The Bold Subscriptions
Alternative for Shopify
Bold was built before Shopify's subscription API existed — which means custom checkout flows, injected scripts, and Shop Pay friction that can't be fixed without a rewrite. SimpleSubscription is native — and the first subscription app on Shopify powered by Shopify Sidekick AI. Run your subscriptions from chat: ask, confirm, done in one click. Zero transaction fees, no script bloat.
SimpleSubscription vs Bold Subscriptions
A detailed side-by-side comparison. Native checkout, zero transaction fees, and features Bold doesn't offer at any price.
See how much you save vs Bold Subscriptions
Based on $25 average recurring order value. Bold charges ~1% per transaction on recurring orders on top of monthly fees.
Even with just 1,000 subscribers you save $261/mo — that's $3,132/year back into your ad budget.
Run subscriptions from a
single chat box
SimpleSubscription brings your subscription data to Sidekick AI, so you can manage anything subscription-related from chat — right inside Shopify admin.
Five storefront moments that grow subscription revenue
Five surfaces, five revenue levers — from subscribe widget to smart cancellation flow.
A subscribe widget that buyers actually click
The product page is where one-time buyers turn into subscribers — or don't. The widget surfaces the discount and delivery cadence before the buyer scrolls, then lets them check out with Shopify's native checkout. No off-platform redirect, no second login, no drop-off.
- Native Shopify checkout — no redirect, no drop-off
- Discount up front — savings shown before the click
- Built-in A/B testing — test, measure, ship the winner
Turn every renewal into an unboxing moment
Curate a fresh theme each cycle and ship the surprise — your roaster's picks this month, a seasonal sampler next month. Subscribers stay because the next box is always different, and discovery beats discounting on retention. Same widget, same Shopify checkout.
- Monthly themes — never the same box twice
- Value-led pricing — "worth $58" vs "$39 today"
- Lower churn than fixed — discovery beats predictability
Paid memberships that compound MRR
Tier-based memberships sit on top of physical subscriptions: members-only pricing, exclusive products, early access, recurring perks. New revenue stream, same checkout — and members renew at much higher rates than one-time buyers because they're paying for ongoing access, not a single delivery.
- Tier-based perks — pricing, drops, early access
- Native Shopify checkout — no payment-page redirect
- Stacks on physical subs — incremental MRR on top
A portal subscribers actually use
Every action a subscriber would email you about — skip a delivery, pause, swap a product, change frequency, update payment — is one click in the portal. When pausing is easier than cancelling, churn drops. When subscribers manage themselves, your support inbox shrinks.
- Skip beats cancel — easier alternatives one click away
- Magic-link login — no passwords, no support resets
- 60% fewer tickets — measured across migrated stores
Save the cancel before it happens
Most cancellations have a fixable reason — too much stock, wrong cadence, wrong product. The retention flow asks why, then offers the right counter — pause, discount, swap, or skip — based on the answer. And for the ones who still slip through, automated win-back campaigns bring lapsed subscribers back to life.
- Reason-matched offers — pause, discount, or swap by intent
- AI churn predictions — flag at-risk subs weeks early
- 35% save rate — measured across active flows
Real reasons merchants move off Bold Subscriptions
Transaction fees compound fast
Bold charges ~1% per recurring transaction. At 1,000 subscribers with $25 AOV, that's $250/month in fees alone on top of the plan cost. SimpleSubscription charges 0% — always.
Shop Pay doesn't work properly
Shopify's highest-converting checkout method is limited on Bold because the checkout isn't native. SimpleSubscription is fully native — Shop Pay, Apple Pay, Google Pay all work out of the box.
Legacy scripts break on Shopify updates
Bold's injected JavaScript creates a maintenance liability. Every Shopify checkout update is a potential regression. SimpleSubscription has no storefront scripts to maintain.
Features Bold doesn't offer
A/B testing, churn predictions, frequency optimizer, winback campaigns, and the first subscription app on Shopify powered by Shopify Sidekick AI (pause, refund, change frequency from chat in one click). These don't exist on Bold at any price.
Free migration to native contracts
We handle the legacy-to-native conversion for free. Payment tokens remapped, selling plans recreated, billing dates preserved. Most Bold migrations complete in 7–10 days with zero subscriber disruption.
Free plan or 14-day trial, no risk
Stay on Free forever for up to 100 active subscribers, or try Growth or Premium risk-free with a 14-day trial — including a real migration of your Bold subscribers. Cancel anytime.
Switch from Bold Subscriptions in 4 steps
Your subscribers won't notice a thing. Legacy payment tokens are converted to native Shopify contracts.
Connect
Provide your Bold API credentials. We export your subscriber data, payment tokens, and subscription intervals automatically.
Convert
Legacy Bold payment tokens are mapped to native Shopify payment methods. Selling plans are recreated to match your existing discount and frequency structure.
Review & Activate
Review every migrated contract in staging. Happy with the results? One click to go live. Both apps run in parallel until you deactivate Bold.
Done
Native subscriptions live. Shop Pay works. No scripts to maintain. Billing continues seamlessly with zero subscriber action required.
Zero risk, zero downtime. Bold and SimpleSubscription run in parallel throughout migration. Your subscriber data is staged privately before anything goes live. The typical Bold migration completes in 7–10 business days with no disruption to billing or subscriber experience.
Three plans. Zero transaction fees.
Start free for up to 100 subscribers. 14-day free trial on paid plans. Cancel anytime.
- Subscribe & Save widget
- Annual subscription billing
- Self-service customer portal
- 14 languages supported
- Passwordless login (magic link)
- Automatic transactional emails
- Portal branding (colors & logo)
- Failed payment recovery
- Smart cancellation flow
- Free migration & API/CSV import
- Shopify Sidekick AI extension
- 0% transaction fees
- MRR & revenue analytics
- Everything in Free
- Subscription bundles (build-a-box)
- Mystery boxes with automated rotation
- Bulk subscription actions
- Frequency optimizer
- Personalized gift subscriptions
- Free trial subscriptions
- Checkout & cart upsells
- Portal add-ons & cross-sell
- Custom discount & delivery rules
- Loyalty ladder & rewards points
- Refer-a-friend program
- Win-back campaigns
- Subscription & churn analytics
- Everything in Growth
- Tier-based membership program
- White-labeled customer portal
- Custom domain on portal
- Custom email providers
- Customizable email templates
- Automatic SMS notifications
- Custom storefront translations
- Customer auto-tagging
- Shopify Flow triggers
- Built-in A/B testing
- Smart churn predictions
- Product performance analytics
- Per-currency MRR breakdown
- Advanced forecasts & insights
Common questions about migrating from Bold
How does migration from Bold Subscriptions work?
Bold subscribers need to be converted from legacy Bold payment tokens to native Shopify Subscription Contracts. Our migration team handles this conversion — payment tokens are re-mapped, subscription intervals are expressed as native Shopify selling plans, and billing dates carry over. Most Bold migrations complete in 7–10 business days with no subscriber action required.
Will my subscribers need to re-enter their payment information?
No. Legacy Bold payment tokens are mapped to native Shopify payment methods during migration. Subscribers do not need to re-enter cards or re-enroll in their subscription. The transition is completely seamless from their perspective.
Does SimpleSubscription support Shop Pay?
Yes — fully. Because SimpleSubscription uses Shopify's native Subscription Contracts API and checkout, Shop Pay, Apple Pay, Google Pay, and all Shopify-accelerated checkout methods work out of the box. This is one of the most common reasons merchants migrate from Bold, where Shop Pay support has historically been incomplete.
How does Bold's checkout architecture affect my store?
Bold was built before Shopify's subscription API existed and uses custom checkout flows and injected JavaScript. This means every Shopify checkout update can create regressions, accelerated payment methods are inconsistently supported, and storefront scripts load on every product page regardless of subscription status. SimpleSubscription is fully native — there are no injected scripts and no custom checkout to maintain.
How long does the Bold migration take?
Most Bold migrations complete in 7–10 business days. The longer timeline vs other migrations reflects the legacy-to-native token conversion. Both apps run simultaneously during migration — no revenue gap, no subscriber disruption.
What about custom Bold integrations?
Our REST API and webhooks cover the same use cases as Bold's API. If you have custom integrations, our migration support team reviews them before you switch and helps adapt them to SimpleSubscription's API structure at no extra cost.
Is there a contract or lock-in?
No contracts, no lock-in. Cancel anytime. The Free plan is permanently free for stores up to 100 active subscribers, and every paid plan comes with a 14-day free trial.
What is the best Bold Subscriptions alternative for Shopify?
SimpleSubscription is a strong Bold Subscriptions alternative for stores that want native Shopify checkout without legacy workarounds. Unlike Bold, SimpleSubscription uses Shopify's native API — Shop Pay, Apple Pay, and accelerated checkout all work correctly. Zero transaction fees on every plan, plus a free tier for stores up to 100 active subscribers and the first subscription app on Shopify powered by Shopify Sidekick AI (ask any subscription question, run any per-subscriber action in one click, jump to any admin editor) Bold doesn't offer at any price.
Move to native Shopify subscriptions today
Free migration from Bold. Zero downtime. Zero transaction fees from day one.
Free for up to 100 subscribers · 14-day trial on paid plans · Cancel anytime