SoftwareRoad Knowledge Base Monthly vs Yearly
SoftwareRoad Knowledge Base Monthly vs Yearly
SoftwareRoad Knowledge Base is available with either a Monthly or Yearly subscription.
Both plans give you access to the same plugin features. The main difference is how often your subscription is billed.
There is no separate free version, free trial or new Lifetime licence option.
What is included with both plans?
Whether you choose Monthly or Yearly, you can use the complete SoftwareRoad Knowledge Base plugin.
This includes:
- Knowledge base articles and categories
- Live article search
- Customisable homepage layouts
- Popular and related articles
- Recently updated articles
- Article tables of contents
- Breadcrumbs and back links
- Reading time
- Reading progress bar
- Helpful article voting
- Article view analytics
- Search analytics
- Social sharing
- Automatic article links
- Built-in SEO settings
- Privacy controls
- Design and colour settings
- Plugin updates
- WordPress compatibility improvements
- SoftwareRoad support
You do not need a particular plan to unlock additional plugin features.
Monthly subscription
The Monthly plan is billed each month while the subscription remains active.
It may suit you if you prefer:
- Smaller regular payments
- A flexible monthly commitment
- The option to review your subscription more frequently
- To avoid paying for a full year at once
Your licence remains active while the monthly subscription payments continue successfully.
If the subscription is cancelled or a payment cannot be completed, the licence may become inactive.
Yearly subscription
The Yearly plan is billed once per year while the subscription remains active.
It may suit you if you prefer:
- One payment covering a full year
- Fewer billing dates to manage
- Longer periods between renewals
- To keep the plugin active without monthly payments
The plugin features are the same as those included with the Monthly plan.
Your Yearly licence remains active until the end of the paid subscription period, provided the subscription has not been suspended or refunded.
Does the Yearly plan include more features?
No. The Monthly and Yearly plans include the same SoftwareRoad Knowledge Base features.
The Yearly plan does not unlock a separate version of the plugin.
Choose the plan based on the billing schedule that works best for you.
Can I change plans later?
If you would like to move from Monthly to Yearly, or from Yearly to Monthly, check your SoftwareRoad account or contact SoftwareRoad support.
Do not purchase a second subscription until you have checked how the existing subscription should be changed.
This helps prevent duplicate subscriptions or overlapping payments.
Will my product key change if I change plans?
A plan change may require your licence details to be updated, depending on how the subscription is changed.
Check the information supplied after the change.
If you receive a new product key:
- Open Knowledge Base > Licence.
- Remove the licence currently saved on the website.
- Return to the activation screen.
- Enter the purchase email address.
- Enter the new product key.
- Activate the licence.
Removing the saved licence does not delete your knowledge base articles, categories or settings.
The public knowledge base may be unavailable until the new licence has been activated.
How does the plugin know which plan I have?
You do not need to select Monthly or Yearly during activation.
When you enter your purchase email address and product key, SoftwareRoad Knowledge Base checks the licence and detects the correct plan automatically.
Once activated, the current plan is shown under:
Knowledge Base > Licence
The page also displays the licensed email address and a masked version of the product key.
What happens when a subscription renews?
When a subscription renews successfully, you normally do not need to reactivate the plugin.
SoftwareRoad Knowledge Base performs automatic licence checks and should continue working with the saved licence details.
It is still worth checking the Licence page if:
- The plugin asks you to activate again
- The public knowledge base becomes unavailable
- A renewal payment has failed
- Your payment method has changed
- You have changed subscription plans
What happens if a payment fails?
If a Monthly or Yearly renewal payment cannot be completed, the subscription may become inactive.
This can happen because:
- A payment card has expired
- A bank has declined the payment
- The payment details are no longer valid
- The subscription was cancelled
- The payment could not be processed
Update the payment details connected to your subscription and allow the renewal to complete.
Once the subscription is active again, SoftwareRoad Knowledge Base should recognise the licence during its next check.
You can also return to Knowledge Base > Activate Licence and enter your details again.
What happens if I cancel my subscription?
Cancelling stops future subscription renewals.
Your licence may continue to work until the end of the period you have already paid for. The exact end date will depend on your subscription.
When the paid period ends, the SoftwareRoad Knowledge Base licence will become inactive.
An inactive licence can affect access to:
- The public knowledge base
- Knowledge base articles in the WordPress dashboard
- Knowledge base categories
- Plugin settings
- Analytics
- Live search
- Helpful voting
- Article view tracking
- Protected plugin features
Your existing articles, categories and settings are not normally deleted when a subscription ends.
They remain stored in your WordPress database, but SoftwareRoad Knowledge Base must have an active licence before the protected areas become available again.
Why does the public knowledge base require an active subscription?
SoftwareRoad Knowledge Base is subscription software rather than a one-time plugin purchase.
The subscription supports the ongoing work needed to maintain the plugin, including:
- WordPress updates
- PHP compatibility
- Security improvements
- Bug fixes
- New features
- Browser compatibility
- Licence services
- Customer support
WordPress changes regularly, so plugins need to be tested and updated to continue working correctly.
Keeping your subscription active also ensures that visitors can continue using your published knowledge base.
Is there a free version?
No. SoftwareRoad Knowledge Base does not currently have a free version.
The plugin must be activated using an eligible Monthly or Yearly licence.
Is there a free trial?
No. SoftwareRoad Knowledge Base does not currently include a free trial.
Access begins once you purchase and activate a Monthly or Yearly subscription.
Is there a Lifetime licence?
SoftwareRoad Knowledge Base is currently sold through Monthly and Yearly subscriptions only.
New Lifetime licences are not available.
Which plan should I choose?
Choose Monthly if you prefer to pay in smaller monthly amounts and want a more flexible billing schedule.
Choose Yearly if you prefer one payment covering the full subscription year.
The features are the same on both plans, so there is no wrong choice.
The best option is simply the billing schedule that suits you and your website.
How to check your current plan
To see which plan is active on your website:
- Sign in to WordPress.
- Open Knowledge Base > Licence.
- Find the plan shown with your licence details.
The page should show either:
- Monthly
- Yearly
If the displayed plan looks incorrect, contact SoftwareRoad support with your purchase email address.
Do not include your complete product key in a public message.
Keeping your subscription active
An active SoftwareRoad Knowledge Base subscription keeps your public documentation available and gives you continued access to the plugin’s settings, search, analytics and article management features.
It also means you receive future plugin updates, compatibility improvements and SoftwareRoad support for as long as the subscription remains active.