If you’re weighing up an AutomateWoo alternative, it helps to start with one question: do you need better follow-up messaging, or do you need something to actually reward your customers with? AutomateWoo is built around behavior-based workflows and follow-up messaging, while Advanced Coupons focuses on promotions and rewards, including store credit in the free plugin and loyalty points through Advanced Loyalty Program.
If your goal is to give customers value they can earn, hold, and redeem over time, Advanced Coupons may be the better fit. AutomateWoo is stronger when you need automated follow-up, but it does not include its own points-based loyalty program or a general-purpose store credit system.
Let’s walk through what each tool is built for, where the rewards side actually differs, and how to tell which one fits your store.
What AutomateWoo Does Well
AutomateWoo is a marketing-automation plugin for WooCommerce, built around triggered messages that fire based on customer behavior.
Its feature set covers cart abandonment, follow-up emails, wishlist abandonment, win-back campaigns for inactive customers, review requests, welcome series, VIP customers, SMS notifications, and subscription automation. It is currently priced at $159 per year for a single site.
AutomateWoo is especially useful when you need:
- Lifecycle email automation: triggered sequences based on what a customer did or failed to do.
- Abandoned cart recovery: follow-up workflows for shoppers who leave items behind.
- SMS notifications: available through its Twilio integration, which requires a paid Twilio account.
- Subscription automation: useful if you run recurring billing with WooCommerce Subscriptions.
If your main retention gap is follow-up, AutomateWoo is built for that. Advanced Coupons takes a different approach, focusing on promotions, store credit, and rewards rather than lifecycle messaging.
When An AutomateWoo Alternative Makes Sense
An AutomateWoo alternative makes the most sense when the missing piece is rewards rather than messaging.
Both automation and rewards can help bring customers back, but they work differently. AutomateWoo responds to customer behavior through workflows, while a loyalty program tracks value customers earn and redeem over time.
Three differences are worth looking at:
- You want customers to earn and redeem points. A loyalty program keeps a running points balance across purchases and other eligible actions.
- You want to hold value in the store. Store credit gives you the option to refund value back into a customer balance they can use on a future order.
- You want rewards connected to your coupon setup. If your promotions already run through Advanced Coupons, using its store credit and loyalty tools keeps those reward features alongside the coupons you already run.
It is easy to assume the same tool can handle both jobs. An automation can send a discount code to a lapsed customer, but a points program needs a balance customers can keep earning and redeeming over time. That is a different job.
Loyalty Points And Store Credit: Where The Tools Differ
Here is the part that matters most for this decision. AutomateWoo offers Automatic VIP, and a separately priced Refer A Friend add-on that can pay advocates in store credit. What it does not offer is a points-based loyalty program, or a general store credit balance customers can build up from anything other than a referral.
AutomateWoo does not include a points-based loyalty program in its core plugin or add-on range. It can integrate with the separate WooCommerce Points and Rewards extension, but the points system itself comes from that separate product. Its own store credit is limited to referral rewards through the paid Refer A Friend add-on.
Why the distinction is worth caring about:
- Refer A Friend handles referrals, not ongoing points earning. It is a separate $99-per-year add-on on top of AutomateWoo. Advocates earn store credit from approved referrals, which is different from a loyalty program that awards points across purchases and other customer actions. We cover that distinction in more detail in how to set up a WooCommerce referral program.
- Automatic VIP gives customers a status, not a spendable balance. AutomateWoo can assign VIP status based on spend requirements, but that status is separate from points or store credit.
- Referral credit is narrower than a general store credit system. AutomateWoo’s Refer A Friend credit accumulates from approved referrals and is automatically applied to the advocate’s next order. Advanced Coupons store credit can also be used for refunds and manual customer credits, giving you more ways to manage store value beyond referrals.
If your retention strategy specifically depends on loyalty points and flexible store credit, those are the capabilities AutomateWoo does not provide on its own. Advanced Coupons includes store credit in the free plugin, while Advanced Loyalty Program adds the points side.
Advanced Coupons: Loyalty, Store Credit And Rewards
Advanced Coupons approaches retention through promotions and rewards. Store credit is included in the free plugin, with additional options for loyalty points, referrals, and cashback across the wider Advanced Coupons range.
On the rewards side, you get:
- Store credit, included free. Customers hold a balance they can spend on future orders. It is part of the free plugin, not an add-on.
- Advanced Loyalty Program. A points system where customers earn for signing up, leaving a review, commenting, spending, or completing a first order. Points redeem as store credit. It is a paid add-on: $99.50 for the first year on a single-site license, renewing at $199 per year.
- Referral points. Also part of the Loyalty Program add-on. Customers earn points for referrals, and those points join the same loyalty points balance as points earned from other actions.
- Cashback coupons. A coupon type that pays back as store credit rather than discounting at checkout. This one is part of Advanced Coupons Premium.
These features connect through store credit. Loyalty and referral points can be redeemed as store credit, and Premium cashback coupons also return value as store credit. Coupons, store credit, and loyalty each keep their own settings, but they are built to work together.
One practical difference is how the tools are structured. AutomateWoo is built around workflows, where you combine triggers, rules, and actions. Advanced Coupons keeps coupon offers in the coupon editor, while store credit and loyalty each have their own dedicated controls. The better fit depends on whether you mainly need behavior-based automation or promotion and rewards tools.
We covered how this plays out for a real store in our case study with Layers of Learning, where the loyalty and coupon sides run as one system.
Feature Comparison
| Capability | AutomateWoo | Advanced Coupons |
|---|---|---|
| Points-based loyalty program | Not built in; integrates with WooCommerce Points and Rewards | Yes, Advanced Loyalty Program (add-on) |
| Store credit balances | Referral rewards only, via a paid add-on | Yes, free in the base plugin |
| Referral rewards | Yes, Refer A Friend ($99/year add-on) | Yes, referral points (Loyalty add-on) |
| Cashback as store credit | Not offered | Yes, cashback coupon type (Premium) |
| VIP or status tiers | Yes, Automatic VIP | No dedicated status tiers |
| Follow-up email automation | Yes | Not offered |
| SMS notifications | Yes, via Twilio (paid account required) | Not offered |
| Abandoned cart automation | Yes | Not offered |
| BOGO and cart-condition coupons | Not offered | Yes |
| Gift cards | Not offered | Yes, via Advanced Gift Cards (separate plugin) |
| Base price | $159 per year | Free plugin available, with store credit included |
| Cost with a points program | $159/year + separate paid points extension | Loyalty add-on $99.50 first year, then $199 per year |
Can You Use Both?
Yes, and for some stores that is the right answer.
The two plugins can be used alongside each other because they focus on different parts of retention. You can use AutomateWoo for behavior-based workflows and follow-up messaging, while Advanced Coupons manages coupon promotions, store credit, and loyalty rewards. That gives you follow-up automation alongside a dedicated rewards setup.
The case for running both is strongest if you already rely on abandoned cart recovery or SMS and you also want a points program. The case against is simply cost and complexity: two subscriptions and two systems to learn.
If you are choosing one, focus on the retention gap you need to solve first.
Which Should You Choose?
For WooCommerce stores specifically looking for a rewards-led way to encourage repeat purchases, Advanced Coupons is the better fit.
If your retention strategy depends on giving customers value they can earn, hold, and spend later, Advanced Coupons gives you the mechanics for that. Store credit is available in the free plugin, while the Advanced Loyalty Program adds a points balance that customers can redeem as store credit. AutomateWoo takes a different route, using workflows and follow-up messaging to bring customers back.
You can also start with the free plugin. Store credit is included, so you can use it for refunds, manual credits, and customer balances without a paid upgrade. Add Advanced Loyalty Program when you want customers to earn points as well.
AutomateWoo is the stronger fit when your priority is lifecycle messaging, especially abandoned cart recovery, win-back workflows, or SMS. If follow-up automation is the gap you need to solve, that is where AutomateWoo has the advantage.
If you want to see how the wider category compares before deciding, our roundup of the best WooCommerce loyalty program plugins covers the dedicated rewards tools side by side.
If the gap in your current setup is loyalty points, flexible store credit, and coupon-led rewards, that is exactly what Advanced Coupons is built for.
Frequently Asked Questions
Does AutomateWoo have a loyalty points program?
Not on its own. AutomateWoo does not include a points-based loyalty program, but it integrates with the separate WooCommerce Points and Rewards extension so workflows can add or remove points. Advanced Loyalty Program provides its own points system as a separate add-on for Advanced Coupons.
What is the difference between AutomateWoo and Advanced Coupons?
AutomateWoo focuses on behavior-based workflows such as abandoned cart emails, follow-ups, and SMS. Advanced Coupons focuses on coupon promotions and store credit, with Advanced Loyalty Program adding loyalty points and Advanced Gift Cards adding gift cards. The main difference is whether you need workflow automation or a dedicated promotions and rewards setup.
Can I use AutomateWoo and Advanced Coupons together?
Yes. You can use AutomateWoo for lifecycle messaging and Advanced Coupons for coupon promotions, store credit, and loyalty rewards, so the two can cover different parts of your retention setup.
Does AutomateWoo offer store credit?
Yes, through the paid Refer A Friend add-on. Referral credit accumulates from approved referrals and is automatically applied to the advocate’s next order. What AutomateWoo does not provide is a general-purpose store credit system for things like refunds or manual customer credits. Advanced Coupons includes that broader store credit functionality in the free plugin.
How much does AutomateWoo cost?
AutomateWoo is currently $159 per year for a single-site subscription. Advanced Coupons has a free base plugin, with the Advanced Loyalty Program available as a paid add-on at $99.50 for the first year, renewing at $199 per year. Store credit is included in the free plugin, so you can start using it without a paid upgrade.
Which Tool Fits Your Store?
The easiest way to decide is to start with the retention gap you actually need to solve. If you need automated follow-up based on customer behavior, AutomateWoo is built for that. If you need loyalty points, flexible store credit, and coupon-led rewards, Advanced Coupons is the better fit.
If you want to revisit the comparison:
- What AutomateWoo Does Well: see where AutomateWoo is strongest
- Loyalty Points And Store Credit: Where The Tools Differ: where the two tools handle rewards differently
- Advanced Coupons: Loyalty, Store Credit And Rewards: points, referrals, and credit that all feed one balance
- Feature Comparison: the side-by-side
- Can You Use Both?: when running both is the right call
If loyalty points and store credit are what your store is missing, Advanced Coupons gives you a clear path forward. Start with store credit in the free plugin, then add Advanced Loyalty Program when you are ready to build a points-based rewards program.
Have any questions about setting this up for your store? Let us know in the comments. 😊
