How Pricing Plans Work in Essential Loyalty App

In this guide, we'll walk you through what happens when you install the app, how the 14-day free trial works, how billing and order-based plans are handled, how monthly order limits work, and how upgrades, downgrades, pauses, and cancellations are managed. Everything is explained in a simple and transparent way.

• When you install the app, your store starts on the Free plan, and you can launch the Loyalty Program without any charge.
• You get a full 14-day free trial with no charges if you choose any of the paid plans.
• If you uninstall the app during the free trial, you won't be charged anything.
• Plans are based on the number of loyalty program orders per month — these are referral orders and returning customer orders only. Regular first-time purchases do not count.
• On the Free plan, the loyalty program is automatically paused when you reach the monthly order limit.
• On paid plans (Starter, Essential, Growth), reaching the order limit triggers an automatic upgrade to the next plan.
• You can upgrade, downgrade, pause, or cancel your plan at any time.
• All billing and credits are handled directly through Shopify.

Let's walk through everything step by step 👇

When you install the app from the Shopify App Store, your store starts on the Free plan.

On this plan:

• You have access to all core loyalty features and can start setting up your loyalty program.
• You won't be charged anything.

This gives you time to fully test the app and understand how it works before committing to a paid plan.

If you choose a paid plan, a 14-day free trial begins automatically. No charges are applied during the trial period.

The app offers four plans based on monthly loyalty program orders:

• Up to 250 loyalty program orders per month
• All advanced loyalty point programs
• Loyalty widget
• VIP tiers
• Referral program
• Discounts & free shipping rewards
• Free product rewards
• Customer Account Page

• Up to 500 loyalty program orders per month
• All advanced loyalty point programs
• Dedicated loyalty page + loyalty widget
• VIP tiers
• Referral program
• Discounts & free shipping rewards
• Free product rewards
• POS support for in-store loyalty
• Full customization
• 14-day free trial

• Up to 1500 loyalty program orders per month
• All Starter plan features
• Full customization + fast-track support
• 14-day free trial

• Unlimited loyalty program orders
• All Essential plan features
• 14-day free trial

⚠️ Important: Only loyalty program orders count toward your monthly limit — these are orders placed by returning customers or through referrals, or if a customer signed up via the Loyalty application (i.e. Floating Widget). Standard first-time orders are not counted.

Order counts reset at the start of every monthly billing cycle.

The behavior when you reach your monthly order limit depends on your current plan:

• When the 250 monthly order limit is reached, your loyalty program is automatically paused.
• Customers will no longer see points, rewards, or VIP benefits until you upgrade to a paid plan.

• Starter plan (500 orders reached) → automatically upgrades to Essential ($24/month)
• Essential plan (1500 orders reached) → automatically upgrades to Growth ($79/month)
• Growth plan has no order limit — no upgrades needed.

You will receive notifications as you approach your order limit. Once an upgrade happens, Shopify handles the billing adjustment automatically with prorated charges.

If you'd like to avoid automatic upgrades, you can manually upgrade your plan before reaching the limit from the app's Billing section.

On the Free plan:

• You have access to all core loyalty features.
• The dedicated loyalty landing page and POS support are not included (available on paid plans).
• When the 250 monthly order limit is reached, the loyalty program is automatically paused — it is not auto-upgraded to a paid plan.
• To resume the program, simply upgrade to a paid plan from the Billing section.

You can also manually pause the loyalty program at any time. When paused, all onsite loyalty elements are deactivated.

All billing is managed through Shopify Billing:

• Charges appear directly on your Shopify invoice.
• Billing starts on the first day of your 30-day billing cycle after the trial ends.
• There are no external payments or hidden fees.

If you upgrade or downgrade mid-cycle:

• Changes take effect immediately.
• Shopify automatically applies prorated charges or credits.

You can upgrade or downgrade your plan at any time from the app's Billing section.

If you cancel:

• The cancellation takes effect immediately.
• Your loyalty program is turned off.
• Customers will lose access to points, rewards, and VIP statuses.

Any unused time is automatically converted into prorated credits by Shopify.

If your store is on a legacy plan (a plan no longer listed in the app store), you may be paying a different rate. We recommend switching to one of the current plans to benefit from updated pricing and features.

To switch, go to the Billing section in the app and select a current plan. You can also reach out to our support team and we'll be happy to help.

The Essential Loyalty App:

• Includes a full 14-day free trial with no risk for paid plans.
• Uses a transparent, order-based pricing model with four plans: Free, Starter ($10), Essential ($24), and Growth ($79).
• Only counts loyalty orders (referral orders and returning customer orders) toward your plan limit.
• Pauses the loyalty program on the Free plan when the order limit is reached.
• Automatically upgrades paid plans when the monthly order limit is exceeded.
• Allows upgrades, downgrades, pauses, and cancellations at any time.
• Applies prorated charges and credits automatically through Shopify.

If you have any questions about pricing, billing, order limits, or plan changes, our support team is always happy to help 💙