Discount codes in Zenamu also work for recurring memberships, with one important catch: they apply to the first payment only. From the second payment onward (and every payment after that), the client is charged the full price.
How it works
You create a discount code in Settings → Marketing and promo (section Discount codes) — either a percentage or a fixed-amount discount.
The client enters the code when buying a recurring membership.
The first payment is charged at the original price minus the discount.
The second payment and every payment after that is the full price, with no discount.
Example: A membership costs €60 / month. The discount code gives 30% off.
First payment (at purchase): €42 (€60 − 30%).
Second payment (a month later): €60.
Every payment after that: €60.
Why only the first payment
Zenamu sets up the discount in Stripe so that it applies only once, to the client's first invoice. This is the standard approach for most subscriptions:
Winning a new client. The discount is meant to bring a new client in. After the first month, there's usually no need to keep it.
Predictability. After the first month, the client knows exactly what they'll pay. No surprise when a discount suddenly ends six months in.
Clean accounting. A recurring discount with a time limit would complicate billing, taxes, and refunds.
What the client sees
After entering a discount code at checkout, the client sees:
A note below the code field (it appears only once they've entered a valid code): "The discount code applies to the first payment only."
The discounted price right on the confirmation button, with the original price struck through and the reduced amount next to it (for example €60 €42).
A note below the button: "Then €60 / month."
So the client knows up front how much they're paying today and how much they'll pay from the next period on.
Important — visibility of the discount code field: The code field appears for clients only if your studio has discount codes turned on in Settings. If you only use discount codes occasionally and haven't enabled the feature globally, clients won't see the field and won't be able to enter a code. You'll find the toggle in Settings → Marketing and promo (section Discount codes).
Types of discount
Zenamu supports two types of discount:
Percentage discount
For example, 30% off €60 means the client pays €42 for the first payment.
Works well across variants (e.g. "30% off anything for new clients").
Fixed discount (EUR, USD, etc.)
For example, €15 off €60 means the client pays €45 for the first payment.
Works well for specific campaigns ("€25 off your autumn purchase").
Watch the currency: a fixed discount has its own currency. If the membership is priced in EUR and the discount is in USD, the code can't be used.
How to create a discount code
Go to Settings → Marketing and promo (section Discount codes).
Click Add discount code.
Fill in:
Code — the text the client enters, for example "NEWCLIENT2026" or "SUMMER30".
Code type — fixed amount or percentage.
Value — how many percent, or how much (in the discount's currency).
Currency — if it's a fixed-amount discount.
Valid from / to — when the code can be used.
Valid for — the product type (classes, workshops, courses, passes, one-time memberships, recurring memberships, appointments). You can limit a code to a type, but not to a specific variant or group.
Save.
One-time and recurring memberships are two separate checkboxes under "Valid for". For the code to work with recurring memberships, you have to tick Recurring memberships. Ticking One-time memberships does not cover recurring memberships, and vice versa. Feel free to tick both if you want the code to work for either type.
If you created a code before we split these two checkboxes, and it had memberships ticked at the time, the system automatically ticked both for it when we introduced the change. That code keeps working exactly as before.
Once saved, the discount code is active straight away and clients can enter it at checkout.
What Zenamu can't do with memberships:
A maximum total number of uses (a "first 100 clients" limit) — we don't offer this.
A maximum number of uses per client — this is fixed at once per client and can't be raised. If you want to give a client a repeat discount, create a single-use code just for them ("CLIENT_KAREL_2026") and send it to them.
Restricting a code to a specific membership variant or group — we don't offer this. A code applies to all memberships of the given type. You can now limit it to one-time memberships only, or recurring memberships only (via the two separate checkboxes under Valid for), but not to a specific variant. If you want to target only the monthly variant, use a single-use code that you distribute deliberately, or adjust the price of that specific variant.
What happens to the discount if a client cancels and buys again
A discount code has fixed once-per-client behavior. So if a client:
Buys a membership with a discount (first payment €42).
Cancels a month later.
Buys the same membership again a few months on.
On the second purchase, Zenamu rejects the code with the message "This discount code can only be used once." This protects against abuse. A code can be used only once per client (identified by their ID or email).
If you want to make an exception for a client, create a new single-use code for them (e.g. "KAREL_RETURN_2026") and send it to them. Zenamu checks usage per code.
What happens to the discount if a client switches variant
The client is switching within their existing membership, so there's no "new first payment".
The discount code does NOT apply again. It was already used on the first payment of the old variant.
How much the client pays at the switch depends on the type of change: for an upgrade (moving to a more expensive variant on the same billing period), Stripe charges only the prorated difference for the remaining days; for a change in billing period, the full new price is charged with credit given for the unused part of the original period; for a scheduled downgrade, nothing is charged on the day of the switch and the lower price takes effect at the next renewal. In none of these cases does the discount apply again.
What happens to the discount if a client's payment fails
The discount code applied to the first payment only (even if that payment failed and Stripe retried it several times).
If one of the later automatic retries goes through, the client pays the original discounted amount.
If the client loses the membership (through automatic cancellation) and buys it again later, the rule above applies: the code can only be used once.
What happens to the discount during a bulk price change
A bulk price change (the studio changes a variant's price and applies it to everyone) doesn't touch historical discounts:
Existing clients who previously had a discounted first payment feel no impact.
For new purchases, the discount applies to the new price (e.g. 30% off the new €75 price, not the old €60).
Common situations
A client tells me the code isn't working
Check:
Validity — is today's date within the from – to range?
It's valid for the right membership type — is Recurring memberships ticked on the code? Ticking One-time memberships isn't enough for recurring memberships.
Currency — if it's a fixed-amount discount, is it in the same currency the client is buying in?
Previous use — has the client already used this same code before? (A code can only be used once per client.)
If everything looks fine and the code still won't apply, try entering it yourself in a private browser window. That rules out the problem being on the client's end (signed in to a different account, and so on).
A client wants the discount on later payments too
Explain to the client that "the discount applies to the first payment only". If you want to make an exception as a studio, you can, for example:
Manually lower the variant's price (by agreement — see Changing the price for existing members).
Offer them a switch to a cheaper variant (if you have more than one variant in the group).
Manually add credits to their account (as a loyalty bonus).
Can I offer a permanently reduced price for a certain group?
Yes, through a separate variant in the group. For example, create a "Student" variant at €40 / month in the "Monthly membership" group and hide it from the public. Send the link only to selected students.
FAQ
Can I set up a discount that lasts for the first 3 months? No. Discounts in Zenamu apply to the first payment only. If you want a longer discount, you can effectively create a lower permanent price in a special variant and move the client onto it.
Can I offer a "first month free"? Yes. Create a discount code with a 100% percentage discount and tick Recurring memberships under Valid for. The client enters the code at checkout, the first payment is €0 (free in practice), and the full price is charged from the second period on. This is the simplest way to offer a trial on a recurring membership, since Zenamu doesn't support trial periods on its own.
What happens if I set a discount of 100% on a recurring membership? The first payment is €0, Stripe sends you no money but still activates the membership. From the second period on, it runs normally. At checkout, the client sees the original price struck through with €0 next to it on the confirmation button, and the note "Then €60 / month." below it. Stripe still needs a valid card for future charges, and under European payment rules it usually requires 3D Secure card verification when the card is saved (even though no money is taken at that moment). Based on its own rules, the bank may choose to skip verification, but expect 3D Secure to run for most EU cards.
What if a client buys in a different currency than the discount code uses? If the discount is a percentage, it works across currencies (30% off anything). If it's a fixed amount, the currency has to match, otherwise the code fails.
Can I have several active discount codes? Yes, as many as you like. But a client can use only one code per purchase.
Can discount codes be combined with passes or credits? Discount codes and credits are independent. A client can have both a credit and a discount code at the same time, but on a recurring membership purchase only the discount applies (credits can't be used on recurring memberships).
Do discount codes work with one-time memberships? Yes, discount codes work with one-time (fixed-term) memberships too. The condition is that the code has One-time memberships ticked under Valid for. That's a separate checkbox, independent of recurring memberships. With a one-time membership, the discount applies to the whole purchase, because it's a single payment.
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