The short version
A new Shopify store starts on Basic at $39 a month, or $29 billed annually, and the plans open to new stores run up to Plus from $2,300 a month.
Shopify frequently offers $1/month for the first 3 months after the free trial, and the fee covers hosting, payments and security, so there is no server to manage.
Payment processing fees, apps and premium themes add to the total, and the Starter plan is closed to new stores.
Shopify is strongest for first-time sellers, growing DTC brands, omnichannel retailers and international sellers, and fits worst where you need deep content management or heavy product configuration.
What's New Since Publication: Updated since publication · 4 changes
- WordPress plugin count updated to 70,000+The WordPress.org plugin directory now lists more than 70,000 plugins, up from the 61,000+ this guide printed in the platform comparison. The count includes plugins of all kinds, not just e-commerce ones, and the comparison table now carries its measurement date.
- Shopify's Help Center no longer states the Plus third-party fee waiverShopify's Help Center pages on third-party transaction fees and gift cards no longer carry the sentence saying Plus stores that use Shopify Payments as their sole payment provider have those fees waived; an October 1, 2026 capture of Shopify's fees page still shows it. Shopify has not said the waiver ended, but with no live source stating it, the FAQ on how Shopify makes money no longer lists it. The rule for stores created on or after May 12, 2025 — third-party transaction fees on the part of an order paid with store credit or a gift card — is unchanged.
- Shopify is moving shipping setup to shipping options by marketShopify is replacing shipping profiles, location groups and shipping zones with shipping options set per market. The rollout starts October 1, 2026, and every store will be on it by July 1, 2027. The shipping step in How Shopify Works now names both setups, so it holds whichever one your store is on.
- Shopify closed the Starter plan to new storesShopify's plan page now states that the Starter plan "isn't available to new stores." The lightweight route this guide pointed at — a Spotlight store and product links — is closed to new stores today, so the entry point is Basic at $39/month, whose Buy Button embeds products into pages you already publish. Shopify publishes no date for the change.
What Is Shopify?
Key takeaway
Shopify is a subscription-based e-commerce platform that lets anyone create an online store, accept payments, and manage a business from a single dashboard. Shopify's platform was released in 2006, and the company is led by CEO Tobias Lütke.
Brand new to the platform? Our Shopify for beginners guide builds the mental model before you open the admin.
Today, Shopify powers millions of businesses in 175+ countries and processed over $378 billion in GMV in 2025 (up 29% from $292B in 2024). Shopify reports these figures every quarter — our Shopify Investor Relations guide shows where to find the filings and earnings.
Shopify is a commerce platform that helps you sell online and in person. Entrepreneurs, retailers, and global brands use Shopify to make sales, run stores, and grow their businesses.
Unlike self-hosted platforms like WooCommerce (where you manage your own server), Shopify is a fully managed service. You pay a monthly fee and get:
- Hosting and SSL — your store runs on Shopify's global infrastructure
- Payment processing — via Shopify Payments or 100+ payment gateways
- Security and compliance — PCI compliance, DDoS protection, automatic updates
- Design tools — Shopify Theme Store with 24 free and 1,200+ premium themes
- App ecosystem — 21,000+ apps for any functionality you need
Sources: Shopify Investor Relations, BuiltWith. Before quoting any of these four numbers, check it in our Shopify statistics reference, where each figure carries its own source and the date we last read it.
Source: Shopify Investor Relations
Quick Decision Guide
Key takeaway
- Launching your first online store
- Solopreneurs and small teams
- Revenue under $25K/year
- Growing businesses with 2+ staff accounts
- Need staff logins and lower card rates
- Revenue $25K–$500K/year
- Selling in several markets with per-market theme or checkout customization
- B2B wholesale or high-volume DTC
- Revenue $500K+/year or enterprise needs
- Only for merchants already on Starter
- Product links on social media
- Cannot return after changing plans
How Shopify Works
Key takeaway
Getting started with Shopify takes about 30 minutes. Here's the step-by-step flow from sign-up to first sale:
Every 26 seconds, an entrepreneur makes their first sale on Shopify.
What You Can Sell on Shopify
Key takeaway
One of Shopify's strengths is its versatility. You're not limited to one type of product:
For a complete guide on selling digital goods, see our Shopify Digital Products guide. For subscriptions, check Shopify Recurring Payments. For the short version of this whole question, see our FAQ on what Shopify is used for.
The restrictions work the other way round from the way most guides describe them: a single banned-products list does not exist, and the four rulebooks carry different consequences — losing the store, losing Shopify Payments, losing one channel, or vanishing from the catalogue buyers see in one country. What you can't sell on Shopify separates them.
Key Features
Key takeaway
Shopify's feature set covers every aspect of running an e-commerce business:
Store Builder & Themes
Key takeaway
Shopify's Online Store 2.0 architecture powers the theme system. The Horizon theme (Shopify's flagship as of 2025) provides a modern, high-performance starting point. The drag-and-drop theme editor lets you customize every section without code.
For advanced needs, developers can use Liquid (Shopify's templating language) or build fully custom headless storefronts with Hydrogen (React-based).
Payments & Checkout
Key takeaway
Shopify Payments (with Stripe as its banking partner) is the built-in payment processor, so orders paid through it carry no third-party transaction fee. Shop Pay is the accelerated checkout that Shopify says delivers as much as 50% better conversion than guest checkout — a significant conversion lever. For a deep dive, see our Shopify Payments guide.
Meet the best-converting accelerated checkout. As much as 50% better conversion compared to guest checkout.
Shop Pay is easy to confuse with the Shop app — Shopify's consumer shopping app — but they're different products; see Shopify vs the Shop app.
App Ecosystem
Key takeaway
The Shopify App Store offers 21,000+ apps covering email marketing, SEO, reviews, upsells, accounting, and more. Most apps offer free plans or free trials.
Analytics & Reporting
Every plan includes real-time analytics: sales, traffic, conversion rates, average order value, and customer behavior. Basic, Grow, Advanced, and Plus all include 200+ real-time reports plus custom analytics, according to Shopify's plan comparison.
Sales Channels
Key takeaway
Shopify's unified commerce model means you manage all channels from one admin. Inventory, orders, and customer data sync automatically:
Learn more about specific channels: Shopify POS for Retail, Shopify B2B Wholesale, Google Shopping integration, Shopify Collective, and selling internationally with Shopify Markets.
Shopify Pricing Overview
Key takeaway
Shopify's pricing is straightforward — a monthly fee plus per-transaction payment processing:
| Plan | Monthly | Annual | Card Rate | Best For |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Starter — closed to new stores | — | — | — | Merchants already on it |
| Basic | $39 | $29 | 2.9% + 30¢ | New stores, solopreneurs |
| Grow | $105 | $79 | 2.7% + 30¢ | Growing businesses, small teams |
| Advanced | $399 | $299 | 2.5% + 30¢ | Scaling, international |
| Plus | From $2,300 (3-year term) | — | 2.25% + 30¢ | Enterprise, high-volume, B2B |
Tip: Annual billing saves 25% on Basic, Grow, and Advanced — bringing prices to $29, $79, and $299/mo respectively. Most merchants choose annual billing.
Beyond the subscription, factor in payment processing fees, apps, premium themes ($100 to $500 one-time in the Theme Store as of October 2026), and custom development if needed. For a detailed breakdown, see our Shopify Pricing Explained guide.
Four Shopify plans, each designed to support different business needs: Basic — the most popular plan for solo entrepreneurs. Grow — for small teams. Advanced — supports businesses as they scale. Plus — for complex businesses.
Who Is Shopify For?
Key takeaway
Shopify serves a wide range of businesses, but it's particularly strong for:
If you're running at small-business scale, our Shopify for Small Business guide covers the features, costs, and real ROI for that stage.
Not sure if Shopify is the right platform for you? Take this 60-second quiz for a personalized recommendation — and if the question is less about the platform and more about whether you're ready to start, our Am I Ready to Open a Shopify Store? guide answers that instead.
Is Shopify Right for Your Business?Answer 5 quick questions to find out
Shopify vs Alternatives
Key takeaway
Platform Comparison at a Glance
| Feature | Shopify | WooCommerce | Wix |
|---|---|---|---|
| Hosting | Included | Self-managed | Included |
| Starting Price | $39/mo ($29 annual) | ~$20/mo (hosting) | $29/mo |
| Apps / Plugins | 21,000+ | 70,000+ WordPress plugins, all kinds (as of October 2026) | 500+ |
| Ease of Use | Excellent | Moderate | Excellent |
| Scalability | To $100M+ | Depends on hosting | Limited |
| POS | Native | Plugins only | Basic |
| B2B / Wholesale | Native (catalog limits below Plus) | Plugins | No |
For an in-depth comparison, read our Shopify vs WordPress analysis with cost breakdowns and decision framework.
Shopify Limitations
Key takeaway
No platform is perfect. Here are Shopify's honest limitations:
- Fixed URL structure — product URLs must be
/products/handle, collection URLs must be/collections/handle. You can't customize these paths. - Checkout customization — apps and extensions that change the information, shipping, and payment steps of checkout are available only on Shopify Plus (from $2,300/mo); on Basic, Grow, and Advanced, some apps can customize the Thank you and Order status pages, and Shopify's plan comparison lists checkout customization as Limited.
- 3 options per product — a product carries at most three option types (e.g., size, color, material). The variant ceiling itself was raised from 100 to 2,048 in October 2025, though some third-party themes might not support more than 100 variants. Workarounds exist via apps.
- Content management — Shopify's blog engine is basic compared to WordPress: posts are grouped with tags rather than a category hierarchy, and comments stay off on a new blog until you allow them.
- Ongoing costs add up — plan fee + payment processing + apps + themes, so the plan fee is only the starting point of the monthly bill.
- Platform dependency — Shopify controls your store's infrastructure. If Shopify raises prices or changes policies, you have limited recourse beyond migrating.
For a complete analysis, see our Shopify Pros and Cons guide.
The Bottom Line
Key takeaway
Shopify powers millions of merchants for a reason: it balances ease of use with professional-grade features. Whether you're testing a product idea on Basic at $39/month or running a $50M enterprise on Plus, the platform scales with you; the Starter plan is closed to new stores.
The best platform is the one you actually launch on. Shopify removes the technical barriers so you can focus on what matters — finding customers and selling great products.
Frequently Asked Questions
Front-end developer specializing in Shopify since 2017. Experienced in building custom Liquid themes, optimizing storefront performance, and integrating third-party apps. Directs the editorial process behind Ecom Store Pro: sets its topics and the rules every AI-written page must pass before publication.
This page was written by AI. Separate AI agents that did not write it check its figures and claims against official sources and test its links and interactive tools. A human editor sets the site's editorial direction, topics and rules and checks that pages are complete and display correctly, but does not check their facts or edit their text. Details may change — always confirm critical data at shopify.com.
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