How much does Shopify charge per sale? (2026)

You are absolutely right. The percentage Shopify takes on each sale varies directly depending on the subscription plan and the payment solution chosen. This is one of the most important pieces of information to master before choosing your Shopify plan because these transaction fees can represent a significant portion of your costs depending on your monthly sales volume.

In 2026, Shopify offers five main plans with decreasing transaction fees. The Starter plan at $5 per month charges 5% per sale through an external gateway. The Basic plan at $36 per month charges 2%. The Grow plan (formerly called Shopify) at $105 per month charges 1%. The Advanced plan at $384 per month charges 0.6%. And the Shopify Plus plan starting at $2,300 per month charges 0.3% with negotiated terms. These percentages only apply when you use an external payment gateway like Stripe or PayPal. If you use Shopify Payments Shopify's native payment solution these Shopify transaction fees disappear entirely. You then only pay card fees ranging between 1.1% and 1.5%, plus $0.25 per transaction depending on your plan.

This distinction between an external gateway and Shopify Payments is fundamental because it can represent a difference of several hundred dollars per month depending on your revenue. And the question of which plan best fits your situation depends directly on your monthly sales volume, with precise break-even thresholds between each plan.

In this article, we detail exactly how much Shopify takes per sale on each plan and with each payment solution to help you choose the most profitable subscription for your situation.

How Much Does Shopify Take Per Sale on Each Plan?

Shopify's transaction fee structure is built on a simple, decreasing principle. The higher your monthly subscription, the lower the percentage Shopify takes on each sale. This logic encourages merchants generating significant sales volume to upgrade their plan because the savings on transaction fees more than offset the higher subscription cost beyond a certain monthly revenue threshold.

The fundamental distinction to understand before analyzing each plan's fees is the one between Shopify Payments and external payment gateways. Shopify Payments is the native payment solution integrated into Shopify that allows you to accept major credit cards directly from your store. Using it completely eliminates Shopify transaction fees on your sales. You then only pay card processing fees ranging between 1.1% and 1.5% plus $0.25 per transaction depending on your plan. If you choose to use an external gateway like Stripe, PayPal, or Mollie for specific reasons such as integrating buy-now-pay-later options Shopify adds an additional commission on each sale on top of your gateway's fees. This additional commission is what varies depending on the plan subscribed.

The Starter plan at $5 per month is designed for creators who want to sell through social media or add a buy button to an existing site without building a complete store. Its 5% transaction fees via external gateway make it the least suitable plan for significant sales volumes. It is reserved for projects in the testing phase or very occasional sellers.

The Basic plan at $36 per month is the recommended entry point for launching a real online store. With 2% transaction fees via external gateway and 1.5% plus $0.25 via Shopify Payments, it offers all the essential features to get started with a controlled budget. It is ideal for stores generating less than $7,000 in monthly revenue.

The Grow plan (formerly called Shopify) at $105 per month reduces transaction fees to 1% via external gateway and 1.3% plus $0.25 via Shopify Payments. It becomes more profitable than Basic starting at $7,000 in monthly revenue — because the savings on transaction fees offset the $69 monthly subscription premium.

The Advanced plan at $384 per month drops to 0.6% via external gateway and 1.1% plus $0.25 via Shopify Payments. It targets high-volume stores generating more than $50,000 in monthly revenue that need advanced reporting and third-party calculated shipping.

The Shopify Plus plan starting at $2,300 per month is reserved for companies generating several million dollars in revenue with individually negotiated fees.

Summary Table of Shopify Fees by Plan in 2026

The most unanimously shared recommendation from Shopify experts is to use Shopify Payments as soon as possible to eliminate additional Shopify transaction fees and only pay the decreasing card fees based on your plan. This single decision alone can represent savings of several hundred dollars per month for stores generating significant revenue.

When Should You Upgrade to a Higher Shopify Plan?

The question of the optimal moment to upgrade to a higher Shopify plan is a purely mathematical decision based on a simple calculation between the additional subscription cost and the savings achieved on transaction fees. This decision should never be based on intuition or the desire to access additional features that are not essential at your current stage of development.

The most important break-even threshold to keep in mind is the upgrade from Basic to Grow. The monthly cost difference between these two plans is $69 on monthly billing or $52 on annual billing. The difference in transaction fees via external gateway is 1% between the two plans. For the savings on transaction fees to exactly offset the additional cost of the Grow plan over Basic, you need to generate $7,000 in monthly revenue via external gateway. Below this threshold, the Basic plan is more profitable. Beyond it, the Grow plan becomes mathematically advantageous.

The same calculation applies to upgrading from Grow to Advanced. The monthly cost difference is $279 on monthly billing. The difference in transaction fees is 0.4% between the two plans. The break-even threshold for this upgrade sits at around $70,000 in monthly revenue via external gateway. For the vast majority of e-commerce operators, this threshold is reached much later in their development and the Advanced plan is not justified before having a truly established store with significant and consistent sales volumes.

If you use Shopify Payments rather than an external gateway, the break-even thresholds are different because the fee difference between plans is smaller. In this case, upgrading to a higher plan is justified more by access to additional features such as advanced reports, additional staff accounts, or third-party calculated shipping than by transaction fee savings alone.

The most pragmatic recommendation is to systematically start with the Basic plan, activate Shopify Payments from launch to eliminate additional transaction fees, and only reassess upgrading when your monthly revenue consistently reaches and exceeds the break-even thresholds calculated above. This gradual approach allows you to control your fixed costs during the critical early phases of your launch.

FAQ

Does Shopify take fees on every sale even with Shopify Payments?

With Shopify Payments, Shopify does not charge additional transaction fees on your sales. You only pay card processing fees ranging between 1.1% and 1.5% plus $0.25 per transaction depending on your plan. These card fees are unavoidable regardless of the payment solution chosen because they are charged by card networks, not by Shopify. The advantage of Shopify Payments is precisely to eliminate the additional fee layer that Shopify adds when you use an external gateway.

Can you use Stripe with Shopify without paying extra fees?

No. If you use Stripe as an external payment gateway on Shopify, you simultaneously pay Stripe's fees on each transaction plus Shopify's transaction fees tied to your plan. On the Basic plan for example, this means standard Stripe fees plus an additional 2% Shopify fee on every sale. This double billing makes using external gateways significantly more expensive than Shopify Payments for the majority of merchants. The only valid reason to use an external gateway is a very specific need that Shopify Payments cannot natively cover.

Do Shopify transaction fees apply to in-person point-of-sale transactions?

Shopify transaction fees apply differently depending on the sales channel. For sales made through Shopify POS at a physical point of sale with Shopify Payments, card fees are generally lower than online fees because the fraud risk is lower for in-person payments. For online sales through your Shopify store, standard fees based on your plan apply. Check the specific conditions for your region in the Shopify Payments interface as rates may vary by country.

How do you calculate the real cost of Shopify for your store?

The real cost of your Shopify store is calculated by adding together several expense items. The monthly subscription based on your plan. Transaction fees on each sale calculated on your monthly revenue. Optional third-party app subscriptions between $50 and $200 per month for a standard store. A premium theme if you're not using a free theme. And a custom domain name at around $12 per year. For a store generating $5,000 in monthly revenue on the Basic plan with Shopify Payments, the realistic total cost generally sits between $150 and $250 per month depending on the apps installed.

Is it possible to negotiate transaction fees with Shopify?

Fee negotiation is only available on the Shopify Plus plan, which targets companies generating several million dollars in annual revenue. On Basic, Grow, and Advanced plans, fees are fixed and non-negotiable. The only legitimate way to reduce transaction fees on these plans is to upgrade to a higher plan when your sales volume reaches the corresponding break-even thresholds or to use Shopify Payments to eliminate the additional fees tied to external gateways.

Does Shopify charge fees on refunds?

Shopify does not charge additional fees on refunds you issue to your customers. However, the transaction fees initially charged on the refunded sale are generally not returned by Shopify or your payment solution depending on the specific terms of your contract. Shopify Payments may return card processing fees on refunds depending on the terms in effect in your country. Check the specific conditions applicable in your region directly in your Shopify admin interface.

Should you choose annual or monthly billing on Shopify?

Annual billing offers a 25% discount on the monthly price of your subscription representing significant savings over a full year. For the Basic plan for example, annual billing brings the effective monthly cost from $36 down to $27, saving $108 per year. This option is recommended as soon as you have validated your business model and are confident in keeping your store active for at least twelve months. If you are still in a testing phase with uncertainty about your project's viability, monthly billing is preferable despite its higher cost because it does not commit you to a full year.