How much does a Shopify store cost? A realistic budget

A Shopify store costs at least $29 to $39 a month for the plan, plus payment fees on each sale. On top of that come one-off costs (theme, setup, photos) and recurring ones (apps, domain). The number that matters is not the plan price but the total over your first year.

The Shopify plan

These are the prices listed on Shopify’s pricing page in November 2026, in US dollars. They change, so check before you budget.

Shopify also advertises a three-day trial followed by $1 a month for three months. To sell, you need a paid plan: until then, you cannot remove your store password.

Fees on each sale

Online card rates start at 2.9% + 30¢ on Basic and fall on higher plans. If you use a third-party payment provider, Shopify adds a transaction fee of 2% on Basic, 1% on Grow and 0.6% on Advanced. On a $50 order on Basic with Shopify’s card rate, that is about $1.75.

The costs people forget

• Theme. Free themes are enough to launch. A paid theme is a one-off purchase.
• Apps. Many are billed monthly. Ten small subscriptions can cost more than the plan itself, so add them one at a time.
• Domain. A yearly fee, usually small.
• Photos. Often the largest hidden cost, in money or in time.
• Your time. Writing product pages, setting up collections, menus and policies takes days, not hours.

Three ways to get the store built

Forgefont builds the whole store from your products and photos, in a theme that stays unpublished until you approve it. Compare the three plans or configure your store to see the exact price with your options.