage activity regularly within your workspace.

  • Coordinate with workspace admins to ensure only required seats are activated.


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