# What to send when a free trial ends without converting

> Trial expiration email examples for SaaS, when to send them, and what to offer the users who let their trial run out without paying.

By Luis Miguel, founder of HAGGIN. Published 2026-10-31.
Web version: https://hagg.in/blog/trial-ended-email

When a free trial ends without converting, send a short, plain email within a day that does three things: says the trial is over, asks what stopped them, and gives them an easy way back, either a trial extension or a deal they can propose. Then send one follow-up a few days later. Most trial users who don't pay haven't decided against you. They got busy, didn't finish setting up, or thought the price was a bit high and didn't want to ask.

## Why do trial users not convert?

There are a few common reasons, and each one needs a different email.

**They never got to the useful part.** They signed up, clicked around, and left before the product did anything for them. This is probably the most common case.

**They got busy.** The trial ran during a bad week. They meant to come back.

**They liked it but the price felt high.** They'd pay something, just not the full price, and asking for a discount feels awkward.

**It wasn't a fit.** Wrong product, wrong timing, or they were just curious. You won't win these back, and that's fine.

From the outside you usually can't tell which group someone is in, though your product data helps. Someone who used the product on four different days is in a different situation from someone who logged in once.

## When should you send the trial ending email?

Send at least two: one before the trial ends and one after.

**Two or three days before it ends.** Remind them of the date and what happens next. If they haven't set up the main feature, this is the moment to point them at it.

**The day after it ends.** This is the one most SaaS skip or send as an automated "your trial has expired" notice. Make it personal.

**Four to seven days later.** One last message with a new reason to come back. After that, stop.

## Trial expiration email examples

Here are three versions for different situations. Keep them in plain text, from a person, without big buttons or images.

### For users who barely used the product

> Subject: your Acme trial ended
>
> Hi Sam,
>
> Your Acme trial ended yesterday. Looking at your account, it seems you didn't get to set up your first report, which is where most people see whether Acme is useful for them.
>
> If you want another week to try it properly, reply to this email and I'll extend it.
>
> Alex

### For users who used it and didn't pay

> Subject: before you go
>
> Hi Sam,
>
> Your Acme trial ended yesterday. You used it quite a bit, so I'm guessing something got in the way. Was it the price, a missing feature, or just timing?
>
> If it's the price, you can make me an offer here and I'll look at it today: [link]
>
> Alex

### The follow-up

> Subject: last one from me
>
> Hi Sam,
>
> Last email about your trial. Since you tried Acme we added [one concrete thing], in case that was what was missing.
>
> If the timing's wrong, no problem. If the price is what stopped you, the offer link still works: [link]
>
> Alex

## Should you offer a discount when the trial ends?

A discount sent to everyone whose trial expired has the same problem as any blanket discount: some of them would have paid anyway, a few days later. You also teach people that letting the trial expire is the way to get a lower price.

Two other options tend to work better.

**A trial extension**, for people who didn't get enough time. It costs you very little and it's the right answer for the "I got busy" group.

**An offer from them**, for people for whom the price was the problem. Instead of guessing a discount, you let them propose a deal: a lower monthly price, a price for the first few months, annual billing, a testimonial in exchange for a better price, or something else. You read it and decide. Most people who were going to pay full price still do, and the ones who needed a better deal tell you what it would be.

[HAGGIN](/use-cases/trials) gives you that link. You put it in your trial-ended email, the user builds an offer against your normal price, and you accept, counter or pass. If you agree, you send your own checkout link and they pay you directly. Nothing changes on your pricing page.

## What should the email not do?

Skip the long email listing every feature. If they didn't care during the trial, a feature list won't change that.

No fake urgency either, like "your data will be deleted in 24 hours" when it won't be.

Two or three emails is enough. Send five and people learn to ignore you.

And make it easy to answer. A question they can reply to in one line ("was it the price, a missing feature, or timing?") gets far more answers than a survey link.

## How do you know if your trial emails work?

Track the share of expired trials that become paying customers within 30 days of the trial ending, and compare it before and after you change the emails. Also read the replies. The answers to "what stopped you?" are some of the most useful feedback a small SaaS gets, and they often point to an onboarding problem you can fix for everyone else.

## FAQ

### What should I write in a trial expiration email?

Say the trial is over, ask what stopped them in a question they can answer in one line, and give them an easy way back: an extension if they didn't have time, or a way to propose a deal if the price was the issue. Keep it short and send it from a person.

### When should a SaaS send the trial ending email?

Send a reminder two or three days before the end, a personal email the day after it ends, and one follow-up four to seven days later. Nothing after that.

### Should I extend free trials?

For users who didn't get to the useful part of the product, yes. An extension costs almost nothing and gives them a second chance. Don't extend automatically for everyone, or the trial deadline stops meaning anything.

### Should I offer a discount to trial users who didn't convert?

Not as a blanket coupon, because it rewards waiting. Let the users for whom price was the problem tell you what deal would work, and decide case by case.

## You might also like

- [What to put in your SaaS cancellation flow](https://hagg.in/blog/saas-cancellation-flow.md)
- [Win-back emails for churned SaaS customers](https://hagg.in/blog/win-back-email-churned-customers.md)

---

HAGGIN lets SaaS companies negotiate their prices with customers: a link where people who were about to leave make an offer, and the company accepts, counters or passes. The list price never moves. https://hagg.in