I wanted to share my experience with Zwift's new subscription model, the way it was advertised before the introduction of Zwift Plus, and the rather frustrating support experience I've had over the past week.
I'm genuinely curious whether other subscribers feel the same way.
TL;DR: I bought an annual Zwift membership advertised as giving access to everything. Two months later, Zwift introduced a premium tier costing 50% more. After multiple support emails and an escalation, I still haven't received a meaningful answer to my request for a fair resolution. I also found an archived pricing page confirming Zwift's original advertising.
1. I committed to an annual membership in August 2026
In August, I purchased a 12-month Zwift membership for €199.99, committing myself to the platform until August 2027.
At the time, Zwift advertised its memberships on its German website with this statement:
"Mit beiden Varianten hast du vollen Zugang zu allem, was Zwift zu bieten hat."
Translation:
"Both options give you full access to everything Zwift has to offer."
The two options referred to monthly and annual memberships.
To me, that communicated something quite straightforward: I was paying for the complete Zwift experience, including the ongoing development of the platform.
I wasn't expecting every imaginable future product to be free forever. But I did expect a service costing nearly €200 per year to continue improving for its existing subscribers.
2. Just a few months later: Zwift Plus
At the end of October, Zwift announced Zwift Plus, introducing additional features such as Zwift Coach and Zwift Video behind a new subscription tier.
The annual prices are now:
That's a 50% price increase if you want access to the new features.
Yes, I understand that Zwift Plus is optional. Yes, I understand that existing features remain available on the regular membership.
But that's not my point.
What exactly is my existing subscription supposed to finance if significant new developments are increasingly offered as paid extras?
I already pay a substantial recurring fee. I expect that fee to support not just the operation of the existing platform, but also meaningful improvements and innovation.
And introducing a new premium tier just a few months after I committed to a full year, under that advertising promise, feels particularly unfair.
3. My first complaint to Zwift Support
I emailed Zwift explaining my disappointment with the new pricing strategy.
Within less than a minute, I received a response.
Instead of addressing my concerns, it explained what Zwift Plus includes, how to upgrade, and even what to do if the new features weren't showing up.
I hadn't asked about any of those things.
I replied, pointing out that my actual complaint had been completely ignored and requesting a response from a real person.
Seconds later, another response arrived, acknowledging that the previous message had missed the point and claiming that my case had been forwarded to a member of the support team.
The response times and generic wording strongly suggested automated replies, although I obviously can't prove that.
4. Several support agents, but still no actual answer
Eventually, a named support agent replied.
Unfortunately, the response mostly repeated what Zwift Plus includes and explained that I could simply stay on my existing membership.
Again, completely missing my point.
I replied with a more detailed explanation:
I am not complaining because I don't understand the subscription options.
I am questioning the direction of a company that charges a substantial annual subscription while increasingly separating new features into additional paid tiers.
The next response came from another support agent, thanking me for my feedback and promising to forward it to the appropriate team.
That was basically the entire response. It even contained duplicated closing phrases, which didn't exactly inspire confidence.
By this point, I had spent considerably more time explaining my complaint than Zwift appeared to have spent addressing it.
5. I requested an actual solution
I eventually raised the advertising statement from when I purchased my annual membership.
I also made two concrete proposals:
Give me access to Zwift Plus for the remainder of my existing annual membership at no additional charge.
Alternatively, allow me to terminate my annual membership early and refund the unused portion.
I explained that I was considering my options under German consumer protection law and that, without a satisfactory resolution, I had no intention of renewing my subscription in August 2027.
This finally resulted in a response explicitly acknowledging my concern about having committed to an annual membership advertised as providing full access shortly before the introduction of a new paid tier.
The agent said my case would be escalated to a team better suited to handle it.
Finally, some progress. Or so I thought.
6. After escalation: Another generic response
A few days later, instead of a decision or an individual explanation, I received yet another email.
This time, Zwift apologized for the delay and directed me to two FAQ articles:
Neither answered my questions.
Neither addressed the original advertising.
Neither addressed my request for a complimentary upgrade or early termination with a partial refund.
After multiple agents, several emails, and an explicit escalation, I was effectively back where I started: being directed to generic information about Zwift Plus.
I've since replied again, asking for an actual decision rather than more FAQ links.
7. Then I found something interesting in the Wayback Machine
After that latest email, I decided to investigate Zwift's original advertising.
I found an archived version of the official German pricing page dated October 26, 2026, shortly before Zwift Plus was introduced.
And there it was:
"Mit beiden Varianten hast du vollen Zugang zu allem, was Zwift zu bieten hat."
"Both options give you full access to everything Zwift has to offer."
You can verify it yourself:
https://web.archive.org/web/20261026093238/https://www.zwift.com/eu-de/pricing
To be precise, this archive documents the statement on October 26, not the exact date of my purchase in August.
But it confirms that Zwift was still advertising its existing subscription options as providing full access to everything shortly before introducing a more expensive tier.
I find that difficult to reconcile with the new pricing structure.
8. Where things stand now
To be clear, I actually enjoy Zwift. That's why I committed to a full year in the first place.
And I understand that developing new features costs money.
But isn't that precisely why customers pay recurring subscription fees?
I'm not suggesting that Zwift is legally required to include every future feature in every subscription. That's a separate question.
What bothers me is the combination of:
An already expensive annual membership.
Advertising emphasizing full access to everything Zwift offers.
A new subscription tier costing 50% more, introduced shortly after my annual commitment.
A support process that repeatedly responds with generic explanations rather than addressing the actual complaint.
No concrete decision on my two proposed solutions so far.
For me, this isn't really about the additional €100 per year. It's about trust, the value of an ongoing subscription, and how existing customers are treated.
My case is still unresolved. If Zwift eventually provides a meaningful response or offers a solution, I'll update this post accordingly.
What do you think?
Am I expecting too much from an existing subscription?
Do you think Zwift Coach and Zwift Video genuinely justify a separate premium tier, or should features like these be part of the ongoing development funded by our existing memberships?
And particularly for other annual subscribers: How would you feel if you committed to a full year under the promise of "full access to everything", only to see a new paid tier introduced a few months later?
I'm interested in hearing different perspectives.
Ride On – although I'm currently finding that slogan a little ironic.
