Supporting a community

Some communities open support: a few named tiers you can pick from to back them with money, separately from any ticket you buy.

How it works

Once you are a member of a community that has opened support, a Support button takes the place of Join Community in the banner at the top of its page. If you aren't a member, you join first. If the community hasn't opened support, the button isn't there at all.

The tiers also appear in the Support section in the page's side column. While nobody has supported yet, the tiers are listed right there; once supporters arrive, the section shows how many there are and their faces.

Each tier has a name the community wrote itself — "Buy us a coffee", "Gold supporter", "Stage sponsor" — an amount, and what you get for it if anything.

A tier is paid one of three ways: once, monthly, or yearly. A monthly or yearly tier stores your card and charges it again each period. A one-off tier does not store your card and never charges again.

Supporting

1. Press Support. The dialog lists the tiers on the left; pick one and the right side shows its amount, what it's for and what it includes.
2. Press the button with the amount under the tier. The same checkout page you buy tickets on opens: the tier and its period on the left, the steps on the right.
3. Fill in Your details, then your card details, and pay. Those details go on your receipt for that payment; we don't keep them.

Press Back on the checkout page and you return to the tier picker, not to the community page, so you can look at another tier.

What you can have at once

You can hold one renewing support per community — monthly or yearly, not both. If you already back a community and pick another of its renewing tiers, the payment doesn't start: the screen tells you that you already support it and that you can change it from Supporting.

One-off support isn't limited. You can give again whenever you like, as many times as you like.

Managing what you give

Everything you support lives in your account settings: open Settings from the account menu at the top right and choose Supporting.

Each renewing support shows the tier, the amount, and the date it renews. One-off support you've given is listed underneath, as a record.

Your own profile also shows a Supporting list under the communities you belong to. Nobody but you sees it. Manage your support beside it takes you to the same page in settings.

Ending a support

Press End support on a renewing one. The confirmation shows which community it is; if you change your mind, press Keep supporting. If you confirm, it does not stop immediately: your support runs to the end of the period you've already paid for, and the screen shows you that date. After it, nothing is charged again.

Only you can end your support. A community admin cannot end it for you.

If a community changes its price

It doesn't change yours. Your renewal amount is fixed to the support you started, so a community raising a tier from 50 to 75 charges its new supporters 75 — and you, still 50. Your card is never charged more than you agreed to.

Being seen as a supporter

Communities show a supporter list on their page. If your support is private, you appear there without a name or a photo — nothing links back to your profile.