autumn-best-practices

Autumn Integration Guide

Always consult docs.useautumn.com for code examples and latest API.

Autumn is a TypeScript-first billing SDK supporting subscriptions, usage-based pricing, credits, trials, and more via Stripe.

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Quick Reference

Environment Variables

• AUTUMN_SECRET_KEY - API key (required). Get one at app.useautumn.com

Installation

npm install autumn-js    # Node.js
pip install autumn-py    # Python

Core Methods

Method	Purpose
customers.create	Create or get customer (idempotent)
checkout	Get Stripe URL or payment preview
attach	Confirm purchase (card on file)
cancel	Cancel subscription
check	Verify feature access
track	Record usage
products.list	Get products with billing scenarios

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Core Config Options

Option	Notes
secretKey	Required. From env AUTUMN_SECRET_KEY
baseURL	Optional. Defaults to https://api.useautumn.com

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Billing Patterns

Check → Work → Track

Always follow this order for protected actions:

const { data } = await autumn.check({ customer_id, feature_id: "api_calls" });
if (!data.allowed) return { error: "Limit reached" };

const result = await doWork();

await autumn.track({ customer_id, feature_id: "api_calls", value: 1 });
return result;

Two-Step Checkout

const { data } = await autumn.checkout({ customer_id, product_id: "pro" });

if (data.url) return redirect(data.url);  // New customer → Stripe

// Returning customer → show confirmation, then:
await autumn.attach({ customer_id, product_id: "pro" });

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Product Scenarios

Use products.list to get scenarios. Don't build custom logic.

Scenario	Meaning
new	Not subscribed
active	Currently on plan
scheduled	Scheduled for future
upgrade	Higher tier available
downgrade	Lower tier available
renew	Cancelled, can reactivate

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Feature Types

Type	Behavior
boolean	Access granted or denied
metered	Usage tracked against limit
credit_system	Pool for multiple features

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React Hooks

Hook	Purpose
useCustomer	Get customer, checkout, attach, check
usePricingTable	Get products with scenarios

import { AutumnProvider } from "autumn-js/react";

<AutumnProvider>{children}</AutumnProvider>

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Handler Imports

Framework	Import
Next.js	autumn-js/next
React Router	autumn-js/react-router
Hono	autumn-js/hono
Express	autumn-js/express
Fastify	autumn-js/fastify
Generic	autumn-js/backend

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Common Gotchas

1. URL field - Checkout URL is data.url, not data.checkout_url
2. Frontend checks - For UX only. Always enforce on backend
3. Track after success - Only track usage after work completes
4. Credit systems - Track metered features, not the credit system itself
5. Cancel via free plan - Prefer attach({ product_id: "free" }) over cancel()
6. Idempotent creation - customers.create returns existing customer if ID exists

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Resources

• Docs
• API Reference
• LLMs.txt
• GitHub