Merchant documentation

Using Cohortly Repeat Tracker

Cohortly is an embedded Shopify Admin app. Installation starts from a Shopify-owned surface, authentication uses Shopify, and plan selection takes place on Shopify's hosted App Pricing page.

1. Install and authorize

Install Cohortly from its Shopify App Store page and approve the permissions Shopify displays. The app requires:

read_products: Reads product and variant identifiers and merchandising fields used in product-level reports.
read_orders: Reads the order history Shopify makes available under the standard order scope.
read_customers: Reads only the stable customer identifier attached to an order so purchases from the same customer can be linked. The query does not request customer profile fields.

If an existing installation predates a permission update, reopening the app starts Shopify's permission approval flow before sync can continue.

2. Confirm billing

Open Billing in the app, then open Shopify's hosted plan options. Shopify displays the currently available plans, price, billing interval, currency, and any trial terms. Approval and decline occur in Shopify Admin.

3. Sync store data

From the Dashboard, choose Sync products and orders. A full sync imports product variants first and then imports the available orders. The standard order scope currently covers the most recent 60 days; broader history is used only if Shopify has approved and granted the optional all-orders scope.

Sync history displays queued, running, retrying, completed, and failed terminal states. A completed product sync alone is not enough to run cohorts; at least one order sync must complete.

Eligible orders: Cohortly can only build a repeat sequence when Shopify returns a customer identifier for the order. Orders without an associated customer identifier are skipped.

Available-history meaning: The first observed order is the earliest customer order present in the imported history. It is not presented as the customer's lifetime first purchase when earlier Shopify orders are unavailable.

4. Run analysis

After order sync completes, choose Analyze cohorts. The app rebuilds pseudonymous customer sequences and publishes a new report only when the run completes. Dashboard and report pages use the latest completed run rather than mixing rows from different runs.

Cohorts: Aggregate customer and repeat-customer counts, repeat rates at 7–180 days, and time-to-repeat values grouped from imported order history.
Repeat Products: Products in the first observed imported order associated with customers who later placed another observed order. Association is not causation.
Product Paths: Aggregate product combinations observed between a customer's first and next imported orders.

5. Export current results

Open Exports after an analysis completes. CSV creation is tied to the latest completed analysis run. The export contains aggregate cohort counts, observed-window eligibility and rates, time-to-repeat measures, revenue totals, currency, and analysis metadata. It does not contain customer name, email, phone number, or postal address.

6. Configure analysis and retention

Settings let the merchant choose the analysis window, minimum cohort size, minimum product sample size, and source-data retention period. Supported source-data retention choices in the interface range from 30 to 365 days. Sample thresholds control the quality or confidence labels displayed with aggregate results.

Troubleshooting

Permission update required

Reopen the app and approve the requested Shopify scopes on the Shopify permission screen. Return to Cohortly and choose Sync products and orders.

Order sync required

Open Dashboard and choose Sync products and orders. Wait until the job displays completed, then choose Analyze cohorts.

Sync failed

Read the error shown in sync history. Temporary Shopify or network failures can be retried automatically; a terminal failure can be retried by starting a new full sync. If the message concerns permissions, reauthorize first.

No cohort rows

Confirm the imported period contains orders linked to stable customer identifiers. Check the analysis window and verify the latest sync and analysis jobs completed.

Export unavailable

Complete an analysis first. Exports are generated only from the latest completed run.

Product boundaries

Cohortly does not add storefront code, alter themes, create or edit products, change orders, add checkout fees, process payments, send messages, register sellers, split payouts, or publish products to a marketplace.

Need help?

See the support instructions. Do not send personal customer data or unredacted export files by email.