Patreon’s refund policy

  • Updated

Patreon provides a platform for members and customers to pay creators directly. In most cases, Patreon will not refund on behalf of creators.

Creators can issue refunds at their discretion

Creators can refund a member’s 3 most recent payments from their Relationship manager. If a creator sells digital products and wants to refund a customer, they can do so from their Sales tab. Refunds can only be issued if the creator has a Patreon balance to cover the refunded amount.

Creators can refund charges within 90 days of the processing date. If a creator needs to issue a refund older than 90 days, they can do so off Patreon (i.e. on PayPal or Venmo).  

If you are a member or a customer, please refer to our refund request guide to help you with contacting your creator. If you are a creator, you can use our how-to guide for issuing a refund.

Keep in mind that if a creator sells digital products through Commerce and a product is purchased through the iOS app, the customer can also request a refund through Apple. Apple will process refunds within 60 days of the purchase taking place:

  • Through Patreon: Creators can refund iOS purchases as they normally would for other Commerce purchases
  • Through Apple: Customers can request a refund from Apple via reportaproblem.apple.com. Apple will handle the refund on the creator's behalf and communicate with the customer on the status of the refund. If the refund is granted, funds will be issued back to the customer's Apple account.

In both cases, if the refund is approved, customers will get a full refund for the entire purchase amount.

What if a creator refuses to issue a refund? 

Patreon may offer refunds at our sole discretion, based on the circumstances. Members do have the option to submit an appeal.

Please be aware that asking for a refund does not guarantee that it will be approved. Patreon will review your refund request, and you will receive notice of whether the refund is denied or approved. Once a refund is issued, it can take up to 5–7 business days to process.

Want to learn more? Feel free to read through our Terms of Use.

When does Patreon process payments for memberships?

The date and time that your payment processes depend on the billing schedule the creator has selected. Below are the billing dates and times you can expect for each of our billing options:

Creator’s billing schedule Payment date and time
Subscription billing Your renewal payment processes on your join date on UTC. Please note that you may be charged up to 24 hours beforehand due to time zone differences. 
1st of the month (charge upfront) Your renewal payment processes on the 1st of each month on PT for the month of access. 
1st of the month (non-charge upfront) Your renewal payment processes on the 1st of each month on PT for any access you had the previous month.
Per creation You’ll typically pay on the 1st of each month on PT for paid posts published the previous month. If you cancel your membership before the 1st of the month, we’ll trigger your last payment process on that date.
Annual membership
  • If the creator uses subscription billing, your renewal payment will process yearly on your join date on UTC and on that date every year until cancelled. 
  • If the creator uses 1st of the month (charge upfront) billing, your renewal payment will process yearly on the 1st of the month on PT, a year after the initial join date, and on that date every year until cancelled. 

Want to learn more about what to expect depending on your creator’s billing schedule? Visit our guide, How Patreon billing works to learn more.

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