Shopify review
Updated September 28, 2026 · ForgeCue Editorial Team · Facts checked September 26, 2026
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Our verdict
Shopify runs chat, phone and help centre support and builds both sites and stores, which suits small businesses ready to pay $39 for its entry plan. Buyers on the tightest budgets should note there is no free plan and the free trial lasts only 3 days.
Key facts
- Best for
- Small businesses that want a site and a store from a single paid plan.
- Price from
- $39 (Source, checked September 26, 2026)
- Free plan
- No (Source, checked September 26, 2026)
- E-commerce plan price
- $39 (Source, checked September 26, 2026)
- Transaction fee
- 0.2% to 2% (Source, checked September 26, 2026)
- Free trial length
- 3 days (Source, checked September 26, 2026)
- Builder type
- Site, Store (Source, checked September 26, 2026)
- Legal entity
- Shopify Inc. (Source, checked September 26, 2026)
- Headquarters
- Canada (Source, checked September 26, 2026)
- Founded
- 2006 (Source, checked September 26, 2026)
- Support channels
- Chat, Phone, Help-centre, Community (Source, checked September 26, 2026)
- Audience
- Beginners, Small business, Enterprise
- Pricing model
- Free trial
- Official website
- shopify.com
Apps and profiles
- Get the app
- Google Play
Pros and cons
Pros
- Support covers chat, phone and help centre, so a launch question can go to chat or a phone line instead of waiting on a ticket.
- The builder type covers both a site and a store (site and store), so the brand page and the checkout come from a single product.
- It targets beginners, small business and enterprise, so a beginner's starter shop and an enterprise rollout are served by the same product.
- A 3 day free trial lets a seller test products and checkout before paying anything, and the entry plan price to compare is $39.
Cons
- There is no free plan, so a shop either starts paying at $39 or plans its testing around a 3 day trial.
- Transaction fees of 0.2% to 2% add to the plan price, where the median transaction fee across this site is 0%.
- The 3 day free trial is shorter than the 14 day median trial across this site.
- On price from, Shopify places 162 of 199, and on e-commerce plan price 121 of 160, so it is a pricey pick in its own categories.
Who it suits
- Sellers launching a store who want chat and a phone line on the same account (chat, phone and help centre).
- Small businesses that can carry $39 for the entry plan plus fees of 0.2% to 2% on sales.
- Beginners who want to test a store inside a 3 day free trial and then pick a paid plan.
Who should look elsewhere
- Shop owners who need a free tier: ko-fi starts at $12 and Shopify has no free plan, only the 3 day trial.
- Sellers billing in Uruguay: Mitienda Uruguay lists from UYU 400 in local currency, while Shopify's entry plan of $39 is quoted in USD.
What you get free
There is no free plan, so nothing stays live once a trial ends and the paid plans take over. What Shopify offers is a free trial, and the window is 3 days. That is enough to build a store, load products and push a test order through checkout, but a shop that wants a permanent address has to start paying from there. Beginners can use the trial to see whether the store and site tools fit before committing to anything.
How it compares on our data
On price from, Shopify places 162 of 199 brands compared, and on e-commerce plan price it places 121 of 160. Both sit late in those lists, which says more about the value question than any feature list: plenty of stores here open cheaper, and a buyer weighing a first platform will often land on one of those instead. A deep position on both numbers is a clear signal that you pay more to start.
Intro and renewal prices
The introductory stage is the free trial, and the trial window is 3 days. The figure that carries on afterwards is the plan price: $39 for the entry plan, and $39 for the e-commerce plan, so the headline number and the selling plan price are the same money. No free plan sits underneath either figure, which is why $39 is the number a budget has to carry. Transaction fees of 0.2% to 2% come on top of the plan rather than being folded into it, and a shop with steady sales pays them repeatedly.
The company behind it
The company behind Shopify is Shopify Inc., headquartered in Canada and founded in 2006. Support runs on chat, phone and help centre, so a live chat and a phone line sit next to a help centre and a community. That mix suits a shop owner who wants a spoken answer while a launch week runs, and a searchable help centre for the quieter questions afterwards. A trading history that long also means the platform is not a short-lived experiment for a store to depend on.
How Shopify compares
9.1 vs 9.2
9.1 vs 9.2- 9.1 vs 9.1
- 9.1 vs 9.3
9.1 vs 8.6- 9.1 vs 9.4
- 9.1 vs 9.2
9.1 vs 9.2- 9.1 vs 9.1
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9.1 vs 8.7
9.1 vs 9.1
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9.1 vs 9.5
9.1 vs 9.4
9.1 vs 9.4
9.1 vs 9.3- 9.1 vs 9.3
9.1 vs 9.2
9.1 vs 9.2
9.1 vs 9.1
9.1 vs 9.0
Frequently asked questions
How much does Shopify cost to start selling?+
Shopify's entry plan is $39 and the e-commerce plan price is $39, so the headline figure is also the plan price for selling. Transaction fees of 0.2% to 2% can sit on top of that, and there is no free plan underneath either figure.
Is there a free Shopify plan, or only a free trial?+
There is no free plan. Shopify runs on a free trial model, and the trial lasts 3 days. The median trial across this site is 14 days, so the window is tight for anyone who wants to load a full catalogue before deciding.
What transaction fees does Shopify take?+
Transaction fees on Shopify are 0.2% to 2%. The median transaction fee across this site is 0%, so a Shopify seller carries a larger cut than the typical seller listed here, and that sits on top of the plan price of $39.
Which company runs Shopify, and where is it based?+
The company is Shopify Inc., headquartered in Canada and founded in 2006. It builds a site and a store from the same product, so a seller can run the brand page and the checkout in a single place rather than stitching two tools together.
What support can a Shopify store owner get?+
Support runs on chat, phone and help centre, so live chat and a phone line sit alongside a help centre and a community. Phone is a common channel across this site at 56%, but having chat, phone, a help centre and a community in a single account is what separates Shopify from the cheaper starters.
Where does Shopify rank on price among the stores listed here?+
On price from, Shopify sits at 162 of 199, and on e-commerce plan price at 121 of 160. The site median for price from is €13.15, so Shopify opens above the typical listing here.
How does Shopify compare with Ko-fi, Mitienda Uruguay and Shafrik on entry price?+
Ko-fi lists from $12, Mitienda Uruguay from UYU 400 and Shafrik from XOF 9,900. Shopify's entry plan is $39, so the lowest entry figure among the listed brands belongs to Ko-fi rather than Shopify, in its own currency.
Who is Shopify built for?+
Shopify lists beginners, small business and enterprise as its audience, so it spans a beginner's starter shop and an enterprise rollout. It suits sellers who want a site and a store in a single product and who can absorb $39 with fees of 0.2% to 2% added to sales.
Sources
- en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Shopify checked September 26, 2026
Backs: Founded, Headquarters, Legal entity
“Founded 2006; 20 years ago (2006)”
- shopify.com/pricing checked September 26, 2026
Backs: Audience, Builder type, E-commerce plan price, Free plan, Free trial length, Pricing model, Price from, Support channels, Transaction fee
“Basic $29/mo For solo entrepreneurs; Grow $79/mo For small teams; Plus from $2,300/mo For complex businesses; Trusted by enterprise brands”
Compiled from 2 source pages, checked September 26, 2026. We did not open an account.