Discount and Promotional Pricing Guidelines

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Last revised: August 13, 2026

Summary: WPBay sellers may change their prices and run promotions using the available marketplace tools. Any sale, discount, introductory offer or savings claim must be genuine, transparent and based on accurate price history. Sellers must not inflate prices, run permanent sales, use false countdowns or hide subscription and renewal costs.

These guidelines form part of the WPBay Seller Agreement and should be read together with the Product and Service Promotion Guidelines and Pricing Limits.

What counts as promotional pricing?

A promotional price is any temporary price advertised using language or presentation such as:

  • sale;
  • discount;
  • special offer;
  • introductory price;
  • launch offer;
  • limited-time price;
  • Black Friday or seasonal offer;
  • save a stated amount or percentage;
  • a crossed-out previous price;
  • a countdown connected to a lower price; or
  • any similar claim suggesting that the current price is temporarily lower than its normal price.

Simply changing a price does not automatically make it a promotion. You may permanently increase or decrease a price without describing the change as a sale or discount.

The WPBay reference-price rule

For consistency across the marketplace, WPBay uses the following rule for all products, services, plans and subscription options:

The reference price for a promotion is the lowest public price at which the same listing and plan was available on WPBay during the 30 calendar days before the promotion began.

This rule applies even where different countries classify the listing as software, digital content or a service.

A promotional price must be lower than this reference price. Any displayed percentage or savings amount must be calculated from that price.

For example, if a plugin was available at $59, then $49 and later $79 during the previous 30 days, the reference price is $49. The seller cannot advertise a reduction from $79 to $39 as “50% off.” The genuine reduction is from $49 to $39.

Each licence tier, billing period and service package has its own price history. A single-site licence cannot be used as the reference price for an unlimited-site licence, and a yearly subscription cannot be compared directly with a monthly subscription.

Newly published listings

A newly published listing does not yet have an established WPBay price history. During its first 30 days, it must not be advertised using:

  • a crossed-out regular price;
  • a percentage discount;
  • a claimed monetary saving; or
  • wording suggesting that it was previously sold on WPBay at a higher price.

A seller may use wording such as “launch price” or “introductory price” during this period when:

  • the offer lasts no longer than 30 days;
  • the end date is clearly stated;
  • the seller genuinely intends to raise the price after the introductory period; and
  • no previous WPBay price or percentage saving is invented.

An acceptable example would be:

Launch price: $39 until September 30. The regular price will be $59 after the launch period.

An unacceptable example would be:

Regularly $59, now 34% off.

The second claim is not permitted because the newly published listing has never been offered on WPBay at $59.

The same rule applies when a completely new licence plan or service package is added to an existing listing. The new plan must build its own price history.

After an introductory offer

When an introductory period ends, the seller may increase the price as announced. However, the introductory price remains part of the listing’s 30-day price history.

The seller cannot immediately reduce the product back to its launch price and advertise that reduction as a new sale.

For example, a product launches at $39 and increases to $59 after 30 days. If the seller wants to advertise a later discount from $59, the $59 price must first remain available long enough for the previous $39 price to leave the 30-day reference period.

Running a sale

A seller-run promotion may last for up to 30 consecutive days.

During the promotion:

  • the start and end dates must be genuine;
  • the current promotional price must be clearly identifiable;
  • the displayed reference price must follow the 30-day reference-price rule;
  • the discount percentage must be calculated correctly;
  • the offer must apply under the conditions stated in the promotion; and
  • the discounted checkout price must respect WPBay’s current minimum price.

If the lower price continues for more than 30 days, WPBay may treat it as the new standard price. The seller may keep that price but must remove temporary sale wording, countdowns, crossed-out prices and percentage-saving claims.

WPBay does not impose a separate annual limit on the number of promotions. However, the reference-price rule prevents a seller from ending and immediately restarting the same sale. A previous promotional price remains the reference price until it has left the 30-day history.

Public coupons and targeted offers

A coupon publicly displayed on a product page, banner, social media post, newsletter or generally accessible website is considered a public promotional price.

Public coupon prices are included when determining the lowest WPBay price during the previous 30 days.

A genuinely personalized offer issued to a specific customer may be treated differently when it:

  • is not publicly advertised;
  • is not available to customers generally;
  • is connected to that customer’s account or circumstances; and
  • is not used to support a broader discount claim.

Sellers must not describe a widely distributed coupon as private or personalized merely to exclude it from price history.

Subscription and trial pricing

Subscription promotions must clearly state:

  • whether the discount applies only to the first billing period;
  • the amount and billing frequency after the promotion;
  • whether the subscription renews automatically;
  • whether renewal occurs at the standard or discounted price;
  • the length of any free trial; and
  • how the customer can cancel.

For example:

$29 for the first year, then renews automatically at $59 per year unless cancelled.

The following would not be acceptable:

Only $29 per year.

That claim would be misleading if the $29 price applies only to the first year.

A monthly equivalent calculated from an annual plan must be described as an equivalent amount, not as the actual monthly billing price.

For example:

Equivalent to $5 per month, billed annually at $60.

Do not state “$5 monthly” if the customer must pay $60 upfront.

Different plans and licence tiers

Discount calculations must compare the same commercial offer.

The following must remain equivalent:

  • licence type;
  • permitted number of websites;
  • billing period;
  • support period;
  • update entitlement;
  • included features;
  • included services; and
  • bundled components.

A seller cannot compare the price of an unlimited-site plan with a discounted single-site plan or claim savings by comparing a yearly payment with twelve individually purchased monthly periods without clearly explaining the calculation.

If a plan’s features or licence rights change substantially, its previous price may no longer be a fair reference price. WPBay may require the changed plan to establish new price history before promotional claims are permitted.

WPBay-led campaigns

WPBay may organize marketplace campaigns, seasonal events, bundles or featured promotions.

Each campaign may have its own:

  • eligibility conditions;
  • discount requirements;
  • submission deadline;
  • campaign period;
  • promotional placement; and
  • participation rules.

A WPBay-led campaign does not permit sellers to inflate prices before joining the campaign. It also does not erase or restart a listing’s price history.

The reference price used in a WPBay campaign must remain genuine and comply with applicable marketplace and legal requirements.

Where WPBay sets a campaign duration longer than the normal seller-run limit, the official campaign period will apply. Sellers must remove campaign graphics and claims when the campaign ends.

Progressive and scheduled price increases

A seller may announce one genuine future price increase, provided that the new price and effective date are clearly stated.

For example:

The price will increase from $39 to $49 on October 1.

Repeated or automatically resetting price increases are not permitted. Sellers must not use claims such as:

  • the price increases after every ten sales;
  • the price increases every 24 hours;
  • only three licences remain at this price; or
  • buy now before the timer resets,

unless WPBay has specifically approved and technically supports that pricing structure.

Digital licences must not be presented as scarce when no genuine limit exists.

Bundle and value claims

A product may include extensions, templates, add-ons, services or other components. Sellers may explain the value of those components, but a value estimate must not be presented as the product’s former selling price.

For example:

Includes three extensions currently sold separately for a combined price of $90.

This may be acceptable if the extensions are genuinely available separately at those prices and the comparison remains current.

The following would not be acceptable:

$300 total value, normally $300, now only $49.

A combined value is not automatically the product’s reference price. A bundle may be advertised as discounted only if that same bundle was previously available on WPBay at the displayed reference price.

Any restrictions affecting bundled components must be visible before purchase. This includes separate licence conditions, missing automatic updates, limited support or the absence of standalone licence keys.

Prices on other websites

A higher price shown on the seller’s website or another marketplace is not the previous WPBay price.

A seller may make a factual cross-market comparison when:

  • the compared product and licence are genuinely equivalent;
  • the external price is current and verifiable;
  • differences in support, renewals, taxes or features are explained; and
  • the external price is not displayed as a crossed-out former WPBay price.

WPBay may request evidence supporting an external price comparison.

Misleading pricing practices

The following are not permitted:

  • increasing a price shortly before a promotion to create a larger apparent discount;
  • advertising a reference price that was never genuinely available;
  • using a higher-priced licence tier to calculate savings for a lower tier;
  • keeping a product permanently “on sale”;
  • repeatedly restarting expired promotions or countdowns;
  • claiming a limited quantity of digital licences when no genuine limit exists;
  • advertising a product as free when a mandatory payment is required;
  • hiding paid dependencies, activation fees or required third-party subscriptions;
  • describing a recurring subscription as a one-time purchase;
  • displaying a trial price without the later renewal price;
  • comparing materially different products or plans;
  • using an unrealistic “total value” as the former selling price;
  • claiming savings based on planned features that are not yet included;
  • advertising a tax-free or VAT-free price where that claim is not accurate; or
  • displaying promotional wording that conflicts with the actual WPBay checkout price.

Sellers must set prices they genuinely intend to use. A product must not be placed at an artificially high price solely to establish a future discount.

Product titles and promotional graphics

Product titles should identify the product, not the current promotion.

Do not add temporary wording such as:

  • “50% Off”;
  • “Black Friday Sale”;
  • “Only $19”;
  • “Limited-Time Deal”; or
  • “Save $40”

to the official product title.

A small promotional badge may be added to a thumbnail or preview image, but the image must continue to primarily represent the product. Promotional text must not obscure the product name, interface or main visual.

The primary product image must not be replaced entirely with a sale advertisement.

More detailed promotion graphics and explanations may be added to the product description, provided they remain accurate and are removed or updated when the promotion ends.

Changing a standard price

Sellers may permanently change a product’s standard price without running a promotion.

When permanently lowering a price:

  • update the listing to the new amount;
  • remove sale language after any permitted promotional period;
  • do not continue displaying the former price indefinitely; and
  • allow the new price to establish its own history before advertising another reduction.

When increasing a price, the increase must not be used to manufacture an immediate discount.

WPBay may delay, reject or review unusual price changes that appear misleading, abusive or harmful to customers.

Price records

WPBay may retain records of:

  • standard prices;
  • promotional prices;
  • public coupons;
  • campaign participation;
  • plan changes; and
  • promotion start and end dates.

Sellers should also retain evidence supporting promotional claims made outside WPBay, including advertisements, emails, social posts and external price comparisons.

Removing an advertisement does not remove the related price from the product’s historical pricing record.

Reporting a pricing violation

To report suspected misleading pricing, contact:

Email: support@wpbay.com

Include the product URL and any relevant screenshots, advertisements, coupon codes or dates.

You do not need to contact the seller before reporting the issue.

Enforcement

If WPBay identifies a pricing violation, we may:

  • ask the seller to correct the price or promotional material;
  • remove or edit misleading promotional graphics;
  • disable a coupon or promotion;
  • exclude the listing from a WPBay campaign;
  • prevent further price changes temporarily;
  • remove featured placement;
  • suspend or remove the listing; or
  • restrict or suspend the seller account in serious or repeated cases.

WPBay may act immediately where a promotion appears fraudulent, creates significant customer harm or exposes WPBay to legal or regulatory risk.

Sellers established or resident in the European Union may use the complaint process described in the Additional Terms for EU Sellers where applicable.