How to create a dynamically-priced customizable bundle

Dynamically-priced customizable bundles let you offer a "build-a-box" experience on your storefront by using a single subscription product to bundle multiple Shopify products, allowing customers to select items for their bundle.

This guide explains how to create a dynamically priced customizable bundle.

Before you start

• Merchants on Plus or Custom pricing plans can offer customers dynamically priced customizable bundles.

Step 1 - Create the relevant collections in Shopify

Before creating the bundle in Recharge, you must create at least one Shopify collection that contains the products available for bundling.

For example, if you offer a meal box for different meals throughout the day, you would need to create Breakfast, Lunch, and Dinner collections. For instructions on creating Shopify collections, see Create a collection.

There are a few things to consider when configuring your collection:

• Configure your collection as an automated collection in Shopify if you track inventory on products in a collection.
• Set a condition for the collection that requires inventory to be greater than zero. With this condition in place, out-of-stock products are automatically removed from the bundle content options. Additionally, if products go out of stock, customers will be prompted to update their selections when they log into the customer portal.
• The bundle price is the aggregate of the bundle contents prices.
• The same product cannot be in multiple collections configured to the same bundle. 
  • For example, if the bundle contains two collections, lunch and dinner, you cannot include the same chicken wrap product in both collections.

Product variants

If a product in a collection has multiple product variants in Shopify, note the following:

• You cannot split product variants into multiple collections
  • For example, if your product has multiple size options, you cannot separate the small variant into one collection and the medium variant into another
  • If you want to add two variants into different collections, you must create the variants as separate products in Shopify
• You can choose whether you want the first product variant to be automatically added to the bundle or you can allow customers to choose their variant option
  • See Products with multiple variants for more information

Step 2 - Create subscription rules for the products

After creating your collections in Shopify, you must configure subscription rules for each one. The subscription rules for these products must match the subscription type and frequency of the parent bundle product. For steps on adding products and configuring subscription rules, see Creating subscription rules.

If your store uses Product Subscription Plans, you can bulk create the same plan for all bundle contents, as outlined in How to copy and replace plans in bulk. Before proceeding, carefully review your products and plans, as this feature will overwrite and delete existing plans.

Note the following:

• Subscription frequencies and discounts must match across all bundle products and the parent bundle product, and align with the selected subscription type. If the discount is only applied to bundle items, it may apply at checkout but will not persist if items are swapped in the customer portal, as the parent bundle’s discount is used for future orders.
• Available subscription types for bundle products are:
  • One-time purchase only
  • One-time and subscription, or,
  • Subscription only
• The subscribe-and-save discount is determined at the bundle level
• Ensure the subscription rules for product contents match the parent bundle product's subscription type and frequency

Step 3 - Configure your bundle in Recharge

Create the bundle product in Recharge. This is the product that customers eventually check out with to receive their bundle contents. 

While you can import a preconfigured parent bundle product from Shopify, Recharge recommends creating the parent bundle product directly in Recharge to avoid issues.

1. Click Products in the merchant portal and select Bundles from the dropdown.
2. Click Add a bundle.
3. Choose the Customizable bundle template and click Get started.
4. Name the bundle. If you are importing a pre-configured parent bundle product from Shopify, Click Already created your product in Shopify? Click here and select the product to import a pre-configured parent bundle product from Shopify. Using this method, you cannot change the bundle price in Recharge, instead, you must edit it directly in Shopify. Recharge recommends creating the parent bundle product directly in Recharge.
5. Optional: Add a product image that displays on product listing pages and in search results.
6. Select Dynamic under the How is your bundle priced? option. 
7. Select Save and continue.

Step 4 - Configure price and contents

You can offer different versions of your bundle, including whether you want to offer multiple bundle options, how many products customers can add, and which collections they can choose from. 

Bundle options

Choose whether your bundle has one version or multiple versions:

• There's only one version of my bundle: Set one size, one price, and one set of allowed products. Every customer builds their own bundle from the same rules.
• My bundle has multiple options: Offer different sizes or tiers. Each version has its own rules and product options.

Price and contents 

If there is one version of your bundle, configure how many products customers can add and which collections they can choose from:

1. Set the number of products included in the bundle in the Number of products field. Determine if it should be A flexible amount or a Fixed amount.
2. Input the number of products a customer must add.
3. Optional: Set the maximum number of products a customer can add to their bundle.
4.  Click Select Shopify collections to choose which products to include in the bundle. Select your collections and click Apply. 
5. Optional: Input How many of a single product can be added.
6. Click Save and continue.

Note: Products in a collection must be active on the Online Store sales channel in Shopify.

Optional - Set up a default selection

Default selections are the default products sent to customers if they don't make their own selections before their charge date. Configure a default selection ensures all subscribers receive products in their bundle even if they haven't customized it.

1. Under What happens if a customer doesn't add any contents to their bundle?, select one of the following:
   • Recommended: Send a default selection: Recharge updates the bundle price based on default products. Customers still receive their subscribe and save discount and can update contents before their bundle is processed.
   • Nothing: don't send any products: Customers who don't make selections won't receive any products, but might still be charged with taxes and shipping. 
2. If you selected Send a default selection, click the edit icon next to Select products for default selection to add your default product selections. Click Apply.
3. Click Save and continue. 

Step 5 - Add subscription options

Set a subscription type for your bundle from the following options:

• One-time purchase only: Customers only receive the bundle one-time
• One-time and subscription: Customers can receive the bundle only once, or they have the option to subscribe to the bundle and receive it on a recurring basis
• Subscription only: Customers subscribe to the bundle and receive it regularly

Depending on the subscription type you select, you may need to configure frequencies. 

1. Click Add a frequency option 
2. Enter in the frequency.
3. Optional: Select if the subscriptions should expire automatically or not.
4. Optional: Choose Where is this frequency available. 
   • When people buy from my store
   • When people buy through my customer portal
   • When I edit orders here in the merchant portal
   • Via the API
5. Click Apply and then Save and continue.

Optional - Tiered discounts

Tiered discounts lets you reward customers with "buy more, save more" pricing based on quantity or spend of products added to their bundle. 

1. Select to Offer tiered discounts on this bundle or Don't offer tiered discounts.
2. If you selected Offer tiered discounts on this bundle, click Add tiered discounts.
3. Add the tiered discount:
   • Add discount name and display name
   • Decide Are tiers based on product quantity or spend?
   • Add a tier
   • Choose Where this discount can be applied (Checkout, Recurring, or Both)
   • Choose Which purchase types are eligible for this discount (One-time, Subscription, or Both)
4. Click Apply.
5. Click Save and continue.

Optional - Enable cross-sells

Allow subscribers to add extra items to their bundle when they check out.

See How to configure bundles add-ons and extras for additional details.

Step 7 - Install the Bundles widget and cart files

The first time you create a bundle, you must install the bundles product template in your store to display the bundles widget:

1. Click Products, then select Bundles in your merchant portal.
2. Click Storefront settings and select Install theme files.
3. Click Done after the installation.

Refer to the following troubleshooting guides if you run into issues while installing the cart files:

• Cart files cannot be installed for dynamically-priced customizable bundles
• Cart files were installed but the bundle has layout issues

Step 8 - Publish the bundle

After configuring the bundle product, you can activate it, which automatically makes the bundle available on the Online Store sales channel in Shopify. 

1. Review the Bundle summary to ensure that the bundle is configured as expected.
2. Click Activate bundle when you are ready for customers to purchase the bundle on your storefront.

Tip: You can publish your bundle to test the bundle experience, then unpublish it if you are not ready for customers to purchase the bundle product.

When published, Recharge applies the recharge-bundle template to the bundle product in Shopify to display the bundle widget on the product page. This guarantees that the bundle contents are included in the customer's checkout and future orders. Processed orders for bundle products:

• List the contents of the bundle as separate line items at the checkout
• Include the Bundle tag to easily identify orders that contain a bundled product

Click Preview bundle on the bundle's settings page to view it. 

At checkout, each item in the bundle appears as a separate line item. On the cart page, the bundle is displayed as a single product, with the included items listed under the product title.

Expected outcome

Customers can purchase the bundle directly on your storefront after configuring and publishing the bundle. 

The example above shows how a dynamically-priced bundle works with Tiered discounts. 

Inventory handling

The following table outlines how Recharge processes orders based on the different inventory settings available.

Considerations

Review the following tables to understand which platform features are compatible with dynamically-priced customizable bundles, and how bundle behavior affects your store setup and customer experience.

Product compatibility

Bundle logic and behavior

Resources

There are a variety of Bundles resources to help you get started, or to troubleshoot common issues. See the following resources below for additional information:

Getting started guides

• Getting started with Bundles
• Getting started with dynamically-price customizable bundles

Using bundles guides

• How to test and publish a bundle
• How to use the Bundles widget layout
• How to configure bundles add-ons and extras
• How to discontinue or disable bundles
• How to manage customer bundle content with bulk swaps
• How to manage existing bundles in Recharge
• How to create an automatic reset for customizable bundles

Troubleshooting and FAQs

• Bundles troubleshooting
• Bundles FAQs

Developer documentation

• Curating the Bundles experience