Shopify Pricing Guide: Every Plan and Real Total Cost of Ownership

Most shopify pricing guide articles show you the monthly subscription table and stop. That table tells you roughly 30 to 50% of what you will actually pay.

The rest comes from payment processing fees that scale with every sale, transaction surcharges if you use a third-party processor, apps that fill gaps the platform does not cover, and theme costs you pay once but rarely see listed. This shopify pricing guide covers every layer so the number you budget matches the number you actually spend. transaction surcharges if you use a third-party processor, apps that fill gaps the platform does not cover, and theme costs you pay once but rarely see listed. This guide covers every layer of the shopify pricing guide so the number you budget matches the number you actually spend.

All prices in this shopify pricing guide reflect US billing in USD. Shopify prices vary by country and contract term.

The Five Shopify Plans

Shopify offers five plans in this shopify pricing guide. Only four are relevant for most merchants building a real store.

Starter ($5/month)

This is not a store. You get a checkout link you can embed on social media or an existing site, basic product pages, and Shopify POS Lite for in-person selling. There is no standalone online storefront.

Processing fees are 5% per transaction plus $0.30, which is the highest rate of any Shopify plan. If you use a third-party processor, that surcharge adds another 5%.

Starter suits creators selling one or two products through Instagram or a link-in-bio page. It is not a viable base for a serious ecommerce operation.

Basic ($39/month monthly / $29/month annual)

Basic is the entry point for a full online store. You get unlimited products, abandoned cart recovery, discount codes, Shopify POS Lite, basic reports, and 24/7 support.

Processing fees via Shopify Payments: 2.9% + $0.30 per online transaction.

Third-party processor surcharge: 2% per transaction on top of your processor’s own fees.

Staff accounts: 2 (the plan does not allow adding admin users).

Basic is the right plan for new stores, solo founders, and businesses under roughly $5,000 per month in revenue where the higher processing rate is not yet a material cost.

Grow ($105/month monthly / $79/month annual)

Previously called the Shopify plan. Grow adds 5 staff accounts, professional reports, shipping insurance, and multi-inventory location support beyond what Basic provides.

Processing fees via Shopify Payments: 2.7% + $0.30 per online transaction.

Third-party processor surcharge: 1% per transaction.

The upgrade from Basic to Grow on annual billing costs $50 more per month. At $33,000 in monthly revenue through Shopify Payments, the 0.2 percentage point fee reduction saves approximately $66 per month. That is the breakeven point on Shopify Payments. Below that revenue, Basic is the more economical choice on fees alone.

Advanced ($399/month monthly / $299/month annual)

Advanced is for established, scaling stores. Key additions over Grow: custom report builder, third-party calculated shipping rates at checkout, 15 staff accounts, and improved international selling tools.

Processing fees via Shopify Payments: 2.5% + $0.30 per online transaction.

Third-party processor surcharge: 0.6% per transaction.

The upgrade from Grow to Advanced on annual billing costs $220 more per month. Fee savings from the lower processing rate cover that difference at approximately $147,000 in monthly revenue. Most merchants upgrade to Advanced for the custom reporting and international features before the fee math alone justifies it.

Shopify Plus ($2,300/month on 3-year term / $2,500/month on 1-year term)

Plus is Shopify’s enterprise tier. It adds Checkout UI Extensions for custom checkout logic, Shopify Functions for custom discount and shipping rules, native B2B with company accounts and NET payment terms, up to 9 expansion stores, unlimited staff accounts, and a dedicated Merchant Success Manager.

Processing fees via Shopify Payments: approximately 2.15% + $0.30 per online transaction (negotiable at high volume).

Third-party processor surcharge: 0.2% per transaction.

For the full Plus vs Advanced upgrade calculation, see Shopify vs Shopify Plus.

Shopify Pricing Guide: Payment Processing Costs

The subscription fee is predictable. Processing fees scale with every dollar of revenue and often exceed the subscription within the first few months of operation.

Plan	Shopify Payments rate	Third-party surcharge
Basic	2.9% + $0.30	2.0%
Grow	2.7% + $0.30	1.0%
Advanced	2.5% + $0.30	0.6%
Plus	~2.15% + $0.30	0.2%

At $10,000 per month in revenue on the Basic plan using Shopify Payments, processing fees come to approximately $290 to $320 depending on average order value and number of transactions.

At $10,000 per month using a third-party processor on Basic, you pay those gateway fees plus Shopify’s additional 2% surcharge: $200 per month purely in Shopify’s transaction fee, before the gateway charges anything.

The single most impactful cost decision on Shopify is whether you use Shopify Payments.

Shopify Payments eliminates the third-party surcharge. If it is available in your country and your product category qualifies, using it is not optional if you want to run a cost-efficient store. The Shopify Payments documentation covers country availability and restricted categories.

If Shopify Payments is not available to you, that transaction surcharge is a permanent overhead cost. At $25,000 per month on Basic, it costs $500 per month or $6,000 per year. That cost does not exist on WooCommerce or BigCommerce.

Shopify Pricing Guide: App Costs

Shopify’s core platform handles product management, checkout, basic analytics, and order fulfillment. Most of what a growing store needs beyond that requires a paid app.

The average paid Shopify app costs $58 to $67 per month. Merchants install an average of six apps per store. For a store running six average-priced apps, that is $348 to $402 per month in apps alone, on top of the subscription and processing fees.

A realistic app stack for a store doing $5,000 to $15,000 per month:

• Email marketing (Klaviyo free tier up to 500 contacts, then $20 to $45/month): $0 to $45/month
• Product reviews (Judge.me free plan covers core use; paid plan at $15/month for photo reviews): $0 to $15/month
• Abandoned cart and pop-ups (often bundled with email tool): $0 to $30/month
• Shipping discounts or label printing (depends on volume): $0 to $25/month

Total for a lean, essential stack: $15 to $115/month.

A more developed store at $30,000 to $80,000 per month typically adds loyalty programmes ($30 to $80/month), returns management ($20 to $50/month), and more capable email automation ($60 to $150/month), pushing the app bill to $200 to $500/month.

The important discipline: audit your app stack every quarter. Merchants routinely pay for apps they tested once and never removed. A $50/month app you are not actively using is $600 per year in avoidable cost.

For guidance on which apps genuinely earn their cost versus which are heavily marketed to new stores, see Shopify for Small Business.

Shopify Pricing Guide: Theme Costs

Shopify includes roughly 13 free themes, with Dawn as the default. Free themes are functional, mobile-responsive, and adequate for most new stores.

Premium themes from the Shopify Theme Store cost $150 to $400 as a one-time purchase. Unlike apps, themes are not a recurring monthly fee. A well-chosen premium theme reduces the need for several functional apps by including built-in features like mega-menus, filtering, and quick-buy buttons.

A fully custom theme build from a Shopify developer costs $5,000 to $30,000 or more. This is not a cost most stores under $500,000 in annual revenue need to consider.

Shopify Pricing Guide: Real Total Cost of Ownership

The table below shows the full monthly cost across all components for a store using Shopify Payments on annual billing.

Revenue/month	Plan	Subscription	Processing	Apps	Total	% of revenue
$5,000	Basic	$29	~$160	$60	~$249	5.0%
$25,000	Grow	$79	~$700	$200	~$979	3.9%
$100,000	Advanced	$299	~$2,530	$500	~$3,329	3.3%

Processing fees at $100,000/month on Advanced reflect 2.5% plus $0.30 per transaction, assuming an average order value of $80 and approximately 1,250 orders.

The pattern: Shopify’s platform cost as a percentage of revenue drops as revenue grows. Processing fees are the dominant cost at every stage, not the subscription.

Without Shopify Payments, add the surcharge at your plan rate to every row. At $25,000/month on Basic, that adds $500/month, pushing total platform cost from roughly $440 to roughly $940, or 3.8% of revenue versus 1.8%.

Shopify Pricing Guide: When to Upgrade Between Plans

Basic to Grow:

Upgrade when monthly revenue through Shopify Payments passes approximately $33,000, where the lower processing rate covers the $50/month plan difference. Upgrade earlier if you need staff accounts or professional reports to operate efficiently.

Grow to Advanced:

Upgrade when revenue passes approximately $147,000/month for the fee math alone to justify it. Upgrade earlier if you need the custom report builder, third-party calculated shipping rates, or improved international selling tools.

Advanced to Plus:

The upgrade makes financial sense when transaction fee savings on third-party gateways approach the $2,000/month premium, which requires approximately $500,000/month in GMV through non-Shopify Payments processors. More commonly, the upgrade is driven by a specific operational need: custom checkout logic, multi-storefront management, or native B2B requirements. See Shopify vs Shopify Plus for the full breakeven calculation.

Shopify Pricing Guide: Annual Billing Savings

Every plan from Basic through Advanced offers a 25% discount on annual billing. On Basic that is $29 versus $39 per month, saving $120 per year. On Advanced it is $299 versus $399 per month, saving $1,200 per year.

If you are confident you will operate on Shopify for at least 12 months, annual billing is the straightforward choice. The only reason to stay on monthly billing is uncertainty about the platform commitment.

Shopify also runs a $1 per month introductory offer for the first three months after the free trial on Basic, Grow, and Advanced plans. This is a genuine way to explore the platform at near-zero cost before committing.

Shopify Pricing Guide: Hidden Costs Checklist

Beyond the subscription, processing, and apps, these additional costs appear for many stores:

• Domain name: $14 to $40 per year through Shopify, or $10 to $20 per year through a third-party registrar
• POS Pro: $89 per month per physical retail location if you sell in person beyond basic needs (POS Lite is included in all plans)
• Shopify Tax: Free below $100,000 in US annual sales, then 0.35% per transaction capped at $0.99 per order and $5,000 per year per region
• International currency conversion: 1.5% to 2% on cross-border transactions through Shopify Payments
• Email sends beyond free tier: Shopify Email is free for 10,000 sends per month, then $1 per 1,000 additional sends

None of these appear on the main pricing page. All of them affect the real monthly cost for stores with physical locations, international customers, or high email volume.

Frequently Asked Questions

What is the cheapest Shopify plan for a real online store?

The Basic plan at $39 per month (or $29 on annual billing) is the cheapest plan that gives you a full standalone online store. The Starter plan at $5 per month does not include a proper storefront, only a checkout link. Basic covers unlimited products, abandoned cart recovery, discount codes, and all core selling functionality. It is the right starting point for most new stores.

Does Shopify charge transaction fees on top of credit card processing?

Only if you use a third-party payment processor instead of Shopify Payments. When you use Shopify Payments, you pay only the credit card processing rate (2.5% to 2.9% + $0.30 depending on plan). When you use a third-party processor like PayPal or Stripe as your primary payment method, Shopify adds an additional surcharge of 0.6% to 2% depending on your plan, on top of whatever your processor charges. Using Shopify Payments is the most direct way to eliminate this double-fee structure.

Is annual billing worth it on Shopify?

Yes, for any store planning to operate for more than 12 months. Annual billing saves 25% on Basic, Grow, and Advanced plans. On Basic that is a $120 per year saving. On Advanced it is $1,200 per year. The only case for monthly billing is if you are genuinely uncertain about staying on Shopify beyond a few months.

How much do apps add to the monthly Shopify cost?

It depends heavily on your store’s complexity. A minimal store can run on free apps and spend nothing beyond the subscription. A store with email marketing, product reviews, and basic loyalty functionality typically spends $60 to $150 per month on apps. A more mature store with returns management, advanced email automation, and loyalty programmes typically spends $200 to $500 per month. The average paid Shopify app costs $58 to $67 per month, and merchants install an average of six apps per store.

At what revenue level should I move from Basic to the Grow plan?

The fee savings alone cover the $50 per month upgrade cost at approximately $33,000 in monthly revenue through Shopify Payments. Below that threshold, the upgrade is only worth it if you genuinely need the additional staff accounts, professional reports, or shipping insurance that Grow provides. Do not upgrade for fee savings alone until the math actually works in your favour.

Does Shopify include hosting and SSL?

Yes. All Shopify plans include hosting, unlimited bandwidth, and a free SSL certificate. You do not pay separately for these. This is one of the genuine value components of the subscription: managed hosting, security updates, and PCI compliance are all included and handled automatically. For context on how this compares against the costs of managing your own hosting on WooCommerce, see how to start an ecommerce store and the cost to start an online store.

What is the real total monthly cost for a new Shopify store?

A new store on Basic with Shopify Payments, a free theme, and a minimal app stack (reviews widget and Shopify Email) doing $5,000 per month in revenue pays approximately $250 to $280 per month total. That breaks down as: $29 subscription (annual), roughly $160 in processing fees, and $30 to $60 in apps. Platform cost as a percentage of revenue runs 5% to 5.5% at this stage.

What to Read Next

For a revenue-based analysis of whether Shopify is worth its total cost at your specific stage compared to WooCommerce, see Is Shopify Worth It.

For the documented breakdown of Shopify’s structural limitations that affect the real cost of operating on the platform, including SEO architecture issues and checkout gatekeeping costs, see Shopify Real Limitations.

For the specific calculation of when the Shopify Plus upgrade makes financial sense, see Shopify vs Shopify Plus.

For the official Shopify billing and pricing documentation, see Shopify’s pricing plans overview in the Help Center.