> For the complete documentation index, see [llms.txt](https://docs.elitebundleapp.com/llms.txt). Markdown versions of documentation pages are available by appending `.md` to page URLs; this page is available as [Markdown](https://docs.elitebundleapp.com/create-bundles/subscriptions.md). # Subscriptions Sell build-your-own and multi-option bundles on subscription: connect one plan from your subscription app, style the picker, stack the bundle discount. Shoppers can subscribe to a build-your-own or multi-option bundle instead of buying it once. Each bundle connects one plan from your subscription app, a purchase-options picker sits above the add to cart button, and the bundle discount comes off on top of the plan's own saving. {% hint style="info" %} Elite Bundle Builder does not create subscription plans, bill shoppers or manage renewals. Plans, billing, renewals and the customer portal, with its skips and swaps, all belong to your subscription app. Any app that sells through Shopify selling plans works, such as Recharge, Appstle, Seal, Loop, Skio or Shopify Subscriptions. {% endhint %} ## Which bundles can be subscribed to | Bundle type | Subscriptions | | --------------------- | ------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------ | | Build your own bundle | Yes | | Multi-option bundle | Yes | | Fixed bundle | No. Shopify does not sell its own bundles on selling plans. Rebuild it as a multi-option bundle, a one-to-one replacement that works | ## One plan must hold every product A plan in your subscription app (Shopify calls it a selling plan group) holds a set of products and one or more delivery options, such as every 1 month and every 2 months. A bundle connects exactly one plan, and that plan has to hold every product in the bundle. | The bundle is built from | What the app checks | | ------------------------ | ----------------------------------- | | Picked products | Every product | | A collection | The collection's first 250 products | Plans are matched by name. Apps such as Recharge create a separate plan for each product under the same name; those count as one plan. {% hint style="success" %} The simplest setup is one plan in your subscription app that holds every product the bundle can contain, with the same delivery options for all of them. {% endhint %} ## Set it up {% stepper %} {% step %} ### Put every product in one plan In your subscription app, add every product the bundle can hold to the same plan, with the same delivery options. {% endstep %} {% step %} ### Open the bundle's subscription settings Open the bundle and go to **Config → Subscriptions**. {% endstep %} {% step %} ### Turn on Offer subscriptions The app checks your products' plans. If one plan holds every product, the switch turns on and the bundle connects that plan. If not, the switch turns back off with a warning. See [when Offer subscriptions will not turn on](#when-offer-subscriptions-will-not-turn-on). {% endstep %} {% step %} ### Style the picker Pick a **Style**, set the **Options**, and under **Plans** choose the default delivery option and the names shoppers see. The preview shows the picker with the connected plan's delivery options. {% endstep %} {% step %} ### Check the bundle discount In the app's **Settings → Bundle discount**, check that **Apply to subscriptions** is on and choose which subscription orders get the discount. See [the bundle discount on subscriptions](#the-bundle-discount-on-subscriptions). {% endstep %} {% step %} ### Publish and test an order Save, open the bundle on your storefront, pick a few items and choose **Subscribe & save**. Go through checkout and check the plan and the bundle discount, then find the new subscription in your subscription app. {% endstep %} {% endstepper %} ## When Offer subscriptions will not turn on While it checks, the page shows "Checking your products' subscription plans…". If the check fails, the switch turns back off with one of these messages: | Message | Why | What to do | | --------------------------------------------------------------------------------- | ------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- | ----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- | | "Add every product in this bundle to the same subscription plan, then try again." | No single plan holds every product in the bundle (for a collection, its first 250 products are checked) | In your subscription app, add every product in the bundle to one plan, then turn **Offer subscriptions** on again | | "Add products to this bundle first." | The bundle has no products yet | Add products in the **Build** tab (**Options** in a multi-option bundle), then turn it on again | | "Couldn't read your subscription plans. Try again." | The app couldn't read your plans from Shopify | Turn it on again | ## The connected plan With subscriptions on, **Connected plan** shows the plan the bundle uses and its number of delivery options. Shoppers are offered that plan's delivery options only. | Situation | What you see | | ------------------------------------------------------------------------- | ------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------ | | More than one plan holds every product | **Change plan** lists them. Pick one to connect it instead | | The bundle's products changed and are no longer all in the connected plan | "Some products aren't in *plan name*, so shoppers can't subscribe. Add them to *plan name* or pick another plan." Pick another plan from the list, or add the products to the connected plan in your subscription app. When no plan holds every product, **Check again** reads your plans again after you fix them | Connecting another plan clears the default and the names and badge texts set under **Plans**. ## Picker style Pick a style from the four cards under **Style**: | Style | Looks like | | ------------- | ------------------------------------------------------------------------ | | Radio buttons | A row for one-time purchase and a row for subscribe | | Cards | Two cards side by side, one-time purchase and subscribe | | Checkbox | One "Subscribe & save" box. Unticked means one-time purchase. No heading | | Dropdown | One menu listing one-time purchase and each delivery option | With radio buttons, cards and checkbox, the delivery frequency ("Deliver every 1 month") appears once subscribe is selected. When the shopper can choose from more than one delivery option, it becomes a menu. ## Picker options | Option | What it does | | ------------------- | ---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- | | Show price | **On each option**: every option in the picker shows its price. **In the cart total only**: the picker shows no prices, and the bundle total follows the chosen option | | Subscription only | Hides one-time purchase | | Selected by default | **One-time purchase** or **Subscribe**. Hidden when Subscription only is on | | Savings badge | Shows how much a plan saves, such as "Save 10%" | ## Plan names, badges and default **Plans** has a card for each delivery option of the connected plan, with its price change as set in your subscription app: "10% off", "$5.00 off", "Fixed price $20.00" or "Same price as one-time". | Setting | What it does | | ----------------- | ----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- | | Make default | This delivery option is picked when a shopper subscribes. The current one shows a **Default** badge. Without one, the first delivery option is picked | | Name shoppers see | Replaces the plan's own name, such as "1 month", in the picker. Leave it empty to use the plan's name. Translatable | | Savings badge | This delivery option's own badge text. Shown when **Savings badge** is on. `{percent}` becomes the saving. Leave it empty to use the shared badge text from [Texts](#texts). Translatable | {% hint style="info" %} A badge text set on a delivery option shows whenever **Savings badge** is on. The shared "Save {percent}%" text shows only when one-time purchase is offered and the plan costs less than it. {% endhint %} {% hint style="info" %} The editor preview shows the connected plan's real delivery options. A delivery option with a percentage off shows its saving there; one with a fixed amount off or a fixed price shows the one-time price in the preview and its real price on the storefront. Click the picker in the preview to jump to **Config → Subscriptions**. {% endhint %} ## What shoppers see The picker sits right above the button that adds the bundle to cart: | Bundle | Where the picker shows | | --------------------------------------- | -------------------------------------------- | | Build your own, full page | In the bundle cart, above **Add To Cart** | | Build your own, on a phone | In the mobile cart bar | | Build your own, inside the product page | In the widget's footer, above its add button | | Multi-option bundle | Above the theme's **Add to cart** button | The picker appears once the shopper has picked items and updates as they add or remove them. It reads each picked product as your store sells it in the shopper's market, and offers the connected plan's delivery options that every picked item has. ### How the price adds up With **Show price** on each option, every option in the picker shows its price with the bundle discount taken off. On the subscribe option the bundle discount comes on top of the plan price, so the two stack. For a $100 bundle with a 10% bundle tier and a plan that saves 10%: | Option | Price shown | | ----------------- | ------------------------------------------------------------------ | | One-time purchase | $90.00: the 10% tier off $100 | | Subscribe & save | $81.00: the plan price of $90, then the 10% tier. 19% off in total | The savings badge on that plan reads "Save 10%", the plan's own saving. While subscribe is selected, the bundle total, every price and the tier progress use the plan price, so order-total tiers are measured against the plan price too. ## How plans are matched A subscription has to cover every item in the bundle, so the picker only offers the connected plan's delivery options that all picked items have. Delivery options match by plan name and delivery frequency, not by ID: apps such as Recharge give each product its own plan IDs for the same offer, and those still match. | The items in the bundle | What the shopper sees | | -------------------------------------------------------------------------- | -------------------------------------------------------------- | | All are in the connected plan, every 1 month and every 2 months | One-time purchase, or subscribe with a choice of 1 or 2 months | | All have every 1 month in the connected plan, and some also every 2 months | One-time purchase, or subscribe every 1 month | | One item is not in the connected plan | No subscribe option. The bundle sells one-time | | Include an item that can only be bought on subscription | Subscribe only. One-time purchase is hidden | Plans are checked on the exact variant each shopper picks. If your subscription app puts only some variants of a product on a plan, picking another variant can hide the subscribe option. ## Cart and checkout A one-time purchase still goes to the cart as one bundle line. A subscribed bundle is different: Shopify does not merge cart lines that carry a selling plan, so each item goes to the cart as its own line, with the plan attached and a **Bundle\_ID** property that ties the lines together. The bundle discount still applies to them at checkout. After the order, your subscription app creates the subscription and bills each renewal. Stock is tracked on the real products and the order carries the real SKUs, as with any bundle. ## The bundle discount on subscriptions Bundle offers run through one automatic Shopify discount that the app creates, **Elite Bundle Discount**. Whether it applies to subscription orders is set once for the store, in the app's **Settings → Bundle discount**: | Setting | What it does | | ---------------------- | ---------------------------------------------------------- | | Apply to subscriptions | Bundles bought on a subscription get the bundle discount | | Subscription orders | **Every order**, or **A set number of orders** | | Number of orders | How many orders get the discount. Includes the first order | The first time you save a bundle with subscriptions on, the app switches **Apply to subscriptions** on for every order. After that, your choice stands. More in [App settings](/get-started/settings.md#bundle-discount). {% hint style="warning" %} The picker always shows the subscribe price with the bundle discount taken off. With **Apply to subscriptions** off, checkout charges the plan price without it, and the settings page warns you. With **A set number of orders**, renewals after that number are charged the plan price alone. If you limit it, say so in the **Subscribe option** text. {% endhint %} ## Limits | Limit | Detail | | ---------------------------- | ------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- | | Fixed bundles | No subscriptions. Shopify does not sell its own bundles on selling plans. Rebuild as a [multi-option bundle](/create-bundles/multi-option-bundle.md): one option per product, a tier at a fixed bundle price for the same price | | Plans and billing | Your subscription app creates the plans, bills renewals and runs the customer portal. Elite Bundle Builder does none of these | | One plan per bundle | A bundle connects one plan, and shoppers see only its delivery options | | Collections | Turning subscriptions on checks a collection's first 250 products. On the storefront, every picked item is checked | | Shared delivery options only | Only delivery options every picked item has are offered. When there are none, there is no picker and the bundle sells one-time, even with **Subscription only** on | | Cart lines | A subscribed bundle is separate cart lines, not one bundle line | | Editor preview | Fixed-amount and fixed-price plans show the one-time price. Check their prices on the storefront | ## Texts The picker's text lives in the editor's **Settings → Language & Texts** with every other storefront string. It applies to every bundle in the store and can carry a translation per published language. | Field | Default | Notes | | -------------------------- | ----------------- | ------------------------------------------------------------------------- | | Purchase options heading | Purchase options | Leave it empty to hide the heading | | One-time purchase option | One-time purchase | | | Subscribe option | Subscribe & save | | | Delivery frequency label | Deliver every | Shown before the plan's frequency | | Subscription savings badge | `Save {percent}%` | Keep `{percent}` in place. A delivery option's own badge text replaces it | ## Frequently asked questions ### Which subscription apps work? Any app that sells through Shopify selling plans, such as Recharge, Appstle, Seal, Loop, Skio and Shopify Subscriptions. Put every product in the bundle in one plan in that app, then turn on **Offer subscriptions** in **Config → Subscriptions** to connect it. ### Does Elite Bundle Builder bill the subscription? No. Your subscription app creates the subscription from the order, bills every renewal and handles changes such as skips and swaps. Elite Bundle Builder shows the picker and adds the chosen plan to each item in the cart. ### Why will Offer subscriptions not turn on? No single plan in your subscription app holds every product in the bundle. Add them all to one plan, then turn it on again. See [when Offer subscriptions will not turn on](#when-offer-subscriptions-will-not-turn-on). ### Why does the subscribe option not show on my bundle? Usually a picked item is not in the bundle's connected plan. Look for a warning under **Connected plan** in **Config → Subscriptions**, and add the missing products to that plan in your subscription app. More checks in [Troubleshooting](/help/troubleshooting.md#the-subscription-option-does-not-show). ### Can one bundle offer delivery options from two plans? No. A bundle connects one plan. Put every delivery option you want to offer in that plan, or use **Change plan** to connect another. ### Does the bundle discount stack with the plan's discount? Yes. The plan price comes first and the bundle discount comes off on top, so a plan at 10% off and a 10% tier make 19% off. Whether renewals keep the bundle discount is set in **Settings → Bundle discount**. ### Can I sell a bundle only on subscription? Yes. Turn on **Subscription only** and one-time purchase is hidden. If a picked item is not in the connected plan, the bundle still sells one-time. ### Can shoppers change the delivery frequency? Before buying, yes: when every picked item has more than one delivery option in the connected plan, the "Deliver every" menu lets them choose. After the order, changes happen in your subscription app. ### Why are the items separate lines in the cart? Shopify does not merge cart lines that carry a selling plan, so a subscribed bundle goes in as one line per item. A one-time purchase of the same bundle is still one line. --- # Agent Instructions This documentation is published with GitBook. GitBook is the documentation platform designed so that both humans and AI agents can read, navigate, and reason over technical content effectively. Learn more at gitbook.com. ## Querying This Documentation If you need additional information that is not directly available in this page, you can query the documentation dynamically by asking a question. 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