Choosing a Shopify plan looks simple until you start comparing subscription costs, card fees, staff accounts and international selling features. The cheapest plan can become expensive if it limits how you actually run your store.
This guide breaks down Shopify pricing in the UK for 2026. We’ll look at what each pricing plan costs, what you get and when paying more makes commercial sense.
How Much Does Shopify Cost in 2026?
So, how much does Shopify cost in 2026? For UK merchants, the answer depends on your plan, billing cycle, payment setup and any extras you add.
Shopify currently lists Basic, Grow, Advanced and Plus as its main plans. Annual billing costs £19, £49 and £259 per month for the first three plans. Shopify Plus starts from £1,800 per month on a three-year term.
Here’s the current Shopify pricing overview for UK businesses:
| Shopify plan | Monthly billing | Annual billing |
|---|---|---|
| Basic | £25/month | £19/month |
| Grow | £65/month | £49/month |
| Advanced | £344/month | £259/month |
| Plus | Custom | From £1,800/month* |
Shopify Plus starts at £1,800 per month on a three-year term. A one-year term starts at £1,950 per month. More complex businesses may pay a variable platform fee.
Annual billing therefore saves 24–25% across Basic, Grow and Advanced at current UK prices. That difference becomes meaningful as your subscription cost increases.
But your Shopify cost does not stop at the plan fee.
What else affects the cost of Shopify?
Every Shopify store needs to budget beyond its subscription. Depending on your setup, costs can include Shopify apps, premium themes, domain costs, Shopify POS and development work.
Payment processing deserves particular attention. If you’re using Shopify Payments, Shopify says there are no additional third-party transaction fees on orders processed solely through it.
Use a third-party payment provider instead, and Shopify may charge a transaction fee on top of your provider’s processing fees. The rate varies depending on your Shopify plan.
That is where the apparent hidden cost often sits. Don’t compare Shopify plans using the subscription fee alone.
Shopify Starter Pricing and Who It Is For
Shopify Starter sits below the main ecommerce plans. It was designed for merchants selling through social media, messaging apps and a simplified storefront rather than a full ecommerce site.
There is an important 2026 catch, though. Shopify’s Help Center now states that Starter is not available to new stores. Existing Starter merchants can keep using it, but cannot return after moving to another plan.
That makes Starter increasingly relevant to existing users rather than brands choosing Shopify today.
What does the Shopify Starter plan include?
Starter gives existing users a lightweight way to sell products without running a conventional Shopify store. You can create product links and share them through social posts and messages.
The trade-off is flexibility. Starter does not support product collections, staff accounts or POS Pro. It also limits merchants to the Spotlight theme rather than Shopify’s broader theme library.
For a creator testing demand or an existing merchant selling a handful of products socially, that may be enough. For an ecommerce brand expecting organic traffic, larger catalogues or serious CRO work, it becomes restrictive quickly.
If you’re starting a new store in 2026, Basic is the more relevant entry point.
Shopify Basic Pricing and Who Should Choose It
Shopify Basic is where the platform starts making sense for most new ecommerce businesses. You get a full online store without paying for team features you may not need yet.
Basic currently costs £25 per month when billed monthly or £19 per month with annual billing. That annual option works out at £228 across the year.
What do you get with Shopify Basic?
The Shopify Basic plan includes unlimited products, a full online store, inventory management and Shopify’s checkout. You also get marketing features, reports and the ability to sell across social channels and marketplaces.
Shopify currently lists standard UK online card rates from 2% + 25p on Basic. The listed third-party transaction fee is 2% when applicable.
Basic does not include additional staff accounts. Collaborator access remains available, so an external Shopify agency or freelancer can still work on the store.
Who should use Shopify Basic?
Basic is a sensible starting point for independent brands, founder-led businesses and smaller ecommerce teams. It gives you the core Shopify experience without paying for operational capacity you do not yet use.
Don’t upgrade simply because your revenue hits an arbitrary milestone. Look at whether the next Shopify plan actually reduces costs or removes an operational bottleneck.
If you need internal staff accounts, lower payment rates or more sophisticated operations, Grow becomes worth examining.
Shopify Grow Pricing and When It Makes Sense
Shopify Grow is the middle ground between running a lean store and operating a growing ecommerce team. It was previously called the Shopify plan, with Shopify changing the name to Grow in April 2025.
The Grow plan currently costs £65 per month on monthly billing. Pay annually and that drops to £49 per month, or £588 across the year.
What changes when you move to Grow?
Grow includes everything in Basic but supports up to five additional staff accounts. That matters once fulfilment, merchandising, customer service and marketing are no longer handled by one person.
Payment costs also fall. Shopify currently lists UK online card rates from 1.7% + 25p, compared with 2% + 25p on Basic. Its listed third-party transaction fee also falls from 2% to 1%.
That difference is small per order but becomes increasingly relevant as transaction volume rises.
When is Grow worth the extra cost?
Don’t upgrade because Grow sounds more appropriate for a growing business. Upgrade because the numbers or features justify it.
Suppose your store processes substantial monthly revenue through Shopify Payments. Lower card fees can offset part of the higher subscription cost before you consider staff access.
The other trigger is operational. If several people regularly need Shopify admin access, staying on Basic simply to save £30 each month can become false economy.
Grow is therefore a strong fit for established smaller brands building a proper ecommerce team. You are paying for additional capacity and lower rates, not simply a different label.
Shopify Advanced Pricing for Scaling Businesses
Shopify Advanced is aimed at businesses where international commerce, shipping and transaction costs have become more complicated. The price jump is considerable, so the features need to earn their keep.
Advanced currently costs £344 per month on monthly billing or £259 per month when billed annually. Annual billing therefore brings the subscription cost to £3,108 per year.
What does the Shopify Advanced plan add?
The Advanced plan supports up to 15 staff accounts. It also adds live third-party carrier shipping rates and greater control over how your store appears across different regions.
UK online Shopify Payments card rates currently start from 1.5% + 25p. Shopify lists third-party transaction fees at 0.6%, compared with 1% on Grow.
Those lower processing costs can matter at scale. However, don’t assume the fee reduction alone automatically makes Advanced cheaper.
Run the numbers using your real transaction volume, average order value and payment mix. Then add the value of the international and operational features your team would otherwise need elsewhere.
Who should choose Shopify Advanced?
Advanced makes more sense for established brands with meaningful sales volume and international ambitions. It is also relevant when a larger team needs regular Shopify admin access.
The regional storefront controls are particularly useful when selling across multiple markets. Live third-party shipping rates can also remove friction for businesses with more complicated fulfilment requirements.
If none of those problems exists yet, Grow may still do the job perfectly well. Paying £259 per month for features sitting untouched in your Shopify admin is not scaling.
Shopify Plus Pricing for Enterprise Businesses
Shopify Plus is not simply Advanced with a few more staff accounts. It is Shopify’s enterprise offering for businesses with more complicated commerce requirements.
Shopify Plus pricing currently starts at £1,800 per month on a three-year term. A one-year commitment starts at £1,950 per month, while complex, higher-volume businesses may move onto variable platform pricing.
That is a serious jump from Advanced. The business case needs to be equally serious.
What does Shopify Plus include?
Shopify Plus adds capabilities designed for high-volume and complex businesses. These include unlimited staff accounts, more checkout customisation, advanced B2B functionality and significantly greater platform capacity.
The plan also includes a main store plus nine expansion stores within the platform fee. Additional stores currently cost £250 per month each or may use revenue-share pricing. Shopify
Shopify states that Plus supports 10,000+ checkouts per minute and averages 99.99% uptime worldwide during its biggest sales events. Those numbers matter more to high-volume retailers than another dashboard feature ever will.
Plus also offers unlimited B2B catalogues and more advanced wholesale functionality. That can make Shopify and Shopify Plus very different propositions for brands running both DTC and B2B operations.
When does Shopify Plus make commercial sense?
There is no magic revenue figure where every business should upgrade. Two brands with identical turnover can have completely different technical and operational requirements.
Plus becomes worth investigating when Advanced creates genuine constraints. That could mean checkout requirements, international expansion, B2B operations, multiple stores or demanding integrations.
Payment volume matters too. Shopify lists Plus card rates from 1.3% + 25p on its current UK pricing page, although actual rates can vary.
The useful question is therefore not, “Are we big enough for Plus?” It is, “What is our current setup costing us in fees, apps, development and operational friction?”
If the answer starts approaching the incremental cost of enterprise-level Shopify Plus, the conversation becomes commercially interesting. Until then, an Advanced store configured properly may offer better value.
Shopify POS Pricing for Online and In-Person Selling
If you sell online and face-to-face, your Shopify POS pricing deserves a separate look. The good news is that casual in-person selling is included with every paid Shopify plan. You only need POS Pro when your physical retail operation needs more control.
What does Shopify POS cost?
For UK merchants, Shopify’s current pricing separates your main subscription from the optional POS Pro upgrade. That makes the cost relatively straightforward until you start adding permanent retail locations.
| POS cost | What you pay | Best suited to |
|---|---|---|
| Casual in-person selling | Included with every paid Shopify plan | Markets, pop-ups and occasional retail |
| POS Pro | £69/month per location | Permanent shops with larger teams |
| Basic in-person card rate | From 1.7% | Smaller retailers |
| Grow in-person card rate | From 1.6% | Growing retail operations |
| Advanced in-person card rate | From 1.5% | Higher-volume businesses |
These are Shopify’s published UK rates at the time of writing. Pricing and payment rates can change, so check Shopify before making your final calculation.
POS Pro becomes more useful when staff permissions, inventory workflows and cross-location returns start mattering. It also adds richer customer profiles, retail reporting and more advanced omnichannel features.
For a brand doing three markets each year, that may be overkill. For a retailer running several busy shops, it can solve genuine operational headaches.
Remember the hardware
Your Shopify fee is not necessarily your complete POS bill. Depending on your setup, you may need card readers, tablets, stands, barcode scanners, receipt printers and cash drawers.
That equipment should sit in your first-year budget rather than mysteriously appearing after launch. Shopify also supports Tap to Pay on compatible devices, which can reduce the hardware needed for simpler setups.
Pick the right Shopify plan
Not sure which plan makes commercial sense? Webfuel can help you compare the real costs and choose what fits. Get in touch before you overpay.
Shopify Pricing Calculator for Real Business Scenarios
The cheapest subscription is not automatically the cheapest way to run your store. A useful Shopify pricing calculator should account for revenue, payment volume, apps and operational requirements.
That gives you a much better picture of the actual cost of your Shopify setup.
What should you put into the calculation?
Use this simple framework when comparing the various pricing plans.
| Cost | What to enter |
|---|---|
| Shopify subscription | Monthly or annual cost for the plan that you choose |
| Shopify Payments | Expected card processing charges |
| Third-party payment provider | Provider fees plus applicable Shopify charges |
| Apps | Monthly cost of essential paid apps |
| Theme | Any premium theme purchase |
| Development | Design, CRO, integrations and custom development |
| POS | POS Pro locations and hardware |
| International selling | Currency, localisation and operational costs |
| Ongoing support | Agency, freelancer or internal development costs |
Your monthly revenue matters because credit card fees scale with sales. Your average order value matters too, because fixed per-transaction charges affect a £20 order differently from a £200 order.
For example, Shopify currently lists UK online Shopify Payments rates starting at 2% + 25p on Basic, 1.7% + 25p on Grow and 1.5% + 25p on Advanced.
What if you don’t use Shopify Payments?
This is where calculations can get expensive surprisingly quickly.
If you’re not using Shopify Payments, Shopify currently applies an additional third-party transaction fee. The published UK rates are 2% on Basic, 1% on Grow and 0.6% on Advanced. Shopify
You also pay whatever your chosen payment provider charges. So using a payment provider instead of Shopify Payments needs to be modelled against actual transaction volume.
Don’t upgrade solely because one percentage looks prettier. Calculate the saving against the additional subscription cost first.
When Should You Upgrade Your Shopify Plan?
An upgrade should solve a commercial problem, not celebrate a revenue milestone. Bigger turnover does not automatically mean you need a bigger Shopify plan.
Instead, look at whether the next plan reduces costs or removes an operational constraint.
Signs that an upgrade makes sense
| Situation | What to investigate |
|---|---|
| Payment fees are becoming significant | Whether lower card rates offset the higher subscription |
| Your team needs more accounts | Staff limits on your current plan |
| You're expanding internationally | Advanced international and regional features |
| You need more sophisticated shipping | Third-party calculated shipping and fulfilment requirements |
| Reporting is becoming limiting | Whether the next plan offers the analysis you actually need |
| Your checkout needs deeper customisation | Whether Shopify Plus functionality is justified |
| B2B is becoming substantial | Shopify Plus B2B and catalogue requirements |
The numbers vary depending on the plan, sales mix and payment methods. There is no universal revenue figure where every merchant should suddenly upgrade.
That is why a break-even calculation is more useful than a generic recommendation. Compare the extra monthly subscription against measurable savings and features your team will actually use.
When does Shopify Plus enter the conversation?
The Shopify Plus plan is built for more complex businesses rather than simply bigger ones. Shopify currently lists UK Plus pricing from £1,800 per month, with features including unlimited staff accounts, expanded B2B capabilities and greater Shopify Checkout customisation.
For Shopify Plus stores, the decision usually extends beyond subscription pricing. Development workflows, automation, international operations, B2B requirements and checkout flexibility can carry more weight.
This is also where working with an experienced Shopify Plus agency can help with the commercial modelling. Paying enterprise prices for features nobody uses is an impressively expensive way to collect dashboard options.
Shopify vs Other Ecommerce Platform Costs
A Shopify vs alternative-platform comparison becomes misleading when it stops at the monthly subscription. Different platforms bundle costs in very different ways.
The better comparison is total cost of ownership: software, hosting, payments, extensions, development and ongoing maintenance.
Where the costs tend to sit
| Cost area | Shopify | WooCommerce | Other hosted platforms |
|---|---|---|---|
| Core software | Monthly plan | Core software is free | Usually subscription-based |
| Hosting | Included | Purchased separately | Usually included |
| SSL | Included | Depends on hosting setup | Usually included |
| Payment processing | Shopify Payments or third party | Choice of processors | Platform dependent |
| Apps/extensions | Free and paid apps | Free and paid extensions | Usually marketplace apps |
| Technical maintenance | Largely managed | Merchant or provider manages more | Largely managed |
| Development | Depends on requirements | Depends heavily on setup | Depends on platform |
| Infrastructure scaling | Managed by Shopify | Hosting-dependent | Usually managed |
WooCommerce, for example, has no monthly charge for its core open-source platform. However, WooCommerce says hosting commonly costs between $25 and $350 per month, while extensions can cost $29–$299 annually each.
That doesn’t make WooCommerce more or less expensive by default. It means the bill is assembled differently.
Shopify includes hosting, SSL and core commerce infrastructure within its plans. For many brands, predictable infrastructure is part of what they are paying for.
Shopify has also published research claiming lower total ownership costs than several competing platforms. However, that research was commissioned by Shopify and focused on enterprise businesses, so it should be treated as vendor-sponsored evidence rather than a universal result for every store.
Costs to Consider When Migrating to Shopify
Migrating to Shopify has a cost beyond opening an account and choosing a theme. The real budget depends on how much data, functionality and SEO equity your existing store needs to bring with it.
A clean migration protects what already works while removing the technical baggage that does not.
Budget for the migration, not just the platform
| Migration cost | What may be involved |
|---|---|
| Product data | Products, variants, images and collections |
| Customer data | Customer records and account considerations |
| Order history | Historical orders and reporting requirements |
| Design | Theme configuration or bespoke development |
| Functionality | Replacing plugins, apps and custom features |
| Integrations | ERP, CRM, fulfilment, accounting and marketing tools |
| SEO migration | URL mapping, redirects, metadata and crawl checks |
| Tracking | GA4, pixels, feeds and conversion tracking |
| Testing | Checkout, payments, shipping, tax and mobile QA |
| Training | Helping staff use new workflows |
A catalogue with 200 straightforward products is one project. A multilingual store with subscriptions, custom bundles, thousands of URLs and an ERP connection is quite another.
SEO deserves particular attention when migrating to Shopify. Changing URLs without properly mapping redirects can disrupt organic visibility, while missing analytics or conversion tracking makes post-launch performance harder to judge.
You should also audit your current technology stack before rebuilding it. Migrating every old plugin simply because it existed is how clutter gets a new address.
Allow for post-launch work
Migration does not finish when the new Shopify store goes live. Budget for fixing edge cases, monitoring redirects, checking product feeds and reviewing CRO data after real customers start using the site.
Some issues only become obvious under real traffic. Keeping a post-launch budget means those fixes become routine improvements rather than unwelcome surprises.
Which Shopify Plan Should You Choose in 2026?
So, which Shopify plan is best? The answer depends less on how impressive your turnover sounds and more on what your business actually needs.
For most brands, the right Shopify plan is the lowest tier that handles current requirements without creating unnecessary fees or operational friction.
| Business situation | Plan worth considering | Why |
|---|---|---|
| New or smaller ecommerce brand | Basic | Full online store without paying for team features you may not need |
| Growing brand with a small team | Grow | More staff access and lower payment rates |
| Larger international operation | Advanced | Lower rates plus stronger international and shipping capabilities |
| Complex B2B or enterprise operation | Plus | Advanced checkout, B2B and organisational requirements |
Shopify’s current UK annual pricing is £19 per month for Basic, £49 for Grow and £259 for Advanced. Plus starts from £1,800 per month.
Shopify plans include the core online store, unlimited products, hosting, SSL, inventory management and casual in-person selling. Shopify offers a free trial too, so testing workflows before committing is sensible. Shopify
The key is to pick the right plan for today’s operation while keeping tomorrow visible. You can upgrade when lower transaction costs or additional features produce a genuine commercial benefit.
If you’re still deciding which plan should you choose, calculate the full cost of your Shopify setup rather than comparing subscription prices alone. Apps, payments, POS, development and internal workload can matter far more than a few pounds between plans.
Still Not Sure Which Shopify Plan Fits?
The right plan should support how your store operates without quietly eating into margin. Run the numbers, check the features you’ll actually use and leave room for sensible growth.
If you want help choosing a plan, migrating to Shopify or improving an existing store, Webfuel Digital can help. Get in touch and we’ll work through the practical bits without turning it into a 47-slide strategy deck.
