Balance Payment plans and instalments on Shopify, without a lender
A payment plan you run yourself: no lender, no interest, no credit check, and you keep the customer relationship. Here is how to set one up on Shopify Plus so it does not become a collections job.
In short: a Shopify payment plan without a lender takes a deposit at checkout and charges the rest in 2 to 12 scheduled payments from the card Shopify saved. It needs Shopify Plus and Shopify Payments or PayPal Express; on other Shopify plans the balance is collected as one later payment instead.
When instalments beat a single balance
Use instalments when the price is high enough that a single balance would stop the sale, and when you can afford to wait: the last payment lands months after the order. Kitchens, jewellery, e-bikes and large commissions all fit. If the item is ready in three weeks and the price is modest, a single balance is simpler for everyone.
Designing the schedule
- Deposit: cover what you commit at order. 20% to 30% is common on instalment plans.
- Count: 3 to 6 payments cover most cases; more than that stretches the relationship and the card's expiry.
- Interval: monthly matches how people budget; weekly suits lower-value items.
- First payment: 30 days after the order for monthly plans, so the deposit and the first instalment do not land in the same month.
- Last payment before delivery: the fulfilment hold makes sure of it.
The maths
Balance Due splits the outstanding balance equally with any odd pennies on the last payment, dates each one from the order, and keeps monthly plans on the same day of the month (moving to the last day in shorter months). Order edits add the difference to the schedule; refunds reduce the final payments first.
Example: a £1,200 order, 25% deposit, 3 monthly payments
| Payment | When | Amount |
|---|---|---|
| Deposit | At checkout | £300.00 |
| Instalment 1 | 1 month after the order | £300.00 |
| Instalment 2 | 2 months after the order | £300.00 |
| Instalment 3 | 3 months after the order | £300.00 |
| Total | £1,200.00 |
What to tell customers
Before checkout: the deposit, the number and size of the payments, that they are taken from the same card, and that the item ships after the last one. After checkout Balance Due sends the full schedule, a reminder before each payment and a receipt after it, so nobody is surprised by a charge.
When a payment fails
Only the failed instalment is retried (after 1, 3 and 7 days) with a pay link each time; the others stay on their dates. After four failures the order is overdue, you are alerted and the hold stays on. Most failures are expired or replaced cards and the pay link resolves them.
Requirements
Instalments need a saved card that can be charged in part more than once, which Shopify only allows on Shopify Plus stores, and a provider that supports it, Shopify Payments or PayPal Express. Elsewhere the balance is collected as one payment; see deposits without Shopify Plus. In Balance Due instalments are on the Growth and Pro plans.
Payment plan questions
Can I offer payment plans without Shopify Plus?
Not as scheduled charges from a saved card, because Shopify only allows partial charges against a saved card on Plus. On Basic, Shopify and Advanced you can take a deposit and collect the balance as one later payment, which covers most made-to-order sales. See deposits without Shopify Plus.
Is this the same as Shop Pay Installments?
No. Shop Pay Installments is buy now, pay later: a lender pays you in full at checkout and the customer repays the lender. A payment plan run by Balance Due has no lender; you are paid as each scheduled payment is taken from the customer's saved card.
Is this regulated credit?
Interest-free credit you offer yourself on goods you supply, repaid in 12 or fewer instalments within 12 months, is generally exempt from UK consumer credit regulation. The FCA began regulating this kind of credit on 15 July 2026, but only where a third-party lender provides it; merchants offering their own plans directly are not covered. Keep schedules within 12 payments and 12 months. This is general information, not legal advice; check your terms with an adviser.
Can the customer skip a payment?
No, but you can move one for them from the order, and they can pay the remaining balance early from their payment page.
Can I offer 0% instalments as a marketing message?
Yes, as long as it is accurate: make clear there is no interest and no lender, and that the payments come from their card on the dates shown.
Ready to set one up?
A first deposit plan takes about ten minutes, and the Free plan covers a real order end to end.