Shopify plans and costs 2026: what does a POD store cost per month?
Shopify's monthly plan fee is only one line item. We calculate the real monthly cost of a POD store, including payment processing fees, apps, domain and product cost.
The first question people ask before opening a Shopify store is usually “Which plan?” But the cost of a POD store isn't just the plan fee: the payment processing fee on every sale, the apps you use, your domain and, of course, the product itself make up the full picture.
In this post we explain Shopify's plan structure and fees as of September 2026, with an example calculation for a POD t-shirt store.
Shopify plans
Shopify offers four main plans: Basic, Grow, Advanced and Plus. An important note: Shopify uses local pricing, so plan prices may be displayed differently depending on your region and may be billed in a different currency. The monthly billing prices shown for the US are:
| Plan | Monthly billing (US) | Third-party payment provider transaction fee |
|---|---|---|
| Basic | $39 | 2% |
| Grow | $105 | 1% |
| Advanced | $399 | 0.6% |
| Plus | From $2,300 | 0.2% |
The monthly price drops with annual billing. When you open your store, check the figures shown for your region and the annual billing discount at shopify.com/pricing; you'll be billed based on those figures.
Payment processing fees
Two different types of fees can come out of each sale on Shopify:
- Card processing fee: charged on every card payment if you use Shopify Payments. In the US on the Basic plan it starts at 2.9% + 30 cents for domestic cards; the rate varies by plan and card type, and international cards carry an extra fee.
- Third-party transaction fee: if you use another payment provider instead of Shopify Payments, Shopify's plan-based transaction fee is charged on top of the provider's own fee (from the table above: Basic 2%, Grow 1%, Advanced 0.6%, Plus 0.2%).
Keep in mind that Shopify Payments isn't available in every country. If you're opening a store from Turkey, check the Shopify help center for the payment methods available to you; if you have to use a third-party provider, build the transaction fee into your price.
Other cost items
| Item | When you pay | Note |
|---|---|---|
| Domain | Yearly | Varies by extension and provider |
| Theme | One-time (if you choose a paid theme) | Free themes are enough for POD |
| Apps | Monthly, per app | Only add apps you actually use |
| Advertising | Based on spend | On Shopify, a large share of traffic comes from ads |
| Product and shipping | Per order | With POD you only pay for products that sell |
Example: a $24.99 t-shirt
Assumptions: Basic plan in the US, Shopify Payments, domestic card payment, free shipping to the buyer. Product: Gildan 64000; starting price on Custombull with printing included: $6.50. Add your shipping cost per order separately.
| Item | Amount |
|---|---|
| Sale price | $24.99 |
| Card processing fee (2.9% + $0.30) | $1.02 |
| Product (printing included) | $6.50 |
| Remaining (excluding shipping, ads and plan fee) | $17.47 |
Compared with marketplaces, the fee per sale looks low. But on Shopify you bring the traffic; without adding ad spend to your cost per order, this table is incomplete. For a store with 100 orders a month, the Basic plan fee works out to about 39 cents per order; the deciding cost is usually advertising.
Which plan is right for whom?
- Basic: enough for a new POD store run by one person.
- Grow: stores with established sales, working with team members, and at a volume where the lower transaction fee pays off.
- Advanced and Plus: high-volume businesses that need custom reporting and advanced features.
Decide on upgrading based on sales volume: as monthly revenue grows, the lower transaction fee starts to cover the plan difference. Also note that the Basic plan does not support staff accounts.
Keep app costs under control
The cost item that quietly grows in Shopify stores is monthly apps added one by one: separate subscriptions for fulfillment, email marketing, SEO, reviews and product transfer. Each looks small, but together they can exceed the plan fee.
Custombull brings most of these jobs into one plan: sending orders to the producer, printing, packing, shipping, a customer-specific tracking page, cross-channel product transfer and the Marketing Center (email, SMS and WhatsApp campaigns). With the Free plan you can connect 3 stores and have your orders printed. Bronze is $29.99 per month (100 credits included every month, 5 stores), Gold is $99.99 per month (400 credits included every month, 10 stores). The price does not go up with the number of products.
Frequently asked questions
Does Shopify charge by the number of products?
Shopify plans are not priced by the number of products. The cost is made up of the plan, transaction fees and the apps you use.
Does annual billing make sense?
If you're sure your store will stay open for at least a year, annual billing lowers the monthly cost. Testing the first months with the starter offer and deciding afterward is the safer approach.
Why is the price shown from Turkey different?
Shopify uses local pricing; plan prices may be displayed differently by region. You're billed at the price shown for the region your account is tied to.
