Overview
Alguna supports a wide variety of product types and payment terms:Create a Product
- Navigate to Products
- Click New Product
- Configure product details
- Set pricing
- Click Save
Fee Types
Fixed Fees
Consistent charges that remain the same across billing periods. Use cases:- Platform access fees
- Monthly subscriptions
- Seat licenses
Metered Fees
Variable charges based on actual usage. Use cases:- API requests
- Data transfer
- Compute hours
- Storage
For metered products, you’ll need to configure a billable metric to track usage. See Define Metrics.
Charge Type
Upfront (In Advance)
Billed at the start of the billing period. Example: Customer pays $99 on January 1st for January access.Arrears (After Usage)
Billed at the end of the billing period. Example: Customer pays for January usage on February 1st.Usage charges are billed in arrears, because the amount is only known once the period has been metered. Prepaid commitments on a metered product are the exception: the committed amount is billed in advance and drawn down, with any overage billed in arrears.
Billing Frequency
Recurring
Billed every billing period (monthly, quarterly, annual, or custom).One-Off
Billed once, never recurs. Use for setup fees, implementation services, or one-time charges.Custom Periods
Configure custom billing periods (e.g., every 6 months) when creating the product.Pricing Models
The pricing model decides how a quantity becomes an amount. Alguna supports eleven; the ones you will reach for most often are below. See Pricing Models for the full set and the API reference for their request shapes.Fixed
A flat amount for a fixed quantity, regardless of usage. Example: $99/month for platform access.Per Unit
One rate, multiplied by the quantity. Example: 250/month.Tiered
The total quantity decides which tier applies, and every unit is then priced at that tier’s rate. Example:- Up to 100 units: $1.00 each
- 101–500 units: $0.80 each
- 501+ units: $0.50 each
Graduated Tiered
Each tier is priced independently, so the quantity is split across the tiers it spans. Example: the same tiers as above. For 250 units: (100 × 0.80) = $220.Prepaid with Overages
The customer commits to a quantity up front at a committed rate, and anything beyond it is charged at the overage tiers. Example: 10,000 units committed at 0.12 each.Percentage Models
Price as a percentage of a transaction value rather than a per-unit rate, either at one rate per tier or graduated across tiers. See Pricing Models.Product Details
When creating a product, configure:Multi-Currency Pricing
Set prices in multiple currencies for international customers:- In the product pricing section, click Add Currency
- Select the currency
- Enter the price for that currency
- Repeat for additional currencies
Common Product Patterns
SaaS Platform
Infrastructure/Cloud
Professional Services
Managing Products
Edit a Product
- Navigate to Products
- Click on the product
- Make changes
- Click Save
Archive a Product
- Navigate to Products
- Click on the product
- Click Archive
Linking Products to Metrics
For metered products, link to a billable metric:- Create the product with Metered fee type
- In the Metric field, select an existing metric or create a new one
- Configure pricing based on the metric
Best Practices
Clear Naming
Use descriptive names that appear well on invoices.
Consistent SKUs
Use structured SKU codes for easy identification.
Test Pricing
Test pricing models in sandbox before production.
Version Prices
Create new products for significant price changes to preserve history.
Troubleshooting
Product Not Appearing
- Check product status is Active
- Verify product is assigned to relevant plan
- Confirm no filters are hiding it
Pricing Not Calculating
- Review pricing model configuration
- Check tier boundaries for gaps
- Verify currency matches customer
Metered Product Shows No Usage
- Confirm metric code matches
- Verify usage events are being sent
- Check event timestamps are in billing period
Next Steps
Pricing Models
Deep dive into pricing models.
Plans
Organize products into plans.