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Shopify Fees: Every Plan, Card Rate and Extra Charge Explained

Shopify fees come in three layers: a monthly plan (from $29 a month on the Basic plan paid yearly, or $39 paid monthly), a card processing rate on every online sale (2.9% + 30¢ on Basic with Shopify Payments), and extra fees if you use an outside payment provider or sync lots of orders from other channels. These are Shopify's US prices in US dollars as of October 2026.

Most people look at the plan price and stop there. The plan is the predictable part. The card rate and the extras are what decide how much of each sale you keep, and they change depending on which plan you're on. I read Shopify's own pricing page and its plan comparison table to pull every number on this page, so you can see the whole picture before you open a store.

Shopify plan prices as of October 2026

PlanPaid yearlyWho Shopify pitches it at
Basic$29 a month ($39 if you pay monthly)Solo entrepreneurs
Grow$79 a monthSmall teams, up to 5 staff accounts
Advanced$299 a monthStores selling across regions, up to 15 staff accounts
PlusFrom $2,300 a monthComplex businesses with unlimited staff accounts

New stores start with a 3-day free trial, then Shopify offers $1 a month for 3 months before the normal plan price kicks in. Shopify's pricing page lists these in US dollars, and it shows local prices in some other countries, so check your own country's page if you're outside the US.

Card rates you pay on every sale

If you use Shopify Payments, each online card sale carries a percentage plus a fixed amount. The rate drops as you move up the plans:

PlanOnline card rateThird-party provider fee
Basic2.9% + 30¢2%
GrowFrom 2.7% + 30¢1%
AdvancedFrom 2.5% + 30¢0.6%
PlusFrom 2.25% + 30¢0.2%

On the Basic plan, Shopify also lists 3.5% + 30¢ for premium cards, an extra 1% for international cards, and 2.6% + 10¢ for in-person card sales with a card reader.

The third-party gateway fee that catches people out

This is the fee most new sellers don't see coming. If you take payments through a provider other than Shopify Payments, Shopify adds its own transaction fee on top of whatever that provider charges you: 2% of each sale on Basic, falling to 0.2% on Plus. You're paying two companies for one payment. Shopify's comparison table also notes that its built-in fraud analysis and shipping insurance need Shopify Payments, so switching it off costs you features as well.

Synced orders from other sales channels

Another line in Shopify's comparison table that's easy to miss: if you pull orders into Shopify from other selling sites like Amazon or eBay, the first 50 synced orders each month are free. Over 50 synced orders, Shopify charges 1% of those orders, capped at $99 a month. If most of your sales happen elsewhere and Shopify is just your hub, that cap matters.

Add-ons that change the monthly total

  • POS Pro for physical shops: $89 a month per location.
  • Apps from the Shopify App Store: priced by each app maker, so read each one before you install it.
  • Themes: Shopify offers free themes, and paid ones are sold separately by designers.

What Shopify gives back on each plan

Shopify's pricing page also lists a few things that offset the fees. Each plan shows credits you can earn (up to $5,000 on Basic, $7,500 on Grow and $10,000 on Advanced), and the Basic comparison table lists 1% back on all sales up to $5,000. Shipping discounts of up to 87% are listed too, along with unlimited email contacts and pay-per-send SMS campaigns. None of that changes the card rate, but it's part of what you get for the plan price.

Another builder with a trial is covered in our Squarespace trial walkthrough.

How to work out your real monthly Shopify bill

  1. Start with your plan price, paid monthly or yearly.
  2. Take your expected online card sales for the month and apply your plan's card rate, plus the fixed amount per order.
  3. Add the extra 1% for any international cards.
  4. If you use an outside payment provider, add Shopify's fee for your plan and that provider's own charges.
  5. Add apps, POS Pro and any synced-order fee from other sales channels.

Do this once with real order numbers from a typical month. It's the quickest way to see whether moving up a plan pays for itself.

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If you're still choosing a platform, my guide on choosing an ecommerce platform for a small business walks through the questions to ask first, and once you're live, it helps to know the Shopify store benchmarks worth tracking.

Plain advice for new Shopify sellers

Use Shopify Payments unless you have a strong reason not to, because the 2% outside-provider fee on Basic is pure extra. Start on Basic paid yearly, and only move up when the lower card rate on Grow saves you more than the plan difference. Do that sum with your real monthly sales, not a guess. And if you sell mostly through other channels, count your synced orders before you assume Shopify is the cheap option.

Do you make ecommerce or payments software? Tool makers can ask to be considered for a featured mention in guides like this one.

Frequently asked questions

How much are Shopify fees per sale?

On the Basic plan with Shopify Payments, Shopify lists 2.9% + 30¢ for online card sales in the US, as of October 2026. The rate falls to 2.7% + 30¢ on Grow and 2.5% + 30¢ on Advanced.

Does Shopify charge a fee if I use PayPal or Stripe?

If you use a third-party payment provider instead of Shopify Payments, Shopify adds its own fee: 2% on Basic, 1% on Grow, 0.6% on Advanced and 0.2% on Plus, on top of the provider's charges.

Is there a free Shopify plan?

No. Shopify offers a 3-day free trial, then $1 a month for 3 months, then the normal plan price. Basic is $29 a month paid yearly or $39 paid monthly.

What is the cheapest Shopify plan?

Basic is the entry plan at $29 a month when paid yearly, according to Shopify's US pricing page as of October 2026.

Does Shopify charge for orders from Amazon or eBay?

Shopify lists 50 synced orders from other channels free each month, then 1% of synced orders, up to $99 a month.

Published and maintained by the Lilach Bullock team, covering marketing, AI and business growth.
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