Understanding the Swap a subscription node for Automate flows

The Swap a subscription node allows you to replace one subscription product with another within an Automate flow. This is useful when you need to transition customers between products, such as moving from a starter product to a refill or updating seasonal items. 

This guide explains how to use the Swap a subscription node, how to configure it, and key use cases for it in Automate flows. 

Before you start

• This article only applies to Automate flows. 
• The Swap a subscription node works independently and does not require a Smart loop, though both can coexist in the same flow.

Use the correct node based on your use case:

• Swap a subscription node: Use for simple, direct swaps between products. For example, swap one product or a product in a collection with another.
• "Subscription" node within the Smart loop: Use for dynamic, advanced swaps where you need to evaluate each subscription individually or apply multiple conditional updates. For example, updating all subscriptions with a specific frequency. 

How it works

With the Swap a subscription node, you select a subscription using targeting criteria such as variant or collection.

When the flow runs, the node:

1. Identifies subscriptions that match the selected criteria.
2. Swaps those subscriptions directly to the configured swap to product
3. Applies any configured overrides (such as frequency, price, or next charge date).

Configure the Swap a subscription node

Add the Swap a subscription node when building or editing an Automate flow. In your Recharge merchant portal:

1. Click Products and select Automate.
2. Create a new flow from a template, or open an existing, unpublished flow.
3. Open the Add a node menu.
4. Select the Swap a subscription node.
5. Select the product condition to swap from.
6. Select the product condition to swap to. 
7. Optional: Apply any overrides. 
8. Save your changes.

Available conditions

The Swap a subscription node uses targeting criteria to determine which subscriptions to update.

• Variant: Targets a specific product variant. All subscriptions with that variant are swapped. For example, if a customer has multiple subscriptions for the same variant, each subscription is swapped.
• Collection: Targets all products within a collection. For example, if you have a "Fruit" collection that includes products like apple, banana, or kiwi, any customer subscribed to those products will have their subscription updated to "grape". 

Use cases

Refer to the examples below to see how other merchants use the Swap a subscription node when building Automate flows: