# Recharge Pricing Explained (2026): What You Actually Pay at $5K, $10K, $30K and $100K a Month

URL: https://www.usegro.co/blog/recharge-pricing-explained
Updated: 2026-09-27
Category: Subscriptions

## Short answer

Recharge has three plans: $25/mo for your first 50 lifetime subscribers (new merchants only), Starter at $99/mo + 1.49% + $0.19 per order, and Plus at $499/mo + 1.34% + $0.19 per order on a 12-month term. The sticker price is the smallest number you pay. At a $50 average order, a store doing $10K a month in subscription revenue pays about $286, and one doing $100K pays about $1,970. Plus only saves money above roughly $267K a month.

## The three plans

**Recharge plans and fees, 2026**

| Plan | Monthly fee | Percentage fee | Per-order fee | Contract | Notes |
| --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- |
| $25 plan | $25 | 0% | $0 | Monthly | First 50 lifetime subscribers, new merchants since Feb 2026, auto-upgrades to Starter |
| Starter | $99 | 1.49% | $0.19 | Monthly | Was 1.25% before 2026 |
| Plus | $499 | 1.34% | $0.19 | 12 months | Build-a-Box, advanced analytics, API access |

_Prices checked September 2026._

Two things to notice straight away.

**The percentage went up.** Starter moved from 1.25% to 1.49% in 2026. Most comparison articles, including several "updated for 2026", still quote 1.25%. Check the date on anything you read.

**The per-order fee is the same on both paid plans.** $0.19 on every renewal, whether you are on Starter or Plus. Low average order values feel this the most. At a $20 AOV that fee alone is nearly 1% of revenue before the percentage kicks in.

## What does Recharge cost at your revenue?

All examples assume a $50 average subscription order.

**Recharge monthly cost by subscription revenue, $50 average order**

| Subscription revenue | Orders a month | Starter | Plus | Starter as % of revenue | Starter per year |
| --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- |
| $5K/mo ($60K/yr) | 100 | $192.50 | $585 | 3.9% | $2,310 |
| $10K/mo ($120K/yr) | 200 | $286 | $671 | 2.9% | $3,432 |
| $30K/mo ($360K/yr) | 600 | $660 | $1,015 | 2.2% | $7,920 |
| $50K/mo ($600K/yr) | 1,000 | $1,034 | $1,359 | 2.1% | $12,408 |
| $100K/mo ($1.2M/yr) | 2,000 | $1,969 | $2,219 | 2.0% | $23,628 |
| $150K/mo ($1.8M/yr) | 3,000 | $2,904 | $3,079 | 1.9% | $34,848 |

_Prices checked September 2026. Starter: $99 + 1.49% + $0.19 per order. Plus: $499 + 1.34% + $0.19 per order on a 12-month term._

### When does Plus become cheaper than Starter?

Plus costs $400 more a month and saves 0.15 percentage points. Those cross at $400 ÷ 0.0015 = **about $267,000 a month** in subscription revenue. Below that, Plus is always the more expensive plan. Merchants move to Plus for Build-a-Box, deeper analytics or API access, not to save money. Budget for that honestly.

## What's locked behind Plus

The features that most often push a merchant from Starter to Plus:

- **Build-a-Box.** Customers curate their own recurring box. Widely used in snacks, pet, beauty and coffee. Not on Starter.
- **Advanced analytics and benchmarks.**
- **API access** for custom portal or headless builds.
- **Enhanced dunning** options.

If your business model needs Build-a-Box, your real entry price to Recharge is $499 a month plus fees on a 12-month term, not $99.

## The costs that are not on the pricing page

- **The percentage compounds.** Every renewal, forever. A subscriber who stays three years pays Recharge 1.49% thirty-six times. Flat-fee apps take nothing on renewals.
- **Annual commitment on Plus.** Twelve months. If you outgrow it or change direction, you are still paying.
- **Add-ons.** Some integrations and features are priced separately. Ask sales for the full list before signing.
- **Migration out.** Recharge's migration team is excellent at moving you in. Moving out is your problem, though most competitors (Loop, Appstle, Seal, Gro) will do it free.

## How does Recharge compare with other subscription apps on cost?

**Subscription app monthly cost by subscription revenue, $50 average order**

| Platform | Pricing model | $10K a month | $50K a month | $100K a month | $150K a month |
| --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- |
| Seal | Flat, by subscription count, 0% fees | $9.95 | $89.95 | $89.95 | $199 |
| Appstle | Flat, by revenue tier, 0% fees | $30 | $100 | $100 | Custom |
| Loop | $99 + 1%, or $399 + 0.75% | $199 | $599 | $1,099 | $1,524 |
| Recharge Starter | $99 + 1.49% + $0.19/order | $286 | $1,034 | $1,969 | $2,904 |
| Gro | 0.9%, $250/mo minimum, no per-order fee | $250 | $450 | $900 | $1,350 |

_Prices checked September 2026. Seal is priced by subscription count, Appstle by revenue tier (custom above $100K a month), Loop on whichever of its two plans is cheaper at that volume. One order per subscriber per month._

Recharge is the most expensive option at every revenue level we modelled. That is not automatically a reason to leave. Its analytics, integrations and migration team are the best in the category, and for a large brand the retention tooling can pay for itself. But if you are doing under $1-2M a year in subscription revenue and not using Plus-only features, you are paying enterprise rates for a mid-market need.

For every app's ratings, features and fees side by side, see our [comparison of the best Shopify subscription apps](https://www.usegro.co/blog/best-shopify-subscription-app).

## Who should stay on Recharge

- Large brands with complex integration stacks (Gorgias, Attentive, loyalty tools) already wired in.
- Merchants who rely on Recharge's analytics and benchmark data for decisions.
- Anyone for whom a migration project is riskier than the fee gap. Moving live billing agreements is real work.

## Who should look elsewhere

- Stores doing under $1-2M a year in subscription revenue that don't use Plus-only features. At $100K a month, Recharge Starter costs about $1,970 a month, and $380 of that is the $0.19 per-order fee.
- Anyone who needs Build-a-Box but not the rest of Plus. On Recharge that one feature means $499 a month on a 12-month term. Gro includes Build-a-Box on every plan.
- Brands shipping fresh, frozen or refrigerated products. Recharge is billing-first. If your customers need to move a specific delivery rather than pause a charge, look at a [delivery-first platform](https://www.usegro.co/blog/delivery-first-subscriptions).
- Skio merchants wondering what the acquisition means for pricing. See [Recharge acquired Skio: what merchants should do](https://www.usegro.co/blog/recharge-acquired-skio).

## One more to consider

Full disclosure: we build Gro, a Shopify subscription platform for brands where the delivery matters as much as the charge. Pricing is 0.9% of subscription revenue with a $250 a month minimum and no per-order fee, free under 10 subscriptions. At $100K a month that is $900, against about $1,970 on Recharge Starter. Build-a-Box is included on every plan. Free migration from Recharge: we move subscribers, plans and billing schedules while you keep selling. If you ship perishables, or you're paying enterprise rates for a mid-market store, [talk to us](https://www.usegro.co/subscriptions).

## Frequently asked questions

### How much does Recharge cost per month?

$25 for your first 50 lifetime subscribers (new merchants), then $99 + 1.49% + $0.19 per order on Starter, or $499 + 1.34% + $0.19 per order on Plus with a 12-month term.

### Does Recharge charge transaction fees?

Yes, on both paid plans: 1.49% + $0.19 per order on Starter, 1.34% + $0.19 on Plus. Only the $25 entry plan has no percentage fee.

### Is Recharge worth $99 a month?

On Recharge Starter, a store doing $10K a month in subscription revenue pays about $286, not $99, and a store doing $100K a month pays about $1,970. Whether that is worth it depends on how much you use Recharge's analytics, integrations and retention tools. Under $1-2M a year in subscription revenue, most merchants who don't need Plus-only features would pay less elsewhere.

### Does Recharge have a free plan?

No. The cheapest option is $25 a month and it is limited to your first 50 lifetime subscribers.

### Did Recharge raise its prices in 2026?

Yes. The Starter per-transaction rate moved from 1.25% to 1.49%.

### Is Build-a-Box included on Recharge Starter?

No. Build-a-Box requires the Plus plan at $499 a month on a 12-month term.

### How much does Recharge cost at $100K a month?

About $1,969 a month on Recharge Starter at a $50 average order: $99, plus $1,490 in percentage fees, plus $380 in per-order fees. Plus costs about $2,219. That is roughly $23,600 a year on Starter.

### Is Gro cheaper than Recharge?

Above about $8K a month in subscription revenue, yes. Gro charges 0.9% of subscription revenue with a $250 a month minimum and no per-order fee, so at $100K a month Gro costs $900 against about $1,970 on Recharge Starter. Below about $8K a month, Recharge Starter can cost less because of Gro's $250 minimum.