Best Shopify subscription apps for recurring payments

Best Shopify subscription apps for recurring payments
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Shopify subscription apps are an excellent and easy-to-use solution if you want to integrate subscription-based products or services into your website. They allow you to set up recurring billing, automate payments, manage subscriptions, and more.

Since the market has loads of options to choose from, it can be challenging to make the right pick. You want a user-friendly app that includes all the necessary features and isn’t overpriced.

To help you out, we handpicked 12 best Shopify subscription apps available on the Shopify app store. Keep reading to find each of their strengths, analyze their shortcoming, and find the app that’s a perfect match for your website.

What is a subscription app on Shopify?

Shopify subscription app gives you the possibility to set up recurring payments for your Shopify services or products. It adds a widget to your product pages where customers can select a subscription instead of making a one-time purchase.

Some subscription apps on the Shopify app store also offer a little extra, such as subscription performance analytics, subscription discount tiers, or an extensive amount of payment gateways.

Product subscription is an indispensable tool for customer retention, revenue growth, and a more appealing shopping process for your customers.

A Shopify recurring payments app will do wonders for businesses selling consumable products, such as food or cosmetics, as well as any service provider.

Top 12 Shopify apps for subscriptions: our shortlist

Here is our top 12 Shopify subscription app shortlist:

  1. Appstle Subscriptions & Loyalty - overall best Shopify subscription app
  2. Seal Subscriptions & Loyalty - best app for stores with high order value
  3. Propel Subscriptions App - Shopify subscription app with the best free plan option
  4. PayWhirl Subscription Payment - best variety of payment gateways
  5. Skio Subscriptions (YC S20) - Shopify subscription app with advanced performance analytics
  6. Yotpo Subscriptions - user-friendly app with professional support
  7. Loop Subscriptions - mobile-focused subscription app
  8. Recurpay Subscriptions App - app with convenient customer portal
  9. RecurrinGO! Subscriptions App - flexible plans with lower fees
  10. Subify Subscriptions App - feature-loaded plans for different size stores
  11. Ongoing Subscriptions - app with easy installation and migration
  12. Recharge Subscriptions - simple app with eCommerce features

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Best Shopify subscription apps: in-depth overview

Finding the right app for setting up and managing subscriptions can be a beneficial addition to your website. It can help foster trusting relationships with customers, streamline billing, and ultimately lead to more revenue.

So, let’s take a more in-depth look at all 12 top Shopify subscription apps.

1. Appstle Subscriptions App

Appstle Subscriptions App
1

4.9

/5

3739 reviews
appstle banner
Specifications
Price
Free - $100/mo, no transaction fees
Free trial
Yes, 10 days
Shopify app store

Appstle Subscriptions App is the best Shopify subscription app because it offers an array of features and affordable plans catering from the smallest to largest stores.

The paid plans of Appstle start from just $10/month and offer high-value perks such as customer-segment-based subscription plans, no transaction fees, subscriber loyalty features, weekly summary reports, 1-click customer portal login, and more.

The free plan also has a 0% transaction fee but is limited to the $500/mo benchmark in revenue. To get weekly summary reports or advanced subscription management, you’ll have to upgrade, but the free plan is a great starting point for small businesses.

The best part is that you can try Appstle’s paid plans out with a free 10-day trial.

Pros:

  • Great value-to-price ratio
  • 0% transaction fee on all plans
  • Custom shipping profiles
  • Mailing list integration
  • Inventory tracker
  • 24/7 support

Cons:

  • Slightly complicated interface

Here is what your product page with Appstle subscription box could look like:

Antique drawers product page with subscription widget powered by Appstle

2. Seal Subscriptions App

Seal Subscriptions App
1

4.9

/5

1971 reviews
seal subscriptions app banner
Specifications
Price
Free - $19.95/mo, no transaction fees
Free trial
Yes, 30 days
Shopify app store

Seal Subscriptions App boasts a range of features for scaling your business, such as an intuitive customer portal and subscription widget customization.

Seal Subscriptions lets you upgrade plans based on subscription quantity. Paired with the fact that it has no transaction fees, it makes this subscription app a very attractive option for stores with high order value.

There’s also a free plan available which allows 150 subscriptions. If that’s not enough, you can upgrade to a paid plan with up to 15,000 subscriptions. The prices start from only $4.95/mo, and all plans come with many advantages, including auto-charging functionality, custom email HTML, a customer portal, global statistics, and more.

You can try Seal Subscriptions App paid plans with a risk-free 30-day trial.

Pros:

  • Great value for money
  • Plan ranges are based on subscription quantity, not sales
  • Educational video tutorials available
  • Customer portal for managing subscriptions
  • Wide customization possibilities

Cons:

  • Free plan has very limited features

Here is a product page with the Seal Subscriptions App subscription widget:

A product page for coffee beans featuring one-time purchase and two different subscription options with discounts

3. Propel Subscriptions App

Propel Subscriptions App
1

4.9

/5

289 reviews
propel subscriptions app banner
Specifications
Price
Free - $19/mo, no transaction fees
Free trial
n/a
Shopify app store

Propel Subscriptions App is another great Shopify subscription app with native integration and no transaction fees.

Propel Subscriptions App offers a free plan with an array of features available, including unlimited subscriptions, customer portal, widget optimization, and analytics.

The paid plans start from $9/mo. They’re worth investing in because of features like custom email notifications, subscription editing and importing, payment retry management, priority support, and more. Multiple reviews also demonstrate that their customer service team is professional and fast to respond.

While there’s no free trial for trying out the paid plans, the free plan and its extensive feature list compensate for it.

Pros:

  • No transaction fees
  • All plans have unlimited subscriptions
  • Slick customer portal interface
  • Great cancellation, discount and dunning management
  • Mixed (subscription and one-time) checkout support

Cons:

  • No free trial for paid plans

You can take a look at how Propel’s subscription options, special offers, and discount management look below:

Blue coffee cup product page with one-time purchase and two different subscription tiers created using Subscriptions Recurring Orders Shopify app

4. PayWhirl Subscription Payments

PayWhirl Subscription Payments
1

4.8

/5

230 reviews
paywhirl subscriptions app banner
Specifications
Price
Free - $149/mo, transaction fees apply
Free trial
Yes, 14 days
Shopify app store

If your customer demographics are wide and they need access to a lot of different payment methods, PayWhirl Subscription Payments might be the Shopify subscription app for you.

Unlike most other apps, they support Authorize.net, PayPal Express, Stripe, and Shopify Payments. PayWhirl also offers decent performance analytics for your subscription revenue and a unique perk – phone support.

While the free plan offers unlimited subscriptions, the transaction fee is 3% when reaching $5,000 in monthly revenue. By opting for paid plans, you can lower transaction fees to 0.75-2% and get access to such features as email template editing, tag workflows, and developer API/Webhooks.

If you’re interested in the paid plans, you can try them out with a 14-day free trial.

Pros:

  • Native integration (themes, checkout, and Shopify customer accounts)
  • All plans have unlimited subscriptions
  • Customers can save payment options
  • Phone support

Cons:

  • 3% transaction fee on the free plan when reaching $5,000

Here’s an example of a product page with a subscription widget featuring ongoing and prepaid subscription models:

Honduras Coffee demo product page from PayWhirl featuring their subscription widget

5. Skio Subscriptions (YC S20)

Skio Subscriptions (YC S20)
1

5

/5

210 reviews
skio subscriptions app logo
Specifications
Price
$399/mo, transaction fees apply
Free trial
n/a (you can request a demo)
Shopify app store

If trust and reputation are of utmost importance to you when choosing apps, look no further than Skio. Shiny reviews and numerous strong brands trust Skio’s state-of-the-art tech and appreciate their perks, such as passwordless login (instead of using a code as part of the multi-factor authentication process) for customers.

Skio really stands out in the performance analytics department – they have outsourced this part of their app to Source Medium, so you’ll get all the information imaginable regarding your subscriptions.

This provider also lets you design a custom plan for your business on their website and request a demo. However, you can’t overlook its large price of $499/mo, especially since there’s still a 1% + 20¢ transaction fee applied.

Pros:

  • Trusted by known brands
  • Very powerful subscription analytics
  • Passwordless customer portal login
  • Gradual rollout migration option

Cons:

  • Pricey

Take a look at an example of Skio’s subscription widget:

Bulletproof coffee product page with Skio's subscription widget including 20% discount

6. Yotpo Subscriptions

Yotpo Subscriptions
1

4.7

/5

174 reviews
yotpo subscriptions banner
Specifications
Price
Free up to $500 in monthly subscription sales, after that 1% transaction fee
Free trial
n/a
Shopify app store

Yotpo Subscriptions is a solid app that has all the features you would expect from a good Shopify recurring payment app. Its customer support agents are professional and the widgets are modern-looking.

You can install Yotpo for free. There will be no transaction fee until you reach $500 in monthly subscription revenue. Then, Yotpo applies a 1% transaction fee, which is a competitive amount compared to some other subscription apps.

This provider offers the option to customize your subscriptions and create a plan that fits your business needs. While there’s no free trial available, you can request a demo version.

Pros:

  • Convenient subscription management for your clients
  • Comprehensive data analytics
  • Passwordless login for customers
  • 24/7 live support

Cons:

  • Reported issues with email notifications

You can take a look at a demo Yotpo store version and its subscription widget below:

yotpo Subscriptions App widget

7. Loop Subscriptions

Loop Subscriptions
1

4.9

/5

327 reviews
loop subscriptions app banner
Specifications
Price
Free - $399/mo, some transaction fees apply
Free trial
Yes, 14 days
Shopify app store

Loop Subscriptions boasts multiple advantages as a Shopify Subscription app, including having a mobile-first approach and the option to request custom feature development.

The app provider also offers an attractive 50-subscriber free plan that comes with a 0% transaction fee and sufficient features, which is a good starting solution for tiny Shopify stores.

The paid plan prices start from $99/mo – they’re quite pricey compared to apps like Appstle. However, they come with features like box subscriptions, a customer portal, and a subscriber reward system.

Their dunning system is quite advanced too – they have multiple solutions, such as smart recharge and email/SMS reminders to reduce failed payments.

If you’re interested in giving the paid plans a shot, there’s a 14-day free trial available.

Pros:

  • Customer portal that functions like an app
  • Great dunning and cancellation flows
  • 200+ mobile-responsive widgets to choose from
  • Loyalty tiers to inspire customer retention

Cons:

  • Both monthly and transaction fees apply to paid plans
  • Quite pricey paid plans

Here is the Loop Subscriptions widget with a custom discount on subscriptions:

Matcha tea product page demo with one time purchase and discounted subscription option generated by Subscriptions by Loop

8. Recurpay Subscriptions App

Recurpay Subscriptions App
1

4.9

/5

387 reviews
recurpay subscriptions app banner
Specifications
Price
Free – $79/mo, transaction fees apply
Free trial
n/a
Shopify app store

Recurpay Subscriptions App is a great fit if you’re looking for a straightforward app to integrate recurring payments.

You can install Recurpay for free but it’s limited to $100 in monthly subscription revenue. Meanwhile, the paid plan prices start from $9/mo, but the subscription revenue limit applies to every plan. This can be quite expensive considering other options on the market don’t include a limit on higher-costing plans.

Whichever plan you decide on, you get a portal where customers can edit, cancel, skip, or reschedule their subscriptions. The app automatically syncs modified product prices for subscription orders and also allows you to implement free trials or renew subscriptions on specific dates.

Pros

  • Great reviews regarding customer support
  • Paid plan prices start from just $9/mo
  • Multiple currencies available
  • Customer portal control

Cons

  • Subscription revenue limited on all paid plans
  • Transaction fees apply on paid plans

Take a look at Recurpay’s subscription widget example below:

Recurpay Subscription App widget

9. RecurrinGO! Subscriptions App

RecurrinGO! Subscriptions App
1

4.4

/5

215 reviews
recurringo subscriptions app banner
Specifications
Price
Free – $99/mo, transaction fees apply
Free trial
Yes, 14 days
Shopify app store

RecurrinGO! Subscriptions App is a good option with flexible plans and relatively low transaction fees on paid tiers.

Each plan, including the free one, comes with the same features. Only the more expensive plans include the subscription migration or customization option.

The main difference between plans is the transaction fees. The more you pay for your monthly subscription, the smaller the fee. This approach is convenient because you can calculate which plan provides the most value for your business based on your order count.

All paid plans come with a free 14-day trial if you wish to check it out.

Pros

  • Free plan comes with unlimited subscriptions
  • Paid plan prices start from just $9/mo
  • Multiple currencies available
  • Customer portal control

Cons

  • Subscription revenue limited on all paid plans
  • Transaction fees apply on paid plans

Take a look at RecurrinGO!'s subscription widget example below:

recurringo subscriptions app widget

10. Subify Subscriptions App

Subify Subcriptions App
1

4.9

/5

413 reviews
subify subscriptions app banner
Specifications
Price
Free - $19/mo, transaction fees apply
Free trial
Yes, 14 days
Shopify app store

Subify Subscriptions App has a sufficient feature variety, including memberships, email notifications, quick checkout links, and more depending on the plan you pick.

The free plan has quite many features available, but it only allows 10 active subscribers, and their branding will be present on your widgets.

Considering the paid Essential plan has a 2.5% transaction fee and only up to $1000 revenue, it doesn’t bring much value for $9/mo compared to competitors. If you want unlimited subscriptions and a lower (1%) transaction fee, you have to opt for the even more expensive $15/mo plan.

To try out the paid plans, you can opt for the free 14-day trial.

Pros:

  • Customers can manage the delivery schedule
  • Custom widget personalization upon request
  • Supports one-time and subscription products in one cart
  • Amazing customer support reviews

Cons:

  • Subify branding present on the free plan
  • Transaction fees on all plans

Here is an example of a gym membership subscription widget powered by Subify:

Monthly gym membership subscription box created with Subify Shopify subscription app

11. Ongoing Subscriptions

Ongoing Subscriptions
1

5

/5

129 reviews
ongoing subscriptions app banner
Specifications
Price
$99/mo - $499/mo, transaction fees apply
Free trial
Yes, 30 days
Shopify app store

Ongoing Subscriptions is another Shopify subscription app praised for its easy one-click installation process and positive reviews regarding the migration process.

The app has a wide range of subscription periods, outstanding analytics dashboards, various subscription discounts, and other features available.

However, it’s worth noting that there’s no free plan. And while the paid plans offer a 30-day free trial, their prices start from $99/mo. Plus, there’s still a 1-2% transaction fee.

With all these reasons combined, Ongoing Subscriptions couldn’t score higher on our list simply because you can find most of the same features and better value for money with other apps.

Pros:

  • Build-a-box feature
  • 3 types of subscription discounts
  • Order history management and analytics
  • Great reviews about migration and installation processes

Cons:

  • No free plan, transaction fees on all plans
  • Lacks competitive advantage to justify the price

This demo product page was created with Ongoing Subscriptions widget, take a look:

Demo page of coffee beans with Ongoing Subscriptions widget that includes subscription discount and delivery frequency selection

12. Recharge Subscriptions

Recharge Subscriptions
1

4.5

/5

1767 reviews
recharge subscriptions app banner
Specifications
Price
Free - $499/mo, transaction fees apply
Free trial
Yes, 30 days
Shopify app store

Our one last suggestion is Recharge Subscriptions. They surely have their perks, such as subscription management using SMS and a wide range of eCommerce tools they integrate with.

Some might recommend this app as one of the top options because of the numerous reviews collected over the years. However, recent feedback raises concerns about customer service.

Moreover, the app doesn’t have a free plan available and the paid plans are relatively expensive. Prices start from $99/mo, and a 1-1.25% fee per transaction is still applied. Considering the app doesn’t have any unique features compared to competitors, the price could be lower.

Pros:

  • Great UI
  • Exclusive customer portal
  • Possibility for customers to manage subscriptions through SMS
  • Performance analytics

Cons:

  • No fully free option, paid plans are expensive
  • Negative reviews regarding migration and customer support
  • Lack of automated solutions (e.g. you need to set up a subscription for each product independently)
  • No replies to negative reviews

Here’s a product page from a demo store Recharge built to showcase their Shopify subscription widgets:

Bare sleep supplement demo product page with 30-day subscription block generated by Recharge Subscriptions app.

How to choose the best subscription app for Shopify

When choosing the best subscription app for Shopify, the most important thing is to decide whether it makes sense for you to pay transaction fees.

Take your monthly revenue of the past three months or so, estimate your store’s revenue growth rate and calculate how much approximately you’d pay in 1% transaction fees over the upcoming months.

If you see anything over $200 per month, we’d suggest picking from the top three apps on our list. They offer a flat monthly rate and no hidden fees.

A few more factors to consider:

  • Migration. If you’re already using a Shopify subscription app and wish to migrate to a new one, choose an app with complementary migration assistance or great customer support reviews. We recommend Appstle, Skio, Loop Subscriptions, Subify, or Ongoing Subscriptions.
  • Shopify theme. All of the apps here work with up-to-date Shopify themes. If your store is running on a custom theme solution though, we’d suggest shortlisting apps with outstanding technical support and reviews. Shortlist: Appstle, Seal, Propel, or PayWhirl.
  • Cost efficiency. Some apps offer overpriced plans with high transaction fees and basic features. We recommend looking for cheaper alternatives that offer the best value for your money and no extra fees. Our top choices are Appstle and Seal.

Is Shopify good for subscription-based businesses?

Getting the right Shopify subscription app for your business can help you not only increase customer retention but also improve revenue by analyzing your target audience and their needs.

From paid options, our top recommendation for a Shopify subscription app is Appstle. It comes with a 0% transaction fee, lets you easily set up subscriptions, and provides you with weekly summary reports. As for the free version, we recommend the Seal Subscriptions App. It also has no transaction fees, and you can use it without a subscription revenue limit.

By choosing the right app for your store, you can propel your business to success within the largely competitive e-commerce landscape.

About the author
Vita Klimaite
Vita believes that every great product must be supported by an even better marketing strategy. Armed with SEO and Content Marketing experience, Vita is dedicated to helping website and eCommerce store owners unlock the power of search engines and scale their businesses. A big fan of remote work, she is always on the road, so you can also hear some exciting travel stories from her.