Setting Up a Subscription Price Test with Recharge
This guide walks you through setting up a subscription price test with Recharge using Elevate.
If you're running a price test on products with Recharge subscriptions, the setup depends on which price testing method you're using.
Native Price Testing (Shopify Plus)
If you're using native price testing, Recharge integration is built directly into the experiment creation flow. No manual setup in Recharge is required.
How to Enable It
During Step 4 (Set Variation Prices) of the native price testing guide, you'll see a Recharge Subscription Pricing section if:
Your store has the Recharge integration enabled in Elevate
The products you selected have active selling plans
Toggle the switch to Enabled. When turned on, subscription prices will automatically update alongside your one-time prices, preserving your existing discount structure.
Important: Price Direction Constraint
When Recharge subscriptions are included, variation prices must be lower than the original price. This is a technical requirement — if you need to test a price increase on subscription products, you'll need to set the higher price as your original and test the current price as the variation.
For example, if your product is currently $29.99 and you want to test $34.99:
Set the original product price to $34.99
Set the variation price to $29.99
This way the variation (lower price) is being tested against the new higher price
That's It
No Recharge dashboard setup, no manual subscription configuration. Elevate handles everything through the discount function integration. Your subscription discounts, frequencies, and types all remain unchanged — only the base price is adjusted.
Duplicate Products (All Plans)
If you're using the duplicate products method, you'll need to manually configure your duplicate products in Recharge so the subscription experience is consistent across variations.
Prerequisites
Complete Steps 1–3 of the How to Create a Price Experiment (Duplicate Products) guide first. Come back here once you've created your duplicate products and set the test prices.
Step 1: Prepare Your Duplicate Products in Shopify
For each duplicate product:
Open the product in Shopify by clicking Edit in Shopify
Make sure the product is set to Active
Ensure the product is hidden from all collections — it should only be reachable through the experiment
Confirm the test price is set correctly
Step 2: Add Duplicates to Recharge
In Recharge, go to Products in the left sidebar
Click Add Product in the top right
Select all your duplicate products and click Add Products
The duplicates will appear in your product list but won't have any collections or subscription type assigned yet.
Step 3: Configure Subscription Settings
You can configure duplicates individually or in bulk:
Individually: Click into each duplicate product and update its subscription settings
In bulk: Select all duplicates using the checkboxes on the left, then click Update subscription settings at the top
For each duplicate, set:
Subscription type — matches the original product (e.g., Subscribe & Save, Prepaid)
Order schedule — same frequency options as the original (e.g., every 30, 60, 90 days)
Discount — same subscription discount percentage as the original
Important: The subscription settings on the duplicate should be identical to the original product. The only difference should be the base price. If the discount, frequency, or type don't match, you're testing more than just the price.
Step 4: Verify Connected Apps and Automations
Recharge often integrates with other tools. Check that these still work correctly with the duplicate products:
Automations and workflows:
Customer communication sequences (welcome emails, renewal reminders)
Post-purchase upsell or cross-sell flows
Loyalty program integrations
Configuration updates:
Update any rules that reference specific product IDs or SKUs to include the duplicates
Adjust email templates that mention specific product names or prices
Update any SKU-based automations to recognize the test variants
Step 5: Test the Full Flow
Before launching, walk through the complete subscription journey on the duplicate product:
Visit the duplicate product page
Select the subscription option
Verify the correct price and discount are displayed
Add to cart and confirm the subscription details in the cart
Proceed through checkout and verify the subscription is created correctly in Recharge
Also complete the general Price Test QA Checklist for the non-subscription aspects.
After Launching
Monitor Recharge to ensure subscriptions are being created correctly for both the control and variation products. If you notice any issues with subscription creation or pricing, pause the experiment and investigate before continuing.
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