Balance 
Balance Due vs Downpay
Downpay is a well-reviewed deposit app built on the same Shopify mechanism as Balance Due. For many stores either will work; here is where they differ.
At a glance
Competitor details are as of September 2026. Check Downpay's current listing before deciding.
- Both
- Native checkout, saved-card balance charge, customer portal
- Balance Due billing
- GBP, flat monthly, free tier
- Downpay billing
- USD, monthly plans (check listing)
- Only Downpay
- Shopify Flow and Hydrogen storefronts
- Only Balance Due
- Hold, retries and reminders on every plan including Free
- Support
- UK, one working day, against Canada
The short version
Downpay and Balance Due both create deposit purchase options through Shopify, both charge the saved card for the balance, and both offer a customer portal. Downpay is billed in USD and lists integrations with Shopify Flow and Hydrogen storefronts, with support based in Canada (as of September 2026). Balance Due is billed in GBP through Shopify, includes the fulfilment hold, retry ladder, reminders and customer page on every plan including Free, and is supported from the UK.
Because the mechanism is the same, the customer's checkout is the same on either app. The decision comes down to billing currency, integrations, what the free and starter tiers include, and where your support emails are answered.
Same Shopify mechanism, same checkout. The differences are in the bill, the integrations and the inbox.
Side by side
| Balance Due | Downpay | |
|---|---|---|
| Pricing | GBP, flat monthly, free tier | USD, monthly plans (check listing) |
| Deposit at native checkout | Yes | Yes |
| Automatic balance charge | Yes | Yes |
| Instalments | No, a deposit and one balance | Split payments (check listing) |
| Fulfilment hold until paid | Automatic, every plan | Check listing |
| Reminders | Email every plan, texts on Growth and Pro | Email (check listing) |
| Customer portal | Payment page, no login | Yes, includes card update |
| Shopify Flow / Hydrogen | Not yet | Yes |
| Support | UK, email, one working day | Canada |
Which is the better fit
When Downpay is the better fit
If your storefront or your automations are built on tools Balance Due does not yet integrate with, Downpay is the practical choice.
- You run a Hydrogen or headless storefront
- You build automations in Shopify Flow around deposit orders
- You want customers to update the saved card themselves
When Balance Due is the better fit
If you are a UK store on a standard theme and want the follow-up included from the first plan, Balance Due is the simpler buy.
- You want GBP billing and UK support hours
- You want holds, retries and reminders included at the free and starter tiers
- You want the simplest possible setup: one plan, attach products, done
The card update difference
Downpay's portal lets the customer update the saved card themselves. Balance Due's payment page does not, by design: the saved card is only used for the automatic charges, and if it fails the customer settles through a Shopify payment link that accepts any card. The outcome is the same, a paid balance, by a slightly different route. If a self-service card update matters to you, that is a point for Downpay.
On Balance Due
Failed charge, payment link with any card, retries after 1, 3 and 7 days, overdue flag and an alert to you. Collect now and reschedule from the order on Growth and above.
On Downpay
Customer portal with card update. Check the listing for its retry schedule and what happens after repeated failures.
Switching from Downpay
Orders already placed with Downpay keep their Downpay schedule. Balance Due only manages orders placed on its own plans.
- 1
Install Balance Due
It checks your payment settings and provider. Nothing changes on the storefront yet.
- 2
Create your plans
The same percentages and balance rules you use today.
- 3
Move the products
Remove Downpay's purchase option from a product and attach the Balance Due plan. Only one app should attach purchase options to a given product.
- 4
Run both for a while
Downpay collects the balances on its existing orders; Balance Due collects on new ones.
- 5
Remove Downpay
Once the last Downpay order is paid in full, uninstall it.
Related
Depo alternative
The percentage-fee comparison.
Reminders and receipts
What Balance Due sends, and when.
Features
Every feature on one page each.
Depositly alternative
Newer apps compared on what actually happens after checkout.
SPD Split Payment alternative
SPD does four things; Balance Due does one of them thoroughly.
Native Shopify deposits (Plus)
What Plus stores get built in, and what every other plan needs an app for.
Questions
Is one of them faster to collect the balance?
Both charge on the due date. Balance Due charges at 9am store time and retries after 1, 3 and 7 days; check Downpay's listing for its schedule.
Do both work without Shopify Plus?
Yes.
Can I switch from Downpay mid-flight?
Orders already placed with Downpay keep their Downpay schedule; Balance Due only manages orders placed on its own plans. Run both until the old orders are paid, then remove Downpay.
Does Balance Due work with Shopify Flow?
Not yet. Balance Due tags orders deposit:active, deposit:paid, deposit:overdue and deposit:cancelled, which Flow can read, but there is no dedicated Flow trigger or action.
Can the customer change the card on Balance Due?
Not from the payment page. If the saved card fails, the payment link in every failed-payment message accepts any card, so the balance is still paid with a new one.
Is the free tier limited?
Balance Due's Free plan covers three orders with an open balance at any one time and carries a small branding line on customer emails. The hold, collection and customer page are included.
Which currency is Balance Due billed in?
GBP, through Shopify, every 30 days.
Try it on a test order
The fastest comparison is a deposit order on your own dev store with Shopify's test gateway.