A Shopify store costs $29 to $105 a month for most small brands, on the Basic or Grow plan billed yearly. On top of that you pay card fees on each sale (2.9% + 30¢ on Basic in the US), any paid apps, and about $16 a year for a .com domain. Building the store costs $0 if you do it yourself, or a one-time fee if you hire someone.
Last updated: September 2026
Key takeaways
- Shopify Basic is $29/month billed yearly or $39/month billed monthly. Grow is $79 or $105. Advanced is $299 or $399.
- With Shopify Payments you pay card processing fees on each sale, but no extra third-party transaction fees on those orders.
- A lean do-it-yourself store can run for under $400 in its first year, before card fees and marketing.
- Build costs range from $0 (DIY with a free theme) to a one-time package or a custom agency quote.
- The costs founders forget are rarely Shopify's. They are photography, samples, apps added "just to try", and ads.
How much does Shopify cost per month in 2026?
Most new stores need Shopify Basic, which costs $29 a month billed yearly or $39 billed monthly. Grow and Advanced add lower card rates, more staff accounts and better reports, and are worth it once you're selling steadily.
These are the current US prices from Shopify's pricing page:
| Plan | Billed yearly | Billed monthly | Online card rate (Shopify Payments, US) | Fee if you use a third-party payment provider |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Basic | $29/month | $39/month | 2.9% + 30¢ | 2% |
| Grow | $79/month | $105/month | 2.7% + 30¢ | 1% |
| Advanced | $299/month | $399/month | 2.5% + 30¢ | 0.6% |
| Plus | Not offered | From $2,300/month | 2.25% + 30¢ | 0.2% |
At the time of writing, the US pricing page offers 3 days free, then $1 a month for your first 3 months on a monthly plan. Offers change and vary by country, so check the page before you sign up.
What about the $5 Starter plan? According to the Shopify Help Center, the Starter plan is now only available to merchants already on it. It was also never a full store, with no collections, no custom pages and limited theme changes. Many older cost guides still list it as an option for new founders, but it isn't one anymore.
Which plan should a first-time founder choose?
Start on Basic. It includes everything a new store needs to sell online, and you can upgrade later in a few clicks when the lower card rates on Grow start saving you more than the price difference.
Here is a quick way to check. Moving from Basic to Grow on yearly billing costs $50 more a month. Grow lowers the online card rate by 0.2 percentage points, so it only pays for itself on card fees once you sell roughly $25,000 a month online. Before then, you'd upgrade for features such as staff accounts and reports, not to save money.
What are Shopify's transaction and card fees?
Every online sale has a card processing fee, and on Basic in the US that's 2.9% + 30¢ per order. If you use Shopify Payments, you don't pay Shopify's extra third-party transaction fee on those orders. If you use a different payment provider, Shopify adds a fee on top of that provider's own charges: 2% on Basic.
The Shopify Help Center confirms that you're not charged third-party transaction fees on orders paid through Shopify Payments, Shop Pay, Shop Pay Installments, PayPal Express Checkout or manual payment methods.
Card fees are often the biggest running cost for a store that's selling. For example, $10,000 of sales at an average order of $50 is 200 orders. On Basic, that's 2.9% of $10,000 ($290) plus 200 × 30¢ ($60), so $350 in card fees for the month.
What else do you pay for besides the Shopify plan?
The main extras are a domain, a theme if you buy one, and apps. Only the domain is truly essential.
| Cost | Typical price | One-time or ongoing | Do you need it? |
|---|---|---|---|
| Domain (.com) | About $16/year through Shopify; most domains $10–$30/year | Yearly | Yes. A custom domain looks far more trustworthy than a myshopify.com address. |
| Theme | Free themes cost $0. Paid themes are set by the developer, often a few hundred dollars. | One-time, licensed to one store | No. A free theme is fine for most first stores. |
| Apps | Many have free plans; paid plans are usually monthly | Monthly | Only a few, for reviews and email capture, for example |
| Email marketing | Shopify Messaging: 10,000 free emails a month, then $1 per 1,000 | Monthly, only if you exceed the free allowance | Yes, but it's free at the start |
| Build help | $0 (DIY) to a one-time package or agency quote | One-time | Your call (see below) |
Sources: Shopify on domain costs and Shopify Messaging email pricing. Paid themes from the Shopify Theme Store are final sale, so preview a theme properly before you buy it.
How much does it cost to build a Shopify store?
Building a Shopify store costs anywhere from $0, if you set it up yourself on a free theme, to a few thousand dollars for a done-for-you build. It depends on how much of the work you want to hand off, not on Shopify itself.
| Route | What it costs | What you get | Best for |
|---|---|---|---|
| Do it yourself, free theme | $0 plus your time | A clean, working store if you follow a good setup guide | Tight budgets, simple catalogs, founders who enjoy the setup |
| DIY with a paid theme | The theme's one-time price | More design options out of the box | Founders who want a particular look without hiring anyone |
| Freelancer | Varies widely by scope and experience | Anything from a quick setup to a custom build | People who can write a clear brief and check someone's portfolio |
| Fixed-price package | A set one-time price (for example, Komrex packages start at $499) | A defined number of products, pages and features, with a set timeline | Founders who want a known cost and a store that's ready to sell |
| Custom agency build | Quoted per project | Custom design, integrations, branding | Established brands with bigger catalogs or complex needs |
Here's what that fixed-price option looks like in practice at Komrex, a Shopify store design agency:
- Launchpad: $499 one-time, about 5 days, up to 10 products.
- Growth Store: $1,299 one-time, about 2 weeks, up to 40 products, with conversion-focused copy and email capture.
- Scale & Brand: $2,999 one-time, about 3 to 4 weeks, with branding, advanced conversion work and migration included.
Every package is built on our own custom premium theme, so there's no separate theme to buy. The Shopify plan, any paid apps, and any Theme Store theme you choose instead are paid separately. If you're weighing up hiring help, see how much to pay someone to build a Shopify store.
What does a Shopify store cost in the first year? Three example budgets
A lean DIY store can cost under $400 in its first year, and a done-for-you store typically lands between about $1,200 and $2,300, before card fees and marketing. These examples use real 2026 Shopify prices. The theme and app amounts are example figures, not quotes, so swap in your own.
| Line item | A. Lean DIY | B. DIY, paid theme and apps | C. Launchpad build | D. Growth Store build |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Shopify Basic, billed yearly | $348 | $348 | $348 | $348 |
| .com domain | $16 | $16 | $16 | $16 |
| Theme | $0 (free) | $350 (example) | $0 (Komrex custom theme included) | $0 (Komrex custom theme included) |
| Apps (12 months) | $0 (free plans) | $360 (example: $30/month) | $360 (example: $30/month) | $600 (example: $50/month) |
| Build | $0 (your time) | $0 (your time) | $499 | $1,299 |
| First-year total | $364 | $1,074 | $1,223 | $2,263 |
None of these totals includes card fees, which rise with sales, or your marketing budget. Komrex builds use our own custom premium theme, which we build on and adapt to each brand's design. If you'd rather use a specific paid theme from the Shopify Theme Store, you buy that theme yourself. Whoever you hire, ask exactly what's included (theme, apps, copy, product uploads) so you can compare quotes like for like.
What costs do first-time founders forget?
The Shopify bill is usually the smallest part of starting. Founders tend to underestimate the costs around the store.
- Product photos. Good photos sell more than any theme. Budget for a shoot or a decent setup at home.
- Samples and first stock. These usually cost far more than the website does.
- Apps you forgot to cancel. Free trials turn into monthly charges. Review your app list every month.
- Marketing. A store with no traffic makes no sales. Plan something, even if it's small: content, social or a modest ad test.
- Taxes and business setup. Registration, sales tax, VAT or GST, and bookkeeping depend on where you are. Check your local government's guidance.
- Your time. A DIY build is "free", but it can take many evenings. Decide what those evenings are worth to you.
If you're in the UK, Australia or EU
Shopify bills in local currency outside the US, and plan prices, card rates and taxes differ by country. Check the pricing page for your country rather than converting US prices. In the UK and EU, VAT may be added to your Shopify bill, and in Australia, GST. Card rates for Shopify Payments also vary by country and card type, so use your local figures when you work out fees.
Do it yourself or have it done for you
Do it yourself: If your budget is tight and your catalog is small, Basic plus a free theme will get you selling. Start a free trial of Shopify, set up your domain and payments first, then add products.
Have it done for you: If you'd rather know the full cost upfront and launch in days, compare our fixed-price Shopify packages. If you're not sure which route suits you, a $50 video consultation gets you a straight answer on budget and scope.
Shopify store cost FAQs
Is Shopify free to use?
No. Shopify offers a short free trial and sometimes a low-cost introductory period, but you need a paid plan to keep selling. The cheapest full plan for new stores is Basic, at $29 a month billed yearly or $39 billed monthly in the US. The older Starter plan is now only available to merchants who are already on it.
How much does Shopify take per sale?
On Shopify Basic in the US, online card payments through Shopify Payments cost 2.9% + 30¢ per order. There's no extra third-party transaction fee on those orders. If you use a different payment provider, Shopify adds 2% on Basic, 1% on Grow and 0.6% on Advanced, on top of that provider's own processing fees.
What is the cheapest way to start a Shopify store?
Use the Basic plan billed yearly ($29 a month), a free theme, Shopify Payments, free app plans and Shopify's built-in email tool. Add a .com domain for about $16 a year. That puts a lean store at roughly $364 for the first year, before card fees and any marketing you choose to do.
How much does it cost to have someone build a Shopify store?
It ranges from a small setup fee to several thousand dollars, depending on the number of products, how custom the design is, and whether branding or migration is included. Fixed-price packages make the cost predictable. At Komrex, a Shopify store design agency, builds start at $499. Always confirm what's included before comparing quotes.
Do I need to buy a paid Shopify theme?
No. Shopify's free themes are well built, mobile-friendly and more than enough for most first stores. A paid theme adds design options and features, and it's a one-time purchase licensed to one store. Paid theme sales are final, so preview the theme with your own products before buying one.
Is it cheaper to pay yearly for Shopify?
Yes. Yearly billing lowers Basic from $39 to $29 a month, Grow from $105 to $79, and Advanced from $399 to $299. On Basic, that saves $120 a year. Pay monthly while you're testing an idea, then switch to yearly once you're confident you'll keep the store for at least a year.
Start with Basic and a free theme, then spend on build help only where it saves you real time or sells more.
