Set different rewards for the referrer vs the referred friend

Reward the customer who shares their link and the friend who buys with the incentive that makes sense for each side of a referral. The referrer can earn points, a single-use discount code, or both.

Steps

1. Go to Program → Referral program.
2. On the Referrer reward card, pick a Reward type: Points, Discount, or Points + discount.
   • For points, set Points awarded.
   • For a discount, choose the Discount type: Percentage or Fixed amount with its value, or A free gift (product) and then Choose product. Optionally turn on Discount expires and set Valid for (days).
3. On the Friend reward card, pick the friend’s Reward type: Points, Discount, Points + discount, or Just the gift. Set Bonus points for the referred friend, or the friend’s Discount type and Discount value.
4. Optionally turn on Require a minimum order value at the bottom of the Friend reward card and enter the amount. It governs the whole referral: nothing is awarded (not the referrer’s reward, not the friend’s points, not the gift) until the friend’s first order reaches this subtotal. If the friend gets a discount code, the code carries the same minimum, and the card shows it as “The code applies from…”. Without a minimum, a referral that came in through the share link pays out on an order of any size.
5. Click Save in the save bar.

Tip

Points reach the referrer once the friend completes a qualifying purchase (after any waiting period you’ve set). A discount code is single-use, scoped to the referrer, and sent in the referral confirmation email. With a hold on, it’s issued once the hold ends; without one, it’s issued right away and revoked if the friend’s order is refunded. To reward only one side, set Bonus points for the referred friend to 0 to reward the referrer alone, or choose Discount as the referrer’s reward type to skip referrer points entirely.

One minimum, not two

The friend’s discount code used to have its own minimum purchase field. Set to the same figure as Require a minimum order value, the two could cancel out: Shopify checks the code’s minimum before the discount comes off, while the referral was checked on the subtotal after it, so an order just above the minimum got the discount but paid no referral reward. Now one amount does both jobs. If your program had two different values, the page shows the higher one, and saving applies it to both.

Related

• Concept: Referrals
• Cap how many referral rewards a customer can earn
• Delay referrer points to verify the referred order