How to announce a price increase by email

Do I need to announce a price increase at all?

For one-time buyers, not always. Prices on a store change, and plenty of brands just update them. But a heads-up can turn the change into a reason to buy now, and it's more honest with people who buy from you often.

For subscribers, yes. They agreed to a price, and the next charge happens without them doing anything. Springing a higher charge on them is how you get chargebacks, angry support tickets and cancellations. In some states, it's also a legal issue (more below).

Who should get the email?

Split it three ways:

1. Active subscribers. A dedicated email, plus an SMS if they've opted in. This is the one that has to go out.
2. Repeat customers. People who've bought the affected products in the last few months. A heads-up email, with a reason to stock up if you want one.
3. Everyone else. Optional. A line in your next regular campaign is enough, or nothing.

Use segments, not your whole list. If you're not sure how to build these, see Klaviyo lists vs segments.

How much notice should I give?

Enough to let people make a choice before they're charged.

Skio, a subscription app, says "30+ days is ideal." But if you have subscribers in California, the state's automatic renewal law, updated as of July 1, 2025, sets a window. Per Cooley's summary, a business changing the fee for an existing automatic renewal must notify the consumer "at least seven days and no more than 30 days before the new fee takes effect," along with how to cancel.

So for most Shopify subscription brands, the practical answer is a notice 2 to 4 weeks before the change, which fits inside California's window. Other states have their own rules, and federal rules are in flux: the FTC's 2024 "Click to Cancel" rule was vacated by a federal appeals court in July 2025, and the FTC reopened rulemaking in March 2026. This is general information, not legal advice. Check with a lawyer for your situation.

What should the email say?

Lead with the facts. Then the reason. Then the options.

Be direct

Harvard Business Review's advice on price increases boils down to: be direct, explain the real reason, and avoid euphemisms. "We're updating our pricing structure to better serve you" makes people suspicious. "Starting December 1, a bag goes from $28 to $32" doesn't.

Give a short, fair reason

Yale marketing professor Nathan Novemsky says "people are much more accepting of price changes when they believe the reason is fair and unavoidable." Ingredient costs, shipping, materials, a better formula. One or two sentences is enough.

You don't need to walk customers through your margins. Give context they care about, not a tour of the business. Novemsky offers neutral wording if costs are policy-driven: "Recent changes in trade policies have increased the cost of key materials we use."

Remind them what they get

If you've held prices for a long time, say so. If the product improved, say how. Novemsky also suggests pairing an increase with an improvement or phasing it in.

Tell them their options

For subscribers: the date of their first charge at the new price, how to skip, swap or pause, and how to cancel. Spelling out cancellation feels backwards, but it's required in some places, and it builds trust. In a new subscriber's first 30 days, I make sure they see options to skip, swap or pause instead of canceling. A price change is exactly when those options matter again.

A simple structure

1. Subject line: plain. "Our prices are changing on Dec 1."
2. First lines: what's changing, by how much, and when.
3. Why: one or two sentences.
4. What it means for you: subscribers get their next charge date and options. Others get an optional chance to order at today's price.
5. Sign-off: from a real person.

That last point matters. A price increase is a good time for a plain note from the founder rather than a designed promo. I cover how to write one in founder emails, and the general rules for clear writing are in ecommerce email copywriting.

Should I offer a "stock up before prices go up" window?

It's a fair offer, and it's honest: buy before the date, pay today's price. No discount required. It can pull revenue forward, so plan for a softer month after.

Keep it clean. Don't stack a discount code on top of a pre-increase window, or you'll train people to wait for the next deal. More on that in email discount strategy.

How do I update subscription prices in Recharge or Skio?

Here's the part that catches brands out: changing the product price in Shopify doesn't change existing subscriptions.

• Recharge says that after you update the price, "existing subscribers will still be subscribed to the old price." There's an exception: if a customer changes their frequency or variant in the portal, Recharge applies the newest price. To move everyone, Recharge offers a multi-select edit, a CSV import, or a bulk update with filters.
• Skio says "existing subscriptions retain their original pricing and are not automatically updated when you change prices in Shopify." You apply new pricing with its Bulk Operations tool, and Skio recommends notifying customers first and exporting the affected list to Klaviyo.

So the order is: build the segment, send the notice, wait out the notice period, then run the bulk update. Not the other way around.

Should subscribers get different treatment?

Usually, yes. They're your most valuable customers, and they're the ones with a recurring charge. Options worth considering:

• Grandfather existing subscribers at the old price, for a while or for good. Simple, and it rewards loyalty.
• Let them lock in a rate by switching to a longer plan, which Skio suggests.
• Give them more notice than everyone else, within any state limits.

After the change, watch cancellations closely for the next two billing cycles. If churn jumps, your subscription churn emails are where you win people back.

What wording should I avoid?

• Euphemisms like "pricing adjustment" or "new pricing structure" without the actual numbers.
• Apologizing three times. One acknowledgment is enough.
• Blaming customers or competitors.
• Hiding the change in the footer or a P.S.
• Promising prices will never change again.

What should I do first?

Before you raise anything, build a segment of active subscribers to the affected products and check where they live. That tells you which notice rules apply and how big the email really is. Then write a short, direct notice, schedule it 2 to 4 weeks before the change, and only run the bulk price update after the notice period ends. For the bigger picture on keeping customers buying, see repeat purchase email strategy.

FAQ

WRITTEN BY Jack White

Founder of Bardown Digital, a Chicago-based Klaviyo email and retention agency for Shopify brands. He's worked with brands doing $500K to $100M a year, with $100M+ in email-attributed revenue across them.

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