Question 1

What is Knock?

Accepted Answer

Knock is a subscription billing platform. It covers products and variants, plans, quote templates, subscriptions, recurring invoices, payments and finance reports, plus a customer portal and an AI teammate called Pip.

Question 2

Who is Knock for?

Accepted Answer

Small businesses that bill customers on a recurring basis and have outgrown spreadsheets: software, services, memberships, rentals and similar. It is built with the Indian context in mind (INR and GST).

Question 3

How do I get started?

Accepted Answer

Create an account at the sign-up page. The first account in a workspace becomes the admin. From there you can follow the guided setup, ask Pip to set things up, or load sample data to explore first.

Question 4

Can I explore with sample data first?

Accepted Answer

Yes. Pip can load a realistic sample business with customers, products, plans, GST 18 percent, subscriptions, invoices and payments. It is tagged, and Pip can remove only that sample data later without touching your own records.

Question 5

What is the subscription lifecycle?

Accepted Answer

A subscription moves through Draft, Quotation, Confirmed, Active and Closed. Invoices are generated only while it is Active. Closing is final, so Knock asks you to confirm.

Question 6

How does my first invoice get created?

Accepted Answer

Once a subscription is active, its next invoice date comes from the plan interval. On that date the invoice is generated once for the period. You can also generate the next invoice yourself from the subscription.

Question 7

Does it work on my phone?

Accepted Answer

Yes. The app and the customer portal are responsive and work in a modern mobile browser. There is no separate mobile app.

Question 8

Which billing intervals are supported?

Accepted Answer

Daily, weekly, monthly and yearly. The interval is set on the plan, and each subscription follows its plan.

Question 9

Can Knock bill the same period twice?

Accepted Answer

No. Recurring invoice generation is idempotent, so running it again, or a job retrying after an error, does not create a second invoice for the same period.

Question 10

What happens when a subscription starts on the 31st?

Accepted Answer

Calendar dates are used, so a monthly plan starting on the 31st is billed on the last day of shorter months. You can see this behaviour in the free billing cycle date calculator.

Question 11

What are the invoice statuses?

Accepted Answer

Draft, Confirmed, Paid and Cancelled. Payments can only be recorded against Confirmed invoices. Cancelling an invoice is irreversible, so it asks for confirmation.

Question 12

How are invoice numbers assigned?

Accepted Answer

From a counter, in the form INV-00042. The number is assigned when the invoice is created.

Question 13

How do payment terms work?

Accepted Answer

Each subscription has terms: immediate, Net 15, Net 30 or Net 60. The due date of every invoice is the period start plus the term in calendar days.

Question 14

Can I offer discounts?

Accepted Answer

Yes. Discounts can be a percentage or a fixed amount, with optional minimum purchase, minimum quantity, start and end dates and a usage limit. They apply to a product or to a whole subscription.

Question 15

Can I print or save an invoice as PDF?

Accepted Answer

Invoice pages have a Print button that uses your browser's print dialog, from which you can save as PDF.

Question 16

Can plans be paused or renewed?

Accepted Answer

Plans have settings for whether subscriptions can be paused, closed or renewed, and whether they close automatically. Paused subscriptions do not generate invoices.

Question 17

What are quote templates?

Accepted Answer

A template bundles a plan, default product lines and a validity period. You can turn a template into a quote in a click, which the customer reviews in their portal.

Question 18

Does Knock support GST?

Accepted Answer

Yes. You define taxes once, for example GST at 5, 12, 18 or 28 percent, and they apply to invoice lines consistently. Amounts are shown in rupees.

Question 19

How is tax applied on an invoice?

Accepted Answer

Tax is applied per line, so each line shows its tax name and amount, and the invoice shows the totals. Tax rules can be a percentage or a fixed amount, and one can be marked as the default.

Question 20

Does Knock split CGST, SGST and IGST automatically?

Accepted Answer

Taxes are configurable rules, so you can model whichever GST components you need. Automatic place-of-supply logic is not something to rely on, so check your invoices with your accountant. The free GST invoice calculator shows how the split works.

Question 21

Is Knock a certified GST filing or e-invoicing tool?

Accepted Answer

No. Knock does not file returns and does not generate e-invoices or e-way bills. It helps you issue consistent invoices with tax on every line.

Question 22

If I change a tax rate, do old invoices change?

Accepted Answer

No. Changes to prices and taxes affect future invoices only. Invoices that already exist keep the amounts they were created with.

Question 23

Should I check my tax setup with a professional?

Accepted Answer

Yes. Rates, HSN or SAC codes and place of supply depend on what you sell. Verify your setup with a chartered accountant before billing real customers.

Question 24

How do I record a payment?

Accepted Answer

Open a confirmed invoice and record the amount, method and date. The invoice balance and the outstanding amounts across reports update right away.

Question 25

Which payment methods can I record?

Accepted Answer

Card, bank transfer, UPI, cash and cheque.

Question 26

Can customers pay online through Knock?

Accepted Answer

Customers can open an invoice in their portal and use the Pay button, but today that flow is a demonstration. No real money moves, and no live payment gateway is connected.

Question 27

Does Knock handle part payments?

Accepted Answer

Payments are recorded against an invoice with an amount, and balances are tracked. Check the outstanding amount on the invoice to see what is still due.

Question 28

How do I find overdue invoices?

Accepted Answer

Confirmed invoices past their due date are overdue. You can see them in the invoices list and in reports, or ask Pip, which lists them oldest first with the amount owed.

Question 29

Do customers get a receipt?

Accepted Answer

Customers see their payments in the portal, and a receipt is emailed when a payment is recorded, if email is configured for the deployment.

Question 30

What roles are there?

Accepted Answer

Three: admin, staff and customer. Admins own the workspace, staff run daily billing, and customers use a self-serve portal.

Question 31

How do I become the admin?

Accepted Answer

The first account created in a workspace becomes the admin. Staff accounts are added by the admin from the team page.

Question 32

What can staff do?

Accepted Answer

Staff can draft quotes, confirm subscriptions, generate invoices, record payments and follow up on overdue balances. Admins additionally manage configuration and the team.

Question 33

What does the customer portal show?

Accepted Answer

Customers see their own quotes, subscriptions, next billing date, invoices and payments, and can accept a quote or open an invoice. They never see other customers' data.

Question 34

How do customers get access?

Accepted Answer

Customers created in Knock, one by one, through Pip or through import, receive an email invite with a link to set a password. For imports, invites are sent only if you choose to send them.

Question 35

What is Pip?

Accepted Answer

Pip is the AI teammate inside Knock. You can ask it in plain language to find invoices, draft a quote, create a product or explain a number, and it opens the right page for you.

Question 36

Will Pip change things without asking?

Accepted Answer

No. For actions that matter, such as recording a payment, closing a subscription, cancelling an invoice or deleting a draft, Pip asks first and only proceeds after you agree.

Question 37

What can Pip do?

Accepted Answer

Search and list customers, products, subscriptions and invoices, explain an invoice line by line, list overdue balances, preview and run billing, forecast MRR, create products, plans, taxes, discounts and customers, and report on revenue.

Question 38

Can I give Pip a file or voice input?

Accepted Answer

You can attach CSV or text files, and where the configured AI model supports it, images and PDFs. Voice input is supported. Availability depends on how the deployment is set up.

Question 39

Can Pip make mistakes?

Accepted Answer

Yes, like any AI. It works through the same validated actions as the forms, and it shows what it will change first, but you should review anything important.

Question 40

Which AI model does Pip use?

Accepted Answer

The deployment chooses it. Knock can use Hack Club AI (Claude Sonnet) or OpenAI, depending on configuration.

Question 41

How are passwords stored?

Accepted Answer

Passwords are hashed with bcrypt and never stored in plain text.

Question 42

How are sessions handled?

Accepted Answer

A signed session token lives in an HTTP-only cookie that expires after 14 days, which keeps it out of reach of page scripts.

Question 43

How is access to data restricted?

Accepted Answer

Every request is checked against the signed-in user's role. Customers can only reach their own records.

Question 44

Is my data shared with the AI provider?

Accepted Answer

When you chat with Pip, the conversation and any data Pip looks up to answer you are sent to the configured AI provider. Do not paste information you would not want processed that way.

Question 45

Do the free calculators send my numbers anywhere?

Accepted Answer

No. They run entirely in your browser. Nothing you type into a calculator is sent to a server.

Question 46

Has Knock been independently audited?

Accepted Answer

No. Knock is a hackathon project and has not had an independent security audit. Please do not store anything critical in it.

Question 47

Is Knock free?

Accepted Answer

Yes. It is free to try. There are no paid plans or billing for Knock itself.

Question 48

Is Knock production-ready?

Accepted Answer

Be realistic: Knock is a hackathon project. It works end to end, but you should review your tax and legal obligations with a qualified professional before billing real customers.

Question 49

Is there support?

Accepted Answer

There is no support team or service level agreement. Use the contact page if you have feedback or hit a problem.

Question 50

Will Knock always be free?

Accepted Answer

We cannot promise that. Knock is an early project with no pricing plans today, and any future change would be announced.

Question 51

Can I suggest features?

Accepted Answer

Yes, please use the contact page. Suggestions help decide what comes next.

Question 52

Can I import customers from a spreadsheet?

Accepted Answer

Yes. Import a CSV of customers, or paste one into Pip. The columns are name, email, phone, company, line1, city, state, zip and country. Only name and email are required.

Question 53

Is there a sample file?

Accepted Answer

Yes. Download the customer import sample CSV from the resources page, delete the labelled sample row and add your own.

Question 54

What happens to duplicates in an import?

Accepted Answer

Customers whose email already exists, or who appear twice in the same file, are skipped and reported. Invalid rows are listed with the reason.

Question 55

Is there a limit on import size?

Accepted Answer

Pip imports up to 500 customers at a time. Split larger lists into batches.

Question 56

Does importing email my customers?

Accepted Answer

Not unless you ask. Imported customers get an unusable password, and invite emails are sent only if you choose to send them.

Question 57

Can I export my data?

Accepted Answer

Reports and lists are available in the app. A full-data export feature is not something to count on, so keep your own backups of anything important.

Question 58

How do I move over from spreadsheets?

Accepted Answer

Import your customers, create your products and plans, add subscriptions with the next billing dates, then let Knock generate the next invoices. The compare pages include a step-by-step migration outline.

Frequently asked questions

Getting started

Billing and invoices

GST and taxes

Payments

Roles and access

Pip AI

Security and privacy

Pricing and plans of Knock

Data and import

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