Smile.io vs LoyaltyLion for Shopify
Smile.io and LoyaltyLion compared on price, free plans, VIP tiers, API access, POS, languages and Shopify App Store ratings, with every figure sourced and dated.
Figures checked on October 24, 2026 from each vendor's own pricing page, help centre and Shopify App Store listing. Prices change; confirm with the vendor before you buy. LoyaltyWire has no commercial relationship with either vendor. Our publisher also makes Loyalty+, a competing loyalty app, so we leave it out of our comparisons. More on our ownership.
The short version
Smile.io is the cheaper and more self-serve option. Its free plan covers 200 orders a month with points and referrals, paid plans start at $15, and you can stay on a published price up to 7,500 orders a month. LoyaltyLion's free tier stretches to 400 orders, but the first paid step is $199 a month and anything beyond Classic is a custom quote. LoyaltyLion gives you more at that price, though: API and headless access, a theme editor that accepts your own HTML and CSS, and VIP tiers as an add-on, where Smile holds VIP tiers until $199 and API access until $999. Smile also supports BigCommerce; LoyaltyLion is Shopify-only. Both are well rated on the App Store: Smile at 4.9 from 4,650 reviews, LoyaltyLion at 4.7 from 543.
Pick Smile.io if…
You process under about 2,500 orders a month, want a published price with no sales call, need points and referrals more than VIP tiers, or also run a BigCommerce store.
Pick LoyaltyLion if…
You are a Shopify store doing 500 or more orders a month with budget for $199 a month or more, want API or headless access and custom HTML/CSS without paying $999 a month, run a multilingual storefront (Advanced plan), or want onboarding and strategic support from the vendor.
Side by side
| Smile.io | LoyaltyLion | |
|---|---|---|
| Free plan | $0 up to 200 orders/mo; points and referrals included | $0 up to 400 orders/mo (App Store listing); details not published |
| First paid tier | $15/mo (Essential, 500 orders) | $199/mo (Classic, 500 orders) |
| What drives price | Monthly orders and integration count; overage fees on Growth and Plus | Average monthly orders; custom quotes above Classic |
| Platforms | Shopify, BigCommerce; Wix support ended Feb 2025; no WooCommerce | Shopify only ("built exclusively for Shopify") |
| Points | All plans, including Free | All plans |
| VIP tiers | Growth ($199/mo) and above | Optional add-on on Classic; included on Advanced and Plus |
| Referrals | All plans, including Free | Classic and above; Free not published |
| POS | Shopify POS earn and redeem on every plan | Single location on Classic; multiple locations on Advanced and Plus |
| Klaviyo | Integration available; Free allows 0 integrations, Essential 1, Standard 2, Growth+ unlimited | Classic and above, with ready-made flows; advanced events on Plus |
| Branding and CSS | "Full branding customization" on all plans; custom CSS not published | Theme editor with a custom HTML/CSS block from Classic up (scripts and iframes stripped) |
| API and headless | REST API, JS SDK and Smile UI on Plus ($999/mo) and Enterprise only | API and headless access ticked for Classic, Advanced and Plus |
| Languages | 25 customer-facing languages, auto-detected from the Shopify store; merchant-edited text is not translated | Core language on Classic; added languages and auto-translate on Advanced and Plus (up to 138) |
| Multi-currency | Single program currency; multi-currency orders are converted to the base currency | Any single currency for rules; several at once not published. Redeeming at checkout needs Shopify Plus |
| Shopify App Store rating | 4.9 from 4,650 reviews | 4.7 from 543 reviews |
Smile.io pricing
Points, VIP and referral program app for Shopify and BigCommerce stores, with a free tier and a self-serve price ladder that scales by monthly orders.
Free plan: Yes: $0 for up to 200 orders a month, with points and referrals, Shopify POS, no third-party integrations.
| Free | $0/mo 200 orders/mo; points and referrals; no integrations; Shopify POS |
|---|---|
| Essential | $15/mo 500 orders/mo; 1 integration |
| Standard | $79/mo 1,000 orders/mo; 2 integrations |
| Growth | $199/mo 2,500 orders/mo, then $20 per extra 100; unlimited integrations; VIP tiers unlocked |
| Smile Plus | $999/mo (annual) 7,500 orders/mo, then $5 per extra 100; API access unlocked |
| Enterprise | Custom (contact sales) Unlimited orders; aimed at retailers over $40M annual revenue |
What drives the price: Monthly order count (paid, unpaid and refunded orders all count), plus the number of integrations allowed per tier. Overage fees on Growth and Plus.
Platforms: Shopify, Shopify Plus, Shopify POS, BigCommerce, Headless on Shopify or BigCommerce (contact Smile).
Worth knowing:
- Smile ended Wix support in February 2025 (supported-platforms help article).
- A third-party price tracker records plan changes in February and April 2026, including the $15 Essential tier; Smile has not published an announcement, so treat the live pricing page as the source of truth.
LoyaltyLion pricing
Shopify-only loyalty platform with a free entry tier and a $199/mo Classic plan, moving to custom-quoted Advanced and Plus plans with onboarding and strategic support as order volume grows.
Free plan: Yes, per the Shopify App Store listing: free to install up to 400 orders a month, with points for on-site activity, discount rewards, analytics and segments. The pricing page recommends it for stores at or under 400 orders but does not detail it.
| Free | $0 Up to 400 orders/mo (Shopify App Store listing); not detailed on loyaltylion.com |
|---|---|
| Classic | $199/mo 500 orders/mo included; branded loyalty page; Klaviyo flows; onboarding; VIP tiers as an optional add-on; single-location POS |
| Advanced | Custom (contact sales) Adds VIP tiers, points on product pages, multi-location POS, 130+ language translation, scheduled bonus campaigns, twice-yearly reviews |
| Plus | Custom (contact sales) Adds AI-recommended rewards, advanced Klaviyo events, automated flows, quarterly strategic reviews |
What drives the price: Average monthly orders processed by the store. If volume exceeds the agreed threshold by more than 25% for three consecutive months, LoyaltyLion reviews the plan with you.
Platforms: Shopify, Shopify Plus, Shopify POS, Shopify Headless via API/SDK.
Worth knowing:
- The Free plan appears on the Shopify App Store listing but not on loyaltylion.com's pricing page or features table.
- A third-party tracker records a pricing restructure in February 2026 that brought the published entry price to $199/mo; LoyaltyLion has not announced it, so rely on the live pricing page.
What we could not verify
- Whether Smile offers custom CSS, and on which plan; its pricing page says only "full branding customization".
- LoyaltyLion's Free plan is described only on its Shopify App Store listing, not on loyaltylion.com; whether referrals and API access are included on Free is not published.
- Both vendors appear to have restructured pricing in early 2026 according to a third-party tracker; neither has published an announcement.
Questions
Which is cheaper, Smile.io or LoyaltyLion?
Smile: $15/mo (Essential, 500 orders). LoyaltyLion: $199/mo (Classic, 500 orders). Both have free plans: Smile $0 up to 200 orders/mo; points and referrals included; LoyaltyLion $0 up to 400 orders/mo (App Store listing); details not published. Prices checked October 24, 2026.
When should I pick Smile.io?
You process under about 2,500 orders a month, want a published price with no sales call, need points and referrals more than VIP tiers, or also run a BigCommerce store.
When should I pick LoyaltyLion?
You are a Shopify store doing 500 or more orders a month with budget for $199 a month or more, want API or headless access and custom HTML/CSS without paying $999 a month, run a multilingual storefront (Advanced plan), or want onboarding and strategic support from the vendor.
Is this comparison independent?
LoyaltyWire has no commercial relationship with Smile.io or LoyaltyLion and earns nothing from this page. Our publisher also makes Loyalty+, a competing loyalty app, which is why Loyalty+ is left out of every LoyaltyWire comparison. Every figure was read from the vendor's own pricing page, help centre or Shopify App Store listing on October 24, 2026, and the sources are listed on the page. Prices change, so confirm with the vendor before buying. Read about our ownership.
Sources
Read on October 24, 2026.
- https://smile.io/pricing
- https://apps.shopify.com/smile-io
- https://smile.io/integrations
- https://help.smile.io/en/articles/4036185-supported-ecommerce-platforms
- https://help.smile.io/en/articles/4036313-smile-api-overview
- https://help.smile.io/en/articles/4036240-supported-languages-in-smile
- https://help.smile.io/en/articles/4036180-how-smile-handles-currency
- https://loyaltylion.com/pricing
- https://loyaltylion.com/pricing/features-table
- https://apps.shopify.com/loyaltylion
- https://loyaltylion.com/integrations
- https://developers.loyaltylion.com/
- https://help.loyaltylion.com/en/articles/3516224-translations-and-program-language
- https://help.loyaltylion.com/en/articles/11204654-theme-editor-custom-block
Before you choose: run the numbers
A platform's monthly fee is the smaller cost; the rewards you fund are the larger one. The loyalty ROI calculator turns a plan price and your margin into breakeven incremental revenue, and the points calculator shows what an earn rate costs per order.