Shopify Capital is Shopify's own funding programme: eligible merchants get offers of merchant cash advances or loans, depending on their country, and repay them automatically as a fixed percentage of daily sales, only on days they sell. You can't apply cold, though. You wait for Shopify to make you an offer based on your store's data, and you need at least 90 days of selling on Shopify before you're even in the running.
That second part is the bit most store owners miss. There's no form you fill in on a quiet Tuesday because you've decided you want stock for the holidays. Shopify watches how your store performs, decides whether you look like a fit, and then tells you. If nothing has arrived, the only lever you have is the one you'd be pulling anyway: keep selling, keep disputes down and keep customers coming back.
Who can get a Shopify Capital offer
Shopify's Help Center describes Capital as a financing programme that offers merchant cash advances and loans to eligible businesses based on the store's location, history, use and interaction with the Shopify platform. The countries it lists are Australia, Canada, France, Germany, Ireland, the Netherlands, Spain, the United Kingdom and the United States. The marketing page only names the US, Canada, the UK and Australia, so if you're in one of the European countries, go by the Help Center list and check your own admin rather than the sales page.
Two business types are ruled out on the Help Center page: trusts and partnerships aren't supported. If your store is owned through either, an offer isn't coming however well you sell.
The eligibility ladder: from selling to funded
Here's the order things happen in, as Shopify describes it, as of October 2026.
- Keep selling on Shopify. Eligibility is worked out from your Shopify data, and the minimum requirements include at least 90 days of selling and following Shopify's usage policies.
- Wait for the offer. Shopify emails you when you're eligible and shows the offer on the Home page of your admin.
- Read the offer details, especially the repayment percentage, before you go any further.
- Submit the application with your business details and the owner information Shopify asks for.
- If you're approved, Shopify says funding can arrive in as quick as two business days.
Notice the wording on step two. Shopify says plainly that offers to apply don't guarantee funding. An offer means you've made it past the first gate, not that the cash is yours.
How Shopify decides: the two-stage underwriting
Shopify's underwriting model uses machine learning to analyse data about your business, and the page names three things it looks at: your sales, your disputes and your customer engagement. That's stage one, and its job is to spot stores that may prequalify. Stage two is human: the Shopify Capital team reviews your application to decide whether you qualify for the amount you asked for.
So the amount on screen and the amount you get can be different conversations. If you ask for the top of the range, expect the review stage to look harder at whether your sales history supports it.
How repayment works
This is the part I'd want every merchant to understand before they click anything. You don't make a fixed monthly payment. Instead, a fixed percentage of your store's daily sales goes towards repaying the advance or loan, and only on days you make sales. Strong days repay more, slow days repay less, and a day with no sales repays nothing.
That flex is the selling point, and it's a real one for seasonal stores. The flip side is that the deduction comes out of every sale while the balance is open, so your cash flow on busy days is lower than your sales figures suggest. Plan your stock and ad spend around what lands in your account, not what lands in your orders list.
| Question | What Shopify says |
|---|---|
| Can I apply whenever I want? | No: you receive an offer by email or on the admin Home if you're eligible |
| Minimum time on Shopify | At least 90 days selling |
| Credit check? | Shopify says no credit check and no impact on your personal credit score |
| How is it repaid? | A fixed percentage of daily sales, only on days you sell |
| Longest term (US) | 18 months maximum, 2 minimum payments apply |
| Countries (Help Center) | AU, CA, FR, DE, IE, NL, ES, UK, US |
In the US, all loans are issued by WebBank. Shopify says the maximum repayment term there is 18 months and that 2 minimum payments apply, and that the real repayment period may be shorter. Once you've repaid a certain percentage of the current round, more funding may be offered, and each round is a separate funding agreement with its own terms.
What Shopify promises, in its own words
These are Shopify's claims from its Capital page, so read them as the vendor's description rather than my guarantee:
Want AI doing the heavy lifting in your marketing?
I build the systems that handle the boring 80 percent, so you get your week back. Done properly, with the human kept in.
- No credit checks and no impact on your personal credit score.
- Minimal paperwork.
- Funding in as quick as two business days if you're approved.
- Real-time offers based on your sales, with funding of up to 2 million dollars according to a footnote on the US page, as of October 2026.
- Early renewals, no personal liability and no compounding interest.
Minimal paperwork doesn't mean none. To apply, you give basic business information and, as the authorised representative, an employer identification number or other identifier, plus the contact details, birth dates, addresses and social security numbers of the primary owners and management. Shopify states that this information won't be used for a credit check. Have it ready before you open the application so you're not hunting for a co-owner's details halfway through.
What merchants use it for
Shopify lists inventory, marketing, operations and payroll as typical uses, and the Help Center adds renting a physical retail space and hiring staff. If you use Shopify Sidekick, you can ask it about your active Capital offers and your repayment progress. Shopify's own example prompts ask which Capital offers you have and what your remittance rate is, which is a quick way to see where a balance stands without digging through reports.
The same Shopify Finance area also includes a Shopify Credit business card and Shopify Bill Pay. They're separate products with their own terms, so don't assume anything about Capital carries across to them.
Before you accept an offer
Because the offer turns up inside the tool you already use every day, it can feel like a formality. Treat it like any other funding decision instead:
- Read the full agreement and the repayment percentage, and work out what that share of a normal sales day looks like for your store.
- Check how long repayment could run on a slow season, and remember the US maximum term and minimum payments.
- Be clear on what the cash is for and how it pays itself back: stock you know sells is a different bet from an untested ad channel.
- Look at your other options side by side. My guide to alternative small business loans is a good place to compare, and these questions to ask before applying for a business loan apply here too.
- Factor it into your running costs alongside the platform itself. If you're still weighing those up, here's what Shopify costs in full.
My verdict
Shopify Capital is convenient. It sits right in your admin, you don't fill in a mountain of forms, and repayment bends with your sales instead of hitting you on a fixed date. For a store with steady orders and a clear use for the cash, that's a real advantage. But a percentage of every day's sales is still leaving your account until the balance is cleared, so read the agreement line by line and be honest about whether the thing you're funding will earn it back. This isn't financial advice, and I'm not recommending you borrow: I'm explaining how the offer works so you can make that call with your eyes open.
Frequently asked questions
Can I apply for Shopify Capital?
Not in the usual sense. Shopify emails you and shows an offer on your admin Home if you're eligible, and you apply from that offer. Offers to apply don't guarantee funding.
How long do I need to sell on Shopify before getting an offer?
Shopify's minimum requirements include selling on Shopify for at least 90 days and following its usage policies.
Does Shopify Capital check my credit?
Shopify says there's no credit check and no impact on your personal credit score, and that the owner details you give won't be used for a credit check.
How do you repay Shopify Capital?
A fixed percentage of your store's daily sales goes towards repayment, only on days you make sales. In the US the maximum term is 18 months and 2 minimum payments apply.
Which countries is Shopify Capital available in?
Shopify's Help Center lists Australia, Canada, France, Germany, Ireland, the Netherlands, Spain, the United Kingdom and the United States. Trusts and partnerships aren't supported.
