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Billing and invoices for your hosting customers

Hosting is a subscription business, so billing runs on a cycle: a customer is on a package, an invoice is raised for the period, they pay it, and their account stays active.

The billing loop

  1. A customer is assigned a plan with a price and billing cycle (monthly, yearly…).
  2. An invoice is generated for the period.
  3. The customer pays via Stripe or PayPal.
  4. The gateway’s webhook marks the invoice paid and keeps the account active.

Reference: Billing & invoices.

What the customer sees

In their portal, customers see their invoices — paid and outstanding — and can pay online. Clear, self-service billing means fewer “where’s my invoice?” tickets.

Getting paid reliably

  • Webhooks must work. Paid invoices only update if the gateway can reach your server — see the payments guide.
  • Annual plans reduce the number of transactions (and fees) and cut churn.
  • Dunning: decide what happens on a failed/late payment — a grace period, then suspend.

Good practices

  • Test the whole loop in sandbox before launch: assign plan → invoice → pay → account active.
  • Keep records — invoices are your business’s financial trail.
  • Be clear on renewal terms up front to avoid disputes.

Running OrbixPanel? Plans, invoices, and online payment are built in. OrbixPanel.com → — the free, self-hosted, AI-powered hosting control panel.