Joy Loyalty Pricing Update 02/2026
Understand the new pricing, how it affects you, and what actions preserve your special rate.
Who this affects
All Joy Loyalty merchants - current subscribers and new installs from February 2026 forward.
What changed
Starting February 2026, Joy Loyalty updated pricing for new subscribers to reflect the platform's expanded value and feature set. The update affects Essential and Advanced plans:
Essential
$24.90/month
$29/month
+$4.10
Advanced
$99/month
$129/month
+$30
Ultimate
$499/month
$499/month
No change
Important: If you subscribed before February 2026, you keep your current rate permanently - this is called grandfathered pricing.
Why this update matters to you
Over the past year, Joy added major capabilities, including paid membership store credits, social engagement rewards, advanced integrations (Recharge, Klaviyo, Shopify Flow), referral programs, VIP tiers, and powerful automation. The new pricing reflects this enhanced value while keeping Joy competitive in the loyalty platform market.
How this affects you
Existing subscribers: Your rate doesn't change — you keep your current price permanently as a thank you for being an early supporter
New subscribers: Access all the latest features at the updated pricing
All merchants: No reduction in features or support quality
Understanding grandfathered pricing
Grandfathered pricing means your subscription rate stays locked at the price you originally signed up for, regardless of future pricing updates.
How it works
If you subscribed to Joy Loyalty before February 2026, you belong to one of two cohorts with special pricing protection:
Cohort 1: Subscribed before September 2025 (Oldest cohort)
Your protection:
✅ Keep your rate permanently — even if you downgrade to Free plan
✅ Upgrade to higher plans at legacy rates
❌ Lose protection only if you uninstall the app
Example: You started on Essential at $24.90/month. You can upgrade to Advanced ($99, not $129) or downgrade to Free and come back to Essential at $24.90 anytime — as long as you don't uninstall.
Cohort 2: Subscribed between September 2025 - January 2026 (Middle cohort)
Your protection:
✅ Keep your rate as long as you stay on or above your starting plan
✅ Upgrade to higher plans at legacy rates
⚠️ Lose protection if you downgrade below your starting plan
❌ Lose protection if you uninstall the app
Example: You started on Advanced at $99/month. You can upgrade to Ultimate ($499) or stay on Advanced at $99. But if you downgrade to Essential, you lose protection and pay $29/month (the new rate).
What protects your grandfathered rate
Stay on current plan
✅ Protected
✅ Protected
Upgrade to higher plan
✅ Protected (legacy rate)
✅ Protected (legacy rate)
Downgrade to Free
✅ Protected
✅ Protected (if Free was starting plan)
Downgrade below starting plan
✅ Protected
❌ Lost — new pricing applies
Uninstall app
❌ Lost — new pricing on reinstall
❌ Lost — new pricing on reinstall
Checking your pricing cohort
To see which cohort you belong to and your current rate:
In Joy Loyalty, go to Settings
Click Subscription
Your current plan and monthly rate display at the top
If you see:
$24.90 (Essential) or $99 (Advanced) → You have grandfathered pricing
$29 (Essential) or $129 (Advanced) → You're on the new pricing (subscribed after Feb 2026)
Your subscription page will show a special banner if you have grandfathered pricing protection.
Upgrading your plan
Upgrading never causes you to lose grandfathered pricing. You'll always get the legacy rate for the higher plan.
Pricing when you upgrade
Essential $24.90
Advanced
$99/month
$129/month
Essential $24.90
Ultimate
$499/month
$499/month
Advanced $99
Ultimate
$499/month
$499/month
How to upgrade
Go to Settings → Subscription
Review available plans and features
Click Upgrade on the plan you want
Review the pricing (you'll see your grandfathered rate)
Click Confirm to complete
Your new plan activates immediately. Billing adjusts pro-rated for the current cycle.
Downgrading your plan
Downgrading has different effects depending on your cohort and starting plan.
Warning modal before downgrade
Before you confirm a downgrade that would cause you to lose grandfathered pricing, you'll see this warning:
⚠️ Do you really want to give up your special price?
Our pricing changed in February 2026 (See details). As an early supporter, you are currently enjoying a special grandfathered price of {current_price}/month on your {current_plan} plan.
Warning: If you downgrade below your starting plan or uninstall the app, you will lose this exclusive rate and be charged the new pricing:
Essential: $29/month (was $24.90)
Advanced: $129/month (was $99)
Good news: If you upgrade or stay on your starting plan, you keep your special pricing forever.
We strongly recommend keeping your current plan to lock in this exclusive rate.
Downgrade scenarios
Scenario 1: Cohort 1 (Before Sep 2025) — Always protected except uninstall
Advanced $99
Essential
✅ Keep protection
Essential $24.90
Advanced $99
Free
✅ Keep protection
$0 (can return to $99 Advanced)
Essential $24.90
Free
✅ Keep protection
$0 (can return to $24.90 Essential)
Scenario 2: Cohort 2 (Sep 2025 - Jan 2026) — Protected if staying at/above starting plan
Advanced $99
Essential
❌ Lost (below starting)
Essential $29 (new price)
Essential $24.90
Free
❌ Lost (below starting)
Must pay $29 to return to Essential
Advanced $99
Advanced
✅ Keep protection
Advanced $99
How to downgrade
Go to Settings → Subscription
Find your current plan
Click More actions → Downgrade
Read the warning carefully — this is your last chance to keep grandfathered pricing
Click Keep my current plan to cancel, or Downgrade to proceed
The downgrade takes effect at your next billing cycle.
Special cases
Opening additional stores
If you're an early supporter and open a new store:
What happens:
Your new store initially shows current (new) pricing
You can request legacy pricing to be applied manually
How to get legacy pricing on new stores:
Install Joy Loyalty on your new store
Contact Joy support via in-app chat or [email protected]
Provide:
Your original store URL (with grandfathered pricing)
Your new store URL
Support will manually apply your legacy rate to the new store
This courtesy is only available to merchants who subscribed before the February 2026 pricing update.
Uninstalling and reinstalling
⚠️ CRITICAL: Uninstalling Joy Loyalty permanently ends your grandfathered pricing — regardless of which cohort you belong to.
What happens when you uninstall:
Your grandfathered pricing status is immediately removed
All subscription history is retained (customer data, points, etc.)
If you reinstall later, current pricing applies
The legacy rate cannot be restored after uninstall
Before you uninstall, consider:
Downgrading to the Free plan instead (keeps your data and grandfathered status for Cohort 1)
Contacting support to discuss alternatives
Understanding that once you uninstall, your special rate is gone forever
Pausing your subscription
Some merchants ask if they can "pause" their subscription:
Joy Loyalty doesn't have a built-in pause feature
Alternative: Downgrade to Free plan temporarily (Cohort 1 keeps protection)
Your data stays intact
You can re-upgrade later at your grandfathered rate (if eligible)
Comparing plans
Current plan features and pricing:
150 monthly free orders
Points for social engagement
Dedicated loyalty page
Analytics & reports
Point expiration
Shopify Flow and 30+ integrations
500 monthly free orders, then +$15 per 100 additional orders
VIP tier, B2B tier
Paid membership
Loyalty rule engine: bonus point & more
Redeem in cart drawer
Loyalty account (Shopify UI)
Automated translation
POS loyalty extension
7,000 monthly free orders, then +$5 per 100 additional order
Dynamic point expiration
Checkout loyalty extensions
Developer toolkit
Headless commerce (Hydrogen)
White-glove onboarding
Priority support
On-demand development
Scalable loyalty solutions
Free
Basic points program
Referral program
Loyalty widget & basic branding
Live chat support
150 monthly free orders
Frequently asked questions
Will my price change automatically? No. If you're already subscribed, your rate stays the same unless you downgrade below your starting plan or uninstall the app.
I just upgraded but see a higher price than expected. Why? If you're an early supporter, you should have received the legacy rate. Contact support immediately — this may need correction.
Can I switch back to my old plan after downgrading? Yes, you can upgrade again anytime. However, if you've already lost grandfathered pricing by downgrading below your starting plan, the new rates apply to all future plan choices.
I temporarily paused my subscription. Do I keep my special rate? Pausing (if available) preserves your grandfathered rate. Only uninstalling or downgrading below your starting plan causes you to lose it.
What if I can't afford the new rates if I lose grandfathered pricing? Before making changes that would lose your special rate, contact support to discuss your situation. There may be alternative solutions.
Will there be future price increases? Joy may adjust pricing in the future to reflect ongoing product improvements. Existing subscribers at the time of any increase would be grandfathered at their current rates, following the same protection policy.
How do I know what my "starting plan" is? Your starting plan is the first paid plan you subscribed to with Joy Loyalty. If you're unsure, contact support — they can verify your account history.
Getting help
If you have questions about how the pricing update affects your account:
In-app chat: Click the support icon in Joy Loyalty
Email: [email protected]
Help center: support.avada.io
When contacting support, mention "pricing update" so the team can quickly assist you.
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