Shopify Basic Plan Review 2025: Is It Right for Your Business?

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?

The Shopify Basic Plan is an entry-level subscription designed for small businesses and new merchants looking to set up an online store. It provides essential eCommerce features, allowing users to create a customizable storefront, manage products, and accept payments at an affordable price.

Key Features of Shopify Basic Plan

Online Store

With the Shopify Basic Plan, you can create and customize a fully functional online store to showcase your products. The Shopify admin panel offers an intuitive interface, making it easy to manage inventory, update listings, and process orders.

You can personalize your store’s appearance using Shopify’s built-in theme editor or choose from 240+ professionally designed themes in the Shopify Theme Store, including free options. These themes are mobile-optimized, ensuring a smooth shopping experience on all devices.

Whether you use a pre-designed theme or customize one, Shopify Basic makes setting up and managing your store simple and efficient.

Unlimited products

Sell as many products as you want with the Shopify Basic Plan, whether online or in-person. With support for up to 10 inventory locations, managing stock across multiple locations becomes seamless.

Each product page can include key details like title, description, price, images, SKU, barcode, and stock levels. You can also create multiple variants (e.g., size, color) with unique images, pricing, and inventory tracking.

For better organization, products can be grouped into collections, tagged for easy search, and optimized for SEO with custom titles, meta descriptions, and URLs.

Multiple Reports & Analytics

Shopify Basic provides essential reports to help you monitor your store’s performance and make informed decisions. You can track key metrics such as sales, inventory, customer behavior, and marketing effectiveness.

With financial reports, you get insights into sales, taxes, and payments. Product analytics helps you evaluate product performance, while acquisition reports show where your traffic comes from. Live View offers real-time data on visitor activity, keeping you updated on what’s happening in your store.

For more advanced reporting, upgrading to higher Shopify plans unlocks custom and detailed sales reports.

Blogs

The Shopify Basic plan includes a built-in blogging engine, helping you share updates, promotions, and insights to boost brand credibility and drive traffic. It also supports customer comments, fostering engagement and valuable feedback.

International commerce

Shopify Markets in the Basic plan unlocks global expansion by automatically adjusting prices, supporting multiple languages, and tailoring the shopping experience to each region. With customizable pricing, payment options, and tax settings, plus optimized shipping and checkout, selling internationally becomes effortless.

SSL certificates

Security is essential for any online store, and Shopify Basic includes SSL certificates to encrypt data and protect transactions. When activated, your store runs on HTTPS, displaying a padlock icon in the browser, signaling a secure connection.

This not only safeguards customer information but also boosts trust, improves SEO rankings, and prevents browser security warnings—ensuring a seamless and credible shopping experience.

Additional Features of the Shopify Basic Plan

• Shopify Shipping Discounts: Get significant discounts from major carriers, real-time shipping rates, and bulk label printing for a streamlined shipping process.
• Competitive Transaction Fees: Enjoy competitive transaction fees. Check Shopify’s pricing page for region-specific rates.
• Automation with Shopify Flow: Automate tasks with "If This, Then That" rules. For example, low inventory can trigger an automatic supplier email, reducing manual work.
• Abandoned Cart Recovery: Automatically send reminders to customers who leave items in their carts, increasing conversions with minimal effort.

Features Not Included in the Shopify Basic Plan

• Staff Accounts: The Basic Shopify plan does not support additional staff accounts. To add staff members, you need to upgrade to a higher-tier plan like Shopify, Advanced Shopify, or Shopify Plus.
• Third-Party Carrier Calculated Shipping: This plan does not include third-party carrier-calculated shipping rates. To enable this feature, you must upgrade to a higher plan.

=> Discover All the Features of Shopify

How much does the Basic Shopify Plan cost?

Cost of Basic Shopify Plan 

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)

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.

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.

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

✅ Nextsky’s Verdict:

• Shopify Lite Plan ($9/month): is the most affordable option but doesn’t include an online store. It’s ideal for those who want to sell on Facebook, Instagram, or through a "Buy Button" on their website.
• Shopify Starter Plan ($5/month): is the lowest-cost plan designed for creators and social sellers. However, it has limited features and supports only one payment gateway (Shopify Payments).
• Basic Shopify Plan ($25/month): is a solid choice for solo entrepreneurs and small businesses looking for a professional online store. While it provides essential eCommerce features, it has some limitations, such as access to only three global markets and no advanced reporting tools.
• Shopify Plan ($65/month): is ideal for growing businesses that need additional staff accounts (up to 5), lower transaction fees, and more advanced features like in-depth abandoned cart recovery and enhanced analytics.

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.
• Using Shopify Payments can reduce fees, or upgrading to a higher plan can reduce overall transaction costs.

The Basic Shopify Plan offers essential tools for startups and small businesses, balancing affordability with powerful eCommerce features. If you’re looking for a cost-effective way to launch and grow your online store, this plan is a solid choice. Need help setting up or optimizing your store? Contact Nextsky for expert support!