Not all subscribers are created equal. Some customers subscribe because they genuinely want auto-delivery of your product, and they keep that subscription for months or years. Others subscribe to get the coupon discount on a one-time purchase, then cancel or let the subscription lapse. The report marks these as "fake" subscribers, and knowing what percentage of your Subscribe and Save volume they represent tells you whether your coupon strategy is actually building the business.
When to use it: monthly, and after any coupon or price promotion.
How "fake" subscribers are identified: a subscription is classified as fake if no second purchase is recorded after the initial Subscribe and Save order.
Critical timing note: do not read fake subscriber data for the most recent 2 to 4 weeks. New subscribers have not had time to show whether they are loyal yet, so your fake percentage will look artificially high. Read only data that is at least 2 to 3 months old.
Step 1: Establish your baseline
Open the LTV & Subscriptions report and go to the Overview page.
Scroll to the Subscribe and Save real vs fake chart.
Set the date range to cover 2 to 4 months, keeping clear of the most recent weeks.
Filter to a specific parent ASIN if you want product-level data.
Note your average fake percentage across normal, non-promotional weeks. This is your baseline.
You can also check Fake % of S&S by produc in the table below.
Step 2: Compare promotion weeks to the baseline
Look at the weeks where you ran a higher coupon or a lower price. Did the fake percentage spike, and by how much? That difference is the real cost of acquiring subscribers with a discount.
Step 3: Interpret your fake percentage
Fake % | What it likely means |
Under 15% | Strong subscription quality. Most subscribers are genuinely loyal |
15-30% | Acceptable for most brands, especially during promotions |
30-40% | Your coupon may be attracting primarily deal-seekers; test reducing it |
Over 40% | If you run an aggressive Subscribe and Save coupon, most volume is one-time discount buyers. If your coupon is modest and the number is still this high, it is a product or niche issue |
Step 4: What to do if your fake percentage is high
Test reducing your coupon in 10% increments while holding price steady, and monitor whether new Subscribe and Save signups drop proportionally or barely change. If signups hold up with a lower coupon, you were over-discounting.
Check the repeat purchase experience: quality, packaging, delivery speed. A high fake percentage sometimes reflects product dissatisfaction, not just deal-hunting.
When a high fake percentage is acceptable: if a promotion drives a large spike in total new-to-brand customers, including many real subscribers, a temporary fake share of 20 to 25% can be worth it. Always compare the cost of the coupon against the LTV of the real subscribers you acquired. To measure that properly, see "How to A/B Test Price and Coupon Using Cohorts".