Overview:
Lago is an open-source billing platform designed for usage-based, subscription-based, and hybrid pricing models. It provides the metering, billing, and revenue infrastructure typically needed by product-led companies. The project positions itself as a transparent, API-first solution that can be self-hosted for data control or used as a cloud service. It is SOC 2 Type II certified and works with payment gateways like Stripe, Adyen, and GoCardless.
Core Features:
Usage Metering: Real-time event ingestion and aggregation for any pricing dimension.
Billing & Invoicing: Automated invoice generation for subscriptions, usage, and hybrid plans.
Entitlements: Feature access management tied directly to billing plans.
Cash Collection: Payment orchestration with dunning, retries, and multi-gateway support.
Revenue Analytics: Cross-stream visibility into MRR, usage trends, and revenue drivers.
Lago Embedded: White-label billing for platforms and marketplaces.
Use Cases:
Product-led companies needing to bill based on usage, subscriptions, or a mix of both.
Developers seeking a self-hosted billing infrastructure with full control over customer data.
Platforms and marketplaces requiring a white-label billing solution for their own users.
Organizations integrating billing with existing tools like NetSuite, Xero, Stripe, or Salesforce.
Why It Matters:
As an open-source project, Lago offers a transparent billing platform that can be self-hosted or used as a managed service. Its API-first design and client libraries (Node.js, Python, Ruby, Go) allow developers to integrate billing directly into their workflows. The code is publicly available, providing visibility into how billing logic is implemented, and it does not lock users into a single payment gateway.
