Shopify Subscriptions: Native App vs Recharge vs Custom Build

The best Shopify subscription app depends on your model: Shopify’s free Subscriptions app suits simple replenishment, Recharge (from USD 99 a month plus transaction fees) suits brands that need bundles, retention tools and deeper analytics, and a custom build suits refill, build-a-box or B2B logic no app handles well. Most brands under a few hundred subscribers can start on the native app and switch later.

This guide compares the three options on features, cost and flexibility, shows the fee maths at different revenue levels, and explains when a custom subscription build pays off, drawing on our subscription and refill automation case study.

Key takeaways

• Native is free: Shopify Subscriptions has no app fee and covers weekly, monthly and yearly renewals with discounts and a customer portal.
• Recharge costs more but does more: plans start at USD 99 per month plus 1.49% + 19¢ per transaction, with bundles and loyalty on higher tiers.
• Custom wins on unusual logic: refill schedules, dose-based plans or subscription B2B pricing often need a custom app on Shopify’s subscription APIs.
• Check your gateway first: subscriptions need a supported processor such as Shopify Payments, PayPal Express, Authorize.net, Adyen or Stripe.

What are your options for Shopify subscriptions?

Every Shopify subscription option runs on the same foundation: Shopify’s selling plans and subscription contracts, with renewals charged through Shopify checkout. What changes is how much control you get over plans, the customer portal, retention flows and reporting.

• Shopify Subscriptions: Shopify’s own free app, built and supported by Shopify
• Recharge: the best-known third-party subscription platform, with paid plans and a large feature set
• Custom build: a private app built on Shopify’s subscription APIs around your exact business rules

Before choosing, confirm eligibility. Shopify’s subscription considerations page lists the supported payment processors and notes that subscriptions can’t be used with draft orders.

What does the native Shopify Subscriptions app do?

The Shopify Subscriptions app is free and built by Shopify. It covers the core of a replenishment programme without extra monthly fees.

• Auto-billed subscriptions that renew weekly, monthly or yearly
• Percentage, fixed-amount and other subscription discounts
• A customer portal where subscribers can pause, skip or cancel
• Customisable notification emails and subscription reporting
• Import of existing subscription contracts and support for Shopify POS

Its limits show up as you grow. Advanced retention flows, build-your-own bundles and complex plan logic are not its focus, and Shopify notes that bundles aren’t compatible with the Shopify Subscriptions app.

What does Recharge offer and how much does it cost?

Recharge is a dedicated subscription platform with churn prevention, failed payment recovery, upsells and analytics on every plan. At the time of writing, Recharge’s pricing page lists three tiers.

Recharge fees sit on top of your payment processing costs. For a brand with strong retention needs, the tools can pay for themselves; for a simple monthly refill, they are often more than you need.

Shopify Subscriptions vs Recharge: what is the cost difference?

The fee gap grows with revenue. The table estimates monthly platform fees for subscription revenue at a USD 50 average order value, before payment processing, which you pay under either option.

At USD 100,000 a month, Recharge Starter costs roughly USD 23,600 a year. That is the budget to compare against the retention uplift Recharge’s tools deliver, or against the one-off cost of a custom app that matches your exact model.

When does a custom Shopify subscription build make sense?

A custom build makes sense when your subscription logic is part of your product, not just a discount on repeat orders. Our guides on custom Shopify apps versus public apps and on whether your Shopify store needs a custom app cover the general trade-off. For subscriptions, the common triggers are:

• Refill schedules based on usage, dose or pack size rather than fixed calendar intervals
• Build-a-box or mix-and-match plans with rules the native app can’t express
• Subscriptions tied to B2B pricing, contracts or approval steps
• Syncing subscription data with an ERP, CRM or WhatsApp reminders in real time
• Fee savings at scale that outweigh a one-off build and maintenance

A custom subscription app typically costs USD 8,000–40,000+ to build, depending on plan logic, portal design and integrations, plus 10–20% a year for maintenance. See our breakdown of Shopify custom app and integration costs for how these projects are scoped.

Which Shopify subscription app should you choose?

Start native if you are testing subscriptions or run a simple monthly refill. Choose Recharge when retention tooling and bundles will clearly lift revenue. Go custom when your model doesn’t fit either, or when fees at scale justify owning the logic.

Which recurring revenue metrics should Shopify subscription brands track?

Whichever option you choose, judge it on retention, not sign-ups. A subscription programme that adds 200 subscribers a month but loses 150 is a discount scheme, not recurring revenue.

• Monthly recurring revenue and its month-on-month change
• Churn rate, split into voluntary cancellations and failed payments
• Average subscription lifetime in renewal orders
• Share of subscribers who pause or skip rather than cancel
• Revenue per subscriber after subscription discounts

Failed payments are often the easiest churn to fix. Timely reminders on the channels customers actually read help, which is why many GCC and Indian brands add WhatsApp automation for Shopify renewals and support to their subscription flows.

How do you set up Shopify subscriptions the right way?

1. Confirm your payment processor supports subscriptions in your markets
2. Define plans: frequencies, discounts, minimum commitments and cancellation rules
3. Add subscription options to product pages with clear pricing and renewal terms
4. Configure the customer portal so pause and skip are easier than cancel
5. Set up failed payment reminders and a win-back message for cancelled subscribers
6. Track active, paused and cancelled subscriptions monthly, alongside revenue per subscriber

The customer portal matters most for retention. On Shopify’s new customer accounts, a custom portal can be built with customer account UI extensions in Shopify, so subscription management sits inside the account customers already use.

Why choose Amwhiz for Shopify subscriptions?

Amwhiz is a Shopify Partner with in-house developers who set up native subscriptions, configure third-party apps and build custom subscription and refill apps on Shopify’s APIs. We have built subscription and refill automation for Shopify merchants, so we can tell you honestly whether the free app, Recharge or a custom build fits your model and your margins, then deliver it end to end on our Shopify development services team.

Frequently asked questions

Is the Shopify Subscriptions app free?

Yes. Shopify Subscriptions is a free app built by Shopify. You still pay normal payment processing fees on subscription orders.

Is Recharge better than Shopify Subscriptions?

Recharge has more features, including bundles, loyalty and advanced retention tools on higher plans. Shopify Subscriptions is free and enough for simple replenishment programmes.

How much does Recharge cost?

At the time of writing, Recharge Starter costs USD 99 a month plus 1.49% + 19¢ per transaction, and Recharge Plus costs USD 499 a month plus 1.34% + 19¢. Custom pricing is available for high-volume brands.

Which payment gateways support Shopify subscriptions?

Shopify lists Shopify Payments, PayPal Express, Authorize.net, Adyen and Stripe as supported processors for subscriptions. Availability depends on your region and the gateway’s terms.

Can I move from Shopify Subscriptions to Recharge or a custom app later?

Yes. Subscription contracts can be migrated between apps, though it needs careful planning around payment methods and billing dates. Plan the move during a quiet billing period and test with a small group first.