--- title: "How to run BOGO and \"buy 2 get 1 free\" on Shopify" description: "Run buy one get one and buy 2 get 1 free with Shopify's Buy X get Y discount, see its limits, and compare SMART Bundles' Buy X, get Y offer and type." url: "https://smart-bundles.io/guides/bogo-on-shopify" updated: "2026-11-02" product: "SMART Bundles App & Upsells" section: "Guides" --- # How to run BOGO and "buy 2 get 1 free" on Shopify Use Shopify's built-in **Buy X get Y** discount: put the product under both "Customer buys" and "Customer gets", set the quantities and choose **Free**. Customers add every unit themselves, Shopify discounts the lower-priced item, and nothing shows on the product page. SMART Bundles adds two other ways: a **Buy X, get Y** bundle offer that shows the deal on the product page and adds the whole set in one click, and a cart-only **Buy X get Y** discount type. ![Buy X, get Y widget with buy one get one free and bigger tiers](https://smart-bundles.io/screens/template-buy-x-get-y.png) *Buy X, get Y: buy one, get one free, with bigger tiers below.* ## BOGO with Shopify's Buy X get Y 1. In Shopify admin, go to **Discounts > Create discount > Buy X get Y**, and choose a discount code or an automatic discount. 2. Under **Customer buys**, select **Minimum quantity of items**, enter how many the customer buys, and pick the product or collection. 3. Under **Customer gets**, enter how many items get the discount and pick the same product or collection. For BOGO that's buy 1, get 1; for "buy 2 get 1", buy 2, get 1. 4. Under **At a discounted value**, select **Free**, or **Percentage** for "buy 1, get 1 at 50% off". 5. Optional: **Set the maximum number of uses per order** to cap how many times the promotion applies to one order. By default it's unlimited. 6. Set eligibility, combinations and active dates, then save. Source: [Buy X get Y discounts](https://help.shopify.com/en/manual/discounts/discount-types/buy-x-get-y). When the product or collection is the same on both sides, the lower-priced item the customer chooses gets the discount. Shopify's page doesn't spell out how it counts units when both sides are the same product, so test your setup with a real cart before launch. ### Limits of the built-in discount - **Customers add every unit.** The "get" item is never added automatically. A shopper who adds one item for a BOGO sees no discount. Why, and the fixes: [Why Shopify's Buy X get Y doesn't add the free item](https://smart-bundles.io/guides/buy-x-get-y-free-item-not-added). - **Nothing on the product page.** The deal shows once the items are in the cart, so you have to advertise it yourself. - **No other product discount on those items** outside Shopify Plus. If a code also targets them, Shopify applies the best overall discount ([Combining discounts](https://help.shopify.com/en/manual/discounts/discount-combinations)). - **Minimum amounts use full prices**, before other discounts, and never include shipping or taxes. - **POS:** an automatic Buy X get Y applies only at locations with a POS Pro subscription, once you turn it on for POS ([Managing sales channel settings for discounts](https://help.shopify.com/en/manual/discounts/sales-channel-discounts)). ## BOGO with SMART Bundles: two different tools SMART Bundles (shown as **SMART Discounts** in Shopify admin) has a bundle offer named **Buy X, get Y** and a discount type named **Buy X get Y**. The names are close; the behavior isn't. ### 1. The bundle "Buy X, get Y" offer (product page) This one lives in the product page widget. The **Buy X, get Y** template has three offer cards: "Buy 1, get 1 free", "Buy 2, get 2 free" and "Buy 3, get 3 free". When the shopper picks a card, the theme's Add to cart button adds the buy and get units together. - **Same product only.** It's always the product on the page, and its variants count together. - **Fields:** **Buy quantity**, **Get quantity** and the discount for the get units: **Free** (the default), **Percentage off**, **Amount off each item**, **Amount off total**, **Fixed price per item** or **Fixed total price**. For "buy 2 get 1", set Buy quantity 2 and Get quantity 1. - **Whole sets.** A set is buy + get units. The Function counts the units of that product in the cart and discounts the get units of each complete set, choosing the cheapest units. - **Repeat for bigger quantities** is ticked by default: with buy 1 get 1, 4 in the cart get 2 free. Untick it and only one set is discounted, however many are added. - **The cart counts, not the click.** Units added another way still form sets, unless you tick **Apply the discount only to items added through the widget**. - **Several Buy X, get Y cards never stack on the same units.** Each unit counts for one offer only. - **Automatic only:** no code, no usage limit, no once per customer. You can limit it by **Markets** and exclude B2B or POS. Setup: [Buy X, get Y bundle offer](https://smart-bundles.io/help/bundles/buy-x-get-y-bundle-offer). ### 2. The "Buy X get Y" discount type (cart and checkout) This one is under **Other discount types** on **Create new discount**. It works like Shopify's: nothing on the product page, and the customer adds the Y items. - **Customer buys:** **Any items from** **Products**, **Variants**, **Collections** or **All products** (or "other than" each), **Based on** **Product quantity** or **Product price**, with a **Required quantity** or **Required amount**. - **Customer gets:** the items and a **Free quantity**. Every discounted item is free; this type has no percentage or amount off. - **Units on both sides count twice.** When the same product is under Customer buys and Customer gets, its units count toward the required quantity too. One-product BOGO is **Required quantity** 2 and **Free quantity** 1; "buy 2 get 1" is 3 and 1. - **One tier applies, with no repeats per set.** If several tiers qualify, the one that frees the most units wins. For BOGO on bigger carts, use **Add tier**: 2 and 1, 4 and 2, 6 and 3. - **Application order** picks which items get the discount: **Default cart order**, **Lowest priced first** or **Highest priced first**. - **Codes and targeting:** automatic or code, **Maximum discount uses** for codes (including one use per customer), customer segments, markets, customer tags and countries. Setup: [Buy X get Y discounts](https://smart-bundles.io/help/cart-discounts/buy-x-get-y-discounts). ## Side by side | | Shopify Buy X get Y | SMART bundle "Buy X, get Y" offer | SMART "Buy X get Y" type | | --- | --- | --- | --- | | Shown on the product page | No | Yes, as offer cards | No | | Adds the free units | No | Yes, buy + get in one click | No | | Products | Products or collections | The page's product only | Products, variants, collections or all | | Bigger carts | Can apply more than once; cap with maximum uses per order | Repeats per full set (default) | One tier; add a tier per step | | Which units are discounted | The lower-priced item the customer chooses (same product or collection) | The cheapest units of each set | Set by **Application order** | | Codes | Yes | No, automatic only | Yes | | Customer targeting | Customers, segments, markets | Markets; exclude B2B, POS | Segments, markets, tags, countries | ## Which one to use - **One product, shown on its page, added in one click:** the bundle **Buy X, get Y** offer. - **A free item from a different product or collection:** the **Buy X get Y** type, or a gift on a bundle offer if it should be added for the shopper. See [Buy X get Y](https://smart-bundles.io/features/buy-x-get-y). - **A code, a usage limit or customer segments:** the **Buy X get Y** type, or Shopify's built-in discount. - **A gift added on any page once the cart reaches a spend:** **Free gift**, see [Free gift](https://smart-bundles.io/features/free-gift). **Show BOGO on the product page** Install SMART Bundles App & Upsells, pick the Buy X, get Y template, and shoppers add the whole set in one click. The app is free. [Install SMART Bundles App & Upsells on the Shopify App Store](https://apps.shopify.com/smart-automatic-discounts). ## Frequently asked questions ### Can a BOGO be limited to once per customer? Only with a code. Shopify's built-in codes have Limit to one per customer, and the app's Buy X get Y type has the same option under Maximum discount uses. Bundle offers are automatic, so they have no per-customer limit. ### Can I run several BOGO promotions at once? Yes. Each one is its own discount, and Shopify allows 25 active automatic discounts in total. A bundle with three Buy X, get Y cards counts as one. ### Does BOGO work with a discount code? Outside Shopify Plus, items in a Buy X get Y discount can't get another product discount. An order discount code can apply on top when both discounts allow combining with each other.