Basic Shopify Plan: The Perfect Choice for Beginners
Table of Contents
Basic Shopify Plan is an ideal starting point for launching or enhancing your online store journey. With essential tools at an affordable price, it caters to entrepreneurs and small businesses seeking a solid foundation without hefty investments.
This post explores the Shopify Basic Plan, covering its features, pricing, and suitability for various merchant types. Before diving in, ensure your e-Commerce store is built on Shopify!
What is the Basic Shopify Plan?
Basic Shopify Plan is one of Shopify's subscription plans tailored for small merchants to create their online store and manage their ecommerce business.
With the Basic Plan, users can create and customize their online store, add unlimited products, accept payments, and access customer support. It serves as an affordable option for those starting out in eCommerce or seeking to streamline their existing online presence.
Basic Shopify Plan features
The Basic Shopify Plan offers a range of essential features to help merchants establish and manage their online stores effectively.Â
Common features
All Shopify plans come with essential features to kickstart your online business. This includes:
- Create and customize your online store
- Inventory management features
- Unlimited Product
- Unlimited bandwidth
- Brand assets
- Manual order creation
- Discount Codes
- Custom Pricing by Market
- Abandoned Cart Recovery
- Secure hostingÂ
- Payment processing options
- Access to customer support
- Mobile commerce capabilities
- Marketing and SEO tools
- Detailed analytics for insights, and scalability to accommodate your business growth.
- Finance Reports
Whether you're just starting out or looking to expand, Shopify has you covered with its comprehensive set of features.
Basic Shopify Plan Offered Features
In additional to general features all Shopify plans has, the Basic Shopify Plan offers additional features tailored to meet specific business needs.
|
Features |
Description |
|
Online Store |
Create and customize your online store with the Basic Shopify Plan or higher using the Shopify admin. |
|
Competitive Transaction Fees |
The Basic Shopify Plan offers competitive transaction fees. You can refer to Shopify's pricing page to identify the specific transaction fees applicable to plans in your region. |
|
Blogging Capabilities |
Your online store includes a built-in blogging engine, enabling you to publish articles, inform customers about events and promotions, and gather comments and feedback from your audience. |
|
SSL Certificates |
Secure your online store with SSL certificates for encrypted connections. |
|
Reporting Tools |
The Basic plan provides access to various reports for tracking business performance. These include analytics, finances reports, product analytics, Live View, acquisition reports, inventory reports, behavior reports, marketing reports, order reports, sales reports, retail sales reports, profit reports, and customers reports (link). |
|
International Commerce Support |
Expand internationally with Shopify Markets for cross-border management. |
How much does the Basic Shopify Plan cost?
Cost of Basic Shopify PlanÂ
The Basic Shopify Plan costs $25/month if paid monthly.
If you want to pay for a full year, you'll save 25%, which is just $19 USD/month. (in the United States)Â
You can use the 3-day Shopify Free Trial to experience this plan and test if the Basic Shopify Plan is suitable for your online store.
After your free trial, you can enjoy a Special Offer of just $1/month for the first month.
Transaction fees
Basic Shopify transaction fees can be lower with Shopify Payments.
Transaction fees with Shopify Payment
With the Basic Shopify Plan, you'll incur a transaction fee of 2.9% + 30¢ per sale. If you use Shopify Payments, the standard 2% transaction fee is waived, but there's an additional 1% fee for international credit card purchases.Â
This plan simplifies transaction fees and boosts e-Commerce sales.
Transaction fees without Shopify Payment.
If you opt for a third-party payment gateway with the Basic Shopify Plan, expect a 2% credit card fee. Plus, you'll incur transaction fees from your chosen gateway provider. International credit card purchases may also include an extra 1% fee.Â
Keep these factors in mind when selecting your payment gateway to manage transaction costs effectively.
Additional costs
In addition to the free Shopify subscription, there are other additional costs to consider: domain, email hosting, themes, etc.I have presented this part very carefully in the article: Shopify pricing.
Basic Shopify Plan Comparison
|
Features |
Basic Shopify Plan |
Shopify Plan |
Shopify Lite Plan |
Shopify Starter Plan |
|
Object |
Solo entrepreneurs |
Small teams |
Anyone who wants to sell products without maintaining an online store |
Creatives and social sellers. |
|
Monthly Price |
$25 USD/month |
$65 USD/month |
$9 USD/month |
$5 USD/month |
|
Online Store |
Unlimited |
Unlimited |
No |
Limited |
|
Transaction Fees |
|
1% Â fee for using third-party payment gateways. |
|
5%Â |
|
Localized global selling |
3 markets |
3 markets |
0 |
0 |
|
Custom domain |
Yes |
Yes |
No |
No |
|
Access to Shopify’s app store |
Yes |
Yes |
Yes |
No |
|
Product |
Unlimited |
Unlimited |
Unlimited |
Unlimited |
|
Inventory locations |
10 |
10 |
4 |
2 |
|
Additional staff accounts |
0 |
5 |
1 |
0 |
|
Order Management |
Yes (advanced features) |
Similar Shopify Basic Plan |
Yes |
Yes |
|
Abandoned Cart Recovery |
Yes (email: advanced customization options) |
Yes (more advanced: create custom reports to analyze your abandoned checkouts ) |
Yes |
Yes |
|
Payment Gateways |
100+ payment gateways |
Similar Shopify Basic Plan |
Yes |
1 payment gateway (Shopify Payments) |
|
SSL Certificate |
External selling platforms like social media |
Similar Shopify Basic Plan |
Yes |
A more comprehensive website environment |
|
Analytics |
Standard analytics |
Standard analytics |
Basic |
Basic |
|
Discount Codes |
Yes |
Yes |
Yes |
No |
|
Customer Support |
24/7 |
24/7 |
No |
24/7 |
|
Shipping |
Yes (advanced) |
Yes (advanced) |
Yes |
Yes |
|
3rd-party calculated shipping rates |
No |
No |
Yes |
No |
In short,
Basic Shopify: For growing businesses that need more features
- Provides a fully featured online store
- Lower transaction fees and additional functionalities like custom domain support, discount codes, and advanced analytics.
Shopify Starter: For small-scale or entry-level sellers.
- Affordable, ideal for individuals or small businesses just starting out or those who primarily sell through social networks and direct links.
- Higher transaction fees (5%) are offset by low monthly costs, especially for those with lower sales volume.
Shopify Plan: Great for businesses that are growing or want more features.
Shopify Lite allows you to sell exclusively on Facebook and Instagram if you don't want to open a store online.Â
Who is Basic Shopify Plan suitable for?
1. Affordable Start for New Sellers
- Launching your first online store (e.g., dropshipping, print-on-demand, services, retail)
- Integrating with social media, marketplaces, and search engines for wider reach.
2. Low Sales Volume Merchants
- Shopify's basic plan has a 2.9% transaction fee, which can impact the cost structure for businesses with significant sales volume.Â
- Using Shopify Payments can reduce fees, or upgrading to a higher plan can reduce overall transaction costs.
