Shopify Plus Pricing: Costs and Fees Explained in Detail (2024)

Shopify Plus is a great option for businesses looking to scale their online operations, but the costs can be a big concern. Recently, Shopify Plus updated its pricing, leaving some businesses curious about the costs. 

We will break down Shopify Plus’s latest pricing structure and other associated costs so you can decide if it aligns with your business needs.

Estimated Shopify Plus Costs in a Glance

Here is a table breaking down the potential costs of running a Shopify Plus store in 2024:

Cost Category	Estimated Cost
Monthly Subscription	$2,300 – $2,500 per month for standard setups or a variable platform fee for more complex business structures
Transaction Fees with Shopify Payments	No transaction fees, only card processing fees
Transaction Fee for using third-party payment processors	Card processing fees and an additional 0.20% per transaction
Card Processing Fees	Rates vary by country
Third-Party Apps and Software	$500 to $1,000+ per month
Premium Shopify Theme	$150 – $500 one-time purchase
Custom Theme Development	$2,000 – $15,000
Custom Functionality Development	$5,000 – $20,000
Domain Name	$10 – $20 per year
Tap-to-Pay on iPhone	Free up to 100 transactions per month; after that, $0.25 per transaction
Partner Services	Variable based on services used, typically $100 – $200 hourly
Data Migration and Launch Services	Variable based on scope, typically $500 – $5,000
Maintenance Costs	Variable based on ongoing needs

How Much Does Shopify Plus Cost?

Before discussing Shopify Plus’s pricing details, let’s look at its core value proposition. 

Shopify Plus is designed for high-growth eCommerce companies and claims to be a smart investment that saves money in the long run. It saves you a ton of time as Shopify takes care of server management and infrastructure, including hosting, performance optimization, security updates, and upgrades. 

Reduced transaction fees and higher checkout conversion contribute to a lower total cost of ownership. Plus, tools like Launchpad and Shopify Flow can automate many repetitive tasks, significantly reducing operational costs. All this leads to long-term savings and a strong return on investment (ROI).

Now, let’s dissect the core pricing structure of Shopify Plus.

Monthly License fee

Shopify Plus offers a transparent and predictable fee structure with the following base fees:

• 1-Year Term: Starting at a minimum of $2,500/month.
• 3-Year Term: Starting at a minimum of $2,300/month or a variable platform fee for more complex business structures.

For up-to-date information, it’s always best to consult directly with Shopify Plus for a personalized quote. You can reach out to them here.

Variable Platform Fee

The minimum license fees we discussed are for standard setups and integrations. More complex and higher volume businesses switch to a variable platform fee based on their revenue and business model:

• 1-Year Option: The platform fee increases to 0.40% of direct-to-consumer (D2C) volume and 0.18% of business-to-business (B2B) volume, or a minimum of $2,500 (whichever is higher).
• 3-Year Option: Users who commit to a three-year contract enjoy a discounted variable rate of 0.35% of monthly sales volume or a minimum of $2,300 (whichever is higher).

These license fees cover the core features and functionalities of the platform, plus additional access to enterprise-level exclusive features, such as:

• Unlimited Staff Accounts
• Up to 200 Inventory Locations
• Nine Expansion Stores
• Up to 100 Themes
• 20 POS Pro Locations
• Access to the Shopify Plus Partner Program
• Dedicated Support

Bonus Tip: Don’t forget to negotiate the Shopify Plus pricing with Shopify’s sales team for potential discounts or alternative pricing structures that fit your business needs and budget.

Shopify Plus Pricing: Additional Costs & Fees To Run Your Store

The monthly fee covers many aspects of the service, but that’s not the whole story! There are additional costs to consider before you finalize your budget. These extra fees can add up, so it’s important to factor them in.

Let’s break down these additional costs to give you a clear picture of how much running a Shopify Plus store might actually cost:

Transaction Fees

Standard Transaction Fees with Shopify Payments

Shopify Plus merchants who use Shopify Payments as their main payment gateway will get transaction fees waived for all other payment methods used in their store. This can be a significant cost saving.

You only pay for online and in-person card fees, which usually range from 2.9% + $0.30 to 2.15% per transaction. These rates vary by country but are the lowest of any plan.

You have to contact Shopify for the most up-to-date rates for your location.

Third-Party Transaction Fees in Shopify Plus

Third-party transaction fees are charges that apply to each transaction when you use a third-party payment provider to take customer payments. 

If you use a third-party processor as your main payment method, you’ll pay two sets of fees:

1. The fees charged by your payment processor
2. An additional 0.20% per transaction fee to Shopify for security and compliance costs

While this is lower than the fees on standard Shopify plans, it can add up depending on your sales volume.

Shopify calculates these third-party transaction fees based on a formula:

[(cost of products – discounts) + tax + shipping charges] x rate

Transaction fees don’t apply to:

• Point-of-sale (POS) orders
• Manual payment methods like cash on delivery (COD), bank deposits, checks, gift cards, and test or draft orders marked as paid or pending

International Transactions

If your business operates internationally, you need to watch out for currency conversion fees and other charges. Shopify Plus does support multiple currencies, but keep in mind that these transactions might come with extra costs.

Tap to Pay on iPhone

You can use Tap-to-Pay on iPhone to accept contactless credit cards or debit cards and all digital wallets. However, it comes with some additional fees. Stores can enjoy up to 100 Tap-to-Pay transactions per month without any extra charges. After that, there’s a fee of $0.25 USD per transaction for the rest of the month. 

Shipping Label Fees

When you purchase shipping labels through Shopify Shipping, the costs are billed directly through your Shopify account and are separate from your Shopify Plus subscription. This includes:

• The base cost of the shipping label
• Any shipping insurance you purchase
• Any adjustments charged by the shipping carrier

The tax rules for shipping fees can vary by country, you can refer to Shopify’s guide on Taxes on shipping labels. 

Shopify Services Costs

Shopify Tax Pricing

If you’re selling to customers in the United States on Shopify Plus, you can use Shopify Tax for free on the first $100,000 USD of US sales each calendar year. This $100,000 threshold applies to each of your stores individually.

So if you have multiple stores, each one gets its first $100,000 in US sales tax-free annually. Once a store exceeds the threshold, the following fees apply, up to a maximum of $5,000 USD per store:

• A 0.25% calculation fee is charged on orders where tax is calculated in Shopify Plus stores
• Fees don’t apply to sales in states where you don’t collect tax

There are also some important fee caps to be aware of:

• No matter how large the order total, you won’t be charged more than $0.99 USD per order
• No matter how much you sell in a calendar year, you won’t be charged more than $5,000 USD per store

This fee is charged to you on your Shopify subscription invoice. It’s not passed on to your customers and doesn’t appear on their invoices.

Shopify Email

As a Shopify Plus merchant, you receive 10,000 free emails to send at the beginning of every month. Any additional email costs beyond the free 10,000 per month are added to your regular Shopify bill for the previous month. Here is how Email cost is calculated:

• Emails are counted based on each individual email address that an email activity is sent to. For example, sending one promotional email to 700 subscribers counts as 700 emails.
• Unused emails do not carry over to the following month.

If you need to send additional emails beyond the 10,000 free limit, there are tiered pricing rates:

• $1 USD per 1,000 additional emails up to 300,000 emails
• $0.65 USD per 1,000 additional emails after 300,000 emails
• $0.55 USD per 1,000 additional emails after 750,000 emails
• You will not be billed for the additional emails until the cost reaches $0.005 USD.

Taxes

If you live in a region where Shopify is legally required to charge taxes on your account charges, you’ll see these taxes on your Shopify invoice. These taxes are for your Shopify subscription and aren’t affected by the products or services you sell.

You can read Shopify’s taxes for more information.

Domain Price

If you don’t already have a domain name, you can purchase one directly through Shopify. Shopify domain prices typically start at $10 per year but can vary based on the domain extension you choose.

Customization and Development Costs

Shopify Plus offers extensive customization options, but this can incur additional development costs. Implementing custom functionality can cost $5,000 to $20,000 or more, depending on the complexity. 

Check out the complete breakdown of Shopify Website Development cost.

Custom Scripts 

One of the standout features of Shopify Plus is the ability to use custom scripts for advanced functionality. However, creating and maintaining these scripts may require hiring a Shopify developer, adding to your overall costs.

Learn more about How Much Does It Cost to Hire a Shopify Expert.

Apps & Add-ons

Shopify Plus provides access to a wide ecosystem of free and paid apps. You may need to invest in add-ons to enhance your store’s capabilities. 

These can range from marketing tools to advanced analytics. While some apps are free, others have subscription fees ranging from $500 to $1000+ per month.

Advanced API Access

Shopify Plus lets you connect your store to other systems like CRM or inventory software through APIs. This can be super useful, but it also adds costs:

• Merchants may need to hire Shopify Plus certified developers to build out custom API-powered features and integrations. Developer rates can range from $100 to $200+ per hour.
• If the custom API integrations require additional third-party services or APIs, there may be recurring subscription fees for those external tools.
• Increased API usage can also potentially impact transaction fees if the custom functionality drives significantly higher order volumes.

Tip: Clearly define your API requirements and set a budget for customization to avoid unexpected costs.

Theme Customizations

While Shopify Plus offers a range of themes, including free and paid themes ranging from $150 to $500, customizing them to match your brand’s identity may require additional development work. Custom theme development can range from $2,000 to $15,000. This can include everything from design tweaks to full-scale redesigns.  

Maintenance Costs

Shopify Plus is a fully hosted platform, so the core maintenance costs, like server fees, security patches, and platform updates, are included in the monthly subscription fee.

However, there can still be some ongoing maintenance costs for Shopify Plus merchants, such as:

• Updating custom themes or apps
• Hiring a Shopify Plus certified expert for complex maintenance tasks
• Ongoing QA and testing

Read more: Is Shopify Plus Worth Investing? (link)

How Much Does it Cost to Migrate to Shopify Plus?

Shopify doesn’t charge you for the migration itself, but there are paid services available to accommodate custom needs of Shopify Plus Migration.

The cost of migrating to Shopify Plus depends on several factors, such as the size of your business, the amount of data you need to migrate, and the plan you choose. Generally, the cost ranges from $500 to $5,000+.

When Should You Upgrade to Shopify Plus?

Shopify Plus can be a good fit if:

• Your business is experiencing high growth and needs an enterprise-level ecommerce platform.
• You require advanced features, customization, and automation capabilities.
• You are expanding globally and need multi-currency support.
• You have a sales volume exceeding $100,000 per month.
• You want to streamline operations and reduce the total cost of ownership compared to self-hosted solutions.

Learn more about Shopify vs Shopify Plus! (link)

Considering a move to Shopify Plus?

No doubt, Shopify Plus comes with a premium price tag compared to standard Shopify plans, but the advanced features, robust customization options, global approach, lower transaction fees, high checkout conversion rates, and dedicated support make it a worthwhile investment for enterprise-level businesses. 

Shopify Plus can help businesses manage their operational costs more efficiently and drive growth, ultimately leading to a higher return on investment.

If you need any help with Shopify Plus, feel free to get in touch with us.

FAQs

Is Shopify Plus expensive?

Shopify Plus is considered a premium solution. The base fee for businesses, depending on the contract terms, starts from $2,300/month to $2,500/month and can go up based on the specific needs and scale of the business. The cost can increase further with additional services and customizations.

However, Shopify Plus offers advanced features, more customization options, automation tools, and dedicated support aimed at high-volume and enterprise-level businesses, which can justify the higher cost for larger or rapidly growing businesses.

Is there a setup fee for Shopify Plus?

Shopify Plus does not impose any setup fees. You can start using the platform and its features without any initial costs beyond the regular subscription fee.

What is the minimum revenue for Shopify Plus?

There is no strict minimum revenue requirement, however Shopify Plus is generally considered best suited for high-growth, enterprise-level businesses doing over $1 million in annual sales.

Are there any discounts available for long-term Shopify Plus subscriptions?

Yes, If you go for a 3-year Shopify Plus plan, you’ll get a monthly discount and lower online variable platform fees. You can also negotiate with Shopify’s sales team to get discounted prices.