Our verdict · 8.8/10 Excellent
The best default for most online stores. Apps and payment fees drive total cost — budget for them.
Key takeaways
- Best for: Most online stores.
- Strongest area: Integrations & ecosystem (9.6/10). Weakest: Value for money (8.0/10).
- Price: From around $29–39 / month (Basic) — free trial available.
- Watch out for: App costs add up.
What is Shopify?
Shopify provides a hosted store with themes, checkout, payments, POS and an extensive app store. It scales from first product to large brands.
Shopify is made by Shopify and is reviewed here as a ecommerce platform. It is priced on a subscription basis, and our editorial score is 8.8 out of 10, calculated from six weighted criteria.
Who it’s for — and who should skip it
Choose Shopify if
- Most online stores
- Multichannel selling
- Stores planning to scale
Not for you if
- Very custom backends
- Budget sellers needing only a few products
Key features
Optimised and fast.
Sell in person.
Thousands of apps.
International selling.
- Meta
- Amazon
- QuickBooks
- Klaviyo
Pros & cons
What we like
- Excellent checkout
- Huge app store
- POS for in-person selling
- Reliable hosting
Watch out for
- App costs add up
- Transaction fees without Shopify Payments
- Theme customisation limits
Pricing & true cost
| Plan | Indicative price | Notes |
|---|---|---|
| Basic | ≈ $29 / mo | Billed annually; higher monthly |
| Grow | ≈ $79 / mo | — |
| Advanced | ≈ $299 / mo | — |
Pricing watch-out: Payment processing and app fees are extra.
Contract questions to ask before you sign
- Does the plan auto-renew, and how many days’ notice do you need to cancel?
- Is the advertised price for annual billing? What is the month-to-month price?
- Is the first-year price a promotion? What will renewal cost, and is it capped?
- Is there a minimum number of seats, or a charge for inactive users?
- Are onboarding, implementation or premium-support fees extra?
- How do we export all our data if we leave, and in what format?
General questions for any vendor — not findings about this product. Build a full checklist with our requirements builder.
Indicative USD pricing, last checked October 30, 2026. Vendors change prices and promotions often — always confirm on their website. Model your own numbers with our SaaS TCO calculator.
Score breakdown
| Criterion | Weight | Score | Points | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Features & fit | 20% | 9.4 | 1.90 | |
| Ease of use | 15% | 9.0 | 1.40 | |
| Value for money | 20% | 8.0 | 1.60 | |
| Support & reliability | 20% | 8.4 | 1.70 | |
| Security & privacy | 15% | 8.8 | 1.30 | |
| Integrations & ecosystem | 10% | 9.6 | 1.00 | |
| Overall | 100% | Weighted for web hosting products | 8.8 | |
Security & compliance facts
| Item | Status | Question to ask Shopify |
|---|---|---|
| Multi-factor authenticationStops most account takeovers from reused or phished passwords. | Not verified by us | Can admins enforce MFA for every user, on every plan? |
| Single sign-on (SAML/OIDC)Lets you remove a leaver’s access everywhere from one place. | Not verified by us | Is SSO included on the plan we are buying, or only on enterprise tiers? |
| SOC 2 Type II reportIndependent audit of the vendor’s security controls — often required by larger customers. | Not verified by us | Can we see your current SOC 2 Type II report (under NDA if needed)? |
| ISO/IEC 27001 certificationInternational standard for running an information-security programme. | Not verified by us | Which legal entity and services does your ISO 27001 certificate cover? |
| GDPR data processing agreementNeeded if you handle personal data of people in the EU/UK. | Not verified by us | Do you offer a signed DPA and list your sub-processors? |
| HIPAA business associate agreementRequired before US healthcare businesses store protected health information. | Not verified by us | Will you sign a BAA, and on which plans? |
We have not yet verified these items for Shopify against a primary source, so we don’t claim them either way. Check Shopify’s trust or security page and ask for documents in writing.
Before you buy any ecommerce platform
Check Shopify against the same list we use for every ecommerce platform — and confirm each point on the plan you intend to buy, not the top tier.
- Payment options and fees
- Tax and shipping tools
- Inventory and variants
- App/plugin ecosystem
- Multichannel and POS
See every ranked option in Ecommerce Platforms.
Shopify alternatives
Pick an alternative by what matters to you
- Cheaper
Ecwid≈ $14/mo vs $29/mo at 10 users (cheapest paid plans, indicative) - Has a free planSOSquare OnlineShopify has no free plan; Square Online does
Computed from our published scores and indicative pricing for tools in the same category as Shopify. Scores are editorial; see the methodology.
Editor’s picks
Feature-rich hosted ecommerce without transaction fees.
Free, open-source ecommerce for WordPress with unlimited flexibility.
Beautiful templates and a polished all-in-one platform.
Head-to-head comparisons
Featured in: Best Ecommerce Platforms for Small Business, Shopify vs WooCommerce vs BigCommerce vs Wix
Review history
- Scored under methodology v2.0 (six weighted criteria, computed overall score).
Shopify FAQ
Does Shopify charge transaction fees?
Shopify charges extra fees if you use third-party payment gateways instead of Shopify Payments, where available.
Does Shopify have a free plan?
No, Shopify does not offer a permanent free plan, but a free trial is available. Pricing starts at From around $29–39 / month (Basic) (indicative).
Who is Shopify best for?
Shopify is best for: most online stores; multichannel selling; stores planning to scale.
How is the Shopify score calculated?
The 8.8/10 overall score is a weighted average of six sub-scores — features & fit, ease of use, value, support & reliability, security & privacy, and integrations — using the published weights for hosting products. Affiliate relationships have no input. See our methodology page for the full rubric.
What are the best alternatives to Shopify?
Popular alternatives include BigCommerce, WooCommerce, Squarespace. See our comparisons for side-by-side verdicts.