Best Loyalty Program Software (2026): Top 11 Compared
Loyalty program software runs points, tiers, rewards and referrals, records member activity and connects to a point of sale or online store. The eleven products here fall into three groups. Smile.io, LoyaltyLion, Yotpo and Square Loyalty serve small and mid-sized merchants and publish monthly prices. Reelo, Thanx, Paytronix and PAR Punchh are built for restaurants; Paytronix and PAR also cover convenience stores, and only Reelo publishes prices. Capillary, Antavo and Comarch are enterprise loyalty platforms for multi-brand, multi-market programs, and all three price by quote.
Order is not a ranking. How entries are ordered.
On this page
Compare at a glance
Select a vendor for details and sources. Scroll the table horizontally on smaller screens.
| Vendor | Consider for | Pricing notes | Standout |
|---|---|---|---|
| Smile.iosmb | Shopify and BigCommerce stores starting points, referral and VIP programs | Free to 200 orders a month; $15, $79 and $199 a month billed monthly; Smile Plus $999 a month billed annually; Enterprise by quote Checked Oct 2026 | Free plan plus four published paid tiers priced by monthly orders |
| LoyaltyLionsmb | Shopify brands wanting a branded loyalty page built by the vendor | Free plan for stores up to 400 orders a month; Classic $199 a month including 500 orders; Advanced and Plus by quote Checked Oct 2026 | Loyalty page built for the merchant and wallet passes as an add-on |
| Yotpo Loyalty & Referralssmb | Ecommerce brands on Shopify, BigCommerce, Adobe Commerce or Salesforce Commerce Cloud | Free plan; Pro from $199 a month for 500 orders, then $0.20 to $0.05 per extra order; Premium and Enterprise by quote Checked Oct 2026 | Free plan and published per-order rates above the Pro allowance |
| Square Loyaltysmb | Cafes, shops and salons already taking payments on Square POS | Included in Square Plus at $49 a month per location and Square Premium at $149 a month per location; 30-day free trial Checked Oct 2026 | Points by visit, spend or item, earned at the Square POS even on cash sales |
| Reelosmb | Independent and chain restaurants, particularly in India, wanting loyalty with CRM and campaigns | Free plan; Growth $100 per outlet a month billed annually (INR 39,000 per outlet a year + GST in the FAQ); memberships add-on extra Checked Oct 2026 | Branded loyalty, feedback, reviews and WhatsApp or SMS campaigns in one restaurant tool |
| Thanxspecialist | Multi-location restaurant brands wanting loyalty, ordering and a branded app | Quote-based; Thanx states pricing depends on restaurant count, average unit volume and modules Checked Oct 2026 | Loyalty, digital ordering, mobile apps and marketing automation sold together |
| Paytronixspecialist | Restaurant groups and convenience stores wanting loyalty, ordering and messaging together | Quote-based; pricing page leads to a demo request Checked Oct 2026 | More than 450 integrations and messaging included with every loyalty subscription |
| PAR Punchh (PAR Engagement)enterprise | Enterprise restaurant and convenience brands needing loyalty, ordering and offers at scale | Quote-based; no prices published on the PAR Engagement site Checked Oct 2026 | Punchh loyalty now sits inside PAR Engagement with PAR Ordering and guest identity |
| Capillary Technologiesenterprise | Enterprise retail, fuel, airline and multi-brand groups running large programs | Quote-based; Capillary invites RFPs and demo requests and publishes no prices Checked Oct 2026 | Loyalty, CDP and in-house loyalty consultancy (Brierley) from one vendor |
| Antavoenterprise | Retail and ecommerce brands outgrowing plug-in loyalty apps | Start, Grow and Enterprise plans by quote; Antavo states it charges by customer activity Checked Oct 2026 | Gamification, receipt scanning and wallet passes on a no-code workflow builder |
| Comarch Loyalty Marketing Platformenterprise | Large multi-country programs needing SaaS, private-cloud or on-premise deployment | Quote-based through a strategic pricing analysis request Checked Oct 2026 | Deploys as Comarch SaaS, on a customer's own cloud, on-premise or hybrid |
These comparisons draw on public product information, not hands-on testing of every tool. Source records identify available references and checks; missing evidence is marked. Buyer fit is an editorial assessment, not a measured performance score. How to use this research.
Loyalty program software lets a business reward repeat customers with points, visit stamps, tiers, referrals and member-only offers, and records each customer’s activity at the point of sale or online checkout. Buyers search for this category as customer loyalty software, rewards program software or loyalty management platforms, and small businesses, restaurants and large retailers need quite different products.
The eleven products compared here fall into three groups. Smile.io, LoyaltyLion, Yotpo and Square Loyalty serve small and mid-sized merchants with published monthly prices. Reelo, Thanx, Paytronix and PAR Punchh are built for restaurants and, in two cases, convenience stores. Capillary, Antavo and Comarch run enterprise programs across brands and countries. All pricing notes were checked in October 2026. Entries with dated source checks appear first. That order records research readiness. It is not a measure of product quality or a ranking.
Related pages cover customer retention software, restaurant POS systems and retail POS systems.
Vendor details and trade-offs
Smile.io is a loyalty app for ecommerce stores on Shopify and BigCommerce. All plans include a points program, referrals, points expiration, bonus events and rewards as discounts, free shipping or free products. On-site elements include a dedicated loyalty page, a floating launcher, nudges and points shown on product, account and order thank-you pages.
The plans scale by monthly order volume. Lower tiers limit the number of integrations, while Growth and above allow unlimited integrations and add the VIP program, the Loyalty Hub for signed-in members and performance benchmarks. Smile Plus adds a migration and launch plan, quarterly program monitoring, priority support, API access, a front-end JavaScript SDK and financial reports.
Smile.io lists native support for Shopify POS and syncing VIP tiers to Shopify metafields, so a merchant with a physical shop on Shopify POS can run one program across both channels. Retailers above $40M in annual revenue are directed to Smile Enterprise, which adds custom reports, custom API rate limits and data warehouse sync.
Potential strengths
- Every plan except Enterprise lists a price and order allowance
- Klaviyo email sending and Shopify POS support are listed on all plans
Trade-offs
- Available only on Shopify and BigCommerce
- API access starts at Smile Plus, $999 a month billed annually
- Product reference
- Pricing source
- Billing terms: Monthly billing on Free to Growth; annual billing on Smile Plus and Enterprise
- Source review: checked Oct 22, 2026
- Vendor confirmation: not confirmed
LoyaltyLion sells loyalty and rewards programs to ecommerce brands, with most of its pricing-page features tied to Shopify. Classic includes a branded loyalty page built from a standard template, pre-built earning rules for on-site and off-site actions, a Klaviyo integration with ready-to-use email flows and onboarding support.
Advanced adds VIP tiers, points on product pages, Shopify POS across several physical locations, translations in more than 130 languages and twice-yearly performance reviews. Plus adds AI-recommended rewards and timing, advanced Klaviyo events that pass points, rewards and tier data into emails, automated LoyaltyLion Flows with triggers and conditional logic, and quarterly strategic reviews.
Loyalty Pass, sold as an add-on on every plan, puts the program into Apple Wallet or Google Wallet with live updates, push notifications and in-store QR scanning. Redeeming points inside checkout through the Shopify Checkout Extension is limited to Shopify Plus stores.
Potential strengths
- Free plan and a published Classic price
- Classic includes ready-made Klaviyo email flows and dedicated onboarding support
Trade-offs
- VIP tiers are an add-on on Classic and included only from Advanced
- Classic supports Shopify POS for a single location only
- Product reference
- Pricing source
- Billing terms: Per month; Classic includes 500 orders a month
- Source review: checked Oct 22, 2026
- Vendor confirmation: not confirmed
Yotpo sells Loyalty & Referrals alongside Reviews & UGC and an AI visibility product. The loyalty product runs points campaigns and referrals on the free plan. Pro adds more ways to earn and redeem, CRM integrations, fraud prevention, program visibility features and chatbot and email support. Premium adds smart segments and ROI analytics, VIP tiers, dedicated onboarding and customer success managers and POS support. Enterprise adds cross-brand programs, multi-market scaling, dedicated security and compliance and priority professional services.
Yotpo lists integrations with Shopify and Shopify Plus, BigCommerce, Adobe Commerce, Salesforce Commerce Cloud and WooCommerce, plus headless storefronts through its API. Loyalty emails can be sent through Klaviyo and other email providers, and Recharge integration supports subscription merchants. Shopify POS support lets staff enroll customers, check balances and apply rewards in person.
Potential strengths
- Free plan and per-order rates published for Pro
- Can be bundled with Yotpo Reviews & UGC
Trade-offs
- VIP tiers and POS support are listed only from Premium, which is quoted
- Order-based pricing makes monthly cost vary with sales volume
- Product reference
- Pricing source
- Billing terms: Per month subscription plus per-order rate above 500 orders on Pro
- Source review: checked Oct 22, 2026
- Vendor confirmation: not confirmed
Square Loyalty is part of Square's paid POS plans rather than a standalone app. A business chooses whether customers earn points by visit, by amount spent or by specific items or categories. Customers enroll at the point of sale, through a Square website or through an invoice, and Square sends transactional texts when they earn points or rewards. Points accrue on cash payments as well as card payments.
Recent additions include VIP tiers with configurable names and earning multipliers, and digital loyalty passes for Apple Wallet. Promotions such as bonus points can be limited-time or recurring. Reporting in the Square Dashboard shows top loyalty customers, loyalty-attributed sales and average spend of members against non-members, and loyalty status appears in Square's built-in customer directory.
Square Marketing, included with Square Plus, sends email and text campaigns to members. Square for Restaurants and Square for Retail, the POS products underneath, are compared on StatWharf's restaurant and retail POS pages.
Potential strengths
- Loyalty runs inside the POS with no integration to maintain
- Published per-location price and a 30-day trial
Trade-offs
- Requires Square POS, Square Online or Square Invoices
- Per-location fees add up for multi-site businesses
- Product reference
- Pricing source
- Billing terms: Per location per month; cancel or switch plans anytime
- Source review: checked Oct 22, 2026
- Vendor confirmation: not confirmed
Reelo is a restaurant CRM and loyalty tool that states it is used by more than 32,000 restaurants. The Growth plan adds a branded loyalty program with points that can reward both visit frequency and spend, customer feedback with real-time alerts, tools to increase online reviews, automated and smart campaigns, QR codes and a referral program.
Guest profiles are built automatically from visits and orders, with preferences and key dates, and Reelo tracks which campaigns lead to visits and revenue. The company states it offers more than 5,000 campaign templates. Reelo integrates with existing restaurant POS systems, so earning and redemption happen at the counter.
Several features are aimed at Indian operators: a custom SMS header under TRAI rules, a paid WhatsApp header add-on and membership fees quoted with 18% GST. The memberships add-on lets restaurants sell paid memberships, with either a commission or a flat monthly fee per store.
Potential strengths
- Free plan and a published per-outlet Growth price
- Integrates with the restaurant's existing POS, so staff need no extra system
Trade-offs
- The loyalty program itself requires the paid Growth plan
- Custom WhatsApp sender headers are a paid add-on
- Product reference
- Pricing source
- Billing terms: Per outlet, billed annually; taxes extra
- Source review: checked Oct 22, 2026
- Vendor confirmation: not confirmed
Thanx is a guest engagement platform for restaurant brands. It combines a loyalty program, digital ordering and mobile apps, and marketing automation. Thanx positions its loyalty around rewards beyond discounts. Its homepage states an average discount rate of 1.7% and its pricing page 2.4%, against about 10% for legacy programs; both are vendor figures.
The ordering product recognizes guest preferences, adds upsells and supports reordering. Marketing automation uses AI-assisted segmentation across more than 400 guest attributes and runs triggered email and push campaigns, including abandoned-cart recovery.
The pricing page publishes no figures. Instead it explains Thanx's view of loyalty cost: discount spend, custom app development and agency fees, and staff time. Thanx advises buyers to compare platforms on three-year total cost of ownership rather than subscription fees.
Potential strengths
- One vendor for loyalty, ordering, app and campaigns
- Pricing page sets out cost drivers, including discount spend and app maintenance
Trade-offs
- No published prices
- Built for multi-location brands rather than single independent restaurants
- Product reference
- Pricing source
- Billing terms: Not recorded
- Source review: checked Oct 22, 2026
- Vendor confirmation: not confirmed
Paytronix sells a Guest Engagement Suite for restaurants and convenience stores. It combines online ordering, loyalty, omnichannel messaging, AI insights, payments, catering, kiosks, subscriptions, gift cards and employee dining programs. The loyalty product supports personalized promotions based on each guest's activity, and Paytronix states it launches programs with more than 450 existing integrations.
Guests can enroll through the POS, SMS, the app, the web, email, Apple Pay or Google Pay. Messaging, which Paytronix describes as the evolution of its earlier messaging product, is included with every loyalty subscription, and campaign reporting shows visit rate, redemption rate and average spend. Branded or custom mobile apps give guests access to menus and loyalty.
Paytronix markets separately to restaurant groups of one to nine units and to convenience stores, where offers can move fuel customers into the store.
Potential strengths
- States more than 450 existing integrations
- Enrollment through POS, SMS, app, web, email, Apple Pay and Google Pay
Trade-offs
- No published prices
- Ongoing service is sold as separate Customer Success Plans
- Product reference
- Pricing source
- Billing terms: Not recorded
- Source review: checked Oct 22, 2026
- Vendor confirmation: not confirmed
Punchh, owned by PAR Technology, is now part of PAR Engagement, a suite that combines loyalty, marketing, ordering and guest data for restaurant brands. A 2021 PAR announcement described more than 250 global enterprise brands using Punchh, naming Yum! Brands, Denny's, TGI Friday's and Casey's.
The loyalty layer supports personalized rewards, tiers and exclusive experiences, with gamification and AI-driven recommendations. Marketing reaches guests by email, SMS, app and web with built-in testing and segmentation. PAR Ordering provides branded online ordering with dynamic upsells and third-party delivery integration. Guest Identity starts building a guest profile before enrollment, and a Digital Experience module updates app and web content and offers in real time.
PAR also sells loyalty to convenience and fuel retailers through PAR Retail. A strategy services team helps brands plan offers, and PAR states its APIs are open and documented.
Potential strengths
- Loyalty, ordering, marketing and data in one PAR suite
- Open, documented APIs for custom guest experiences
Trade-offs
- No published prices
- Positioned for enterprise brands rather than single-site operators
- Product reference
- Product documentation
- Billing terms: Not recorded
- Source review: checked Oct 22, 2026
- Vendor confirmation: not confirmed
Capillary Technologies sells an enterprise loyalty platform alongside a customer data platform, an engagement platform, an insights platform and a rewards platform. The Loyalty Program Manager runs the program, and the CDP provides a single customer view for targeting and real-time triggers. Capillary's AI layer, aiRA, adds predictive features.
Documented program types include engagement-based loyalty with leaderboards and gamification, experiential loyalty, enterprise and multi-brand programs for conglomerates, partner and coalition programs across separate brands, and channel loyalty for dealers, distributors, wholesalers and agents. Industry pages cover retail, fuel retail, airlines and Empower+, a member engagement product for health plans.
Brierley, a Capillary company, provides loyalty strategy and program design. Capillary states it was named a Leader in The Forrester Wave for Loyalty Platforms, Q4 2025; that is the vendor's report of a third-party evaluation.
Potential strengths
- Supports coalition and partner programs across separate brands
- Brierley consultancy can design or redesign the program
Trade-offs
- No published prices
- Enterprise scope is heavy for a single store or restaurant
- Product reference
- Product documentation
- Billing terms: Not recorded
- Source review: checked Oct 22, 2026
- Vendor confirmation: not confirmed
Antavo is a loyalty platform with three plans: Start for ecommerce brands launching a simple program, Grow for brands outgrowing tactical loyalty apps, and Enterprise for complex programs across markets, channels and brands. Antavo states that a focused program can launch within weeks and that one customer went live in six weeks.
The loyalty engine supports one or more custom currencies such as points, credits or stamps, and tiers based on spend, points, actions or invitation. A visual workflow builder maps member journeys without code. Gamification includes challenges, missions, badges, streaks, prize wheels and referrals, and a Clubs module lets members earn rewards together.
For omnichannel programs, Antavo identifies members at the till through POS integration, captures other purchases through receipt scanning and issues Apple Wallet and Google Wallet passes. Segmentation combines behavioural, RFM, lifecycle and preference data.
Potential strengths
- Plans range from a Start tier for ecommerce brands to multi-market Enterprise
- Receipt scanning captures purchases outside the brand's own POS
Trade-offs
- No published prices
- Setup needs technical support for integrations
- Product reference
- Pricing source
- Billing terms: Not recorded; priced on customer activity
- Source review: checked Oct 22, 2026
- Vendor confirmation: not confirmed
Comarch sells the Comarch Loyalty Marketing Platform to brands launching a new program or replacing a legacy system. The platform supports multibrand, multicountry and multicurrency programs and states it scales to tens of millions of members. AI-supported recommendations and analytics suggest next-best actions for campaign teams.
Deployment options are unusually broad: Comarch Cloud as a managed SaaS service across 16 data centers, the buyer's own Azure, AWS or GCP environment, or on-premise and hybrid setups for regulated organizations. Comarch's in-house team provides program design, including earn-and-burn mechanics, tiers and gamification, plus migration from legacy systems and ongoing optimization.
Privacy controls include built-in GDPR compliance, data anonymization and consent-based profiling. Named clients on the product page include DB Fernverkehr and Enterprise Rent-A-Car, and Comarch reports inclusion in Gartner's 2026 Market Guide for Loyalty Program Vendors.
Potential strengths
- Deployment choice from SaaS to on-premise
- Multibrand, multicountry and multicurrency configuration
Trade-offs
- No published prices
- Sized for enterprise programs rather than small businesses
- Product reference
- Pricing source
- Billing terms: Not recorded
- Source review: checked Oct 22, 2026
- Vendor confirmation: not confirmed
Frequently asked questions
What is loyalty program software?
Loyalty program software runs a rewards program: it records points or visits, applies tiers and rewards, handles referrals and redemptions, and connects to the point of sale or online store so members earn on each purchase. Most products also include member analytics and campaign tools, and enterprise platforms add customer data platforms and multi-brand program management.
How much does loyalty program software cost?
Published prices in October 2026 started at zero. Smile.io, LoyaltyLion, Yotpo and Reelo offer free plans. Smile.io's paid plans run from $15 to $999 a month, LoyaltyLion Classic and Yotpo Pro start at $199 a month, Reelo Growth costs $100 per outlet a month billed annually, and Square includes loyalty in Square Plus at $49 a month per location. Thanx, Paytronix, PAR Punchh, Capillary, Antavo and Comarch price by quote.
What is the best loyalty program software for a small business?
The fit depends on where the business sells. A Square POS user gets loyalty inside Square Plus. A Shopify or BigCommerce store can start on the free plans of Smile.io, LoyaltyLion or Yotpo. A restaurant can use Reelo's free or per-outlet plans. This page lists products side by side and does not name a single best option.
Which loyalty programs suit restaurants?
Reelo, Thanx, Paytronix and PAR Punchh are built for restaurants and integrate with restaurant POS systems. Reelo publishes per-outlet prices and offers a free plan. Thanx, Paytronix and PAR Punchh price by quote and add digital ordering, branded apps and messaging; Paytronix and PAR also serve convenience stores. Square Loyalty covers cafes and quick-service businesses that already run Square for Restaurants.
What do enterprise loyalty platforms add?
Capillary, Antavo and Comarch support programs across several brands, countries and currencies, with tiers, gamification, partner or coalition rewards and analytics on member behaviour. Comarch offers on-premise and private-cloud deployment, Capillary pairs loyalty with a customer data platform, and Antavo prices by customer activity. All three price by quote and include strategy or design services.
Can one loyalty program cover online and in-store purchases?
Yes, with the right integration. Smile.io, LoyaltyLion and Yotpo support Shopify POS for in-store earning; LoyaltyLion lists multi-location support from its Advanced plan. Square Loyalty covers Square POS, Square Online and invoices. Antavo adds receipt scanning for purchases made outside a brand's own POS.
Should a loyalty program use points, visits or tiers?
Points by spend suit businesses with varied basket sizes, while visit-based rewards suit cafes and quick-service restaurants with similar ticket values; Square Loyalty supports both. VIP tiers reward the most frequent customers but sit on higher plans with several vendors, such as Smile.io Growth, LoyaltyLion Advanced and Yotpo Premium.
How was this list compiled?
Candidates came from buyer queries for loyalty program software, including small-business queries, and from vendor websites across small-business, restaurant and enterprise segments. Each vendor's product and pricing pages were read on 22 October 2026 through r.jina.ai or the raw page HTML. Velocity Merchant Services was considered and excluded because its loyalty offer is Clover's Rewards app rather than its own product. No product was tested hands-on, and no entry is vendor-confirmed.
Suggest a vendor or correction
Send factual corrections to editorial@statwharf.com. Corrections are free. For inclusion or placement enquiries, contact partnerships.
First published October 2026. Page update dates reflect editorial changes, not a fresh check of every vendor.