Add a VIP membership before Shopify checkout

A membership offer beside your cart checkout button

VIP Checkout+ is a storefront membership upsell for Shopify cart drawers and cart pages. It gives shoppers a second checkout action: add your selected membership, keep the existing products in the cart and continue to Shopify checkout to review and pay.

The offer appears before checkout. It does not add an upsell block inside Shopify checkout or complete a purchase without the customer reviewing the order. Use it when the membership benefits are relevant to what shoppers are buying.

Example: show the membership cost alongside its value

On smaller screens, scroll to see every column.

In this sample, $54 of discounted merchandise plus $9.99 membership costs more today than the original $60 cart. Explain the ongoing value and recurring charge clearly. Do not describe the product saving as a lower total checkout cost.

The hero shows a different illustrative first-month-free offer. These are sample merchant membership prices, not Memberply’s app fee or guaranteed savings. Configure any trial and cancellation terms to match the actual membership.

Set up VIP Checkout+ in your Shopify theme

1. Choose the membership tier to promote, enable its product and cart upsell setting, then Save and Publish.
2. In Memberply, open Grow > Cart Upsell, then select Open Shopify editor for VIP Checkout+. Enable the VIP Checkout+ app embed for the theme you want to use.
3. Customize the button, benefit descriptions, icons and footer copy to match your membership.
4. Save the theme settings, then test the cart drawer, full cart page and completed checkout with a controlled test customer.

The selected tier also powers the global product and cart upsell offers. Follow the upsell tier setup guide. For the broader choice of placements, see membership upsell options.

Cart drawer, full cart page or custom placement

On smaller screens, scroll to see every column.

Theme structure matters. A third-party drawer, custom checkout control or theme update can affect detection and layout. Test your exact theme and cart app rather than assuming compatibility with every cart. Custom placement may need help from your theme developer or Memberply support.

Use Cart Page Upsell when you want a larger promotional card on the full cart page. VIP Checkout+ focuses on the alternative checkout action.

Who sees the membership offer?

The offer needs a selected upsell tier and a cart containing a non-membership product. Memberply hides it when it detects an enabled membership product already in the cart, or when the signed-in customer is recognized as an existing member.

Recognition depends on the available customer and cart information. Test a guest, a signed-in non-member, an existing member and a cart with a membership already added. Do not treat a hidden button as a separate membership eligibility or access rule.

Make recurring pricing and trials clear

VIP Checkout+ loads pricing from the selected membership tier and adds the membership with its selling plan when applicable. A tier with both monthly and annual options uses the monthly option in this flow; the button is not a billing-frequency picker.

Customize the button label, colours, border, size and spacing, up to four benefit icons and descriptions, the separator and footer. Keep your benefit and footer copy consistent with the tier settings. Loading tier pricing does not make every custom sentence update automatically.

Check the exact charge due at signup and the next recurring charge in checkout. A joining fee can still be payable during a membership trial. An annual-only trial does not make the monthly option free. Never promise “nothing to pay today” solely because the tier has a trial setting.

See membership tiers for your offer structure and explain the cancellation policy alongside the billing terms.

Which benefits can apply to the joining order?

Eligible member discounts can apply when the membership is in the same cart, subject to the configured benefit, product eligibility and discount rules. Test exclusions and combinations using the exact items and checkout path shoppers will use.

Adding a membership to the cart is not the same as completing membership activation. Do not promise that all store credit, rewards or access benefits are available before purchase completes. Verify the timing of each benefit separately, including any free shipping eligibility.

Use the offer to describe a useful membership, not just a bigger discount. For example, repeat purchasers may value ongoing eligible savings, while occasional buyers need a clear reason to pay a recurring fee.

Memberply pricing and your customer membership are separate

Memberply Growth costs US$49/month, with unlimited members, a 14-day app trial and no Memberply transaction fee. Check the Shopify App Store listing.

You choose the customer membership price and benefits. The merchant app trial does not make a customer’s membership free. Budget discounts, fulfilment, Shopify charges and payment processing when evaluating your offer. Use the paid membership launch guide to plan the full program.

What to test before showing the offer to shoppers

On smaller screens, scroll to see every column.

When evaluating results, compare completed membership purchases and overall checkout completion, together with the cost of the benefits. Button clicks alone do not establish additional revenue or profit.

Shopify VIP checkout questions