Table of Contents
Shopify has been around since 2004, but the platform’s popularity skyrocketed in 2018. Shopify offers a wide array of pricing plans – from very budget-friendly to enterprise level products and services for business owners. Which plan is best for your company? Let us break down the options.
Shopify is a popular e-commerce platform that allows users to sell products. There are many different pricing plans available for the platform, and it can be difficult to decide which one is best for your business. With this article, we will go over the different Shopify pricing plans and help you decide which one is right for your business.
Because of its simplicity of use, powerful features, and scalable but reasonable price options, Shopify is our top selection for the best eCommerce platform for small companies. Expect to spend $250 to $500 in beginning costs and roughly $50 to $100 in monthly expenses, including add-ons, if you’re opening an online shop with Shopify. If you need to sell in-store as well, you’ll need to spend an extra $30 to $300 on hardware, plus an $89 monthly charge for Shopify POS (Point of Sale).
In this article, we’ll go through Shopify’s price levels as well as the features that come with them. But, more significantly, we go through how much it costs to set up and operate a Shopify shop in detail.
Shopify’s Pricing and Fees
In places where it is required by law, Shopify collects sales taxes. Such taxes are not included in the pricing shown here. If you pay in advance, Shopify will give you a discount on your monthly expenses. If you pay for a year in advance, you’ll save 10%; if you pay for two years in advance, you’ll save 20%.
Shopify’s Transaction Fees
When it comes to Shopify’s unique pricing strategy, it’s crucial to understand the variations between credit card processing costs and transaction fees in addition to the monthly membership cost.
Shopify charges credit card fees in exchange for allowing you to take major credit cards like Visa and Mastercard as payment in your online shop.
If you utilize a third-party payment source to accept payments, Shopify may charge you transaction fees. It covers the cost of integrating Shopify with your preferred service provider. If you utilize Shopify Payments, Shopify’s payment processor, none of the plans impose transaction fees.
If you’re utilizing Shopify Payments and have a Shopify Lite is a free version of Shopify. subscription, for example, credit card costs are 2.9 percent + 30 cents per transaction. Credit card costs are 2.7 percent if the transaction was made using a Shopify POS card reader and/or a mobile device app. Expect to pay a 2% transaction charge per sale if you utilize a third-party payment gateway on top of credit card rates.
What is the Best Shopify Plan for You?
Shopify has a variety of price levels to suit all sorts of merchants and budgets. For $9/month, sellers without a Shopify website can sell safely on blogs and Facebook, while companies who do require a website may establish one on any budget. For $29/month, the Shopify for Beginners price plan, for example, provides everything most small online retailers need to get started. Meanwhile, at $79 or $299 per month, Shopify and Enhanced Shopify serve expanding and volume merchants by offering a variety of advanced reporting, marketing, and shipping options.
Shopify Lite
Shopify Lite is designed for merchants who wish to add items to an existing blog or conventional website and sell them on Facebook or in-person using a mobile device. You may also send invoices and take payments for them online. This plan is priced to be highly startup-friendly by Shopify.
Basic Shopify
Basic Shopify provides everything a new or small company seller needs to sell online, advertise their website, start a blog, and sell in-person or on other platforms such as Amazon, Facebook, and Pinterest. This plan is priced to meet the demands of small-volume online retailers, according to Shopify.
Shopify
The Shopify plan includes all of the features of the Basic Shopify plan, as well as advanced features like cart recovery, gift cards to boost sales, and enhanced reporting. Sellers that use Shopify Payments to accept credit cards pay a cheaper processing fee with this package. The Shopify plan is worth the additional monthly charge if you sell more than $25,000 each month.
Shopify Advanced
Advanced Shopify is designed for high-volume merchants that want additional services like real-time shipping rates and configurable reports in addition to the full Shopify plan. In addition, advanced Shopify merchants get the lowest Shopify Payments processing rates of all four tiers. The Advanced package is worth the additional monthly charge if you sell more than $110,000 each month.
That’s not all, however. If you outgrow the Advanced Shopify plan, Shopify offers the Shopify Plus Enterprise package to fulfill your unique demands. You may customize eCommerce features and save even more money on credit card processing with this option. This begins at $2,000 per month and includes bespoke processing expenses at a reduced rate.
Expenses Associated with Opening a Shopify Store
After you’ve calculated the cost of Shopify’s monthly plans, you’ll need to factor in any additional expenditures you’ll pay while opening your business. We’ve included a list of any extra services you could need, along with their costs.
Shopify POS
Shopify POS Lite is included with your Shopify eCommerce package and is ideal for temporary retailers like pop-up shops and farmer’s markets. Those who wish to use the software for their physical stores will probably want to switch to Shopify POS Pro, which costs $89 per location. Access to sophisticated capabilities such as smart inventory management and in-store analytics is the key distinction between the two.
Hardware for Shopify POS
To handle mobile and in-store sales, you’ll require Shopify’s hardware choices (such as a card reader) if you sign up for the Shopify POS. Free shipping, 30-day returns, 24/7 customer service, and a one-year guarantee are all included with each piece of hardware. Fees vary from $29 to $299 for one-time use.
Name of the domain
You instantly obtain a free “www.storename.myshopify.com” domain when you build a Shopify site. You should, however, consider upgrading to a custom domain name. If you currently have a domain, you may utilize it or acquire one via Shopify. The cost of a domain via Shopify starts at $11 per year. The price is determined on the top-level domain (TLD) extension you choose (such as .com, .net, .store, etc.).
It’s important to note that Shopify’s domain registration does not include email hosting. We suggest comparing these costs to those offered by other domain name registrars. If you go that path, you’ll be able to move it to Shopify.
Themes for Shopify Websites
Shopify has roughly ten free website templates and over 70 paid website themes. If you choose a premium theme, expect to pay between $100 and $180. You may engage a Shopify professional if you need assistance modifying a premium theme.
Integrations and add-ons
The amazing app store is one of the reasons Shopify is such a successful and highly rated eCommerce platform. If you wish to add new features to your Shopify accounts, such as drop shipping or membership programs, you may do so by signing up for add-ons in the Shopify App Store.
There are free and premium integrations available, with the latter often charging a monthly subscription. Because there are hundreds of connections available, it’s wise to familiarize yourself with the most popular Shopify add-ons to get a sense of which features you can include in your business. These plug-ins and add-ons may substantially enhance the usability of your online shop as well as the performance of your company.
Email from Shopify
Email marketing is a critical component of increasing conversions on your online business. Shopify Email is a new service that allows you to send 2,500 free emails each month for free before paying $1 for every 1,000 more emails.
Instead of using a third-party service like Mailchimp or Active Campaign, you may utilize Shopify Email.
Pricing of Shopify vs. Other Popular Ecommerce Platforms
Expect to pay between $250 and $500 to start a Shopify shop, taking into account all the add-on expenses. We compared our cost estimate to the start-up prices of other eCommerce platforms and discovered that setting up a Shopify site is the most cost-effective alternative.
WooCommerce, for example, is a free WordPress plugin; nevertheless, it needs you to invest in hosting plans and other add-ons, so anticipate spending between $500 and $1,000 as a startup (roughly includes shared hosting, a paid website theme, and a few paid plug-ins).
BigCommerce, on the other hand, has initial expenses of $800 or more, depending on the estimated sales volume of your online business. This estimate does not include the cost of a website developer. Expect to spend a few thousand dollars extra if you choose to work with a developer.
What you save on Shopify’s setup costs may be spent on monthly transaction fees on your online sales. Transaction fees are not charged by BigCommerce or WooCommerce, making them suitable for high-volume sellers.
If Shopify’s setup costs are still too high for you, check out our list of the best free eCommerce platforms. While they may have limited functionality, you may be able to locate one that is sufficient for you to start your online shop and then upgrade as your company grows.
Conclusion
Shopify’s eCommerce options are priced to fit almost every small business’s budget and selling requirements. Shopify’s entry-level account, which costs $9 per month, allows bloggers to add Buy Buttons to their blog sites and even push items to a Facebook Shop. Beginner sellers may start their online business for as little as $29 per month on full-featured plans that offer the opportunity to grow.
Here are some pointers for determining which Shopify package is ideal for your company:
- Examine each Shopify plan’s features. Your business’s ideal plan should be based on the characteristics you need.
- Take a look at Shopify’s transaction costs. It’s worth noting that if you want to save money on transaction fees, you may want to upgrade to a higher-tiered plan. If you sell more than $25,000 per month, for example, the Shopify plan is worth the increased monthly charge due to the reduced expenses.
- Consider the savings you’ll be able to make. Using Shopify Payments, for example, you may save extra transaction costs. Prepayments for one- and two-year Shopify memberships may also get you further savings.
- Consider Shopify’s extra fees. The cost of POS hardware, domain registration, and extra software subscriptions may quickly mount up.
Those extra expenses must be included in your Shopify store’s setup, but the good news is that these expenditures pay off in the long term. We recommend that you start by launching your shop and then add additional features (integrations) as needed.
You Might Also Enjoy…
Watch This Video-
Frequently Asked Questions
Which Shopify plan is best for small businesses?
A: In general, the Shopify Plus plan is best for small businesses. It comes with more features than any other option and allows you to customize your store as much as possible without breaking the bank.
How do I choose a Shopify plan?
To choose a Shopify plan, you need to decide what your business does. If you’re selling products for sale on Amazon and eBay, then the Affiliate Pro or Affiliate Basic plans would be best for you.
What’s the difference between Shopify plans?
Shopify offers several plans, each with different pricing. The difference in price is mainly due to the number of items you can list on your shop and how long they have been active.
