Best Loyalty Programs for Shopify POS: What to Check

The best loyalty programs for Shopify POS do one thing well: a customer who earns in your store and spends online, or the reverse, sees one balance and never has to explain anything to your staff. Shopify POS is Shopify's point-of-sale app for in-person sales, and most loyalty apps say they support it. The details of that support are where they differ.

Here is what to check before you choose, and how three options handle it.

What should a Shopify POS loyalty program do?

A Shopify POS loyalty program should recognize the customer at the counter, add points or credit to the same balance they use online, and let staff apply a reward in a few taps. If any of those steps needs a workaround, in-store customers stop joining.

Five checks separate the apps that work in a store from the ones that only list POS on their pricing page:

1. One balance across channels: points earned in store can be spent online, and the other way round.

2. Customer identification at checkout: what happens when the shopper gives no email or phone number.

3. Rewards that work in both channels, not a separate catalog for each.

4. A way to undo a redemption when a sale is abandoned or changed.

5. A fast way to identify members, such as a wallet pass or QR code instead of a name search.

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How do the main apps handle Shopify POS?

Smile.io lets customers earn in store and redeem online, but scopes spending rewards to each channel. Growave includes a Shopify POS integration from its entry plan and a POS loyalty QR code on its Growth plan. Subscribfy's loyalty program works online, in store and through Apple or Google Wallet.

Smile.io and Growave facts come from their own help center and pricing pages at the time of writing.

Why does the email at checkout matter so much?

Because in many setups no email means no points. Smile.io's own help center says that if no email address is entered for the customer in the cart, no points are awarded for the purchase. Staff who skip that step on a busy Saturday quietly break the program.

Train staff to ask for the email or phone before payment, every time. Or remove the question: a member who shows a wallet pass at the counter is identified in one scan.

Should in-store rewards be points or store credit?

Store credit is easier at a counter. Shopify accepts store credit as a native payment method on its online store, on Shopify POS and in the Shop app, so the customer spends a dollar balance without a discount code. Points have to be converted into a discount first.

Shopify's store credit documentation adds one condition: store credit can't be active on POS unless it is also active on your online store. We compare the two currencies in store credit vs points.

Which loyalty program is best for Shopify POS?

For a points program, Smile.io is the most widely used option on Shopify by its own count (more than 60,000 stores), as long as you accept separate rewards per channel. For points plus reviews and wishlists, Growave covers POS from its entry plan. For a store where your best customers should pay to belong, with one program online and in store, Subscribfy's loyalty program runs next to a paid membership and a wallet pass that identifies members at the counter.

Nailboo runs its Boo Club membership integrated with loyalty, and members now generate 60% of total revenue (Nailboo case study). If you sell online and in store, bring your number of locations and monthly orders to a 30-minute call and we'll show you how the program would work at your counter. Book a call with Subscribfy.

Frequently asked questions

Can customers earn loyalty points in store without an account?

It depends on the app. With Smile.io, a customer added in store with an email address becomes a member automatically, and their in-store and online activity is linked when they use the same email.

Can customers pay with store credit on Shopify POS?

Yes. Store credit is a payment method on Shopify POS, provided it is also active on your online store.

Can online rewards be redeemed in store?

Not with every app. Smile.io's help center states that online rewards can't be redeemed in store, and in-store rewards can't be redeemed online. Ask any vendor this question before you sign.

Running stores and an online shop? Book a 30-minute strategy call and bring your POS setup.