Percentage Off Discount — 10% Off Reward Example

The classic reward: spend points, get a percentage off. Easy to explain, easy to want — and the one reward type whose cost to you isn’t fixed.

Where: Settings → Rewards → Create reward → Percentage Off Discount

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What it does

A customer spends points and receives a Shopify discount code for a percentage off their order.

What makes it different from every other reward. A $5 fixed discount costs you $5. A 10% discount costs you 10% of whatever they choose to buy — $4 on a $40 order, $40 on a $400 one. That’s a feature when you want bigger baskets, and a problem if you don’t cap it.

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The fields

Section	Field	Notes
Rule Name	Rule Name	Required. E.g. 10% off your order — 500 points.
Reward Configuration	Points to Redeem	Required. What it costs the customer.
Reward Configuration	Discount value (%)	Required. 1–100.
Reward Configuration	Minimum Order Value	Optional floor before the code can be used.
Reward Configuration	Coupon Expiry	Days before an issued code stops working.
Reward Configuration	Return points back to customer after expiration	Refunds the points if the code expires unused.
Reward Configuration	Discount Code Prefix	The prefix on generated codes.
Discount Scope	Everything / specific collections / specific products	Collections or products, never both.
Redemption Limits	Maximum uses per customer + Frequency
Order Type Eligibility	One-time orders, or subscriptions too
Discount stacking	Order / Product / Free shipping discount	Nothing stacks unless ticked.
Rule Status	Active / Disabled

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Worked example: 10% off for 500 points

Assume the baseline from Points per Amount Spent: 1 point per $1, so 500 points is about $500 of spending.

1. Go to Settings → Rewards and click Create reward.
2. Choose Percentage Off Discount.
3. Fill in:

Field	Value
Rule Name	10% off your order — 500 points
Points to Redeem	500
Discount value (%)	10
Minimum Order Value	40
Coupon Expiry	30 days
Return points back after expiration	✅ on
Discount Code Prefix	SAVE10
Discount Scope	Everything in the store
Redemption Limits	Maximum uses 1, Frequency Month
Discount stacking	(leave all unticked)
Rule Status	Active

4. Save.

Why each number is what it is

500 points. With 1 point per dollar, a customer earns this after about $500 of spending. On a $60 order the reward is worth $6 — so you’re returning roughly 1.2% of revenue. That’s a normal, sustainable loyalty rate.

Minimum Order Value $40. Without it, someone redeems 500 points against a $12 order and gets $1.20 off — a reward that feels like nothing and teaches them the program is pointless. The floor makes sure the reward always lands as a real saving.

Coupon Expiry 30 days, with points returned. A code that never expires is a liability sitting on your books indefinitely. Thirty days creates a reason to use it now. And ticking Return points back means a customer who forgets isn’t punished — leaving it off is a quiet way to make your program feel unfair.

One per month. Percentage discounts are the easiest reward to over-redeem. A monthly cap keeps a highly engaged customer from turning 10% off into your standing price.

No stacking. Left unticked, this code won’t combine with your other discounts. Tick a box only when you’re genuinely happy for the reward to land on top of a sale price.

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Capping your exposure

Three levers, in the order you should reach for them:

1. Minimum Order Value — sets the floor, so the reward is always worth having.
2. Redemption Limits — sets the frequency, so it isn’t a permanent discount.
3. Discount Scope — steers redemption at full-margin products. Scoping to a collection means the 10% never lands on your sale rail.

If your margins vary a lot by product, consider a Fixed Amount Discount instead: it costs you exactly what it says regardless of what they buy.

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Tips

• Put the number in the name. “10% off your order — 500 points” is the whole offer, and it’s what customers see in the widget.
• Round percentages travel better. 10%, 15%, 20%. Nobody gets excited about 12%.
• Build a ladder, not one reward. 10% for 500 points and 20% for 1,200 gives customers a reason to save rather than spend at the first opportunity.
• Check the scope against your sale collection. A percentage reward that stacks onto markdown is where loyalty programs quietly lose money.

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FAQ

Is there a maximum discount amount?

Not on this reward type — a percentage applies to whatever the order is worth. Use Minimum Order Value, Discount Scope and Redemption Limits to shape it, or use a fixed amount if you want a hard ceiling.

Can I scope it to a collection and specific products?

No. Shopify applies a discount code one way or the other, so pick one. Choosing a scope but selecting nothing in it means the same thing as Everything in the store.

Does the customer get their points back if they don’t use the code?

Only if Return points back to customer after expiration is ticked. Tick it.

Why didn’t the code work at checkout?

Check the Minimum Order Value, the Discount Scope against what’s in the basket, whether another discount is already applied and stacking is off, and whether the code is past its Coupon Expiry.

Can I limit this to VIP members?

Not on the reward itself — rewards are open to anyone with the points. Give higher tiers faster earning instead. (See Setting Up VIP Tiers.)

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Next steps

• Next: Fixed Amount Discount — the predictable-cost alternative.
• Related: Free Shipping · Program setups that work