Shopify's pricing page says $39/month. Your actual Shopify store cost is closer to $150-$500/month. Apps, transaction fees, a theme, and a dozen other line items don't show up until you're already committed. That gap catches most new merchants off guard.
This breakdown covers every real cost of running a Shopify store in 2026 — not just the plan fee, but the full picture. By the end, you'll know exactly what to budget before you launch and where to cut if you're overspending.
Shopify Plan Fees: $39 to $399/Month
Shopify offers four main plans for most merchants:
- Basic — $39/month ($29/month with annual billing)
- Grow — $105/month ($79/month annual)
- Advanced — $399/month ($299/month annual)
- Plus — $2,300/month (enterprise)
There's also a Starter plan at $5/month, but it only gives you a link to share — no full online store. Most merchants start on Basic.
Annual billing saves roughly 25%. That's $120/year on Basic, $312/year on Grow. If you're past the first month and confident you're sticking with Shopify, switch to annual. There's no reason to pay monthly after your trial period.
Payment Processing Takes 2.5-2.9% of Every Sale
Every time a customer pays with a credit card, Shopify Payments takes a cut. The percentage depends on your plan:
- Basic — 2.9% + $0.30 per online transaction
- Grow — 2.7% + $0.30
- Advanced — 2.5% + $0.30
On a $50 order, that's $1.75 on Basic. Sell 500 orders a month at that average and you're paying $875/month in processing fees alone. That's more than 20x your plan fee.
If you use a third-party payment gateway instead of Shopify Payments, Shopify adds an extra transaction fee on top: 2% on Basic, 1% on Grow, 0.5% on Advanced. Combined with your gateway's own processing fee, you could be paying over 5% per transaction. Use Shopify Payments unless you have a specific reason not to. For more ways to lower this line item, see our guide on how to reduce Shopify transaction fees.
International credit cards cost more — typically 3.9% + $0.30 instead of the domestic rate. If you sell globally, factor that into your margins. Shopify also charges a 1.5% currency conversion fee for U.S. stores (2% for international stores).
Your Theme: Free to $400 (One-Time)
Shopify's free Dawn theme is genuinely good. It's fast, clean, and customizable enough for most new stores. You don't need to buy a premium theme on day one.
If you outgrow Dawn, premium themes from the Shopify Theme Store run $150 to $400 as a one-time purchase. Popular options like Impact, Prestige, and Turbo sit at the $350-$425 range. Third-party theme marketplaces sometimes sell for less, but you lose Shopify's vetting process and theme support.
Amortize a $350 theme over 12 months and it's about $29/month in your first year — then $0/month after that. Not a major ongoing cost, but one more thing to budget for at launch.
Shopify App Costs: The Real Hidden Store Expense
This is where most merchants underestimate their Shopify store cost. The average Shopify merchant spends around $120/month on apps and installs about six of them. Some stores run 20-30 apps and spend $300+/month.
Here's what a typical app stack costs:
- Email marketing (Klaviyo, Omnisend) — $20-$100/month depending on list size
- Product reviews — $15-$50/month
- SEO tools — $20-$40/month
- Upsell/cross-sell — $15-$30/month
- Analytics beyond Shopify's built-in — $30-$80/month
Five apps, easily $100-$300/month. And most merchants add more over time, not fewer.
Before installing any paid app, check if Shopify's built-in features already do what you need. Shopify has added email marketing (Shopify Email), basic analytics, discount automations, and abandoned cart recovery to all plans. Merchants who audit their app stack regularly report saving $50-$100/month by removing apps that duplicate native features.
Domain, Email, and Other Small Costs Add Up
A .com domain costs $11-$20/year through Shopify or any registrar. Small cost, but you need one — selling on yourstorename.myshopify.com hurts credibility.
Professional email (you@yourstore.com) runs $6-$12/month through Google Workspace or Zoho. Some merchants skip this and use Gmail, but a branded email address builds trust, especially if you're running ads to cold traffic.
Other costs that sneak in:
- Shopify POS hardware — $49-$399 one-time if you sell in person
- Shipping label costs — varies, but Shopify Shipping offers discounts up to 77% off carrier rates
- Custom development — $50-$150/hour if you need something beyond what themes and apps offer
- Logo and branding — $0 (Shopify's free logo maker) to $500+ for a designer
What Does a Shopify Store Cost Per Month? Three Scenarios
A Shopify store costs between $207/month and $1,842/month depending on your revenue, plan, and app stack. Here's the breakdown for three common store sizes — including plan fees, estimated transaction fees, apps, and ongoing costs (not one-time purchases like themes).
Starter Store (Under $5K/Month Revenue)
- Basic plan (annual): $29/month
- Payment processing (~$3K in sales): ~$117
- Apps (3-4 essential): ~$60/month
- Domain: ~$1.25/month
- Total: ~$207/month
Growing Store ($10K-$30K/Month Revenue)
- Grow plan (annual): $79/month
- Payment processing (~$20K in sales): ~$570
- Apps (5-8): ~$150/month
- Professional email: ~$7/month
- Domain: ~$1.25/month
- Total: ~$807/month
Scaling Store ($50K+/Month Revenue)
- Advanced plan (annual): $299/month
- Payment processing (~$50K in sales): ~$1,280
- Apps (8-12): ~$250/month
- Professional email: ~$12/month
- Domain: ~$1.25/month
- Total: ~$1,842/month
Notice the pattern: payment processing is the biggest line item at every stage. Your plan fee is a small fraction of the real cost.
Five Ways to Reduce Your Shopify Store Cost
- Switch to annual billing — saves 25% on your plan fee immediately.
- Use Shopify Payments — avoids the extra 0.5-2% third-party transaction fee.
- Audit your apps quarterly — remove anything you installed "to try" and forgot about. Check if Shopify's native features replaced what the app does.
- Start with a free theme — Dawn performs well. Buy a premium theme only when you've identified a specific limitation Dawn can't solve.
- Negotiate app pricing — many app developers offer annual discounts or custom plans for higher-volume stores. It doesn't hurt to ask.
Your Shopify store cost is mostly a function of your revenue. The more you sell, the more you pay in processing fees — but your margins should scale faster than those fees. The controllable costs are apps and plan selection. Start lean, add tools only when they solve a specific problem you can measure, and review your spending every quarter. The merchants who overspend aren't buying expensive plans — they're subscribing to apps they stopped using three months ago.