Recurring revenue is one of the most valuable things an ecommerce brand can build, but a subscription model is only as good as its setup. By Design UK builds fixed-price Shopify subscription systems for UK merchants who want reliable billing, a clean customer experience, and code they actually own once the project is delivered. We sit between hiring a freelancer and briefing a traditional agency, giving you agency-grade engineering without the agency-grade timeline or invoice.
Whether you’re launching a new subscription box, adding recurring billing to an existing store, or migrating a fragile app-based setup onto something stable, we scope the work up front, quote a fixed price, and deliver a working system with full source code ownership on completion.
Most Shopify subscription builds fall within our standard Shopify build range of £499–£18,999, depending on complexity. A simple subscription toggle on a handful of products, using a proven subscription app with theme integration, sits at the lower end. A fully custom subscription flow — tiered plans, flexible billing cycles, self-serve customer portals, dunning management, and bespoke checkout logic — sits toward the top of that range. We give every client a fixed quote before any work begins, so there’s no scope creep and no surprise invoice at the end.
If your subscription ambitions go beyond what Shopify’s platform can comfortably support — think usage-based billing, multi-tenant account structures, or a subscription engine that needs to plug into internal tools — that typically moves into custom SaaS territory, where our SaaS development service covers builds from £18,000 up to £650,000+ for enterprise-scale platforms.
Freelancers can be cost-effective, but reliability is often the trade-off — availability dries up, documentation is thin, and if they disappear mid-project you’re left holding an unfinished build. Traditional agencies solve the reliability problem but introduce new ones: opaque day-rate pricing, layers of account management, and timelines that stretch for months on work that shouldn’t take that long. Neither model is built around the thing most UK merchants actually want, which is a working subscription system, delivered on time, at a price agreed in advance, with the code handed over as their own asset.
By Design UK is structured specifically to close that gap. We’re a UK-based team using AI-accelerated development to move faster than a conventional agency without sacrificing quality, we quote fixed prices before work starts, and every client retains full ownership of their source code once the project is delivered — no lock-in, no dependency on us to keep the lights on.
We don’t just build Shopify subscription flows for clients — we operate our own live SaaS platform, Tackly.co.uk, a multi-toolkit platform we designed, built, and continue to run day to day. Tackly is a working example of the same engineering standard we bring to every Shopify build: production-grade code, sound architecture, and systems built to actually stay online. If you want evidence that a UK team can ship and maintain real software rather than just talk about it, Tackly is the proof.
Once your subscription system is live, ongoing reliability matters just as much as the build itself. Our support plans start from £299/mo for Shopify stores (and from £797/mo for SaaS platforms), covering monitoring, app updates, and priority fixes so recurring billing keeps running smoothly as your subscriber base grows.
To discuss your subscription setup, get in touch via our contact page or read more about how we work on the about page. We’re based at Office 13, 25 Mollison Avenue, Enfield, EN3 7NJ, and happy to scope your project over a call or email at info@bydesignuk.co.uk.
Most subscription builds are delivered within 2–6 weeks depending on complexity, from a simple app-based toggle to a fully custom billing flow with a self-serve customer portal.
Yes. Full source code ownership is part of every fixed-price Shopify build we deliver, so you’re never locked into ongoing dependence on us or any third party.
Yes. We regularly audit and rebuild subscription flows that have outgrown a basic app configuration, migrating billing logic and customer data without disrupting active subscribers.
If your requirements move beyond what Shopify’s platform can support, such as usage-based billing or multi-tenant account structures, we can scope a custom SaaS build instead, typically starting from £18,000.
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