If you search how much does a Shopify store cost, Shopify’s monthly plan shows up first. That number is real — and it is not the whole bill. For a small US product brand, actual Shopify store cost is plan + card processing + apps + theme + whoever builds and maintains the store.
This guide is for founders who want a usable budget before they hire a Shopify developer. Plan prices below are from Shopify’s public pricing page as of September 2026. Processing rates and promotions change — confirm on Shopify before you subscribe.
The five cost buckets (not just the subscription)
Treat Shopify like a stack, not a single fee:
- Shopify plan — the monthly or yearly subscription
- Card processing — a percentage of every card sale (often larger than the plan once you are selling)
- Apps — reviews, subscriptions, wholesale, shipping rules, upsells
- Theme / design — free theme, paid theme, or custom theme work
- Build and support — setup, product templates, collections, apps, redirects if you are migrating
If someone quotes “Shopify is $29 a month,” they are describing bucket one. You still pay for the rest.
Shopify plan prices in 2026
Shopify currently shows these US prices when you pay yearly (month-to-month is higher):
| Plan | Yearly billing | Monthly billing | Typical fit |
|---|---|---|---|
| Basic | $29/month | $39/month | Solo founder, early catalog |
| Grow | $79/month | $105/month | Small team, more staff seats |
| Advanced | $299/month | $399/month | Higher volume, deeper reporting |
| Plus | from $2,300/month | Custom | Complex, high-volume ops — not a first store |
On Basic, Shopify Payments lists online card rates from 2.9% + 30¢. Grow starts around 2.7% + 30¢; Advanced around 2.5% + 30¢. If you use a third-party gateway instead of Shopify Payments, Shopify adds an extra fee (commonly about 2% on Basic, lower on higher plans). POS Pro for a serious retail counter is listed as an add-on (about $89/month per location on the public page).
Most small brands should start on Basic unless they already need extra staff accounts or process enough volume that Grow’s lower card rate pays for itself. Do not buy Advanced because the name sounds safer.
Processing fees are the quiet budget killer
On Basic, processing is not Shopify “taking mysterious profit on top of the plan” — it is how card networks get paid, similar to other platforms.
A simple way to think about it: if you sell $10,000 in a month on card, processing on Basic is in the ballpark of a few hundred dollars — more than the subscription. Using Shopify Payments usually keeps the third-party gateway fee off the table.
This is why upgrading plans is sometimes a math problem, not a feature problem. Grow’s lower rate can beat Basic once volume is high enough. Run the numbers on your actual average order value before you upgrade.
Apps, themes, and domains
Shopify includes hosting and SSL. You still typically pay for:
- Custom domain — a few dollars to a few dozen per year, depending where you buy it
- Paid theme — many quality themes are a one-time purchase in the $200–$400 range; free themes are fine if product pages are clear
- Apps — reviews, email, subscriptions, and wholesale tools are where stores get expensive; five $15–$50 apps become a new “plan” you did not mean to buy
Audit apps quarterly. If an app only adds a badge or a popup, you probably do not need it. Speed and conversion both suffer when the theme carries ten extra scripts. Our Shopify store speed optimization guide is the practical follow-up if the store already feels heavy. For app discipline, see Shopify apps small stores actually need.
What a professional Shopify build actually costs
The platform fee does not design your product page, write shipping policy, connect a domain, or migrate old URLs. That work is the project.
At WebSolNet, website packages are published on our pricing page: Launch from $800, Grow $1,200, Scale from $2,000+. Shopify work usually lands in Grow or Scale because product templates, collections, checkout settings, and app choices take more than a five-page brochure site. A catalog with variants, wholesale, or a migration from WooCommerce is a scoped project — not a template install.
A useful build includes:
- A homepage that states what you sell and who it is for
- Product templates that answer size, shipping, and trust questions
- Collections that match how people shop (not 40 near-empty categories)
- Policies, contact, and a path to buy that works on a phone
- Basic Shopify SEO: titles, descriptions, indexable URLs, and a sitemap submitted in Search Console
If you are leaving WordPress/WooCommerce, budget time for a redirect map. URL structure differs on Shopify. Rankings follow redirects, not the platform logo. Compare platforms first in Shopify vs WooCommerce and WordPress vs Shopify if you have not chosen yet. For brochure-site budgets on WordPress, see WordPress website cost for small business.
A realistic monthly picture after launch
For a new small catalog (not Plus, not a mall of apps):
| Line item | Realistic range |
|---|---|
| Plan | about $29–$39/month |
| Domain | a few dollars a month averaged |
| Apps | $0 if disciplined; $50–$150 if stacked |
| Processing | scales with sales (often larger than the plan) |
| Support | $0 if you can edit the theme; a retainer if you cannot |
The store that “only costs $29” is the one with a clean theme, Shopify Payments, almost no apps, and an owner who can add products. The store that costs $400+/month before ads is usually apps + a paid email tool + a page builder + processing — not Shopify being dishonest about Basic.
FAQ
Is Shopify cheaper than WooCommerce?
Shopify’s subscription is easier to predict. WooCommerce can look cheaper until you add hosting, SSL, a solid checkout plugin, and someone to update WordPress. Total cost depends on catalog size and who maintains it. Read the Shopify vs WooCommerce comparison before you migrate for savings you have not modeled.
Can I launch on the free trial and decide later?
Yes. Use the trial to test checkout, shipping, and product pages. Do not spend the trial installing every app in the store. Decide the theme and information architecture first.
Do I need Shopify Plus?
Almost never at the beginning. Plus is for complex checkout, high volume, and operational needs that Basic/Grow/Advanced cannot cover. If a salesperson leads with Plus, ask what Basic cannot do for your catalog.
What drives Shopify design cost the most?
Custom product templates, migrations with redirect maps, wholesale or subscription logic, and cleaning app bloat. A paid theme alone is not a full build.
Should I budget for ongoing support?
If nobody on your team can safely edit liquid, apps, or theme settings, yes. Support is separate from the monthly Shopify plan — same idea as website maintenance cost for WordPress sites.
How do WebSolNet Grow and Scale packages relate to Shopify?
They are project build packages on our pricing page, not Shopify’s plan names. Shopify store work typically needs Grow or Scale because catalog templates and checkout setup take more than a simple brochure site.
Need Shopify development or a store that can sell?
If you want a store your team can update — without a pile of apps — we design and build Shopify stores for small US brands. See Shopify store design, run a free site audit on a competitor or your current shop, then request a written Shopify quote. Owner-operated remote US studio — call (850) 610-7214 if you want a straight budget conversation.
