Shopify has single-handedly enabled wealth creation for millions of business owners worldwide - this is really great news. But often, there’s a catch. For business owners, this ‘catch’ comes in the form of subscription and transaction fees charged by Shopify for the use of the platform and payment processing.

Transaction fees can cut into your monthly revenue as an online store, so it’s important to know what kind of payment processing fees you can expect and how to manage these fees more effectively. In this article we answer the key question: How much does Shopify take per sale?

Key components of Shopify fees

Understanding Shopify fees - including subscription costs, credit card processing fees, and optional app fees is the only way to take complete control of your ecommerce strategy. 

Let’s begin with a quick look at Shopify's fees for hosting your online store. Shopify has three subscription plans that offer several features on a sliding scale. A fourth option, called Shopify Plus, caters to complex ecommerce business structures with high-sales volumes. 

Shopify Basic Plan ($39 per month)

This basic Shopify plan is designed for entrepreneurs starting their online journey. It includes essential features for launching and managing a store:

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Shopify Pricing Plan ($105 per month)

This mid-tier plan is designed for businesses that have grown to moderate sales volumes and includes additional tools to help you streamline operations and enhance customer experience.

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Shopify Advanced Plan ($399 per month)

The most expensive of the three Shopify plans, this subscription is for high-volume sellers who do not have complex business structures but want more advanced features. Fees are reduced due to higher sales volume and customization options are increased.  

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Shopify also offers alternatives for users who want to try out their platform without a significant commitment, such as:

• Shopify free - $0 for 3 days
• Shopify starter plan - $5 per month for the management of a simple online store

Transaction fees

Answering the question: How much does Shopify take per sale? Requires an understanding of the credit processing fees. Globally, all credit card transitions attract fees and for Shopify, it is no different. The concern is how competitive Shopify is with their fees and whether they take a significant portion of your revenue or not.

Let’s answer this question by breaking down the fees you can expect and then looking at different business scenarios to compare the impact on your revenue. 

Shopify payments

Regardless of your plan, Shopify charges credit card processing fees to accept payments. These fees vary by plan and according to region.

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Additionally, if you use a third-party payment gateway, you will be charged Shopify transaction fees as follows:

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Advanced Shopify plans become more attractive to business owners as their sales increase and they want to use more advanced tools. These plans also offer reduced transaction fees for higher volume sales. 

Shopify accepts digital wallets such as Apple Pay, Google Pay, and Shop Pay. You won’t incur additional transaction fees when using these wallets with Shopify Payments, Shopify's in-house payment processor.

If your online store supports multiple currencies, Shopify will charge a 1.5%-2% currency conversion fee for each transaction. 

Optional app fees

The Shopify app store offers a range of solutions, from marketing automation tools like Klaviyo ($30/month) and email marketing apps to inventory management solutions such as TradeGecko (starting at $39/month), and accounting integrations like QuickBooks ($25/month), ensuring you can customize your store to meet diverse business needs.

Analyzing Shopify fees: Business Scenarios

Low sales volume store

To start, let's take a look at a niche accessory store selling handmade jewelry, such as bracelets, earrings, and necklaces, targeting a young audience on Instagram.

Sales details:

Product type: Handmade jewelry with an average selling price (ASP) of $50

Traffic: Monthly website visitors - 1,500; Conversion rate - 3%

‍Monthly orders: 50 orders

Sales revenue: $2,500/month

Shopify plan: $39 per month

Credit card fees: 

Per transaction: $50 × 2.9% + $0.30 = $1.75 (Shopify payments only)

Total for 50 transactions: $1.75 × 50 = $87.50

Total revenue retained: $2,373.50

The total monthly Shopify fees taken from this small online store is $39 + $87.50 = $126.50. Shopify fees account for approximately 5.1% of the total revenue for this business.

Medium sales volume store

Next we move on to a fitness apparel brand selling high-quality activewear like leggings, sports bras, and gym shorts, targeting an audience on TikTok and Instagram ads.

Sales details:

Product type: Fitness apparel with an average order value (AOV) of $50 (e.g., leggings $60, sports bras $40).

Traffic: Monthly website visitors - 9,000; Conversion rate - 2.5%

Monthly orders: 225 orders

Sales revenue: ~$11,250/month

Shopify plan: $105 per month

Credit card fees: some text

Per transaction: $50 × 2.6% + $0.30 = $1.60 (Shopify payments only)

Total for 225 transactions: $360

Total revenue retained: $10,785

The total monthly Shopify fees taken from this medium sales volume store is $150 + $360 = $465. Shopify fees account for approximately 4.13% of the total revenue for this business.

High sales volume store

Lastly, let’s examine the fees for a high sales volume store selling luxury home decor and targeting affluent homeowners and interior designers through Pinterest ads, Google Shopping, and email marketing campaigns.

Sales details:

Product type: Luxury home decor, including items such as designer chairs, modern lighting fixtures, artisanal rugs, and cotton bedding.

Average order value: $400

Traffic: Monthly website visitors - 40,000; Conversion rate - 2.5%

Monthly orders: 1,000 orders

Sales revenue: ~$400,000/month

Shopify plan: $399 per month

Credit card fees: some text

Per transaction: $400 × 2.4% + $0.30 = $9.90 (Shopify payments only)

Total revenue retained: $389,701 (Shopify payments only)

The total monthly Shopify fees taken from this medium sales volume store is $399 + $9,900 = $10,299. Shopify fees account for approximately 2.57% of total revenue for this business, providing competitive transaction fees for an ecommerce platform.

A Shopify store like this would likely take third-party payments and by running some fictitious numbers, we would see results like this:

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Here, we can clearly see that using only the Shopify platform and eliminating a third-party payment provider scheme would save the business $4,040/month, or 1% of total revenue, reducing the Shopify cost to the business. 

Analysis of Shopify fees across three stores

A comparison of the three business scenarios allows us to draw some interesting conclusions that may help business owners decide which ecommerce platform to use. 

• Shopify’s lower-priced subscriptions do not offer the same competitive transaction fees as the higher-priced subscriptions that are aimed at businesses with larger sales turnovers. 
• At lower subscriptions, not only are the features more basic, but the transaction fees cut into profits at a higher percentage. 
• Third-party payments add up to a substantial percentage of sales turnover for all stores, making this a more expensive option. 
• Shopify can take anything from $1.50 to $9.90 per transaction. 

How to minimize transaction fees

While Shopify's transaction fees are a necessary part of operating an online store, there are several strategies that you can implement to minimize these costs and maximize the profitability of your online business.

Leverage Shopify payments

Shopify’s own payment gateway is a way to eliminate extra fees charged by third-party payment processors like PayPal and Stripe. By enabling this payment method, you can save on additional charges. Shopify payments support digital wallets such as Google Pay and Apple Pay, increasing the diversity of payment methods without increasing credit card processing costs. 

Upgrade to a higher Shopify plan

While the Basic plan is excellent for beginners who want to try the system or have low-volume sales, once your sales increase, you should move to a higher subscription. For example, credit card fees drop from 2.9% + $0.30 on the Basic plan to 2.4% + $0.30 on the Advanced plan, which translates to substantial savings on high sales volumes. For each upgrade, there are significantly better tools for you to grow your online presence and sales conversion rates. 

Get your online shop set up correctly from the start. Doing this will save you money and help you save on payment processing fees. Dropbuild is a Shopify development agency with experience in producing high converting online stores. You can make your first sale in 7 days! Our clients have generated +$120 million in revenue in 2024, and you can join them now!

Is Shopify the platform you need?

Since its development in 2006, Shopify has come a long way. Today it is one of the most popular ecommerce hosting platforms in the world, with 5.6 million active stores in more than 175 countries worldwide in 2024.

The popularity it has gained and its powerful features (including automation of ecommerce workflows) have given Shopify the ability to offer its services to its users at reduced rates. 

This also includes its ability to offer competitive transaction fees for credit card payments, third-party payments, and multi-currency conversions. These elements have turned Shopify into everyone’s ‘one-stop-shop’ for online business. 

Taking this into account, it is important to consider the transaction fees you pay on Shopify alongside the powerful features, convenience, ability to scale your business, and its increasingly powerful tools to aid sales conversions on social media.  All things considered, these benefits far outweigh the amount Shopify takes from your store per sale.