How each app is priced comes from the vendors’ own pricing pages, checked on 27 October 2026. Vendors change their plans often, so check their pricing pages before you budget. Sources are listed at the end.
Most Shopify Plus brands run the same handful of jobs through apps: email and SMS, subscriptions, reviews, loyalty, customer service and upsells. This guide sets out the apps we recommend for each job, what drives their cost and how to keep the stack lean. It comes from a Shopify Platinum Partner that installs, integrates and runs these tools for brands every week.
The short answer
- A typical Shopify Plus stack covers six jobs: email and SMS, subscriptions, reviews, loyalty, customer service and upsells.
- Most apps charge by volume: profiles for email, orders for reviews, loyalty and upsells, tickets for customer service, and a fee per transaction for subscriptions.
- So the cost of a stack grows with your sales. Budget from your order volume and list size, not from a list price.
- Review the stack every six months. Overlapping apps and unused features are the most common waste we find.
The stack at a glance
| Job | What we usually recommend | Price based mainly on | Free plan |
|---|---|---|---|
| Email and SMS | Klaviyo | Active profiles and email sends | Yes, for small lists |
| Subscriptions | Recharge | Monthly plan fee plus a fee per transaction | No, free trial |
| Reviews and user content | Yotpo or Okendo | Monthly orders | Yotpo: limited; Okendo: no |
| Loyalty | LoyaltyLion or Yotpo Loyalty | Monthly orders | Yes, for smaller stores |
| Customer service | Gorgias | Billable tickets a month, plus a fee per AI Agent interaction | No, free trial |
| Upsells and personalisation | Rebuy | Monthly Shopify orders | No, free trial |
Source: each vendor’s pricing page, 27 October 2026.
Shopify Plus itself
The platform is the largest fixed cost. Shopify publishes Plus pricing, and some higher-volume businesses pay a variable fee instead. Plus also lowers payment fees and adds features that can replace apps, such as checkout customisation, Shopify Flow automation and B2B. See Shopify vs Shopify Plus for prices, plan limits and when Plus pays off.
The apps, one by one
Klaviyo: email and SMS
Klaviyo is the email and SMS platform we use on most builds. It segments customers on Shopify data and runs flows such as welcome, abandoned basket, post-purchase and win-back. Cost rises with active profiles and email volume, so cleaning out inactive contacts keeps the bill down. Little Saints saw its email nurture results rise 50% to 150% within weeks of our work. See Klaviyo.
Recharge: subscriptions
Recharge runs subscriptions, bundles and the customer account area where subscribers manage orders. Superco is a Recharge Elite partner. Cost is a monthly plan fee plus a fee on each subscription transaction, so it scales with subscription revenue. Ursa Major grew subscribers 32% in six months after moving to Recharge, and Minor Figures cut churn 15% with a custom Recharge account area we built. See Superco and Recharge.
Yotpo or Okendo: reviews
Both collect product reviews, photos and questions, and show them on product pages and in Google Shopping. Both price mainly on monthly orders. Yotpo also sells loyalty, which can make one contract cheaper than two. Okendo suits brands that want reviews, surveys and quizzes from one vendor. See Superco and Yotpo and Superco and Okendo.
LoyaltyLion: loyalty
LoyaltyLion runs points, tiers and rewards, and shows them in the store, in Klaviyo emails and in the customer account. Superco is a LoyaltyLion Gold partner. Pricing is based on average monthly orders. See Superco and LoyaltyLion.
Gorgias: customer service
Gorgias is a helpdesk built for Shopify. Agents see orders next to each conversation and can refund, cancel or edit an order without leaving the ticket. Cost is based on billable tickets each month, with a separate fee for its AI Agent, so automating answers to common questions changes what you pay. See Superco and Gorgias.
Rebuy: upsells and personalisation
Rebuy adds product recommendations, upsells in the basket and after checkout, and smart bundles. Superco is a Rebuy Silver Certified partner. Pricing is based on monthly Shopify orders. See Superco and Rebuy.
How to cost your stack
Because most apps charge by volume, start from your own numbers:
- Active email and SMS profiles, and how often you send
- Average monthly orders, including peaks such as Black Friday
- Subscription orders a month, if you sell subscriptions
- Customer service tickets a month, and how many you could automate
- Whether any apps overlap, such as two vendors that both offer loyalty or reviews
Then add implementation and integration time, and the Shopify plan. Our Shopify Plus total cost of ownership calculator adds up the platform side.
Five steps to get more from your stack
1. Audit what you have
List every app, what it costs, who uses it and what it does. Look for overlaps, unused features and apps installed for one campaign and never removed.
2. Check what Shopify now does natively
Shopify has added features that used to need apps, such as Flow automation on every plan, B2B, bundles and Shopify Functions for discounts. Remove apps that Shopify now covers.
3. Prioritise the changes
Rank changes by their effect on revenue and cost. Removing an overlapping app is quick. Moving subscriptions or loyalty to a new vendor needs a migration plan.
4. Implement and measure
Make one change at a time where you can, and track conversion, repeat purchase, subscriber churn and service response times before and after.
5. Review every six months
Order volumes, vendor pricing and Shopify’s own features all change. A review twice a year keeps the stack lean.
FAQs
How much does a Shopify Plus tech stack cost?
It depends mostly on your volume: list size for email, monthly orders for reviews, loyalty and upsells, tickets for customer service and transactions for subscriptions. Start from your own numbers and each vendor’s pricing page, then add the Shopify Plus plan and implementation time.
Which apps does a Shopify Plus store need?
Most need email and SMS, reviews and customer service. Subscriptions, loyalty and upsells depend on the business model. Check what Shopify does natively before adding an app.
Is Klaviyo worth it on Shopify?
For most Shopify brands, yes. It uses Shopify data for segments and flows, and its free plan covers small lists. Cost grows with active profiles, so keep the list clean.
Should we use one vendor for reviews and loyalty?
It can cost less and keep data in one place. Yotpo sells both. Choose separate vendors when one is clearly better for your needs, such as LoyaltyLion for loyalty programmes with tiers.
How often should we review our apps?
Every six months, and before renewing any annual contract.
Sources
Pricing pages read on 27 October 2026: Klaviyo, Recharge, Gorgias, Yotpo, LoyaltyLion, Okendo and Rebuy.
