Cost Of Selling On Shopify - 2024 Fee Guide

Shopify is one of the most popular eCommerce platforms in the world, giving thousands of online businesses a streamlined way to build a website, display products, and process sales. However, with so many benefits, it’s no surprise that Shopify is not free to use. In fact, there are literally dozens of different costs to consider when creating an eCommerce store through Shopify.

But if you’ve never used Shopify or you’re unclear how much it costs to run your Shopify store, you probably have a lot of important questions. For example, how much does it cost to build a Shopify website from the ground up? What are the standard costs associated with selling on Shopify? Are there additional credit card fees on Shopify? Finally, how can you understand exactly how much it costs to use Shopify as the basis of your eCommerce business?

In today’s guide, we will answer all of these questions and more, but first, let’s examine the basic costs associated with building a Shopify website:

Costs To Build Your Shopify Site

One of the benefits of using Shopify is that you can get an entire business website up and running in less than an hour. But to do this, there are various upfront costs you’ll need to consider. Here are some of the most common costs associated with building a Shopify website:

• Template - The cost of a Shopify website template (sometimes known as a “theme”) can vary based on the type of template you want. Shopify offers several free and paid options. As you might imagine, the free options are pretty basic, while the paid options offer greater versatility and enhanced UI. If you opt for a paid template, you can expect to pay a one-time fee of anywhere between $100 and $200.
• Domain Registration - You don’t have to use Shopify to register your website’s domain name, but it is often the simplest solution. Plus, Shopify offers some of the most affordable rates on the market. If you use Shopify to register your domain name, you can expect to pay a recurring fee of $14.95 per year (though this fee may be subject to change in the future).
• Developer - If you find that Shopify’s basic website services don’t meet the needs of your business, you’ll probably need to hire a developer. This person can help with coding your website, customizing certain features, and even marketing your website to consumers. The cost of a developer can vary substantially, but to get a new website up and running with the help of a Shopify expert, you should expect to pay at least $2,000 to $3,000 (if not more).
• Ongoing Developer Maintenance & Updates - As your business grows, you’ll generally find that your needs become more complex and technical. If you hire a developer to handle the initial website launch or marketing campaign, you may need to keep them on retainer for ongoing maintenance and updates. Once again, prices can vary a lot from one developer to the next, but you should generally set aside a budget of $300 to $500 per month.

As you can see, the costs of getting your Shopify business off the ground are not fixed. However, even if you choose to spend the bare minimum on your Shopify website, it will cost you about $200 for the first year (not including Shopify plan fees). Alternatively, if you invest in developers and high-end templates, you could spend upwards of $7,000 for the first year.

Shopify Plan Monthly Fees

There are three main Shopify plans for sellers who want a website. There are also very basic plans for sellers who just want to use Shopify for payment processing without a website, as well as more advanced plans for large businesses. In any case, here’s a look at the current Shopify plan fees as of 2024:

Plan Name

Monthly Fee

Annual Fee (25% Discount)

Additional Features

Basic

$39 per month

$29 per month

($348 per year)

- Basic reports

- Up to 77% shipping discount

- 2 staff accounts

Shopify

$105 per month

$79 per month

($948 per year)

- Professional reports

- Up to 88% shipping discount

- Reduced credit card rates

- 5 staff accounts

Advanced

$399 per month

$299 per month

($3588 per year)

- Custom report builder

- Up to 88% shipping discount

- Reduced credit card rates

- 15 staff accounts

Shopify App Fees

There are thousands of apps in the Shopify app store that can help make your website even better. These can range from store management services to pop-up notification designs. In any case, the exact cost will depend on the specific app(s) you choose. Some apps can be purchased for a single upfront fee, while many others require a monthly subscription. For Shopify app subscriptions, you can often expect to pay anywhere between $10 and $50 per month, per app.

Shopify Transaction Fees Per Sale

A major part of Shopify’s business model revolves around transaction fees. While there are no third-party transaction fees if you use Shopify Payments, you’ll still need to pay certain credit card processing fees, regardless of the payment processor you use. Here are the most common Shopify transaction fees as of 2024:

Plan Name

Credit Card Transaction Fee (Online)

Credit Card Transaction Fee (In Person)

Third-Party Transaction Fees

Basic

2.9% + $0.30

2.7%

2%

Shopify

2.6% + $0.30

2.5%

1%

Advanced

2.4% + $0.30

2.4%

0.5%

Additional Shopify Selling Fees

Aside from the standard processing and payment fees, Shopify also charges fees that can vary based on your plan type and the services you use. Here are a few common Shopify costs and fees that you may notice on your monthly statement:

• Shipping Label Fees - If you want Shopify to automatically create shipping labels for you, you’ll need to pay a recurring shipping label fee that is added to your monthly subscription fee. As of 2024, the shipping label fee is $11.26 on the Basic plan, $10.53 on the Shopify plan, and $9.80 on the Advanced plan (like most Shopify fees, these fees are subject to change in the future).
• Tap to Pay Fees - If you make any sales in person and you want to use the Tap to Pay feature on the Apple iPhone, you get 100 free Tap to Pay Shopify transactions per month. If you surpass this number, each additional transaction will cost you $0.25 until the end of the month.
• Email Fees - Shopify plans also grant you a Shopify email account with the ability to send up to 10,000 emails per month, free of charge. If you surpass this number, you’ll be charged $1 per 1,000 emails sent, up to 300,000 emails. If you surpass this number, you’ll pay $0.65 per 1,000 emails sent, up to 750,000. Finally, if you surpass this number, you’ll pay $0.55 per 1,000 emails sent.

Use ConnectBooks To Know Your True Costs & Profits At All Times

Keeping track of all of your Shopify costs and fees can be tricky. However, if you don’t actually know how much you’re spending to use Shopify, you have no way of accurately calculating your true landed cost, profits, losses, and other vital financial metrics.

Fortunately, you can automate these calculations and find out how much you’re spending to use Shopify in seconds by using ConnectBooks. With ConnectBooks, you have a one-stop shop to track all of your Shopify revenue and expenses. Additionally, you can quickly generate important documents like P&L reports to evaluate the financial health of your business.

Do you want to learn more about calculating your costs and profits when selling on Shopify? If so, reach out to the experts at ConnectBooks today!