Quick answer
- Flat fee, no percentage: Appstle Subscriptions, free to $500/month in subscription revenue, then from $10.
- Free and built by Shopify: Shopify Subscriptions, if you don't need bundles or build-a-box.
- Lowest cost by subscription count: Seal, from $5.95/month with 0% transaction fees.
- A Recharge-style platform with a lower percentage and no per-order fee: Loop ($99/month + 1%).
- Fee by plan with full-order percentage: Bold, from $24.99 + 2%.
- Higher-touch platform for larger brands: Skio ($599/month + 1% + 20¢).
- Stay on Recharge if its retention tooling, bundles and migration support earn back the fee, or if you run BigCommerce or a headless storefront.
Worked example
Monthly app cost at two revenue levels
Assumptions: $40 average order, one order per subscriber per month ($10,000 = 250 orders; $50,000 = 1,250 orders). Payment processing and Shopify plan fees are excluded because they don't change with the app.
| App and plan | $10,000/mo (250 orders) | $50,000/mo (1,250 orders) |
|---|---|---|
| Shopify Subscriptions (free) | $0 | $0 |
| Appstle Business ($30, to $15k) / Business Premium ($100, to $100k) | $30 | $100 |
| Seal Rising Star ($9.95, 250 subs) / Leader ($89.95, 2,000 subs) | $9.95 | $89.95 |
| Bold Grow ($49.99 + 1%) / Scale ($74.99 + 0.9%) | $49.99 + $100 = $149.99 | $74.99 + $450 = $524.99 |
| Loop Starter ($99 + 1.0%) | $99 + $100 = $199 | $99 + $500 = $599 |
| Recharge Starter ($99 + 1.49% + 19¢) | $99 + $149 + $47.50 = $295.50 | $99 + $745 + $237.50 = $1,081.50 |
| Recharge Plus ($499 + 1.34% + 19¢) | $499 + $134 + $47.50 = $680.50 | $499 + $670 + $237.50 = $1,406.50 |
| Skio Scale, monthly ($599 + 1% + 20¢) | $599 + $100 + $50 = $749 | $599 + $500 + $250 = $1,349 |
Editorial calculation from list prices, Oct 7, 2026. Recharge applies its percentage to the total including shipping and tax, so if your $40 excludes those its figures are understated.
At $50,000 a month, the gap between Recharge Starter (about $1,080) and Appstle ($100) is roughly $980 a month. Whether that's worth paying depends on how much Recharge's churn and retention tools add, not on the fee alone.
Baseline
Recharge baseline (for comparison)
Recharge Starter is $99/month plus 1.49% + 19¢ per transaction, Plus is $499/month plus 1.34% + 19¢ on a 12-month term, and Custom is by quote. New stores with 50 or fewer subscription customers start on a $25/month plan with no transaction fees, and Starter has a 60-day trial. Recharge's help center says fees apply to one-time and subscription orders on the full amount, including shipping, tax and refunded orders. Full overview: Recharge review.
Not ranked
The 6 alternatives
Not ranked. Appstle and Shopify Subscriptions have full BestStorefront overviews; the others link to their official pages in Sources.
Appstle Subscriptions — flat fee by revenue tier
- Best for
- Shopify stores that want a predictable monthly cost with no percentage of revenue.
- Pricing (verified Oct 7, 2026)
- Free to $500/month in subscription revenue; Starter $10 (to $5,000), Business $30 (to $15,000), Business Premium $100 (to $100,000), Enterprise $300 (to $500,000). 0% transaction fee; 20% off yearly; 14-day trial.
- Watch out for
- Shopify only, and Appstle doesn't publish what happens in a month you exceed your plan's revenue cap.
- Compare
- Recharge vs Appstle
Shopify Subscriptions — free, built by Shopify
- Best for
- Stores with simple subscribe-and-save offers that want everything inside Shopify admin.
- Pricing (verified Oct 7, 2026)
- Free; your Shopify plan and payment processing fees still apply.
- Watch out for
- Shopify's help center says bundles aren't compatible and lists five supported gateways. Its App Store rating is 3.7 from 847 reviews.
- Read more
- Shopify Subscriptions overview
Seal Subscriptions — priced by number of subscriptions
- Best for
- Small and growing stores that want low, flat pricing with no transaction fee.
- Pricing (verified Oct 7, 2026)
- Free (50 subscriptions), Supersale $5.95 (100), Rising Star $9.95 (250), Legend $24.95 (500), Leader $89.95 (2,000), Mega Star $199 (50,000), Superstar $399 (150,000). 0% transaction fee; 20% off yearly; 30-day trial.
- Watch out for
- Seal's pages don't make clear whether cancelled subscriptions count toward a plan's limit.
- Read more
- Subscriptions desk
Loop Subscriptions — lower percentage, no per-order fee
- Best for
- Brands that want a Recharge-style platform with migration help on every paid plan.
- Pricing (verified Oct 7, 2026)
- Free Forever (50 active subscriptions); Starter $99/month + 1.0%; Pro $399/month + 0.75%; Enterprise negotiable. No per-order fee; month-to-month; no setup or migration fees.
- Watch out for
- Still a percentage of revenue, so cost rises with growth; some checkout features need Shopify Plus.
- Read more
- Subscriptions desk
Bold Subscriptions — plan fee plus percentage
- Best for
- Stores that want tiered plans with lower percentages as they grow.
- Pricing (verified Oct 7, 2026)
- Launch $24.99 + 2%, Grow $49.99 + 1%, Scale $74.99 + 0.9%, Ultimate Retention $399.99 + 0.9% (includes cancellation flows). 30-day trial on the first three plans.
- Watch out for
- The percentage applies to the whole order whenever it contains a subscription item, and transaction fees are charged during the trial.
- Read more
- Subscriptions desk
Skio — higher-touch platform for larger brands
- Best for
- Larger subscription brands that want a managed platform and are comfortable with a higher base fee.
- Pricing (verified Oct 7, 2026)
- Scale $599/month, or $499/month billed yearly, plus 1% + 20¢ on orders involving a subscription; Enterprise custom.
- Watch out for
- Skio's FAQ doesn't offer a free trial, and the base fee is high for smaller stores.
- Read more
- Subscriptions desk
Switching costs
When to stay on Recharge
- Its cancellation flows, payment retries and win-backs measurably recover revenue for you.
- You use Plus features such as bundles, loyalty, referrals or the Storefront API.
- You sell on BigCommerce or a headless storefront, which most Shopify-only apps don't support.
- You're mid-way through a 12-month Plus term.
Switching subscription apps means migrating stored payment methods and active subscriptions, which needs both vendors' support. Ask the new vendor to explain the migration plan and any downtime before you commit.
Decision support
Frequently asked questions
What is the cheapest alternative to Recharge?
Shopify Subscriptions is free. Among paid apps, Seal (from $5.95/month) and Appstle (free to $500/month in revenue, then from $10) charge no transaction fee.
Why is Recharge more expensive?
It charges a percentage and a flat fee on every transaction it processes, on the full amount including shipping, tax and refunded orders. At $50,000 a month in subscription revenue that's about $1,080 a month on Starter in our example.
Can I migrate from Recharge?
Yes, but moving stored payment methods needs both vendors' support. Loop says it provides migration on every paid plan, and Appstle's listing includes migration help.
Has BestStorefront tested these apps?
No. This page is an independent editorial overview based on each vendor's published pricing. Hands-on testing is pending.
Documentation