Why Store Credit is Better for Building Long-Term Loyalty Program on Shopify
Shopify includes native store credit, but it doesn't run a loyalty program. Compare store credit with points and gift cards, understand Shopify's limitations, and see which apps add the missing functionality.
Ganga 7 minute read
Stores invest heavily in their acquisition channels to bring in new customers. They optimise campaigns, experiment with creatives, and spend thousands to drive that first purchase.
But what happens after the first order? Acquiring a customer is only half the battle.
Customer acquisition is expensive. The real challenge is getting them to come back. After all, the economics of customer acquisition only make sense when a one-time buyer turns into a repeat customer. That's exactly what a loyalty program is meant to do.
Three ways to build your loyalty program: Points, gift cards, & store credit
Points
What it is: A virtual balance of points, your loyalty app keeps track of each customer.
At checkout: The customer converts points into a discount code, then applies the code at the checkout to redeem their points.
Where it fits: programs built on gamification, where tiers, streaks and progress toward the next reward are part of the experience.
The conversion step is where redemption is lost. According to Antavo's 2026 Global Customer Loyalty Report, based on responses from 3,000 marketers and 10,000 consumers, 27% of loyalty points earned in 2025 were never redeemed.
Gift Cards
What it is: A code carrying a fixed value.
At checkout: the customer enters the code and the value is applied to the order total.
Where it fits: rewards meant to be passed on, since anyone holding the code can spend it.
Store Credit
What it is: money on the customer's own Shopify account. It’s not a discount code, but rather real money in their currency.
At checkout: it appears as a payment method alongside cards and wallets. No code to enter, no conversion rate to keep in mind.
Where it fits: cashback and refund-to-credit programs, where you want the money spent rather than forgotten. The balance is stored on the customer's Shopify record, not inside a third-party app. So it stays with your store even if you switch loyalty apps.
What makes store credit "native"
Store credit is a Shopify feature. Shopify holds the balance against the customer record, the same way it holds an address or an order history. Plenty of apps also run their own wallet and call the result store credit. It works, and for some stores it is fine. It is a different thing, though, and three practical differences follow.
The most important difference is redemption. Native Shopify store credit works with a single click at checkout and Shopify POS. Customers need not copy discount codes for redeeming their credits.
Switching apps: Points and app-held wallets belong to the vendor. If you switch to a different loyalty app, you end up losing the balance/points as well. So, you either write off what your customers have earned (Which might not be a good sentiment, especially when you are building a loyalty program) or recreate the balances manually for each. Store credit stays on the customer record, so the balances are still there.
Refunds and rewards. A refund and a cashback reward create the same kind of credit, in the same place. Your support team checks one balance on the customer's Shopify profile instead of two systems.
Sales channels. Checkout, customer accounts and POS all recognise native store credit, because it's Shopify's own feature.
What Shopify’s Store Credit gives you natively
Shopify has store credit built in. You open a customer's profile in the admin, issue an amount, and it's available to them at checkout straight away to use.
Five things to know before you build your loyalty program on it.
Expiry. You set a date when issuing, or choose no expiry. Credit expires at the end of the day in your store's timezone. Make sure to check consumer protection law where you sell first.
Customer accounts: Only new customer accounts can hold store credit. If you are still on legacy accounts, this is the thing to fix first.
Balance ceiling: A single customer account can hold just under $15,000 USD. But this is a limit most stores won’t hit,
POS: Supported, and you can switch credit off there independently of your online store.
B2B: Credit issued on a customer profile applies to your D2C store only. B2B credit runs through company locations.
What native credit doesn't do is run a program. There's no way to award it automatically, no earning rules, no tiers, no referrals, and nothing that tells the customer they have it. Every deposit is manual. It's a wallet rather than a loyalty program, and that gap is what the apps below fill.
What are Shopify’s Native Store Credit Limitations?
Two of these limits are worth understanding, before you start building your loyalty program.
It doesn't run a program. Nothing awards credit automatically. You will have to manually credit balances to your customers. No earning rules, no VIP tiers, no referrals, and nothing that tells a customer they have a balance.
Redemption is all or nothing.
💡Only the full store credit amount can be applied as a payment method. Customers can't select a partial amount of their store credit to pay for an order.
A customer with $50 of credit can't spend $10 and keep the rest. There's no setting that restricts credit to orders above a certain value either.
That's why store credit apps don't just deposit money and leave. They are built with a redemption layer on top of Shopify.
Shopify Store Credit Apps 2026
| App | Features | Pricing | Rating |
|---|---|---|---|
Dollarback: Cashback & Loyalty |
| Free plan available Paid plan starts $29/mo | 4.8 ⭐ |
Koin Store Credit & Rewards |
| Free Single plan, no paid tier | 5.0 ⭐ |
Redeemly Store Credit Cashback |
| Free to 200 orders Paid from $19/mo | 4.9 ⭐ |
Appstle Loyalty Program Reward |
| Free to 250 orders Paid from $10/mo | 5.0 ⭐ |
Smile.io |
| Free plan Paid from $15/mo Store credit plan from $79/mo | 4.9 ⭐ |
FAQs
Does Shopify have store credit built in? Yes, and it's free. You issue it from a customer's profile and they spend it at checkout. There are no earning rules, automation or tiers, so running a program still needs an app.
Can a customer apply part of their store credit to an order? Not natively. Shopify applies the full balance and customers can't choose a partial amount. Apps work around this by hiding the native payment method and converting credit into controlled rewards.
Can store credit expire? Yes, and it's a native setting. You choose an expiry date when issuing, or select no expiry. Check consumer protection law where you sell before using it.
What's the difference between store credit and a gift card? Store credit is tied to a customer account. A gift card is a code anyone holding it can spend. Credit isn't transferable, which is what makes it work as a reward rather than a giveaway.
How do I know if an app uses native store credit? Check the Data access section on its App Store listing for the "Edit store credit" scope. The reward category tags are self-declared and don't reliably indicate it.
