Churnkey SDK
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What is Churnkey SDK?
The Churnkey SDK is an open-source cancel flow component for React that provides survey, offers, feedback, and confirmation steps in one unified component. It is designed for subscription-based businesses looking to reduce churn by intercepting customers who attempt to cancel their subscriptions. The SDK can work completely standalone as an open-source tool without requiring a Churnkey account, or it can connect to Churnkey's platform for analytics, A/B testing, and AI-powered retention features.
Key features include five step types (survey, feedback, confirm, pause, plan-change) and six offer types (discount, pause, plan-change, trial extension, coupon, custom) out of the box. The SDK offers custom step and offer types, a headless hook for full UI control, and is fully themable via CSS variables, classNames, and component overrides. It is MIT licensed and actively developed, starting with React support.
The tool is ideal for subscription businesses, product teams, and engineers who want a production-ready cancel flow without building one from scratch. It serves companies at different stages: those who want a free open-source solution, those who need analytics dashboards to track save rates and cancel-reason trends, and those who want fully connected AI-powered retention with no-code editing and automatic billing actions through their payment provider like Stripe, Chargebee, Paddle, or Braintree.
The SDK supports three integration levels: Open Source (free, no account required), Analytics (free with Churnkey account, adds dashboard and test mode), and Connected (paid Starter plan+, adds No-Code Editor, A/B tests, segments, and AI features). This modular approach lets teams start simple and add capabilities as they grow.
Churnkey SDK pricing
Pricing model: Freemium
The Churnkey SDK has three integration levels with different pricing. Open Source is completely free with no Churnkey account required. Analytics is free with a free Churnkey account and includes save rate dashboard, cancel-reason breakdown with trends, and test mode. Connected requires a paid Churnkey plan starting at Starter and up, which adds No-Code Editor, A/B tests, segments, offer cooldowns, and boosted revenue tracking. The Intelligence tier is a paid add-on that includes Adaptive Offers (AI-optimized offer selection), Feedback AI (sentiment and themes), and Automatic AI Translations.
Churnkey SDK pros
- Open source and MIT licensed for full freedom
- Works without any Churnkey account required
- Production-ready cancel flow out of the box
- Five step types included: survey, feedback, confirm, pause, plan-change
- Six offer types included: discount, pause, plan-change, trial extension, coupon, custom
- Custom step and offer types supported
- Headless hook (useCancelFlow) for full UI control
- Fully themable via CSS variables
- Supports classNames and component overrides
- Active development starting with React
- Free open source tier with no account needed
- Free analytics tier with Churnkey account
- Test mode for staging traffic
- Save rate by reason and offer tracking
- Cancel-reason breakdown with trends dashboard
- No-Code Editor for flow edits without deploy
- A/B tests on offer order and copy
- Segments by plan, tenure, MRR, and metadata
- Offer cooldowns to prevent abuse
- Boosted revenue tracking after offer accept
- Adaptive Offers with AI-optimized selection on Intelligence tier
- Feedback AI for sentiment and themes on Intelligence tier
- Automatic AI Translations on Intelligence tier
- Connects with Stripe, Chargebee, Paddle, Braintree
Churnkey SDK cons
- Connected features require paid Starter plan or higher
- Intelligence tier AI features are paid add-ons separate from Starter
- React-focused, may need adaptation for other frameworks
- Headless hook requires full UI implementation work
- Theming requires CSS variable knowledge
- No-code Editor only available on paid plans
- A/B testing only available on paid plans
- Segmentation features only on paid plans
- Offer cooldowns only on paid plans
- AI features require Intelligence tier upgrade
- Must integrate billing provider for Connected mode
- Server-signed session token required for Connected
- Analytics requires free Churnkey account setup
- Custom offers require developer implementation
- Pause and plan-change need billing backend support
- Trial extension requires billing system support
- Discount offers need coupon infrastructure
- Feedback step may increase cancel flow length
- Survey reasons must be manually defined initially
- Offer logic requires handleDiscount handler implementation
- Cancel action requires handleCancel handler implementation
- Not a full churn solution without backend integration
- Documentation may require reading for advanced features
- Test mode must be enabled in dashboard manually
Frequently asked questions about Churnkey SDK
Do I need a Churnkey account to use the SDK?
No, the open source SDK works completely without a Churnkey account. You can render a working cancel flow with no backend and no account using just the Quickstart. You only need a Churnkey account if you want to add analytics (free account) or use Connected features (paid plan).
What is the difference between Open Source, Analytics, and Connected levels?
Open Source is free with no account required and provides the basic cancel flow component. Analytics is free with a Churnkey account and adds the save rate dashboard, cancel-reason trends, and test mode. Connected requires a paid Starter plan and adds the No-Code Editor, A/B tests, segments, offer cooldowns, and boosted revenue tracking. Intelligence tier add-on includes AI features like Adaptive Offers and Feedback AI.
How do I add offers to my cancel flow?
You define offers in your survey step reasons by adding an offer object with type (discount, pause, plan-change, trial extension, coupon, or custom), couponId, and percentOff or other details. Then implement the handleDiscount async handler to apply the coupon to your billing system when a customer accepts an offer.
What billing providers does Churnkey support?
Churnkey integrates with Stripe, Chargebee, Paddle, and Braintree. For Connected mode, you must connect your billing provider in the Churnkey dashboard and pass a server-signed session token to the SDK.
Can I customize the UI of the cancel flow?
Yes, the SDK is fully customizable. You can theme it via CSS variables, classNames, and component overrides. For full UI control, use the headless hook (useCancelFlow) which lets you render anything yourself while still using the SDK's logic and handlers.
What step types are available in the SDK?
The SDK includes five step types out of the box: survey (for collecting cancel reasons), feedback (for additional comments), confirm (for final cancellation confirmation), pause (for offering subscription pause), and plan-change (for offering alternative plans). You can also create custom step types.
How do A/B tests work in Connected mode?
In Connected mode with a Starter plan, you can run A/B tests on offer order and copy through the No-Code Editor. This lets you test which offer sequences and messaging perform better at saving customers without requiring a code deploy.
What is the headless hook and when should I use it?
The headless hook (useCancelFlow) gives you full UI control by exposing the SDK's logic without rendering any components. Use it when you want to build your own custom UI while still leveraging the SDK's handlers, state management, and offer logic.
How do I enable test mode for staging?
Test mode is available in the Analytics level (free with Churnkey account). You must explicitly enable test mode in the Churnkey dashboard. When enabled, the SDK will send staging traffic instead of production data, allowing you to test your flow without affecting real analytics.
What AI features are available on the Intelligence tier?
The Intelligence tier paid add-on includes three AI features: Adaptive Offers (AI-optimized offer selection that automatically chooses the best offer for each customer), Feedback AI (sentiment analysis and theme extraction from customer feedback), and Automatic AI Translations (auto-translating your flow for international customers).