To get more customers with store credit, run three plays: a referral program that pays both sides, sign-up bonuses that turn visitors into first-time buyers, and win-back offers for customers who stopped ordering. Each one pays out in credit, so you give up margin only when the credit is redeemed.
Native Shopify can hold and redeem credit, but it has no rules for who earns it and when. A Shopify store credit app supplies those rules. This guide shows how each play works and how it runs in the Shopify store credit app Rewardify: Store Credit & VIP. It is published by the team behind Rewardify, and the app details come from its Shopify listing and product documentation.
What a Shopify store credit app adds to native credit
Shopify's store credit documentation describes how native credit works. You issue it from a customer profile, as a refund, or through the API. Expiry is set each time you issue it. Customers see it only when signed in, and Shopify applies the full available balance up to the order total, with no minimum order setting.
Shopify's own guide to store credit apps describes the three plays in this post: credit as cashback on orders, a bonus for signing up, and a reward for referrals. An app adds the rules that decide who gets credit, when, and how much.
Store credit referral program: get more customers from the ones you have
A store credit referral program pays your best customers in something they can only spend with you. Shopify referrals also build on themselves, because every new buyer can become the next referrer.
Design it so it can't be gamed
- Reward both sides. The referrer and the new customer each get credit.
- Release it after the referred order ships, or after your return window closes, not when it's placed.
- Cap rewards per referrer, and watch for matching addresses, emails, or payment details.
- Tell the friend to sign in. Credit appears only for signed-in customers.
Count the cost
Referral cost per new customer is credit redeemed divided by new customers acquired. If each referral issues $10 to the friend and $10 to the referrer, 300 referred customers means $6,000 in credit. If 70% is redeemed, that is $4,200, or $14 per new customer. Shopify's 2026 customer acquisition guide puts the average ecommerce acquisition cost at $41.83 as of April, though other benchmark sets run higher, so compare against your own number. These figures are illustrative.
How it runs in Rewardify
Rewardify supports referral programs where both the referrer and the new customer earn, and referral rewards can be automated with Shopify Flow. It also reports on program performance, so you can see credit issued against credit redeemed.
What Rewardify: Store Credit & VIP includes:
- Returns turned into native store credit instead of cash refunds
- One credit balance on Shopify POS and online
- VIP tiers rewarded with store credit, so you can replace blanket discounts
- Employee discount programs and referral programs
- Birthday and referral rewards automated with Shopify Flow
- Multi-currency and multi-language support
- Works with Checkout, customer accounts, Shopify POS, Shopify Flow, ReCharge, and Bold Recurring Orders
- Plans from $19.95 a month with a 14-day free trial
Sign-up bonuses that turn visitors into customers
Sign-up bonuses give credit for creating an account, joining the newsletter, or placing a first order. Under Shopify's new customer accounts, shoppers sign in with their email and a one-time code, and a profile is created automatically if the email isn't on file. So an email capture can become a customer profile you can credit.
Design rules
- Issue the credit after the first order ships, or require a first order, so fake accounts earn nothing.
- Keep the amount below a typical order. Native credit has no minimum order setting, so a $10 credit on a $12 order costs you $10.
- Allow one bonus per email and per shipping address.
- Try "spend $50, get $10 credit for your next order." The first order pays full price and the credit applies to the second.
A discount code works for guests and can require a minimum purchase. Credit can't do either, so choose by goal: codes for the first order, credit for the second.
How it runs in Rewardify
First-purchase and new-customer welcome credit, plus newsletter signup bonuses, are all earn triggers. Branded emails announce the credit, and customers see their balance at checkout and on their account page.
Win-backs: bring lapsed customers back with credit
Win-backs target customers who have stopped ordering, which is the cheapest place to spend credit because you have no recurring revenue to protect.
- Build a segment from purchase history in Shopify, such as customers who haven't ordered in 90 days.
- Offer a modest credit with an expiry date, such as $15 for 30 days.
- Send a reminder before it expires.
- Hold out a random slice that gets no offer, so you can measure the lift.
The math favors win-backs. For customers who wouldn't otherwise order, credit is profitable on any order above credit divided by gross margin. With $15 of credit and a 50% margin, that is $30. If 100 lapsed customers each place a $70 order using $15 of credit, you collect $55 in cash against $35 of product cost, a $20 gain each, or $2,000 in total. If some would have returned anyway, part of that credit is a cost, which is why the holdout matters. These numbers are illustrative.
How it runs in Rewardify
Rewardify supports time-bound campaigns with custom earn rates, bulk tools to process campaigns across many customers at once, scheduled and recurring credit, and expiring-credit reminder emails. Build the lapsed-customer segment in Shopify or your email tool, then use the app's campaign and bulk tools to issue the credit.
How to choose a Shopify store credit app: seven questions
- Does credit live in Shopify's native store credit? Rewardify's listing describes native store credit. Ask any vendor what happens to balances if you uninstall.
- Does one balance work at POS and online? Rewardify does, with a $10 monthly add-on for Shopify POS.
- Which triggers can it automate? Look for referrals, signups, birthdays, cart recovery, and campaigns.
- Does it remind customers before credit expires? Rewardify sends expiring-credit reminder emails.
- How does pricing scale? Rewardify bills by interactions, and the Basic plan includes 10,000 a month. Other apps bill by orders, so compare at your volume.
- How does it handle subscriptions and currencies? Rewardify lists multi-currency support and ReCharge and Bold integrations. Shopify's native credit covers only the initial purchase of a subscription, so test renewals.
- What reporting does it give? Shopify has Store credit transactions and Outstanding store credit balance reports, and Rewardify adds program performance reporting.
Measure whether you get more customers
Track net acquisition cost: ad spend plus redeemed credit, divided by new customers. For each play, track one number: referral cost per new customer for Shopify referrals, first-order rate for sign-up bonuses, and reactivation rate for win-backs. Compare each against a holdout group, and check redemption rate so you know the credit is being used.
Mistakes to avoid
- Paying credit before the order ships. Returns and fake accounts turn it into a loss.
- Offering credit to guests. They never see it at checkout.
- Skipping the holdout. Without one, you can't tell new customers from ones who would have ordered anyway.
- Setting the bonus above a typical order. There's no minimum, so the whole order can be free.
- Forgetting expiry. Shopify has no store-wide default, so set it each time or let the app do it.
FAQ
Q1. What is the best Shopify store credit app to get more customers? It depends on the triggers you need and your order volume. Choose an app that automates referrals, signups, and campaigns, works at POS and online, and reminds customers before credit expires. Rewardify: Store Credit & VIP covers all of those and starts at $19.95 a month.
Q2. How does a store credit referral program work for Shopify referrals? Both the referrer and the new customer earn credit, released after the referred order ships. Customers sign in to use it, and Shopify applies the full balance up to the order total.
Q3. Can I give store credit as a sign-up bonus on Shopify? Yes. Issue credit for creating an account, joining the newsletter, or placing a first order. Release it after the first order ships so fake accounts earn nothing.
Q4. How do I win back lapsed customers with store credit? Segment customers by purchase history, offer a modest credit with an expiry date, remind them before it lapses, and measure against a holdout group.
Q5. How much does a Shopify store credit app cost? It varies by app. Rewardify starts at $19.95 a month with a 14-day trial, bills by interactions, and adds $10 a month for Shopify POS. Always compare plans at your own volume.
Conclusion
Referrals, sign-up bonuses, and win-backs each help you get more customers with store credit for a cost you control, because credit costs you only when it's redeemed. Start with one play, measure it against a holdout group, then add the next.
If you want those plays to run on their own, try the Shopify store credit app Rewardify: Store Credit & VIP