How to Allow Only One Active Subscription in WooCommerce

WooCommerce Subscriptions is a great tool for managing recurring payments, but by default, it doesn’t restrict users to just one active subscription at a time. If you want to ensure that customers can only have one active subscription, follow this simple guide.

Step 1: Add Code to functions.php

To enforce this restriction, insert the following code into your active theme’s functions.php file. Ideally, use a child theme to prevent losing changes when updating your theme.

<?php
add_filter('woocommerce_add_to_cart_validation', 'restrict_multiple_subscriptions', 10, 2);

function restrict_multiple_subscriptions($valid, $product_id) {
    $product_to_add = wc_get_product($product_id);

    if ($product_to_add instanceof WC_Product_Subscription || $product_to_add instanceof WC_Product_Variable_Subscription) {
        if (user_has_active_subscription()) {
            wc_add_notice('You can only have one active subscription at a time.', 'error');
            return false; // Prevents adding another subscription
        }
    }
    return $valid;
}

function user_has_active_subscription() {
    $user_id = get_current_user_id();

    $active_subscriptions = get_posts([
        'numberposts' => -1,
        'meta_key' => '_customer_user',
        'meta_value' => $user_id,
        'post_type' => 'shop_subscription',
        'post_status' => 'wc-active'
    ]);

    return !empty($active_subscriptions);
}
?>

Step 2: How This Works

• Hooking into WooCommerce: The add_filter function modifies WooCommerce behavior by hooking into woocommerce_add_to_cart_validation, which runs when a user adds a product to their cart.
• Checking the Product Type: The restrict_multiple_subscriptions function verifies if the added product is a subscription product.
• Validating Active Subscriptions: The user_has_active_subscription function checks if the user already has an active subscription.
• Blocking Additional Subscriptions: If an active subscription exists, WooCommerce prevents the new one from being added and displays an error message.

Step 3: Testing the Feature

To ensure the code works correctly:

1. Try adding a subscription product to the cart as a test user.
2. Attempt to add another subscription while the first one is still active.
3. WooCommerce should display an error message and block the second subscription.

Conclusion

This simple code snippet ensures that customers can only have one active subscription at a time. It improves user experience by preventing accidental multiple subscriptions and simplifies subscription management for store owners.

By making this small customization, you can enforce a one-subscription rule without relying on additional plugins. If you need further customizations, consider hiring a developer or exploring WooCommerce’s documentation for advanced options.

Need help implementing this? Let us know in the comments!