As with any new business venture, it’s vital that you understand the cost implications of running a Shopify store. There are numerous Shopify fees including flat monthly service rates, transaction fees, and one-off payments for things like themes.
To effectively assess the ROI of your Shopify store, control your business budget, and make sure it’s financially viable, I detail the different Shopify price plans and other important costs below so you can plan ahead.
Shopify Price Plans
I like how simplistic the Shopify price plans are and this makes understanding the cost easy. They have three price plans suited for different business sizes.
Basic is aimed at small businesses and solo entrepreneurs, Shopify is a mid-tier package aimed at businesses that want to push growth, and the Advanced package is best suited for medium to large businesses.
Basic
- Flat rate per month: £25.00
- Store transaction fees: 2% + 25p
- In-Person transaction fees: 1.7%
- Staff accounts: 2
The basic plan is aimed at small businesses and individuals and if you pay yearly, the equivalent monthly cost drops to £19.00. For this you get 24/7 support, 2 staff accounts, unlimited products, and up to 1000 inventory locations.
Compare to the other Shopify price plans you only get basic reporting and no automation tools. Things like duties and import taxes are also not calculated automatically so this is something else to consider when looking at how much does Shopify cost.
You don’t really miss out on any other features and this basic plan is pretty reasonable compared to other similar options.
Shopify
- Flat rate per month: £65.00
- Store transaction fees: 1.7% + 25p
- In-Person transaction fees: 1.6%
- Staff accounts: 5
The “Shopify” plan is the mid-range option aimed at businesses that are expanding and want to push to the next level. You get the benefit of 5 staff accounts which allows you to assign a team to manage your store, and a variety of workflow and ecommerce automation to make your store run more effectively.
Again, there is a sizable discount for paying annually, and the monthly cost drops to £49.00. Possibly the most notable difference is also the reduced Shopify fees per sale which drop to 1.7% for credit cards.
This may not seem like much initially compared to 2% for the basic plan, but it can make a large difference for a higher sales volume and the number of transactions you expect with business growth. You also get the Shopify POS Lite tool which allows you to have a point of sale in your storefront if needed.
Advanced
- Flat rate per month: £344.00
- Store transaction fees: 1.5% + 25p
- In-Person transaction fees: 1.5%
- Staff accounts: 15
The Advanced plan is aimed at larger companies who are really pushing their sales volumes and dealing with a large number of customers and products.
The Shopify fees per sale are again reduced to 1.5% for credit cards and in-person sales, and you get discounts on other payment items such as iDEAL and international transactions.
Out of the Shopify price plans, this gives the most in terms of features and reporting and you get advanced functionality so you can really analyze the performance of your store and see where improvements can be made. Duties and import taxes are also automatically estimated at checkout.
Other Potential Shopify Fees to Consider
While the monthly plans and Shopify fees per sale are mandatory, there are potential extra costs too. These come in the form of premium themes, plugins, and hiring the services of a Shopify SEO company.
Shopify Store Theme
Shopify has a decent range of free themes included in all three plans however you may want to pay for a premium theme. These premium themes are generally better designed, have improved layouts and features, and can often match your business style or schema closer.
Premium themes generally start at £100+ and this is a one-off payment. I recommend at least looking at the premium themes so you can start your Shopify store in the right way. Over time, the sales and revenue should more than pay for this initial outlay.
Shopify Plugins
Once you have your store established, you can look at the vast library of Shopify plugins. These are developed by third-party companies and aim to extend the functionality of your store.
Examples include SEO plugins, customer service tools, inventory management, chatbots, upselling tools, and social sharing icons. There is a range of free plugins, but the best ones usually have a monthly subscription fee which is another potential cost you must account for.
SEO / Store Management
Lastly, depending on the size of your company you may want to hire the services of a Shopify SEO company to manage your online store and improve its SEO.
This can be an incredibly effective option, especially if you do not have the time or knowledge to dedicate to the store in order to maximize sales. By hiring a Shopify expert, you can let them take the reigns and concentrate on other business aspects such as product development, marketing, and growth.
Make Sure You Budget Accordingly Before Launching a Shopify Store
There should be no other hidden costs relating to your Shopify store unless you choose to hire a web developer to design your store, or if you opt to use a third-party payment provider. If you do not want to utilize the payment getaway provided by Shopify, there is an additional 2% charge per transaction.
With this clear understanding of how much does Shopify cost, you should be able to budget the expense and assess properly if you think the monthly costs and payment fees are worth the investment.
I recommend Shopify as an online store and it is one of the more reasonable options, plus the range of features and plugins allow you to create a fantastic online store and engaging shopping experience for your customers.
