Billing and plans

ColonyCat is free to start. The free plan covers two people and most of what the system does. When paid plans launch, they'll add more seats for your team and a few power features. There's no contract; you'll be able to switch plans or cancel anytime, with the next bill reflecting the change.

Right now, during the open beta, all paid-plan self-serve billing is paused. ColonyCat is completely free, and if you need more than 2 seats, email beta@colonycat.org to request a seat adjustment. We'll get you set up right away.

This chapter walks through what the plans will include, how to get more seats today, and what you'll see when paid plans open.

The plans, side by side

A seat is a person on your team, a member or someone with a pending invite. The OrgAdmin counts as one seat.

What if I need more seats now? Email beta@colonycat.org and mention your group name and how many people need access. We'll adjust your plan for you.

What if I go over when billing opens? ColonyCat doesn't lock you out. Extra seats above your plan will be billed at $1.50 per seat per month, prorated. So if you're on Core (10 seats included) and grow to 12 people, you'll see a $13 monthly bill instead of $10. No surprise jumps.

Nonprofit discount. Verified 501(c)(3) rescues get 25% off whichever paid plan they pick, with the same seat count. There's no separate plan to choose: verify your EIN once and the discount applies automatically to Core, Pro, or Max (for example, Max drops from $25 to $18.75/mo). See "Becoming a verified nonprofit" below.

Featured directory listing

Independent add-on, available on every plan including Free. $10/month pins your rescue to the top of the public directory at colonycat.org/directory for visitors within 200 miles of your address. Helps new volunteers find you.

Founder-plan organizations (founding-member rescues) get Featured for free as a perk. When paid plans open, you'll be able to add or remove Featured anytime from your Billing page. It's its own subscription, separate from your plan, so a Free rescue with Featured will pay just $10 a month.

Step 1: Open the Billing page (when paid plans open)

Click your rescue's name (top right). Click Billing at the top right of the Organization page.

You see your current plan, the seat count, and the upcoming bill. The card under it shows paid options.

Step 2: Subscribe (when paid plans open)

Click Subscribe next to the plan you want. ColonyCat will hand you off to Stripe Checkout (Stripe is the payment processor, same as basically every other online service).

<!-- Stripe Checkout page screenshot (ch9-02-stripe-checkout.png) is not shown during beta because paid plans are unavailable. -->

Fill in your card info. Click Subscribe. You bounce back to the Billing page with the new plan active and your first month's invoice showing as paid.

Test cards in test mode. If you're testing ColonyCat before going live, use Stripe's test card 4242 4242 4242 4242 with any future expiration and any 3-digit CVC. No real money moves.

Step 3: Manage billing later (when paid plans open)

From the Billing page, click Manage billing →. This takes you into Stripe's Customer Portal where you can:

• Change plans (upgrade Core → Pro, downgrade Pro → Core).
• Update your card.
• Download past invoices (useful at tax time).
• Cancel your subscription.

The Portal is run by Stripe, not us. Looks a little different from the rest of ColonyCat, but it's secure and standard.

Step 4: Becoming a verified nonprofit

If your rescue is a 501(c)(3), you get 25% off whichever paid plan you choose, with the same seat count, when billing opens.

To set up:

1. Click your rescue's name (top right) → Edit profile.
2. Scroll to the Organization EIN section.
3. Enter your EIN (Employer Identification Number, looks like 12-3456789). Click Save EIN to record it.
4. To unlock the 25% discount, click Verify with IRS (US-only).

ColonyCat checks your EIN against the IRS exempt-organization database. If it matches, you get a verified badge on your profile.

If the automated check fails but you're confident you're really 501(c)(3), reach out to hello@colonycat.org with your IRS determination letter and we'll mark you verified manually.

Once you're verified, the discount applies on its own. When billing opens, you'll see the discounted price next to each plan on the Billing page, and it stays applied when you upgrade or downgrade, for as long as you're verified. No separate plan to switch into, and your card details stay where they are.

Step 5: Free + Featured (when paid plans open)

Free plan rescues will be able to add the Featured directory listing add-on separately. On the Billing page (which works on Free too), you'll click ☆ Add featured. You'll go through Stripe Checkout to add a card, and then you'll pay $10/month for the Featured listing only.

This is useful for solo or two-person operations that want directory visibility but don't need extra seats.

Where you are now

• You've picked a plan that matches your team size.
• You can manage everything later from the Billing page.
• You know what add-ons exist.

In Chapter 10 we cover your personal account and the privacy settings on it.

A few sanity-savers

• No annual plans yet. Just monthly. Charges renew the same day each month.
• Refunds. We don't auto-refund a partial month if you downgrade or cancel mid-cycle, but if you cancel right after being charged and email us, we'll figure something out. We're a small team, we're reasonable.
• Switching plans is instant for the new pricing but doesn't refund the old. Upgrading Core → Pro mid-month gives you the new seat count immediately. The next month's bill reflects the new plan.
• Stripe Customer Portal can do things our app can't. Like swapping the card without us seeing the number. That's by design, your card info never touches ColonyCat's servers.

→ Next: Chapter 10: Your account