Who keeps my customers' saved cards on Shopify, Recharge or Cratejoy?
By Stefan Pretty, founder and CEO of SubblyUpdated · 3 min read
The short answer
Whoever processes the payments, which isn't always you. On Shopify, Shopify stores the cards and you can't access them, so subscribers usually re-enter their cards after a move. Recharge stores none itself: on Shopify's checkout they sit with Shopify, and on Recharge's own checkout in the Stripe or Braintree account you connected. Cratejoy keeps card data from sellers and exports only the last four digits. Cards in your own Stripe or Braintree account can move with you.
Why does it matter who keeps the cards?
Because a subscription is only as portable as the saved card behind it. If the cards are in an account you control, your payment provider can transfer them to a new one and renewals carry on without subscribers doing anything. If the platform keeps them, each subscriber has to add their card again after you move, and some won't. That makes the question worth asking before you choose a platform, not when you want to leave.
Shopify
Shopify's own help centre is direct: "Customer payment information is stored securely by Shopify. You can't access your customers' full credit card information after it's been entered." That applies to Shopify Payments and to subscriptions on Shopify's checkout, including Shopify's free Subscriptions app. Even Stripe's subscriptions app for Shopify uses Shopify's stored payment methods by default.
Shopify documents moving cards in, as a paid service for Plus and Enterprise stores, but not moving them out. Recharge says Shopify has a one-off service for exporting payment tokens that may come with a charge, while merchants in Shopify's community forum have reported since 2022 that cards couldn't be moved and subscribers had to re-enter them. Ask Shopify support for a written answer before you plan a move.
Recharge
Recharge doesn't store cards itself; where they live depends on the checkout your store uses.
- Shopify Checkout Integration (Shopify stores set up since November 2020): Shopify processes the payments, so the cards are in Shopify's vault and follow Shopify's rules above.
- Recharge's own checkout (BigCommerce stores, and some older Shopify setups): payments go through the Stripe, Braintree or Authorize.net account you connected, and Recharge's exports include the payment token IDs that point to those cards.
Recharge says Shopify requires subscribers still on its older checkout to move to Shopify's checkout by 14 October 2026. After that move their cards sit with Shopify until they update them.
Cratejoy
Cratejoy Payments runs on Stripe and has been required for marketplace orders since March 2023. Cratejoy's payments policy says it "does not pass any secure data, including credit card numbers or bank account information, to any Sellers", and its customer export includes only the last four digits of each customer's card. Its seller terms also say a transaction started on Cratejoy may not be completed off Cratejoy. Cratejoy's documentation doesn't describe a way to transfer cards to another processor.
Which payment providers let cards move with you?
- Stripe: "We believe our customers own the sensitive data they entrust to Stripe." If you leave, Stripe sends your card data to your new processor, as long as it's PCI DSS Level 1 compliant. Stripe exports cards and customers, not subscriptions or payment history, so those are rebuilt on the new platform.
- Braintree: "Your data belongs to you." Braintree migrates saved cards at no charge, but not subscription or transaction records, and not Apple Pay or Google Pay.
- PayPal: PayPal billing agreements are tied to your PayPal business account. Braintree can import them when the same PayPal business account is linked, and Stripe can for accounts in Europe, so check before you count on it.
The catch is whose account it is. Cards in a Stripe account you opened yourself are yours to move. Some platforms open a Stripe account on your behalf that they control, as Cratejoy Payments does, and then the platform's rules decide.
What should I ask before choosing a platform?
- Which company stores my customers' saved cards, and in whose account?
- If I leave, will you transfer the cards to my new processor, how long does it take, and what does it cost?
- What happens to active subscriptions if I disconnect my payment account?
- Do PayPal subscribers move too, or do they need to sign up again?
- Can I export my customers, subscriptions and next billing dates whenever I want?
On Subbly
Who keeps the cards on Subbly
You do. On Subbly your customers, your data and your payment tokens are yours, and if you leave, your subscribers come with you.
When stores move to Subbly from a platform that won't release the cards, Subscription Switch emails each subscriber a secure link to add their card in one step, with no login or checkout. It has brought back up to 84% of subscribers within 11 days. If the cards are already in Stripe or PayPal, they're imported and nobody re-enters a card.
