In April 2023, Recharge deprecated its own hosted checkout. Every Recharge merchant now runs on Shopify Checkout. There is no longer a choice between Recharge Checkout and Shopify Checkout — there is only Shopify Checkout, and the question has shifted to what you build on top of it.
That question is answered by Shopify Checkout Extensions — the mechanism by which subscription platforms, loyalty programmes, upsell tools, and custom logic inject functionality into the checkout natively, without touching the underlying checkout code. For DTC subscription brands, understanding what Checkout Extensions unlock is more commercially relevant than the historical checkout architecture debate this post used to cover. This is the updated version of that post.
What Shopify Checkout Extensions are
Checkout Extensions are Shopify's framework for customising the checkout experience without modifying Shopify's checkout code directly. Before Checkout Extensions existed, checkout customisation required either editing checkout.liquid (available only on Shopify Plus, and deprecated in August 2024) or accepting a generic checkout with limited flexibility. Checkout Extensions replaced both approaches with a stable, maintained API that allows third-party apps to add UI components, logic, and integrations to specific points in the checkout flow.
The practical result: subscription platforms, loyalty apps, and upsell tools can now inject their functionality into the checkout natively — the same checkout, the same branded experience — without the maintenance burden of custom code that breaks every time Shopify updates the checkout. For DTC brands running a subscription programme, this is the architecture that makes the subscription checkout experience feel like part of the store rather than a bolted-on billing layer.
Checkout Extensions require Shopify Plus for full functionality. The extension framework is available on standard Shopify plans but the range of customisation points — particularly for subscription mechanics — is significantly broader on Plus. This is one of the primary reasons DTC subscription brands upgrade to Plus.
What Recharge and Skio build with Checkout Extensions
Both Recharge and Skio have fully migrated to Shopify Checkout and use Checkout Extensions to deliver the subscription-specific functionality that sits within the checkout itself. The key components both platforms build through extensions:
Subscription frequency selector
The frequency selector — allowing a customer to choose their subscription interval (weekly, fortnightly, monthly) directly within the checkout — is delivered via a Checkout Extension rather than a custom checkout modification. This means it works within the native Shopify checkout UI, inherits the checkout's design language, and does not require maintenance when Shopify updates the checkout. A customer who can set their delivery frequency at the point of purchase is more likely to subscribe than one who discovers they can only manage frequency in the subscriber portal after the fact.
Subscribe and save upgrade prompt
For brands where subscription is not the default purchase mechanic — where one-time purchase is also available — the checkout is the last opportunity to convert a one-time buyer to a subscriber before the transaction completes. A Checkout Extension can surface a subscribe-and-save prompt within the checkout itself: showing the customer the saving they would receive by switching their one-time purchase to a subscription, with a single interaction to make the change without restarting the checkout.
This is one of the highest-converting subscription acquisition moments in the entire purchase journey. A customer who has already committed to purchasing has lower friction to the subscription upgrade than one encountering the mechanic for the first time on the product page. The extension surfaces the offer at exactly the right moment.
Bundle contents confirmation
For brands running build-a-box or bundle subscription mechanics on Skio or Recharge, the checkout extension can display the bundle contents within the checkout — confirming what the subscriber will receive on their first and subsequent deliveries before they complete the purchase. This reduces post-purchase anxiety and the support contacts that come from subscribers who were uncertain about what they had ordered.
Loyalty point redemption
Loyalty programmes — including Skio Loyalty, which Tribe was the first UK agency to deploy — can use Checkout Extensions to surface point balances and redemption options within the checkout. A subscriber who can see their accumulated loyalty points and apply them to their current order at checkout has an additional commercial reason to complete the purchase and to remain a subscriber. The loyalty extension sits within the same checkout experience as the subscription mechanics, presenting a coherent value proposition rather than separate systems the customer has to navigate independently.
The unified checkout experience
The problem the original version of this post addressed — that a customer making a mixed cart purchase (one subscription item and one one-time item) would be sent through different checkouts depending on cart contents — is no longer relevant. Shopify Checkout handles mixed carts natively. A cart containing both subscription and non-subscription products processes through a single Shopify Checkout, with the subscription platform managing the subscription components via its API integration rather than through a separate hosted checkout.
This unification matters commercially because it removes the friction point that the dual-checkout architecture introduced. A customer who encounters a different checkout experience depending on what is in their cart loses confidence in the store. A customer who always encounters the same checkout — the same design, the same flow, the same brand experience — does not. The conversion rate data on unified checkout versus the legacy dual-checkout architecture consistently favours the unified experience, and the migration from Recharge V1 to Recharge on Shopify Checkout was a meaningful positive conversion event for every brand that completed it.
Checkout Extensions vs checkout.liquid
Shopify deprecated checkout.liquid in August 2024. Any brand still running checkout customisations through checkout.liquid at that point had those customisations removed — Shopify replaced them with the Checkout Extensions framework. For brands that had invested in complex checkout.liquid customisations, this required a rebuild using the Extensions API before the deadline.
The Extensions framework is objectively better than checkout.liquid for most use cases. Customisations built through Extensions are maintained by Shopify alongside checkout updates rather than breaking when the checkout changes. The performance characteristics are better — Extensions are rendered as part of Shopify's checkout infrastructure rather than as an overlay on top of it. And the development model is more predictable: building against a documented, supported API rather than modifying a template that Shopify could change at any time.
For brands that were holding off on checkout customisation because of the complexity and maintenance overhead of checkout.liquid, Checkout Extensions remove most of that barrier. The framework is designed to be built against reliably, and the ecosystem of pre-built extensions from subscription platforms, loyalty apps, and upsell tools means that many checkout enhancements no longer require custom development at all.
What this means for subscription brands not yet on Shopify Plus
Checkout Extensions are available in a limited form on standard Shopify plans, but the full range of customisation points — particularly those used by subscription platforms for frequency selectors, upgrade prompts, and bundle confirmation — require Shopify Plus. For subscription brands generating meaningful revenue from their subscription programme who are not yet on Plus, the Checkout Extensions capability is one of the most commercially concrete reasons to evaluate the upgrade.
The calculation is straightforward: if the subscribe-and-save upgrade prompt in the checkout converts an additional 2% of one-time buyers to subscribers per month, and your subscription LTV is three to five times your one-time purchase LTV, the commercial return from that extension alone may well exceed the cost differential between Advanced and Plus within the first quarter. Our guide to when Shopify Plus makes sense for DTC brands covers this evaluation in detail.
How Tribe builds subscription checkout experiences
Tribe builds Shopify Plus stores for DTC subscription brands using Recharge and Skio, with Checkout Extensions configured to surface the subscription mechanics — frequency selector, upgrade prompt, bundle confirmation, loyalty redemption — within the native checkout experience. The extension architecture is set up at build time and maintained as part of the ongoing development retainer, so checkout functionality remains current as both Shopify and the subscription platform update their extension capabilities.
For brands migrating from an older Recharge setup (V1 on Recharge Checkout, or early V2 builds predating the current Extensions framework) or from a different subscription platform entirely, the checkout rebuild is typically part of a wider platform migration or store redevelopment rather than a standalone project. See our guide to migrating to Shopify Plus for how that process works end to end.
If you want to understand what your current checkout experience is leaving on the table commercially — and what a properly configured subscription checkout on Shopify Plus would look like for your specific programme — get in touch. You can also find out more about Tribe's subscription ecommerce work and Shopify Plus build service.
Frequently asked questions
Does Recharge still have its own checkout?
No. Recharge deprecated its own hosted checkout in April 2023. All Recharge merchants now process subscriptions through Shopify Checkout, with Recharge using Shopify's Subscription API and Checkout Extensions to manage subscription mechanics within the checkout. If you are on an older Recharge setup and encountering checkout issues, you may be running a legacy configuration that predates this migration.
What are Shopify Checkout Extensions?
Shopify Checkout Extensions are the framework Shopify provides for customising the checkout experience without modifying the underlying checkout code. Third-party apps — subscription platforms, loyalty programmes, upsell tools — use Extensions to inject UI components and logic into specific points in the checkout flow. Extensions replaced the deprecated checkout.liquid template in August 2024 and are now the standard mechanism for all checkout customisation on Shopify Plus.
Do Checkout Extensions require Shopify Plus?
Checkout Extensions are available on all Shopify plans but the full range of customisation points — particularly those used by subscription platforms for frequency selectors, upgrade prompts, and bundle mechanics — require Shopify Plus for complete functionality. For DTC subscription brands, this is one of the primary commercial reasons to be on Plus rather than Advanced.
How does Skio use Checkout Extensions?
Skio uses Checkout Extensions to deliver the subscription frequency selector, subscribe-and-save upgrade prompts, and bundle contents confirmation within the native Shopify Checkout. Skio Loyalty also integrates with the checkout via Extensions to surface point balances and redemption options. All of this runs within the standard Shopify Checkout — no separate Skio checkout, no redirection, no separate branded experience.