A variable subscription product lets customers choose between different recurring purchase options on one product page. Each option is configured as a variation with its own subscription price, billing interval, billing period, and metric.

Use a variable subscription when the same product can be sold with more than one selectable option, for example, different metrics, editions, service types, or billing units. If the product has only one recurring price and no selectable options, a simple subscription may be enough. If each option needs its own recurring price, use a variable subscription.

Common Matrix42 Marketplace metrics include:

Before You Start

Prepare the product information before creating the variable subscription:

• Product name
• Long description and short description
• Product image and, if needed, gallery images
• Category and tags
• Pricing model and billing period
• Relevant product use cases

Decide what the customer should choose on the product page. Variations can represent the product metric, edition, billing option, service type, usage unit, or another customer-facing option.

Matrix42 will review and manually approve submitted products before they are published in the Marketplace. Submit the product only after the prices, billing periods, metrics, and product details have been checked.

Example Product

If you want to review an existing variable subscription product before creating your own, use Message Center as a reference. It shows selectable options on the product page, recurring subscription pricing, a variation selector, and the Request Price button.

If the Product Already Exists

If the product already exists in the Marketplace, create a new product instead of changing the existing product type. This is especially important when the current product uses another product type, for example a simple product, and the new setup should become a variable subscription product.

Do not change an existing product from a different product type to a variable subscription product. Older orders can depend on the original product setup, and changing the product type may cause existing order data or follow-up processes to stop working correctly.

Create the new product with the updated title, description, prices, attributes, and variations as described in the next section. If the product name should stay the same, add (New) to the title, for example Product Name (New). Matrix42 will adjust the final title during the review process.

After Matrix42 approves the new product, the old product will automatically be deactivated.

Create a Product

1. In the Marketplace Dashboard, go to Products.
2. Select Add New to create a new product.
3. Enter the product title.
4. Add the long product description.
5. Add the short product description.
6. Add the product image and any gallery images.
7. Select the relevant categories and tags.

Select the Correct Product Type

In the Product data section, select Variable subscription.

This product type is required when customers should choose between multiple recurring subscription options. Do not use Simple product, Simple subscription, or plain Variable product if each option needs recurring billing.

Configure Product Attributes

Attributes define the options customers can choose from on the product page. For a variable subscription, attributes are also used to create the product variations.

The Marketplace provides a set of premade attributes that you can select from.

Please note that currently, only global attributes, provided by the Marketplace team, can be used. If you need a different global attribute, contact a Marketplace Admin. 

To configure the attributes:

1. Open the Attributes tab in the Product data section.
2. Select the attribute values that match the available product options. If none is available that suits your requirements, please contact the Marketplace Administrator.
3. If the customer-facing label should be different from the internal attribute name, fill the Product Page Label field. This label is shown on the single product page and can make the option easier for customers to understand.
4. Check Used for variations. Without this setting, the attribute values will not be available when you create variations.
5. Save the attributes.

Keep the Product Page Label customer-friendly. This labels can be visible on the product page and should make the purchase option clear.

Create the Variations

After saving the attributes, create the variations that customers can select.

1. In the Product data section, confirm that the product type is still set to Variable subscription.
2. Open the Variations tab.
3. Click Add manually to add the first variation.
4. In the variation row, use the attribute dropdown to select the option this variation represents. For example, if the attribute is a user range, select the matching value such as Per User: 1 - 800 or Per User: 801 - 5000.
5. Repeat this for every option customers should be able to select on the product page.
6. Click Edit on each variation to adjust the pricing, billing interval, billing period, metric, SKU fields, and other variation settings.
7. For each active variation, check Enabled.

Do not leave active variations incomplete. Missing attribute values, disabled variations, or missing required subscription fields can cause confusing product-page, cart, or checkout behavior.

Configure Each Subscription Variation

Open each variation and complete the required subscription information.

For every available variation, set:

• Enabled
• Regular recurring price
• Billing interval
• Billing period
• Sold individually (No will remove the quantity selection on the single product page. This is described mor thoroughly below)
• Metric

The SKU fields can be ignored as Matrix42 will fill these for you.

When the Matrix42 fields are available on the variation, complete them as follows:

This optional variation field can be filled:

• Sign-up fee

Example variation setup:

Sold Individually

The Sold individually option controls whether customers can choose a quantity for the selected variation.

If Sold individually is enabled for a variation, the quantity field disappears on the product page after the customer selects that variation. The customer can then purchase only one unit of that variation at a time.

If customers should be able to enter a quantity, leave Sold individually disabled for that variation.

Configure Parent Product Price on Request Field

The parent product has a separate field called Price On Request. This field contains an additional feature you can activate as seen below.

Price on Request

Use Price on Request when customers should be able to ask Matrix42 for pricing details instead of relying only on the displayed product price. This is useful for products where pricing depends on the customer situation, selected variation, contract details, or additional clarification.

When Price on Request is enabled, the product page shows a Request Price button. Logged-in customers can use this button to open a request form. If the product is a variable subscription, the form also captures the currently selected variation so Matrix42 can see which option the customer is asking about.

The request form includes the customer's name, email address, and company from their account, including selected product details. The customer can add a message with additional context before submitting the request. After submission, Matrix42 receives the request and can follow up with the customer.

This is the email info that'll be shared with Matrix42 at the time of you submitting a price on request: 

Translations and Multicurrency

The Matrix42 Marketplace uses WPML for multilingual content. Review translated content before submitting the product.

Check the required languages for:

• Product title
• Long description
• Short description
• Attribute names and values
• Product Page Label (If this has been customized, please contact an admin for translation)

Do not assume that changing the default-language product automatically validates all translated variation labels. Review each required language before submitting the product for approval.

Review the Customer Experience

Preview the product on the storefront before submitting it for review.

Check that:

• The product page shows the expected variation selector.
• Customers can select each available variation.
• The price text is correct for each variation.
• The billing period is correct for each variation.
• The product label and metric are understandable.
• The cart shows the correct selected option.
• Checkout shows the expected subscription information.

Use the official storefront as the public reference: https://marketplace.matrix42.com/.

Submit for Review

When the product setup is complete:

1. Save the product as a draft.
2. Preview the product.
3. Confirm all variation prices, billing intervals, billing periods, and metrics.
4. Confirm the parent-product Matrix42 Product Vendor Admin fields.
5. Submit the product for Matrix42 review.

Matrix42 will manually review and approve the product before it is published in the Marketplace.

After Publication: Locked Products

After a product is published, vendors cannot edit it directly because the product becomes locked.

If you need to update a published product, contact or text a Marketplace Admin and ask for permission to update the product. The Marketplace Admin can unlock the product or coordinate the required update workflow.

Troubleshooting