Overview
Offering a free product is a great way to drive higher order values and surprise your customers with added value. In Upcart, you can create a reward tier that adds a designated product to the cart when the customer reaches a specific threshold.
This guide walks you through setting that up and explains how to make the reward product free using Shopify.
How Product Rewards Work
When a product reward is unlocked, Upcart automatically adds the selected product to the customer’s cart. However, Upcart does not change the product’s price. You’ll need to handle pricing on the Shopify side.
There are two ways to make the reward free:
Create a duplicate version of the product priced at $0
Use Shopify’s Buy X, Get Y automatic discount to make the product free at checkout
We’ll walk through both methods in detail.
Step 1: Create the Product Reward Tier in Upcart
Open Upcart > Cart Editor.
Go to the Rewards section.
Click Add New Reward Tier.
Set the Reward Type to Product.
Choose the Reward Basis (for example, Cart Total or Item Count).
Enter the Minimum Amount required to unlock the reward.
Select the product to add once the threshold is met.
At this point, the product will be added to the cart when the requirement is met, but it will still be full price. Use one of the methods below to make it free.
Method 1 (Recommended): Create a Free Version of the Product
This is the most stable and flexible option.
Steps:
In Shopify, go to Products.
Duplicate the product you want to offer as a free reward.
Set the price of the duplicated product to $0.00.
Rename it clearly (for example, Free Mystery Gift).
In the product’s settings, remove it from the Online Store sales channel to hide it from customers.
Keep it Active so Upcart can still add it to the cart.
This method avoids discount stacking issues and gives you full control over how the reward is presented.
Method 2: Use an Automatic Shopify Discount
If you prefer not to duplicate products, you can use a Buy X, Get Y discount to make the reward product free.
Steps:
Go to Shopify Admin > Discounts.
Click Create Discount.
Choose Buy X, Get Y.
Under Customer Buys, set a Minimum Purchase Amount (for example, $200).
Under Customer Gets, select the reward product and set the quantity to 1.
Set the discount to 100% off.
Enable Automatic discount.
Turn on Combine with other discounts, if applicable.
This setup ensures that once the customer hits the minimum spend, the reward product is discounted to $0 automatically.
Shopify will still show the reward discount on other items in the cart due to how the system tracks purchase conditions. This is expected behavior and cannot be changed by Upcart.
Additional Configuration Tips
Update the Reward Bar Messaging
After setting up your product reward, make sure the reward bar displays the correct message.
In the reward tier settings, edit the Text before achieving and Text after achieving fields.
Example:
Before: “You're $20 away from a free mystery gift!”
After: “You've unlocked your free mystery gift!”
This ensures the messaging is accurate and aligned with the actual reward.
Optional: Hide the Reward Product from Your Storefront
Even with the Online Store channel disabled, customers may still discover the reward product via search or collections. Here's how to fully hide it:
Option 1: Use Shopify Metafields
Go to Shopify Admin > Settings > Custom Data > Products.
Create a new metafield:
Name: Hide Product
Namespace and key: seo.hidden
Type: Integer (Min: 0, Max: 1)
Go to the reward product and set the metafield value to 1.
Wait a few minutes or clear your cache to confirm it’s hidden.
Option 2: Use Shopify’s Bulk Editor
If the metafield already exists, go to:
https://your-store.myshopify.com/admin/bulk?resource_name=Product&edit=metafields.seo.hiddenFind your reward product and set seo.hidden to 1.
Click Save.
Exclude from Collections
If the reward product still appears in collections:
Go to Shopify Admin > Collections.
In your “All” collection (or any applicable one), add a rule:
Product type is not equal to: your reward product type (for example, Free Gift).
Final Result
Once complete:
Customers will unlock the product reward after reaching the spend threshold.
The reward product will be added automatically to the cart.
Shopify ensures the item is free through discount or pricing configuration.
The reward product is hidden from your storefront.
Need Help?
If you’re unsure which method is best or need help troubleshooting your setup, contact Upcart Support via in-app chat or connect with a Shopify Expert for advanced support.