Which Shopify plan is cheapest?
Published August 3, 2026
Quick answer
It depends entirely on volume. Basic ($39/mo, 2.9% + $0.30) is cheapest at low order counts. As volume rises the lower processing rates on Grow ($105/mo, 2.7%) and Advanced ($399/mo, 2.5%) eventually outweigh the bigger subscription. The crossover depends on your average order value as well as your order count.
Work out the crossover, do not guess it
Upgrading buys you a lower percentage in exchange for a higher fixed cost. Basic to Grow saves 0.2 percentage points but costs $66 more a month, so it needs roughly $33,000 of monthly volume to break even on processing alone. Run your own average order value and monthly order count through the calculator rather than assuming a bigger plan is better.
The subscription cost per order falls fast
At 10 orders a month a $39 plan adds $3.90 to every order. At 500 orders it adds $0.08. This is why the same plan can be terrible and excellent depending on nothing but volume, and why per-order thinking beats comparing monthly prices.
Do not use a third-party gateway without checking
Using a payment provider other than Shopify Payments adds a Shopify transaction fee on top of whatever that provider charges: 2% on Basic, 1% on Grow, 0.6% on Advanced. That surcharge usually wipes out any advantage the external gateway's headline rate appeared to offer.
Frequently asked questions
When should I upgrade from Shopify Basic?
When the processing saving from the lower rate exceeds the extra subscription cost. Basic to Grow saves 0.2 points but costs $66 more monthly, so it needs roughly $33,000 in monthly sales to break even.
Does annual billing save money on Shopify?
Yes, a flat 25% off the plan price. It does not change processing rates, so it helps most when the subscription is a large share of your total cost, which is exactly the low-volume case.
Is a third-party payment gateway cheaper on Shopify?
Rarely. Shopify adds its own transaction fee of 2% on Basic, 1% on Grow and 0.6% on Advanced when you do not use Shopify Payments, which usually cancels out the external provider's lower rate.