insufficient_funds
Insufficient funds
insufficient_funds is the most recoverable Stripe decline. When to wait for Stripe's retry, when to email, and the exact recovery email to send.
Read the guideWhat every Stripe decline code means, and what to do about it.
A card fails and Stripe gives you a code. Each guide says what that code actually means, whether Stripe's own retries will fix it on their own, the bank codes you may see next to it, and the exact email to send if they don't — the same email MRRdue writes inside the product.
expired_card
Card expired
Expired cards won't fix themselves with retries. How to get customers to update their card, plus the exact recovery email template and a pre-dunning tactic.
Read the guideauthentication_required
Authentication required
3D Secure / SCA declines need the customer to act, no retry will fix them. The recovery email that gets authentication completed, and why these cases are urgent.
Read the guidecard_declined
Card declined
The bank said no and won't say why. How to work generic card declines: what to rule out, when to ask for another card, and the recovery email to send.
Read the guidepayment_method_missing
Missing payment method
No card on file means no retry will ever succeed. How subscriptions end up with no payment method, and the email that gets a card attached.
Read the guidedo_not_honor
Do not honor
do_not_honor is the most common Stripe decline nobody can explain: the bank refused and gave no reason. What it actually means, why retries sometimes work anyway, and the email to send.
Read the guidetransaction_not_allowed
Transaction not allowed
transaction_not_allowed means the bank refused this kind of transaction on this card — often recurring or card-not-present. Why retries will not help, and what to ask the customer.
Read the guideFree resource
Recovery email template gallery
Every failed-payment and retention-risk email template MRRdue ships, free to copy, no signup required.
Browse templates