SmartRetry includes dedicated support for recurring payments - covering the full lifecycle from the initial credential capture through ongoing scheduled charges. SmartRetry applies specialized retry logic to recurring transactions, making it particularly effective at reducing involuntary churn caused by failed subscription renewals.
Overview
A recurring payment series in SmartRetry begins with a recurring_init transaction, which charges the payer and stores their card credentials on file. All subsequent charges in the series use the recurring transaction type, referencing the stored credentials.
SmartRetry supports three modes for managing who schedules and triggers each charge.
Management modes
Merchant-managed
Platform-managed
Provider-managed
You control the schedule entirely. SmartRetry does not trigger charges automatically - you call the API for each charge when your own billing system determines one is due.How it works:
- You initiate a
recurring_init to store credentials.
- When a charge is due, your system sends a
recurring transaction request via the API.
- SmartRetry processes the charge and applies its recovery logic if the transaction is declined.
Best for: Merchants with existing billing infrastructure who want to add SmartRetry’s recovery capabilities without changing their scheduling logic. SmartRetry schedules and executes charges automatically based on the frequency and parameters you configure when creating the series.How it works:
- You create a recurring series with a start date, frequency, and number of payments.
- SmartRetry generates future transactions for each scheduled charge.
- On each due date, SmartRetry triggers the charge and applies its full retry logic automatically.
Best for: Subscription businesses that want hands-off recurring billing with built-in recovery on every renewal attempt.Platform-managed recurring is the recommended mode for subscription businesses. Every renewal attempt automatically benefits from SmartRetry’s full recovery logic - including retry scheduling, acquirer routing, and 3DS optimization - without any additional integration work.
Your payment provider handles the scheduling and execution of recurring charges. SmartRetry receives the transactions from the provider and applies recovery logic when charges fail.How it works:
- Your payment provider initiates charges according to their own schedule.
- SmartRetry integrates with the provider to intercept declines and apply retry strategies.
Best for: Merchants whose payment provider natively manages recurring billing and where switching to platform-managed scheduling is not practical. Recurring series lifecycle
A recurring series moves through the following statuses over its lifetime:
Once a recurring series is cancelled, it cannot be reactivated. To restart recurring charges after cancellation, you must create a new recurring series.
Future transactions
In a platform-managed series, SmartRetry pre-creates future transactions for each upcoming scheduled charge. You can retrieve these to see what is planned and monitor their progress.
Frequency configuration
When creating a platform-managed recurring series, you configure the charge frequency using the recurring_date_type and time_interval fields.
The time_interval multiplier lets you express intervals like “every 2 weeks” or “every 3 months” without needing custom frequency values.
Key series fields
