You know the total
A fixed price for a stated scope removes the open-ended hourly bill.
Cost guide
How Much Does a Shopify Store Cost? A Plain Cost Guide
The cost of a Shopify store is several smaller costs added together. This guide lists them, shows what moves each one and explains how to budget without surprises.
- The six cost areas of a Shopify store
- Reported agency and freelancer ranges
- How to budget in stages
- Where fixed prices remove guesswork
Cost areas6
Our smallest task$29
Since2015
The honest answer
It Depends, and Here Is on What
Anyone who quotes a single price for a Shopify store is leaving things out.
A Shopify store has a running cost and a build cost. Running costs are the plan, any apps, the domain and payment processing fees. Build costs are the theme, the design and development work, the content, and any migration from another platform. Each can be small or large depending on your choices.
We do not print Shopify plan prices, app fees or payment rates in this guide because they change. Check Shopify's pricing page and each app's page for current figures. What we can explain is what each area includes and what moves it up or down.
For design and development work, reported ranges are a useful guide. Industry price guides report that small Shopify fixes cost about $100 to $500 at agencies, and from about $25 an hour at freelancers. These are reported ranges, not our prices. Our fixed prices for small tasks start at $29.
The six areas
What Makes Up the Cost of a Shopify Store
| Area | What it includes | What moves it |
|---|---|---|
| Plan and running costs | Your Shopify plan, domain and payment processing | Store size and the features you need |
| Theme | A free or paid theme and its license | How far the theme fits your products without changes |
| Design and development | Layout, sections, custom features and fixes | How much is custom and how many templates are touched |
| Apps | Reviews, subscriptions, loyalty, search and more | How many apps and which plans |
| Content | Product data, photos, copy, graphics | Catalogue size and quality of your starting material |
| Migration | Moving products, customers and content from another platform | Data volume and how clean it is |
For current prices of plans and apps, use Shopify's and each provider's own pages.
Budgeting
A Staged Way to Budget a New Store
Start with the essentials
Plan, domain, theme and the pages every store needs.
Add what shoppers expect
Trust pages, clear shipping and returns, and a reviewed checkout.
Add what sells
Product page features, photography and copy for your best sellers.
Add what finds customers
Tracking, SEO basics and speed.
Add what grows it
Email, conversion work and care once the store has traffic.
Where fixed prices help
Three Ways a Fixed Price Lowers Risk
You can buy in steps
Small tasks from $29 let you improve one thing at a time.
Scope is written down
Anything outside it is quoted before work begins.
Common traps
Cost Surprises to Avoid
Do
- List apps and their plans before you commit
- Budget for content, not just design
- Price a migration separately
- Ask what is outside the scope
Avoid
- Judging a quote without its scope
- Ignoring running costs
- Paying for features you will not use
- Assuming a theme needs no work
Running costs
The Ongoing Costs of a Shopify Store Explained
Running costs repeat every month or every year, so they deserve the most careful planning.
Running costs are what you pay to keep a store open, whether or not you change anything. They are easy to underestimate because each one looks small on its own. We do not print current prices here because Shopify and app vendors change them. Check each provider's pricing page for today's figures, and use the list below to make sure you do not forget any line.
Your Shopify plan
Every store pays for a plan. Plans differ in features, staff accounts and fees, so the right one depends on your size and needs. The plans guide explains what changes for design work. Plan fees are paid to Shopify.
Your domain
A custom domain is an annual cost paid to a registrar or through Shopify. It is small compared with other costs, but it should be in your own name and renewal should be on your calendar.
Payment processing
Each sale carries a processing fee set by your payment provider. These fees scale with sales, so they matter more as you grow. Compare providers for your country, and read the terms for international cards and currency conversion.
Apps
Many stores use several apps, such as reviews, email, subscriptions or shipping tools. Each has its own plan and may charge more as you grow. List every app and its plan before you commit, and review the list every few months. Apps you no longer use should be removed, because they cost money and can slow the store.
Transaction and shipping costs
Shipping labels, packaging and returns are real costs that sit outside Shopify. Include them in your pricing, so your margins are accurate.
A useful habit is to write a one-page monthly cost sheet with every running cost on it. It takes ten minutes and prevents most budget surprises.
Build costs
What You Pay Once: Theme, Design, Content and Migration
Build costs happen at the start or at a redesign. They are larger, less frequent and easier to control.
The theme
A free theme costs nothing to license and is often a good starting point. A paid theme has a one-time license fee and may offer more layouts and features. Either way, the cost of making it fit your products is separate and is often larger than the license.
Design and development
This is where costs vary most. A small fix is cheap, a custom section costs more and a full custom build costs most. The price follows the amount of custom work, not the size of the store. Our small tasks start at $29, and store design and build services start at $290, each with a fixed price shown in a calculator.
Content
A beautiful store with thin product pages sells poorly. Product photos, descriptions, size guides, policies and an about page all take time or money. Budget for content as carefully as for design. Our content and creative services start at $69.
Migration
Moving from another platform is its own project: data transfer, redirects, testing and a launch plan. Price it separately, because the effort depends on how clean your data is and how many pages need redirects.
Marketing and tools
A store needs traffic, and traffic costs time or money. Email, search, social and advertising each have separate budgets that sit outside this guide.
Planning aid
A Simple Budget Worksheet
Fill in your own numbers from current price pages and quotes. We have left the figures blank on purpose because they change.
| Line | One-time or running | Where to find the number |
|---|---|---|
| Shopify plan | Running | Shopify's pricing page |
| Domain | Running (yearly) | Your registrar or Shopify |
| Payment processing | Running (per sale) | Your payment provider |
| Apps | Running | Each app's pricing page |
| Theme license | One-time | The theme's page |
| Design and development | One-time | Our service calculators or a quote |
| Content | One-time | Our content services or your own estimate |
| Migration | One-time | A migration service or a scoped quote |
| Marketing | Running | Your own plan |
Saving money safely
Six Ways to Lower Cost Without Lowering Quality
Saving money is about removing waste, not removing value.
Start with the essentials
Launch with the pages and features customers need first, then add more as you learn.
Write a clear brief
A clear brief shortens the job and reduces revisions.
Supply your own assets
Logos, photos and copy ready at the start save time.
Use fewer apps
Each app costs money and speed. Keep only those that pay for themselves.
Fix the biggest problem first
Order one well-chosen task and judge the result before spending more.
Choose standard delivery
Faster delivery costs more. Use it only when a date really matters.
Common questions
Mistakes That Make Shopify Stores Cost More Than Planned
These are the budget errors we see most often.
- Forgetting apps. Several small monthly fees add up faster than any single one suggests.
- Skipping content. A store without good product pages needs a second round of work later.
- Choosing a theme for its demo. The cost of making it fit often exceeds the license.
- Paying for features nobody uses. Every feature is a cost to build, test and maintain.
- Comparing quotes without scopes. A cheap quote may leave out revisions, testing or handover.
- Ignoring running costs. A build budget alone does not keep a store open.
- No maintenance plan. Small issues left alone become bigger jobs.
Related searches
What a Shopify Store Costs
Short answers to questions people often search for on this topic.
How much does a Shopify store cost per month?
How much a Shopify store costs per month depends on your plan, apps and payment fees. A Shopify store monthly cost list should include each of them. Check Shopify's pricing page for current plan prices.
What does a Shopify website cost to build?
Shopify website cost includes the theme, design and development, content and migration. A Shopify development cost can be small for a fix and larger for a custom build. Our fixed prices show each part.
What is the Shopify store design cost?
Shopify store design cost depends on how much custom work you need. Our store design and build services start at $290, and each page shows packages and options.
How much does it cost to start or make a Shopify store?
How much it costs to start a Shopify store depends on plan, domain, theme, products and photos. Shopify store costs and plans, fees and profit are different questions, so budget each separately.
What are Shopify store costs and fees compared?
A Shopify store costs comparison should list plan, payment fees, apps, theme, design and marketing. The cost of Shopify store setup is usually the smallest part of the long-term total.
Related searches
Searches That Lead to This Page
People describe this topic in different ways when they search. These are the common ones.
You may also have come across “what does a shopify store cost”, “shopify store costs and profit” or “cost shopify store setup”.
Owners also search for “shopify online store cost”, “how much does it cost to start shopify store” or “how much does it cost to make a shopify store”.
FAQ
Cost Questions Answered
Budgets, ranges and where the money goes. Open any question for the full answer.
How much does a Shopify store cost?
It depends on your plan, theme, apps, content and the design work you buy. We do not print plan prices, so check Shopify's pricing page for current figures.
How much does a Shopify expert cost?
Reported agency ranges for small fixes are about $100 to $500, and freelancers from about $25 an hour. Our fixed prices for small tasks start at $29.
Is a theme free?
Some are, and some are paid. Check the theme store for current prices.
What do apps cost?
Each app has its own plan. We show app plans before you pay and never add them silently.
How much should I budget for content?
Plan for it separately. Photos, product data and copy are often a large share of a launch.
What does migration cost?
It depends on data volume and platform. Our migration services start at $390 and show their totals.
Can I build in stages?
Yes. Start with essentials and add services as the store grows.
How do fixed prices help?
You know the total and scope before you pay, and extras are quoted first.
What costs should I plan for before launch?
Your plan, domain, theme, essential pages, product content, payment set-up and any apps you need. The budget worksheet above lists each line.
Why do you not publish Shopify plan prices?
Plans and prices change. The only reliable source is Shopify's own pricing page, so we point you there instead of printing numbers that could be out of date.
Is a free theme enough?
For many stores, yes. The cost lies in making it fit your products, which is often similar for free and paid themes.
How much should I spend on apps?
Spend only on apps that pay for themselves. List each app with its plan and review the list every few months.
Is a redesign cheaper than many small fixes?
Sometimes. When small fixes add up to the cost of a redesign, a redesign can give a more consistent result. Our guide on choosing the right service type helps you decide.
Can fixed prices really cover custom work?
Yes for defined jobs. For work outside the catalogue, a quote gives one fixed price for a written scope.
Ready when you are
Turn the Budget Into a Price
Choose a service and watch its exact total build in the calculator.
- Fixed prices shown before you pay
- Two revision rounds in every package
- A written handover with every job