North Metric

    Build it yourself,or buy it?

    You can build the list of customers likely to churn. The approvals, limits and proof of money kept take longer. Here's where to draw the line.

    BUILD · QUICK TO STARTThe list
    BUY · ALREADY BUILTRules + proof
    IN SHORT

    Churn prevention means acting on customers likely to leave before they cancel. The at-risk list is quick to build in-house from Stripe data. Approvals, limits on offers, a comparison group and money kept tied to invoices take longer. Build it if you have engineers to own it; buy it if you bill through Stripe and have no CS team.

    01THE ICEBERG

    What you canbuild quickly.

    Most of the list is a query on data Stripe already holds. Above the waterline is what you can build quickly; below it, what takes longer.

    WHAT YOU CAN BUILD QUICKLYSOURCE
    At-risk list from billingFailed payments, scheduled cancels, seat cuts.SIGMA
    Leak reportForever discounts and customers on old prices.SQL
    A weekly email to yourselfThe list, sorted by MRR, in your inbox.CRON
    WATERLINE
    WHAT TAKES LONGER
    Usage matched to billingEach Stripe customer joined to product usage.POSTHOG
    Approvals and an inboxNothing reaches a customer without a yes.RULES
    Limits on every offerCaps, once per customer, locked moves.LIMITS
    A comparison groupAt-risk customers held back, so results are fair.PROOF
    Money kept, tied to invoicesCounted once, with Stripe's own recoveries left out.LEDGER
    Customer protectionsOne-step cancel, opt-out, no open tracking.RULES
    THE SHORT VERSIONYou can build the list. The approvals, limits, comparison group and invoice-tied record are the work.
    Stripe Sigma, for the queryfrom $10 a month(annual, up to 250 charges; Stripe, checked Oct 18, 2026)
    North Metric, all of it$199 a month
    North Metric covers all of it for $199 a month.Start with the free churn report on your own Stripe.
    02THE REAL WORK

    What takes longer:approvals and proof.

    What takes longer: approvals, limits, proof. They keep a churn tool safe to run on real customers, and honest about what it kept.

    1. 01
      Approvals before anything is sentHow approvals and rules work: each move waits for a yes or runs under a rule you set. Locked moves always ask.
    2. 02
      Limits that holdMaximum discount, once per customer, pause length and a daily cap, plus one switch that pauses everything.
    3. 03
      A live re-check before each sendIf the customer paid or the cancel cleared, the move closes on its own. Nothing acts on stale data or acts twice.
    4. 04
      A comparison groupA share of at-risk customers gets no action, so you can see what was kept because of a move, not just after it.
    5. 05
      Money kept, tied to invoicesEach dollar counted once, tied to an invoice, with Stripe's own recoveries left out. See how we measure money kept.
    6. 06
      Customer protectionsCanceling stays one step, every offer carries a one-step cancel link, and there's no open tracking.
    03ATTIO AND MCP

    Attio, or theStripe MCP server.

    Building it in Attio or with the Stripe MCP server is a fast way to start. Here is what each one gives you, and what you still build.

    01

    Pull Stripe data into Attio

    ATTIO
    Attio's Stripe app lets a workflow look up customers, subscriptions and invoices (attio.com, checked Oct 18, 2026).customersubscriptioninvoice
    02

    Flag at-risk records yourself

    YOU BUILD
    A ready-made churn flag in Attio: none found, as of Oct 2026. You write the conditions and keep them current.workflowrecord
    03

    Ask an agent through the Stripe MCP server

    STRIPE MCP
    An AI agent can read your Stripe data and make changes, like updating a subscription or creating a coupon (Stripe docs, checked Oct 18, 2026).stripe_api_readstripe_api_write
    04

    Set your own guardrails

    YOU BUILD
    Stripe asks a person to confirm some writes, such as refunds. Limits on offers, approval per move and a log are yours to add.approvalsaudit_log
    05

    Keep the keys current

    STRIPE MCP
    After Nov 30, 2026, the Stripe MCP server accepts only OAuth or agent API keys. Secret keys and restricted keys without the Agent tag stop working.OAuthagent key
    06

    Measure what was kept

    YOU BUILD
    A comparison group and an invoice-tied record of money kept: none found in either tool, as of Oct 2026.invoice.paidledger
    WHERE NORTH METRIC FITSNorth Metric reads Stripe through its own Stripe App, with actions off until you turn them on. It is a separate tool, not an Attio add-on or an AI agent.
    ✓Risk score, move and comparison group built in✓Every move approved, or run under your rules✓Kept MRR tied to invoices✓Its own MCP server for Claude, ChatGPT and Cursor
    04HONEST ADVICE

    When building isthe right call.

    Sometimes it is. This is the line we'd draw if we were in your seat.

    Build it if…

    ✓You bill outside Stripe, or on more than one billing platform.✓You have engineers with time to own it, not only to ship it.✓You already run a CS team on a CS platform.✓You'd rather no outside tool reads your billing data.

    Buy it if…

    ✓You bill through Stripe and have no CS team.✓Your engineers are booked on the product.✓You want proof of money kept, not only a list.✓You want approvals and limits without building them.

    See which customers are at risk in your own Stripe before you decide to build.

    Get your free churn reportActions off until you turn them on
    05FAQ

    Questions founders askbefore they decide.

    Short answers. Ask us anything else.

    You can build the at-risk list and the leak report with Sigma's SQL. Sigma starts at $10 a month on an annual plan for up to 250 charges (Stripe, checked Oct 18, 2026). Approvals, limits and a comparison group sit outside it.

    FREE CHURN REPORT

    See your at-risk listbefore you build.

    Actions off until you turn them on