Sume yearly vs monthly plan price: the 10, 12.5 and 15 percent math

Sume's plan catalog sets yearly prices of $432 for Pro, $1,260 for Startup and $4,080 for Scale, against 12 monthly payments of $480, $1,440 and $4,800. The discounts are 10, 12.5 and 15 percent, so the monthly equivalent is $36, $105 and $340. Check the Subscription page to confirm yearly checkout is available to you.

The arithmetic

Pro: 12 x $40 = $480; $480 - $432 = $48 saved; 48 / 480 = 10 percent. Startup: 12 x $120 = $1,440; $1,440 - $1,260 = $180; 180 / 1,440 = 12.5 percent. Scale: 12 x $400 = $4,800; $4,800 - $4,080 = $720; 720 / 4,800 = 15 percent.

What it does to a clip

If you consume each month's included usage, the fee per $1 of usage drops to $0.90 on Pro (36 / 40), $0.75 on Startup (105 / 140) and $0.425 on Scale (340 / 800). Scale on a yearly plan has the lowest fee per dollar of usage of the three.

What I cannot confirm

The catalog calls the included amount a monthly allotment. I did not find a statement about whether a yearly subscriber gets it monthly or upfront, whether unused usage rolls over, or whether the yearly option is switched on for every account. The catalog source itself notes that yearly checkout needs configured prices. Read the dashboard before you pay for twelve months.

When yearly is the wrong call

Yearly locks twelve months of a plan size. If your volume is seasonal, a monthly Scale for the three busy months costs 3 x $400 = $1,200 and a yearly Scale is $4,080, so yearly only wins if you would otherwise hold the plan for more than about 10 months (4,080 / 400 = 10.2 monthly payments).

Cash-flow view

Yearly is paid upfront: $432, $1,260 or $4,080 at once, against $40, $120 or $400 each month. Over the first six months a monthly Scale subscriber pays $2,400, while a yearly subscriber has paid $4,080, so the yearly buyer is $1,680 further out of pocket at the six-month mark. Monthly payments only exceed the yearly price with the 11th payment (11 x $400 = $4,400).

For a startup with limited cash that gap can matter more than the 15 percent. A middle option is Startup yearly at $1,260, which is $105 a month. Run both options against the volume table in the plan cost post, then pick by cash on hand and how sure you are of your volume.