Shopify Subscriptions is the official native subscription app that Shopify offers for free. It also supports Japanese, and in addition to selling subscriptions on a weekly, monthly, or yearly basis, customers themselves can change contract details, cancel, skip, pause, and more from their account page. On the other hand, some features are limited, such as restrictions on the number of orders and first-order discounts, so it is important to determine which app is the best fit for your store. This article introduces in detail the features, key usage points, precautions, and setup steps of Shopify Subscriptions.
What Is Shopify Subscriptions
Shopify Subscriptions is Shopify's native subscription app. It is completely free, supports Japanese, and lets you offer subscription sales on a weekly, monthly, or yearly basis. Customers can also cancel, skip, or pause their subscription contract from their account page. However, it does not offer settings such as a minimum number of orders, a first-order discount, or box-style features.
Features of Shopify Subscriptions
Completely Free
The biggest feature of Shopify Subscriptions is that it lets you offer subscription sales for free. Subscription apps up until now often incurred monthly fees or usage-based charges, driving up costs, but with Shopify Subscriptions you can offer subscription sales while keeping costs down.
Supports Japanese
The admin screen and help pages support Japanese, so even those who aren't comfortable with English can use it with peace of mind.
Comes with Just the Right Amount of Functionality
For those who want to start offering subscription sales, it provides the minimum necessary functionality. For example, when setting up a subscription contract, you can configure the subscription interval (weekly, monthly, yearly, etc.) and discounts. You can also manage subscription contracts within the app (changing contracts, canceling, skipping, etc.).
What Shopify Subscriptions Can't Do
Cannot Set a Minimum or Maximum Number of Orders
When offering subscription sales, you may want to place restrictions on the number of orders, such as requiring "at least 3 subscription orders."
Since Shopify Subscriptions does not let you set a minimum or maximum number of orders, you'll need to choose a different subscription app if you want to place restrictions on the number of orders.
The blog article below explains in detail our recommended subscription apps for Shopify. Please use it as a reference.
Cannot Set Every-Other-Week Delivery in Daily Units
With Shopify Subscriptions, you can only set the delivery interval as "every X weeks," "every X months," or "every X years." If you want to set a daily interval (for example, a subscription that delivers every 3 days), this cannot be achieved.
Cannot Set a First-Order Discount
When offering subscription sales, you may want to offer a first-order discount for subscriptions, such as "half price for the first order only."
Since Shopify Subscriptions does not let you set a discount for the first order only, if you want to offer a first-order discount you'll need to either choose a different subscription app, or substitute it with a coupon code that's limited to one use per customer via the discount feature.
The blog article below explains Shopify's discount feature in detail. Please use it as a reference.
Does Not Support Classic Customer Accounts
With Shopify Subscriptions, customers can cancel or skip their own subscription orders directly from their account page. However, note that this does not support classic customer accounts if you want customers to be able to manage their own subscription orders.
If you want customers to be able to manage their own subscription orders but are using classic customer accounts, you'll need to either switch to new customer accounts or introduce a different subscription app.
The blog article below explains in detail how to switch customer accounts and other information about customer accounts. Please use it as a reference.
May Not Be Usable Alongside Pre-Order Apps in Some Cases
Shopify Subscriptions is built using a Shopify mechanism called purchase options. Purchase options are also used by pre-order apps and similar tools, and the Shopify Subscriptions widget may end up appearing automatically on pre-order products that use purchase options.
For this reason, stores that use purchase options to run pre-order sales need to be careful when using this app.
If this kind of interference occurs, you'll need to take measures such as running pre-order sales without using purchase options, or separating your product templates into one for pre-orders and one for subscriptions, and adding the Shopify Subscriptions app block only to the subscription product template.
The blog article below introduces our recommended pre-order apps. Please use it as a reference.
How to Use Shopify Subscriptions
Offering Subscription Sales
Step 1: Install the App
(1) From the Shopify App Store, go to the Shopify Subscriptions app page
(2) Install the app
Step 2: Create a Subscription Plan
(1) Click "Plans" in the left-hand menu of the Shopify Subscriptions app
(2) Click "Plan" at the top right of the screen
(3) Configure the following on the subscription plan creation screen
- Title: Add the name of the subscription plan (this is shown to customers)
- Internal description: Add a description of the subscription plan (this is not shown to customers)
- Product: Set the product you want to sell on subscription
- Discount and delivery: Set the discount (e.g., ¥1,000 off) and delivery frequency (e.g., monthly)
(4) Click "Save"
Step 3: Add the App Block
(1) From the Shopify admin, go to "Online Store > Themes"
(2) Click "Customize" on the theme you want to add the app to
(3) From the top of the theme editor, select the product template
(4) Add an app block (or add a section block)
(5) Select the Apps tab
(6) Select the app block named "Subscription Widget"
(7) Drag and drop the subscription widget to where you want it displayed
(8) Change the color and text of the subscription widget
(9) Click "Save"
Step 4: Verify It Works
Once you access the product you configured in your subscription plan and the subscription widget is displayed, the subscription sales setup is complete.
Changing the Details of a Subscription Order
With Shopify Subscriptions, you can change the subscription order's interval and product quantity.
Here, we introduce how to change the interval from "every 1 month" to "every 2 months."
(1) Click "Contracts" in the left-hand menu of the Shopify Subscriptions app
(2) From the list of subscription contracts, click the target subscription contract
(3) Click "Edit" on the subscription details
(4) Change the part you want to change from the edit page
※ In this example, we change the delivery frequency to every 2 months
(5) Click "Save"
Once the subscription order's details have been updated as intended, the change is complete.
Pausing a Subscription Order
With Shopify Subscriptions, you can pause the subscription order itself.
(1) Click "Contracts" in the left-hand menu of the Shopify Subscriptions app
(2) From the list of subscription contracts, click the target subscription contract
(3) Click "Pause" at the top right of the screen
(4) Confirm the subscription order's status has changed to "Paused"
Resuming a Subscription Order
(1) Click "Contracts" in the left-hand menu of the Shopify Subscriptions app
(2) From the list of subscription contracts, click the subscription contract you want to resume
(3) Click "Resume" at the top right of the screen
(4) Confirm the subscription order's status has changed to "Active"
Canceling a Subscription Order
(1) Click "Contracts" in the left-hand menu of the Shopify Subscriptions app
(2) From the list of subscription contracts, click the target subscription contract
(3) Click "Cancel subscription" at the top right of the screen
(4) A confirmation dialog appears, so click "Cancel subscription" again
(5) Confirm the subscription order's status has changed to "Cancelled"
Skipping a Subscription Order
With Shopify Subscriptions, you can skip upcoming subscription orders. This is useful when, for example, a customer hasn't yet used up the product from their previous delivery.
(1) Click "Contracts" in the left-hand menu of the Shopify Subscriptions app
(2) From the list of subscription contracts, click the target subscription contract
(3) From the list of upcoming orders, click "Skip" on the order date you want to skip
(4) Confirm the status has switched to "Skipped"
Requesting a Payment Method Change
With Shopify Subscriptions, you can send a customer a request to update their subscription order's payment method. This is useful when payment fails on the credit card entered at the time of the subscription order, or when a customer asks to change their payment method.
(1) Click "Contracts" in the left-hand menu of the Shopify Subscriptions app
(2) From the list of subscription contracts, click the target subscription contract
(3) Click the "pencil icon" in the payment method section
(4) Click "Send link to update card"
(5) Confirm the sender and recipient, then click "Send email"
Changing the Shipping Address
With Shopify Subscriptions, you can change the shipping address for a subscription order. This is useful if a customer entered the wrong shipping address at the time of their subscription order, or if a customer has moved after placing a subscription order.
(1) Click "Contracts" in the left-hand menu of the Shopify Subscriptions app
(2) From the list of subscription contracts, click the target subscription contract
(3) Click the "pencil icon" in the shipping address section
(4) Click "Manage address on customer's page"
(5) You'll be taken to customer management, so click the "⋯ (ellipsis)" in the customer section
(6) Select "Manage addresses"
(7) Click "Add new address"
(8) Enter the shipping address
(9) Click "Save"
(10) Return to the earlier subscription order detail page
(11) Click the "pencil icon" in the shipping address section
(12) Click "Choose a different address"
(12) From the list of other addresses, select the newly registered address
(13) Click "Update"
(14) Confirm the address in the shipping address section has been updated
Recommended Apps to Use Alongside Shopify Subscriptions
RuffRuff Order Bonus
RuffRuff Order Bonus is a Shopify app that lets you implement a wide variety of bonus strategies (discounts and gift distribution) under virtually any condition.
For example, you can implement strategies such as the following:
- Free shipping exclusively for VIP members
- Discounts by membership rank
- Volume discounts
- Discounts when a specific product is included
- Discounts for customers with 10 or more past purchases
- First-come, first-served discounts (20% off for the first 10 customers)
- Gift distribution exclusively for members
- Sample distribution when purchasing a specific product
- Distributing summer samples during a spring-only promotion
- Free novelty item for orders of ¥10,000 or more
and more.
By using RuffRuff Order Bonus together with Shopify Subscriptions, you can set flexible discounts for your subscription products.
The blog article below introduces how to use RuffRuff Order Bonus to apply discounts by membership rank to subscription products set up with Shopify Subscriptions. Please use it as a reference.
In Closing
Shopify Subscriptions is a highly convenient app with just the right amount of functionality for those who want to start offering subscription sales without incurring any cost. On top of its low barrier to entry — with Japanese-language support and free use — a major benefit is that customers can manage their own recurring orders. On the other hand, some customizations, such as first-order discounts and order-count settings, are limited, so if these features are essential, consider addressing them by combining a different app with Shopify's standard features (such as discount codes). We recommend clarifying your own store's needs and aiming for the optimal subscription operation for your business.
Finally, the blog article below introduces, by category, recommended apps beyond Shopify Subscriptions that help with things like boosting sales and improving operational efficiency. Please use it as a reference when choosing apps.
