Build a Stripe Billing subscription schedule with multiple phases to model a trial-to-paid-to-discounted lifecycle

In-depth guide

Steps

1. Create a subscription schedule with POST /v1/subscription_schedules, setting start_date and phases array; each phase requires items (price IDs and quantities), iterations or end_date, and proration_behavior
2. Set the first phase with a trial_end or a free price to model a trial period, then the second phase with the paid price
3. Add a third phase with a discounted coupon by including coupon on the phase object to apply a time-limited discount automatically
4. Set end_behavior=release on the schedule so the subscription continues after all phases end without expiring
5. Monitor schedule transitions by listening for customer.subscription.updated webhook events; the subscription object's schedule field will reference the active schedule ID
6. Cancel or modify the schedule mid-cycle with POST /v1/subscription_schedules/SCHEDULE_ID with phases updates; use proration_behavior=always_invoice to immediately generate proration invoices