What is the best loyalty program software in 2026?
Eight tools scored for rewarding repeat customers in store, online or both, plus the quote-only platforms worth knowing.
The short answer depends on where you sell. If you already take payments with Square, its loyalty program comes with Square Plus at $49 a month per location. For a Shopify store under 500 orders a month, start on the free plan of BON Loyalty (150 orders) or Smile.io (200 orders). If your brand lives on Klaviyo emails, LoyaltyLion is built for it. And once you pass 500 orders a month and want everything from one vendor, Yotpo is the most complete, from $199 a month.
Some links may be affiliate links. The ranking is editorial: a sponsored spot is always labeled on its card, and no affiliate link changes a score.
The best loyalty software for your situation
Loyalty, referrals and reviews, Pro from $199/mo
You run SquareIncluded in Square Plus, $49/mo per location
Small Shopify storeFree up to 150 orders, Basic $29
Email-driven brandKlaviyo built in, free up to 400 orders
VIP club without $199VIP tiers from $49/mo
Digital punch cardFrom $49/mo, 30-day trial
8 loyalty program tools compared
Two worlds share this market. In-store tools (Square Loyalty, Stamp Me) are priced per location and live at the counter. Ecommerce apps (Yotpo, BON, LoyaltyLion, Rivo, Smile.io, Growave) are priced by order volume and live on your online store. The "Where it works" column tells you which world each tool belongs to.
| Best for | Where it works | Free plan | Team size | Visit | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Yotpo | Growing ecommerce brand | Online; POS on Premium | 4.1/5 | Free; Pro from $199/mo | ✓ | 500+ orders/mo | Visit → |
| 2 | Square Loyalty | Store on Square | In store, Square POS | 4.0/5 | Square Plus $49/mo per location | — | Cafes, restaurants, retail | Visit → |
| 3 | BON Loyalty | Small Shopify store | Shopify and Shopify POS | 4.0/5 | Free; Basic $29/mo | ✓ | Under 500 orders/mo | Visit → |
| 4 | LoyaltyLion | Email-driven brand | Shopify, Klaviyo | 3.9/5 | Free; Classic $199/mo | ✓ | Shopify brand on Klaviyo | Visit → |
| 5 | Rivo | VIP club on Shopify | Shopify, 3 POS locations | 3.9/5 | From $49/mo | — | 200 to 2,500 orders/mo | Visit → |
| 6 | Smile.io | Simple first program | Shopify, BigCommerce, Shopify POS | 3.8/5 | Free; Essential $15/mo | ✓ | Under 1,000 orders/mo | Visit → |
| 7 | Growave | All-in-one bundle | Shopify | 3.8/5 | Entry $15/mo | — | Store that wants one app | Visit → |
| 8 | Stamp Me | Digital punch card | In store, no POS link | 3.7/5 | Lite $49/mo | — | Single location | Visit → |
Prices as listed by each vendor, in US dollars, before tax. A tool keeps the same score across all our Labs pages.
Is your tool missing from this page? Email us: hello@hackceleration.com
How we compared and ranked
We started from a practical question: what does a loyalty program really cost in the month it works, and what blocks you the day you want more? For each tool we read the official pricing page and the feature list by plan, then the most negative merchant reviews on the Shopify App Store, Trustpilot and the Square community. Those are where discount codes piling up, widgets covering the checkout button and price hikes show up.
A tool only gets ranked if it shows a readable public price. TapMango, Fivestars, Open Loyalty and Antavo publish none, so they sit below, unranked. When a tool already has a score on our other Labs pages (Yotpo, Smile.io, Square), we reuse it unchanged.
- Cost at volumeWhat you pay at 500, 1,000 or 2,500 orders, or per location in store, not just the starting price.Heaviest
- Features by planPoints, referrals, VIP tiers, wallet pass: which plan each feature actually lands on.Heavy
- POS and channelsIn store, online or both, and which registers the program works with.Medium
- Merchant feedbackSupport, cancellation, price increases and bugs reported by merchants.Medium
- Public priceNo public price, no spot in the ranking.Entry condition
Some links may be affiliate links. The ranking is editorial: a sponsored spot is always labeled on its card, and no affiliate link changes a score.
Yotpo
Yotpo has the deepest loyalty feature set in our comparison on the ecommerce side. Points, referrals and rewards come free; Pro adds segments, CRM integrations and fraud controls. That is why it scores 4.8 on features.
The pricing needs a quick calculation. Pro starts at $199 a month with 500 orders included. Each extra order costs $0.20 up to 1,000, then $0.10 up to 3,000, then $0.05. At 1,000 orders a month you pay about $299. And two things brands ask for early, VIP tiers and in-store (POS) loyalty, only come with Premium, which is quote-based.
- Points, referrals and rewards on the free plan
- Segments and fraud controls on Pro
- Reviews from the same vendor
- ✓Richest features in the ranking (4.8)
- ✓Well-rated support (4.2)
- ✓Free plan to launch a first program
- ✗VIP tiers and POS only on quote-based Premium
- ✗Bill grows with order volume
- ✗$199 minimum once you leave free
The right pick once your brand already has volume and wants one vendor for loyalty and reviews. Under 500 orders a month, BON or Smile.io do the same job for far less.
Square Loyalty
Square Loyalty lives inside your Square point of sale. Customers join with their phone number at checkout, earn on every visit and get an automatic text when a reward is ready. There is nothing for them to download, and your staff doesn't have to look anything up in a second app.
In the US, loyalty is part of the Square Plus plan, at $49 a month per location; the Free plan doesn't include it. Square offers a 30-day free trial and no locked-in contract. Two limits come up in Square's own community: looking customers up by phone number slows the line at rush hour, and you can only run one program per account.
- Sign-up by phone number at checkout
- Automatic reward texts
- Multiple reward levels
- 30-day free trial
- ✓Tied to your POS, no double entry
- ✓No long-term contract
- ✓Nothing for customers to install
- ✗Requires the paid Plus plan
- ✗Phone lookup is slow at rush hour
- ✗One program per account
The obvious choice if you already run Square. Set a minimum spend per point from day one, or small purchases will earn as much as big ones.
BON Loyalty
BON Loyalty holds a 5.0 rating on close to 2,000 Shopify App Store reviews, and the price list explains a lot of that. Free covers 150 orders a month, Starter covers 300 for $15, and Basic, at $29, goes to 500 orders and adds Shopify POS: shoppers show a QR code in store and earn the same points as online.
VIP tiers and B2B programs need Growth at $129 a month, but with unlimited orders. Past roughly 1,000 orders a month, that is one of the cheapest plans on the market. Paid yearly, Basic drops to $324 and Growth to $1,236. Two traps from merchant reviews: Amazon and marketplace orders can count toward your limit, and the floating widget can cover the checkout button on mobile.
- Free up to 150 orders
- Shopify POS from Basic ($29)
- Unlimited orders on Growth ($129)
- VIP and B2B tiers on Growth
- ✓Best value in our Shopify picks (4.6)
- ✓Quick to install (4.5)
- ✓Flat, unlimited price on Growth
- ✗Marketplace orders can count toward the cap
- ✗Every redemption runs through discount codes
- ✗7-day trial only
The default starting point for a Shopify store under 500 orders a month. Check the widget on your phone before launch, and see whether your Amazon orders flow through Shopify.
LoyaltyLion
LoyaltyLion has the most generous free plan in this comparison: up to 400 orders a month. Its real home is the email-driven brand. Classic, at $199 a month for 500 orders, includes the Klaviyo integration, a loyalty page, ready-made rules and onboarding. Shoppers see their points in every email, and you can chase the ones sitting on an unused reward.
It's powerful (100+ integrations, a headless API), but the price list gets complicated fast. VIP tiers are an add-on on Classic, the Apple and Google Wallet pass is a paid extra, and redeeming points at checkout requires Shopify Plus. If you run 25% over your volume three months in a row, LoyaltyLion calls to move you up a plan. Merchants also report year-over-year price increases.
- Free up to 400 orders
- Klaviyo integration on Classic
- 100+ integrations and an API
- Apple and Google Wallet pass as an add-on
- ✓Highest free cap in the comparison
- ✓Rich features (4.5)
- ✓Strong integrations (4.5)
- ✗Straight jump from free to $199
- ✗Paid add-ons (VIP, Wallet, translations)
- ✗Price increases reported by merchants
Pick it if loyalty has to live in your Klaviyo flows and you have the team to work it. Get the second-year price and the list of paid add-ons in writing before you sign.
Rivo
Rivo includes something most rivals keep for their expensive plans: VIP tiers on the entry plan. Scale starts at $49 a month with points, VIP tiers, loyalty emails and paid tiers, the kind of club where shoppers pay a membership fee for perks. It covers up to three retail locations. The exact price depends on your volume, between 200 and 2,500 orders a month.
Watch the modules sold separately: cashback starts at $199 a month and customer accounts at $499. Billing is monthly with no contract and a 7-day trial. We found few detailed merchant reports on Rivo, which is why its support score is cautious.
- VIP tiers on the first plan
- Paid membership tiers
- Loyalty emails included
- Up to 3 POS locations on Scale
- ✓VIP without paying $199
- ✓Monthly, no contract
- ✓Data processing agreement provided
- ✗No free plan
- ✗Cashback and accounts sold separately
- ✗Big jump from $49 to $499
A strong pick for a brand that wants a VIP club right away. If you don't need tiers, BON stays cheaper.
Smile.io
Smile.io is often a store's first loyalty app, and for good reason: it's one of the easiest to set up. Free covers 200 orders a month with points, referrals, discount and free-shipping rewards, a customizable look and multiple languages. Essential, at $15, adds free-product rewards and a dedicated loyalty page. Standard, at $79 for 1,000 orders, adds double-points weekends.
The ceiling is VIP: tiers only start on Growth, at $199 a month. In store, Smile works with Shopify POS on every plan, and with no other POS. Negative merchant reviews come back to three things: discount codes piling up (one merchant counted more than 12,000), paid features switched off the moment you cancel, and no retroactive points on past orders.
- Free up to 200 orders
- Shopify POS on every plan
- Simple setup, no developer
- ✓Easiest setup (4.2)
- ✓Paid entry at $15
- ✓1,000 orders for $79
- ✗VIP tiers only from $199
- ✗No POS other than Shopify POS
- ✗Discount codes pile up in Shopify
Great for a first points and referral program. The day you want VIP tiers, compare Rivo or BON Growth before moving to $199.
Growave
Growave sells a bundle: from Entry, at $15 a month, you get points, referrals, photo reviews and a wishlist. If you're paying for three separate apps today, that's the pitch. Billing goes through Shopify with no contract, and Growave offers to buy out the contract you still have with another tool.
Run the volume math first. Entry includes 500 orders, then $20 per extra 100: at 1,000 orders you pay $115 a month. VIP tiers aren't in Entry; they need Growth at $199. And a bundle does each job a bit less deeply than a specialist: for an advanced VIP program, Yotpo or LoyaltyLion go further.
- Loyalty, photo reviews and wishlist in one app
- Billed through Shopify, no contract
- Contract buyout from another tool
- ✓One bill instead of three
- ✓Entry at $15
- ✓Good price-to-feature balance (4.0)
- ✗VIP only from $199
- ✗Volume pricing climbs fast on Entry
- ✗Less depth than a specialist
Worth it if you want to clean up your Shopify app list. If loyalty is all you need, BON or Smile.io cost less.
Stamp Me
Stamp Me takes the simplest loyalty habit there is, the punch card, and puts it on your customer's phone. Every plan includes multiple stamp cards, unlimited users, unlimited push notifications, a scratch-card game, a birthday club, win-back messages for lapsed customers and a Zapier connection. Stamps are given by code, by a small device on the counter or by a tap tag.
Plans run $49, $79 and $199 a month per location. The 30-day trial needs no credit card and only starts once your card is published, so take your time setting it up. The limit is the model itself: it doesn't connect to your POS, and it stays a punch card, with no points based on spend.
- Multiple stamp cards per location
- Push notifications and win-back messages
- Birthday club and scratch card
- 30-day trial, no credit card
- ✓Very easy to run (4.4)
- ✓No contract
- ✓Trial starts when your card goes live
- ✗Not connected to your POS
- ✗No spend-based points
- ✗Priced per location
The straight replacement for a paper punch card. If you want loyalty tied to your POS, Square Loyalty does it inside the register.
Well-known tools with no public price
These names show up in every search. None lists a price on its official site, so we don't rank them. Most aim at multi-location chains and enterprise brands. If you run into them, here's what to know before the first sales call.
TapMango: loyalty for multi-location restaurants and retail
Quote onlyTapMango sells branded apps, kiosks and loyalty for restaurants and stores, and it ranks first in several US roundups. Its pricing page gives no figure: you book a demo.
Our tip: ask for the price per location, the hardware cost and the contract length in writing.
- Price
- Demo required
- For
- Multi-location chains
Fivestars: local loyalty network
Quote onlyFivestars still appears in US lists of loyalty software for local businesses. No price is published, which makes a fair comparison impossible before a call. Compare any quote with Square Loyalty, which is priced in public.
- Price
- Quote only
- For
- Local businesses
Open Loyalty and Antavo: enterprise platforms
EnterpriseBoth platforms target brands with a tech team. Open Loyalty charges a platform fee plus a price per monthly active member, with a full API. Antavo offers three plans with no listed price, billed on customer activity. Neither makes sense for an independent shop or a store doing a few thousand orders.
- Price
- Quote only
- Billing
- Per active member or activity
Your POS may already include loyalty
Check firstBefore buying a separate tool, check your register. Some POS systems include a points program at no extra cost. We compared the ones that do on a dedicated page, with their limits.
- Where
- Our POS loyalty page
Five questions before you pick a loyalty tool
Most roundups list features. The better question is what fits the way you sell. Answer these five and the shortlist writes itself.
Where do your customers buy?
Counter only: Square Loyalty or Stamp Me. Online only: a Shopify app. Both: BON (Shopify POS from $29), Smile.io (Shopify POS on every plan) or Rivo (three locations on Scale). Yotpo only adds POS on Premium.
How many orders in your busiest month?
Volume pricing bites in peak season. Price your busiest month, not your average. Above about 1,000 orders, BON Growth's flat $129 with unlimited orders is hard to beat.
Do you need VIP tiers?
Tiers cost $199 at Smile.io and Growave, $129 at BON, and require quote-based Premium at Yotpo. Rivo includes them from $49.
Where do you send emails?
On Klaviyo, LoyaltyLion's Classic plan puts points balances in every message. Otherwise, most apps send their own loyalty emails.
Can you leave with your data?
Your customers keep their points balance when you switch tools. Make sure you can export each balance before you sign, and ask for a data processing agreement (Rivo provides one).
- Price your busiest month, not your average
- Check which plan unlocks VIP tiers
- Confirm your POS is supported
- Test the widget on mobile before launch
- Get the second-year price in writing
- Confirm you can export points balances
Six costly mistakes with loyalty software
Loyalty programs rarely fail on the idea. They fail on a pricing tier, a forgotten setting or a detail at the counter. Here are the six that come up most in merchant reviews, with the fix.
Paying for your program's success
Most expensiveAlmost every app bills on activity: Yotpo per order past 500, Smile.io and Growave $20 per extra 100 orders. One holiday month can push you into the next tier.
The fix: model your busiest month. If volume swings a lot, a flat price (BON Growth, unlimited) protects your budget.
- Example
- Yotpo Pro at 1,000 orders: about $299
Finding VIP on the plan above yours
VIP tiers are the most requested feature after points, and the one most often locked behind expensive plans.
The fix: decide on tiers before you pick. If you want them now, Rivo includes them from $49.
Letting discount codes pile up
Most Shopify apps turn each reward into a discount code. One merchant counted more than 12,000 created by their app. Your discounts list becomes unreadable, and codes can be reused.
The fix: set an expiry on rewards and check that in-store redemptions actually deduct points.
Launching without checking mobile
Merchants report a floating loyalty button covering the checkout button on mobile. That's the worst place to get in a shopper's way.
The fix: place a full order from your phone before launch and move the button if needed.
Rewarding tiny purchases
A coffee roaster on Square set a $5 minimum purchase to earn a point after abuse on small tickets. Without a floor, a $1 coffee earns as much as a $30 basket.
The fix: set a minimum spend, or award points on amount spent rather than per visit.
Signing without an exit plan
Paid features cut the moment you cancel, hard uninstalls, yearly price hikes: these are the most common complaints about loyalty apps.
The fix: confirm you can export every customer's points balance, and get the second-year price in writing.
Pick your next step based on what you need
Loyalty touches your register, your reviews and your messages. Here are our related comparisons.
Square, Odoo, Lightspeed and more
You're also changing your registerBest POS systemReal costs compared
You want to reward customer reviewsBest review management softwareJudge.me, Yotpo, BrightLocal
You want to text your membersBest SMS marketing platformPer-message prices compared
You're weighing Shopify appsStamped alternativesYotpo, Smile.io and others
You run a small online storeBest ecommerce platform for small businessReal cost at low volume
Loyalty program software FAQ
Is there free loyalty program software?
Yes, for Shopify. BON Loyalty is free up to 150 orders a month, Smile.io up to 200 and LoyaltyLion up to 400. Yotpo also has a free plan with basic points and referrals. Past those caps, or for VIP tiers, you pay.
How much does a loyalty program cost a small business?
From $0 to about $200 a month for one store. Free Shopify plans cover the smallest shops; Square Loyalty comes with Square Plus at $49 per location; Stamp Me starts at $49; LoyaltyLion and Yotpo paid plans start at $199. Text messages to members are often billed on top.
Points or punch card: which works better?
A punch card works when baskets look alike (coffee, haircuts, bakery): buy nine, get the tenth free is instantly clear. Spend-based points work when baskets vary a lot, so a $5 sale and an $80 sale aren't rewarded the same.
How do I add a loyalty card to Apple Wallet or Google Wallet?
You need a tool that generates the pass; you can't build it yourself on the phone. LoyaltyLion sells it as an add-on. The upside: the card stays on the customer's phone and you can push a notification when a reward is waiting.
Do I need a developer to launch a loyalty program?
Not for most tools on this page. Smile.io, BON and Stamp Me are set up from their dashboard, no developer needed. You need one for custom-built stores (not on Shopify) or enterprise platforms like Open Loyalty that run through an API.
Is a loyalty program worth it?
Yes, if it brings back customers who wouldn't have returned. An ice cream shop owner on Square puts their total loyalty cost at about 1.4% of sales and reports members spending far more per ticket (their own figures). Measure it yourself: compare member visit frequency before and after three months.
How do I switch loyalty software without losing members?
Export every customer's points balance before canceling, import it into the new tool and email your members. Growave offers to buy out the contract you still have with another tool. Only shut the old one off once balances check out.
