No multi-year lock-in. No auto-renewal traps. The annual subscription auto-renews at the 12-month anniversary, but the 90-day cancellation notice can be given at any time and terminates the subscription at the 90-day mark. There is no minimum term beyond the standard auto-renewing annual cycle, no penalty for cancelling at the right time, and no degradation of service during the notice period. Monthly subscribers can change tiers in either direction every month with no commitment beyond the current month.
How auto-renewal works
The standard SaaS auto-renew pattern, with the standard accountability the 90-day cancellation notice provides:
Monthly subscribers — billed monthly at the published tier rate. No annual term. Can change tiers every month, in either direction. Can give 90-day cancellation notice at any time.
Annual subscribers — billed annually upfront (with the one-month-free credit) at the published tier rate. Auto-renews at the 12-month anniversary at the same tier unless you tell us otherwise before renewal. Can give 90-day cancellation notice at any time.
The 90-day notice is what prevents auto-renewal from being a trap. You don't have to remember to cancel by a specific date; you can cancel at any point and the cancellation is real (you exit at the 90-day mark, you don't get charged again at renewal once cancellation is in effect).
What an "auto-renewal trap" looks like in other vendors — and doesn't here
In some SaaS contracts:
The customer signs a 1-year term that auto-renews to a 3-year term unless cancelled by a specific narrow date window.
The auto-renewal date isn't communicated, and missing the cancellation window locks the customer into another full term.
Cancellation requires "good cause" or a sales-ops process that isn't obvious.
Pricing increases at renewal without notice.
None of this is in Evolve's terms. The structure is:
One-year auto-renewing term (no escalation to multi-year).
90-day notice can be given at any time, including day one.
Pricing at renewal is the published tier rate at the time of renewal — same rate every customer is paying. If we adjust the published prices, the change is on the website.
Cancellation is reversible until the 90-day mark.
Going from annual to monthly to keep flexibility
If you signed up annual and want monthly flexibility going into the next renewal cycle, the path is:
Inform us before your renewal date that you want to switch to monthly billing.
The next renewal starts on monthly. The one-month-free annual credit doesn't apply on the new monthly plan.
You then have full month-to-month tier flexibility and no annual prepayment.
You can also do this in reverse — switch from monthly to annual at any time to capture the one-month-free discount.
Going from annual to monthly mid-term
This requires the standard 90-day cancellation. Annual subscribers cannot mid-term refund the unused portion of the prepayment; that's the trade-off for the annual discount. The practical sequence to drop tiers mid-year on annual is:
Decide what monthly tier fits your operation going forward.
Hold through the end of the current annual term (no early-termination refund).
At renewal, inform us you're switching to monthly billing at the lower tier.
New cycle starts on monthly at the lower tier.
For monthly subscribers, this is easier — change tier in either direction, mid-month requests effective the first of the next month.
What stays the same regardless of cycle
Two-bill structure (subscription up front; usage in arrears for prior month).
Add-ons activated separately at published rates.
Stripe payment processing.
All of the trust posture (Trust Center, Privacy Policy, MSA, DPA, AUP).
Related questions
How does Evolve pricing work, plain English?
Do I have to pay annually, or can I pay monthly?
What's your cancellation policy if Evolve doesn't work out?
What does the contract actually say — what am I agreeing to?
Is there a free trial, and what does it include?