North Metric

    Failed payment recovery,after Stripe's retries.

    Stripe retries the cards it can. North Metric follows up on the rest.

    Get your free churn report →Actions off until you turn them on
    IN SHORT

    Failed payment recovery means getting a declined subscription payment paid.

    On Stripe, Smart Retries retry soft declines and Stripe can email a card-update link. Hard declines and invoices with no payment method aren't retried until the customer adds a new card. North Metric drafts a personal note for those at once, and for the rest when Stripe's retries end.

    FAILED PAYMENTSEXAMPLE
    insufficient_fundsSoft decline · Stripe still retryingNo note yet
    insufficient_fundsSoft decline · retries ended, still unpaidNote drafted
    lost_cardHard decline · Stripe won’t retryNote drafted · day 0
    no card on fileMissing card · retries waitNote drafted · day 0
    01WHAT STRIPE DOES

    Stripe's retries anddunning emails.

    What Stripe's retries and dunning emails already do, they do well. Keep Stripe Smart Retries on: North Metric starts where they stop.

    Smart Retries55%Stripe's own average recovery
    STRIPE ALREADYStripe retries soft declines at the times most likely to work.
    NORTH METRIC ADDSLeaves those invoices alone until the retries end, so nothing goes out twice.
    Dunning emails30 dayswindow to count a recovery
    STRIPE ALREADYStripe can email a card link after each failed payment.
    NORTH METRIC ADDSWhen the retries end, a note in your name with North Metric's own card-update link.
    Card updater30 daysflagged before a card expires
    STRIPE ALREADYStripe's card updater refreshes many replaced cards, widest in the US.
    NORTH METRIC ADDSCards due to expire flagged 30 days ahead, with a note for customers worth keeping.
    Stripe figures from stripe.com/billing and docs.stripe.com, checked Oct 18, 2026.
    02HARD DECLINES

    Hard declines andmissing cards.

    Stripe doesn't retry hard declines or invoices with no card on file: its retries wait for a new card. North Metric asks for one at once.

    Brightloom · $1.4K/mo · lost_cardEXAMPLE
    DAY 0DAY 14DAY 30
    THE USUAL WAYStripe only
    DAY 0Charge declined · Stripe's email goes outlost_card: a hard decline. Card link sent, if emails are onDAYS 1–14 · DAY 14Retries wait · Your settings applyNo retry runs without a new card. Canceled, unpaid, past due or paused
    NORTH METRICAsked day 0
    DAY 0Decline seen · Note drafted · You approveHard decline: Stripe won't retry. In your name, with a card-update link. Approve each is the defaultDAYS 1–30If they payCounted as Recovered, tied to invoice
    First personal ask · Stripe onlyNeverFirst personal ask · North MetricDay 0
    Example. Sample customer, not a real result.
    03SOFT DECLINES

    A personal note whenthe retries end.

    Soft declines, like insufficient_funds, can clear on a retry. When Stripe's retries end and the invoice is still unpaid, North Metric drafts a note.

    CARD-UPDATE NOTE#1 · money at riskEXAMPLE
    WHENStripe's retries ended · insufficient_funds
    FROMYour name · your domain
    Hi —Can you update the card when you get a minute?Update card in Stripe →
    ✓Checked live · invoice still unpaid
    Approve
    Point to a line to see it on the note.
    04EXPIRING CARDS

    Expired andexpiring cards.

    Stripe's card updater refreshes many replaced cards on its own. For cards still due to expire, North Metric flags each one 30 days ahead.

    ONE CARD DUE TO EXPIRE · THE LAST 30 DAYSEXAMPLE
    STRIPE · FIRSTCard updater refreshes many replaced cardsNORTH METRIC
    FLAGGED · 30 DAYS AHEADCARD EXPIRES
    01Stripe's card updater goes firstStripe updates many replaced or expired cards through the card networks, with the widest support in the US.
    02Flagged 30 days aheadEvery card due to expire within 30 days is flagged, so you see it before the charge fails.
    03A note for customers worth keepingValuable customers, by default those above your median MRR, get a card-update note. Stripe can still send its own email.
    04The same checks as every moveApproved by you or a rule, checked live in Stripe before sending, and logged.
    See which failed payments put the most money at risk in your own Stripe.Get your free churn report →Actions off until you turn them onOr try the demo →
    05COUNTED HONESTLY

    Recovered money,counted honestly.

    A payment that comes back during Stripe's retries is Stripe's recovery. North Metric never counts it.

    COUNTED AS RECOVERED✓A payment counts as Recovered only when the failed invoice is paid, or the subscription restarts, within 30 days of North Metric's card-update note.✓Each recovered dollar is counted once and tied to its invoice, and it sits in Kept MRR beside customers saved and won back.
    SHOWN APART, NEVER COUNTED✕Payments that come back while Stripe is still retrying are shown apart and never counted as money kept.✕Notes that fail or bounce are listed, never counted.
    Failed payments are one side of churn; the guide to voluntary vs involuntary churn covers the other.This is how we measure money kept.
    06FAQ

    Questions aboutfailed payments.

    Turn on Smart Retries, Stripe's emails for failed payments and expiring cards, and automatic card updates. Then follow up where Stripe stops: ask for a new card at once on hard declines and missing cards, and send customers worth keeping a personal note when the retries end.

    FREE CHURN REPORT

    See what's left afterStripe's retries.

    Get your free churn report →Actions off until you turn them on