Shopify Plans Explained: Which One Is Right for You?

Introduction

If you're new to Shopify, the plan names are the first thing that confuses you. Six options — Starter, Basic, Grow, Advanced, Plus and POS Pro — with US dollar prices, staff account limits, and feature names that all sound similar. Which one do you actually need?

This guide explains every Shopify plan in plain English: what it costs in Rands, what you get, what you can't do, and — most importantly — who each plan is actually for. No jargon, no sales pressure. By the end you'll be able to answer "which Shopify plan should I pick?" in under a minute.

Quick answer: Shopify has six plan options. Starter (~R90/month) is for selling from social media without a website. Basic (~R450/month) is your first real online store (2 staff accounts, 2% third-party fee). Grow (~R1,170/month) suits scaling stores (5 staff accounts, 1% fee). Advanced (~R7,200/month) is for high-volume teams (15 staff accounts, 0.6% fee). Plus (from ~R41,000/month) is enterprise. POS Pro (~R1,600/month per location) adds advanced tools for physical shops. All prices are billed in USD, and because Shopify Payments isn't available in South Africa, the transaction fee shown above applies to every plan on every sale.

What is a Shopify plan, in plain English?

A Shopify plan is simply the monthly package you pay for. Think of it like cellphone contracts in South Africa: every plan includes the basics (hosting, security, checkout, the Shopify admin), and higher plans add more of what growing businesses need — more staff accounts, better reports, lower transaction fees, and advanced features.

What every plan includes, no matter which tier:

• Hosting, SSL security and a fast checkout — all managed for you
• A free trial: 3 days on any plan, then $1/month for the first 3 months on eligible Basic and Grow plans where the offer is active
• ZAR storefront pricing (your customers pay in Rands)
• 24/7 support
• The Shopify app for managing your store from your phone

What changes between plans:

• Price — from ~R90 to ~R41,000+/month
• Staff accounts — how many people can log in (1 to unlimited)
• Third-party transaction fee — 2.0% on Basic, 1.0% on Grow, 0.6% on Advanced, 0.2% on Plus
• Reports — standard, professional, advanced or enterprise
• Checkout and automation power — Plus is where custom checkout lives

The key South African wrinkle: Shopify Payments is not available here, so the third-party fee applies to every store in the country. That fee often matters more than the subscription itself — which is why this guide gives you both numbers for every plan.

Why the plan choice matters in South Africa

Three South African realities make plan choice more important than in most countries:

1. The fee is always there. Because you can't use Shopify Payments, the plan's transaction fee is part of every single sale. On Basic that's 2% — a direct slice of your margin that drops to 1% on Grow.
2. You're billed in USD. Plans are priced in dollars (roughly R16.50–R18.00/USD in mid-2026), so your rand cost moves with the exchange rate.
3. Your gateway adds its own cost. PayFast, Paystack, Yoco, Peach, Stitch and Ozow all charge local fees on top — covered in detail in our best payment gateway South Africa guide.

The practical takeaway: don't choose a plan on price alone. A store doing R100,000/month on Basic pays ~R2,000 a month in the 2% fee; on Grow the same store pays ~R1,000. The subscription gap (R720) is more than covered — which is why the revenue-based decision tree below exists.

For the full cost breakdown and all-in tables, see our Shopify pricing South Africa guide, and for a worked R100,000/month example read how much does Shopify cost in South Africa.

Struggling to decide? CrazyClicks helps South African sellers pick the right plan, set up gateways and launch stores — see our Shopify development services or start a project.

Quick comparison table

Plan	Approx ZAR/month	Full website?	Staff accounts	Third-party fee	Best for
Starter	~R90	No (social selling)	1	Varies	Testing, side hustles, creators
Basic	~R450	Yes	2	2.0%	First online store, most SMEs
Grow	~R1,170	Yes	5	1.0%	Scaling stores, small teams
Advanced	~R7,200	Yes	15	0.6%	High volume, big teams
Plus	from ~R41,000	Yes (custom checkout)	Unlimited	0.2%	Enterprise, national brands
POS Pro (add-on)	~R1,600 per location	N/A	N/A	N/A	Physical retail

Starter plan: sell from social media

Price: ~R90/month ($5 USD) — monthly or annual, no annual discount.

The Starter plan is Shopify's entry point for selling without building a website. You get a link-in-bio storefront, and you can sell directly from Instagram, Facebook, TikTok and WhatsApp. Everything runs from the Shopify app on your phone.

Key features:

• Link-in-bio storefront with a simple checkout
• Sell from your social media profiles
• Product, order and basic customer management
• 1 staff account (you)

Limits: No full online store, no staff beyond yourself, limited apps and integrations, and transaction fees still apply on every sale (Starter isn't exempt from Shopify's third-party fee in SA).

Who it's for: Side-hustlers testing a product, creators and influencers selling merch, social sellers in township markets, and service businesses selling a digital product or booking before committing to a full store.

Pros:

• Cheapest way onto Shopify (~R90/month)
• Launch in an afternoon from your phone
• Perfect for validating a product before investing

Cons:

• No full website — a real business needs one
• Very limited apps and reporting
• Transaction fees still apply

Basic plan: your first online store

Price: ~R450/month monthly billing, ~R350/month with annual billing ($25 vs $19 USD).

Basic is the plan most South African stores start on. It's the cheapest plan that includes a full online store with your own domain, product pages, cart and checkout.

Key features:

• Full online store with unlimited products
• 2 staff accounts
• Abandoned cart recovery (email)
• Gift cards, discounts, SEO basics
• Standard sales and customer reports
• Shipping discounts (up to 64%)
• 2.0% third-party transaction fee

Limits: 2 staff accounts get tight as soon as you hire; standard reports only; a 2% fee on every sale. It's cost-optimal up to roughly R80,000/month in revenue — beyond that, Grow starts paying for itself.

Who it's for: First-time sellers, lifestyle brands, single-founder stores, and small teams of one or two in Cape Town, Johannesburg, Durban or anywhere in South Africa.

Pros:

• Full store at an accessible price
• Unlimited products
• Includes hosting, security and abandoned cart recovery
• Eligible for the $1/month promo (where active)

Cons:

• Only 2 staff accounts
• 2% transaction fee is the highest
• Standard reports can feel thin as you grow

Grow plan: the scaling sweet spot

Price: ~R1,170/month monthly, ~R880/month with annual billing ($65 vs $49 USD).

Grow (previously called the plain "Shopify" plan) is where the maths starts favouring you. The headline numbers: 5 staff accounts, professional reports, and the third-party fee drops from 2.0% to 1.0%.

Key features:

• Full online store, unlimited products
• 5 staff accounts
• Professional reports (better customer analysis, basic checkout reporting)
• Abandoned cart recovery, gift cards, discounts
• Standard automation and workflows
• Shipping discounts (up to 72%)
• 1.0% third-party transaction fee

Limits: Still not Advanced — no custom report builder, no advanced automation, and the checkout stays standard. Five staff is fine for most small teams but will cap out as you add departments.

Who it's for: Stores doing roughly R80,000–R250,000/month, brands with 3–5 people on the team, and anyone paying for extra staff accounts on Basic (a sign you've outgrown it).

Pros:

• 1% fee saving on every sale vs Basic
• 5 staff accounts — room for a real team
• Professional reports help you make decisions
• Annual billing saves ~R3,500/year

Cons:

• More than double Basic's price
• Can be premature under ~R80,000/month revenue
• Still not enough for very large teams

Advanced plan: serious volume and teams

Price: ~R7,200/month monthly, ~R5,400/month with annual billing ($399 vs $299 USD).

Advanced is the highest standard tier before enterprise. It's designed for stores with real volume and real teams.

Key features:

• Full online store, unlimited products
• 15 staff accounts
• Advanced reporting with custom report builder
• Better automation and workflows
• Shipping discounts (up to 74%)
• 0.6% third-party transaction fee

Limits: No custom checkout (that's Plus), and the fee only pays for the price jump at very high revenue — roughly R1.5 million/month. Below that, Advanced is a features decision, not a cost-saving one.

Who it's for: High-volume stores (R500,000+/month), brands with more than 5 staff needing access, data-driven teams that use advanced reporting, and stores pushing for the lowest standard fee.

Pros:

• 15 staff accounts — whole departments covered
• Lowest standard transaction fee (0.6%)
• Advanced reporting for serious optimisation
• Best shipping rates

Cons:

• ~R7,200/month is a huge jump from Grow
• Doesn't pay for itself through fees alone until ~R1.5M/month
• Custom checkout still excluded — that's Plus territory

Plus plan: enterprise

Price: from ~R41,000/month ($2,300 USD), negotiated on annual contracts.

Shopify Plus is a different product tier for established businesses. It replaces the standard subscription model with a negotiated enterprise agreement.

Key features:

• Unlimited staff accounts
• Custom checkout (one-page, extensions, custom branding)
• Advanced automation (Shopify Flow) and launch tooling
• B2B/wholesale channels, multi-currency
• Dedicated support manager and 99.99% uptime SLA
• 0.2% third-party transaction fee

Limits: Cost. At ~R41,000+/month, it only makes sense for stores doing serious volume — typically R2 million+/month — or brands with complex B2B and multi-brand needs.

Who it's for: National retailers, multi-brand groups, ambitious exporters, and brands that need custom checkout to hit their conversion and revenue targets.

Pros:

• Unlimited staff and total flexibility
• Custom checkout is a genuine conversion lever
• Dedicated support and account management
• Cheapest transaction fee (0.2%)

Cons:

• Very expensive — premature for most SMEs
• Annual contracts and sales-team negotiation
• Overkill if you just need a bigger store

POS Pro: physical retail

Price: ~R1,600/month per location ($89 USD), an add-on to Basic, Grow, Advanced or Plus.

If you also sell from a physical shop — a storefront in Cape Town, a market stall, a showroom — POS Pro turns Shopify into a full retail system.

Key features:

• Advanced inventory: multi-location stock, purchase orders, low-stock alerts
• Staff roles and PIN-based permissions
• Buy online, pick up in store (BOPIS)
• Custom receipts, discounts, offline mode for markets

Who it's for: Physical retailers who've outgrown the free basic POS — multiple locations, staff needing restricted access, or complex stock. See our point-of-sale systems page for the broader picture.

Pros:

• Real retail-grade inventory
• Online and in-store stock unified
• Offline mode for markets and events

Cons:

• ~R1,600/month per location adds up
• Basic POS is free — only pay when you need Pro features

Full comparison table

Feature	Starter	Basic	Grow	Advanced	Plus
Approx ZAR/month (monthly billing)	~R90	~R450	~R1,170	~R7,200	from ~R41,000
Approx ZAR/month (annual billing)	~R90	~R350	~R880	~R5,400	negotiated
Full online store	No	Yes	Yes	Yes	Yes
Unlimited products	No	Yes	Yes	Yes	Yes
Staff accounts	1	2	5	15	Unlimited
Third-party fee (SA)	varies	2.0%	1.0%	0.6%	0.2%
Abandoned cart recovery	No	Yes	Yes	Yes	Yes
Professional reports	No	No	Yes	Yes	Yes
Advanced report builder	No	No	No	Yes	Yes
Custom checkout	No	No	No	No	Yes
POS Pro add-on	No	Yes	Yes	Yes	Yes
Best revenue range (rule of thumb)	Pre-launch	Up to ~R80k/mo	~R80k–R250k/mo	R500k+/mo	R2M+/mo

Want to compare these plans hands-on? Take the trial and test your store on Basic — it's the cheapest full-store option to validate against. Start your Shopify store today.

Decision tree: choose your plan

Choose your plan by answering these questions in order:

1. Do you need a full online store?

• No — just selling from Instagram, Facebook, TikTok or WhatsApp → Starter
• Yes → go to step 2

1. What's your realistic monthly revenue within 6 months?

• Under ~R80,000 → Basic
• ~R80,000–R250,000 → Grow
• R500,000+ → Advanced (or Plus if you need custom checkout / B2B)

1. How many people need to log in?

• 1–2 → keep Basic
• 3–5 → Grow
• 6–15 → Advanced
• 15+ → Plus

1. Do you need advanced reports or a custom checkout?

• Advanced reports → Advanced
• Custom checkout / enterprise features → Plus

1. Do you run a physical shop?

• Yes, with complex stock or staff → add POS Pro (~R1,600/location)

Still unsure? A helpful exercise is to price a Basic store at your expected revenue and a Grow store at the same revenue, subtract the fee difference, and see which is cheaper. The answer is usually obvious — and our Shopify pricing South Africa guide walks through the full arithmetic.

Which plan should I pick? — the checklist

• Pick Starter if: you're testing an idea, selling from social media, or need the lowest possible start cost (~R90/month)
• Pick Basic if: you're launching a first real store, one or two people, and expect under ~R80,000/month in sales (~R450/month)
• Pick Grow if: you're scaling past R80,000/month, have 3–5 people, or want the 1% fee saving (~R1,170/month)
• Pick Advanced if: you have 6–15 staff, need advanced reports, or push R500,000+/month in volume (~R7,200/month)
• Pick Plus if: you're enterprise — custom checkout, unlimited staff, B2B, R2M+/month (from ~R41,000/month)
• Add POS Pro if: you run a physical shop needing advanced inventory or staff roles (~R1,600/location)
• Switch to annual billing once your $1/month promo ends to save ~25%

How to choose your plan (step-by-step)

1. Decide your sales channel. Social-media-only selling → Starter. A full website → Basic or higher.
2. Estimate monthly revenue. Basic is cost-optimal under ~R80,000/month; Grow's 1% fee saving pays for itself beyond that.
3. Count your team. 1–2 people → Basic. 3–5 → Grow. 6–15 → Advanced.
4. Check reporting needs. Professional reports start at Grow; a custom report builder starts at Advanced.
5. Factor in physical retail. Add POS Pro if you run a shop with complex stock or staff.
6. Start, launch, review. Use the trial, launch on the plan you chose, and revisit quarterly against the 6–8% of revenue benchmark.

Beginner mistakes to avoid

1. Choosing the cheapest plan to "save money". Starter has no full website, and Basic's 2% fee costs more than Grow's subscription gap once you scale. Compare the total, not the sticker.
2. Ignoring staff limits. Hiring a third person while on Basic means paying for extra staff accounts — often more than the jump to Grow.
3. Upgrading before the revenue justifies it. Advanced doesn't pay for itself through fees until ~R1.5M/month. Upgrade for features you'll actually use.
4. Staying on the monthly promo past month three. Switch to annual billing afterwards and lock in ~25% savings.
5. Buying Plus for prestige. At under ~R2M/month, Plus is usually waste. Advanced plus good operations beats an expensive enterprise plan.
6. Not counting the transaction fee. On Basic, 2% of every sale leaves before anything else. It's the most important number in the table.
7. Forgetting POS Pro is per location. Two shops = ~R3,200/month. Include it before you sign a lease.
8. Picking a plan once and never revisiting. Your revenue changes monthly — review your plan quarterly.

Expert tips

1. Run the upgrade arithmetic, not the marketing. The Basic→Grow break-even is roughly R72,000–R80,000/month in revenue; use your own numbers, not "we upgraded at R150k".
2. *Buy annual billing at the plan you'll be on, not the plan you're on.* Prorated upgrades forfeit the annual discount on the old plan — time the switch with your growth.
3. Let the 1% fee saving fund your Grow upgrade. At R100,000/month, Grow's 1% saving (~R1,000) covers the extra subscription (~R720) and leaves R280. That's the sweet spot.
4. Negotiate your gateway before you negotiate your plan. A 0.2% gateway discount at R250,000/month is R500 — often more than any plan tweak.
5. Count apps as part of the plan. A "cheaper" plan with 10 apps costs more than a higher plan with 4. Audit apps with the same rigour as plans.
6. *Use the trial to test the plan, not just Shopify.* Set up your products and checkout on Basic during the $1/month window to confirm the features you need before committing to annual.
7. Plan POS before you need it. Adding a physical location mid-year means ~R1,600/month suddenly — factor it into your retail business case.
8. Ask for help with the migration. Moving between plans or platforms is where fees leak. CrazyClicks' Shopify development team does builds and migrations for South African brands.

South African case study

The scenario (illustrative): Table & Thyme, a Durban specialty-food brand, started selling at local markets and on WhatsApp. They signed up for Starter (~R90/month) to test a curated gift box online — no website, just social links. In three months they validated demand: 60+ orders at an average of R280.

First upgrade: They moved to Basic (~R450/month) and launched a full store with a .co.za domain. At ~R35,000/month in sales, their all-in platform cost was ~R2,700 (7.7% of revenue). They considered Grow but ran the arithmetic: the 1% fee saving (~R350/month at R35,000) didn't cover the extra ~R720/month subscription. Correct call to wait.

Scaling: A feature in a local food magazine pushed sales to R110,000/month. Now the 1% saving (~R1,100/month) beat the subscription gap, and they'd hired a customer service person — so they needed Grow's 5 staff accounts anyway. They upgraded mid-month (prorated) and switched to annual billing the following cycle.

Current state: At R110,000/month on Grow, their platform cost is ~R6,800/month (6.2% of revenue) — comfortably inside the 6–8% benchmark. They added Ozow Pay-by-Bank for corporate orders and negotiated Peach's real-time payouts for card volume. The next decision point on their calendar: Advanced at R500,000+/month, which they estimate is a year away.

Lesson: Table & Thyme's plan journey followed the revenue rules exactly — Starter to validate, Basic to launch, Grow to scale — and each upgrade was triggered by arithmetic (fee savings and staff needs), not by wanting a fancier plan.

People Also Ask

Q: What is the cheapest Shopify plan?

The Starter plan at ~R90/month ($5 USD) — but it doesn't include a full online store. The cheapest full-store plan is Basic at ~R450/month.

Q: Is the Shopify Starter plan worth it?

Yes, for testing a product or selling from social media. At ~R90/month it's the lowest-risk way to validate demand before committing to a real store.

Q: What is the difference between Shopify plans?

Plans differ in staff accounts (1/2/5/15/unlimited), reports (standard to enterprise), automation, checkout power and the third-party fee (2%/1%/0.6%/0.2%). Full online stores start at Basic.

Q: Which Shopify plan is best for a small business?

Basic, for most small South African businesses — full store, 2 staff accounts, and cost-optimal up to ~R80,000/month in revenue.

Q: Does Shopify have a free plan?

No permanent free plan. You get a 3-day free trial, then $1/month for the first 3 months on eligible Basic and Grow plans where the offer is active.

Q: What is Shopify Plus?

Shopify's enterprise tier from ~R41,000/month — custom checkout, unlimited staff, dedicated support and B2B channels, for businesses doing R2 million+/month.

Q: How many staff accounts does Shopify Basic include?

Two. Grow includes 5, Advanced includes 15, and Plus is unlimited. Extra staff beyond the plan limit are billed per month.

Q: Can I switch Shopify plans later?

Yes — upgrade or downgrade anytime from Settings → Plan. Upgrades apply immediately (prorated); downgrades apply at the next billing period.

Frequently Asked Questions

Q: What are the different Shopify plans? A: Starter (~R90), Basic (~R450), Grow (~R1,170), Advanced (~R7,200), Plus (from ~R41,000) and the POS Pro add-on (~R1,600 per location). Prices are in ZAR approximate, billed in USD.

Q: Which Shopify plan is best for beginners? A: Basic. It's the cheapest plan with a full online store, includes unlimited products and 2 staff accounts, and suits stores doing up to ~R80,000/month.

Q: What is the cheapest Shopify plan? A: Starter at ~R90/month — social-media selling without a full website. Basic (~R450/month) is the cheapest full-store option.

Q: Is the Shopify Starter plan worth it? A: Yes for validating a product or selling via social links. Upgrade to Basic once you're ready for a proper store and scale past a few orders a week.

Q: What is Shopify Grow? A: The mid-tier (~R1,170/month) with 5 staff accounts, professional reports and a 1% third-party fee — the sweet spot for stores doing R80,000–R250,000/month.

Q: Who should use Shopify Advanced? A: High-volume stores (R500,000+/month) needing up to 15 staff accounts, advanced reporting and the lowest standard fee (0.6%). It doesn't pay for itself through fees until ~R1.5M/month.

Q: What is Shopify Plus for? A: Enterprise businesses — custom checkout, unlimited staff, B2B channels, dedicated support — typically doing R2 million+/month. Prices are negotiated annually from ~R41,000/month.

Q: Do I need Shopify POS Pro? A: Only for physical retail with advanced inventory, staff roles or buy-online-pick-up-in-store. It's ~R1,600/month per location; basic POS is free on eligible plans.

Q: What's the difference between Shopify Basic and Grow? A: Basic (~R450/month): 2 staff accounts, 2% fee, standard reports. Grow (~R1,170/month): 5 staff accounts, 1% fee, professional reports. Grow pays for itself around R80,000/month revenue.

Q: Can I start on a free Shopify plan? A: No permanent free plan exists. You get a 3-day trial then $1/month for the first 3 months on eligible Basic and Grow plans where the offer is active.

Q: How many staff accounts does each Shopify plan include? A: Starter 1, Basic 2, Grow 5, Advanced 15, Plus unlimited. Additional staff are billed per month.

Q: How do I choose a Shopify plan? A: Decide by sales channel (social vs full store), expected revenue (Basic up to ~R80k/month, Grow beyond), team size, and feature needs like reports or POS Pro.

Summary

Shopify's six plans — Starter, Basic, Grow, Advanced, Plus and POS Pro — range from ~R90 to ~R41,000+/month, billed in USD. Choose by sales channel first (Starter for social, Basic+ for a full store), then by expected revenue (Basic up to ~R80k/month, Grow to ~R250k, Advanced at R500k+, Plus for enterprise), then by staff count and features. Because Shopify Payments isn't available in South Africa, always factor the plan's third-party fee (2%/1%/0.6%/0.2%) into your comparison.

Key Takeaways

• Starter (~R90/mo): social selling, no website; Basic (~R450/mo): first full store; Grow (~R1,170/mo): scaling; Advanced (~R7,200/mo): high volume; Plus (from ~R41,000/mo): enterprise; POS Pro (~R1,600/location): physical retail.
• Staff accounts: 1/2/5/15/unlimited across Starter→Plus.
• Third-party fee applies on every SA sale: 2.0%/1.0%/0.6%/0.2%.
• Upgrade Basic → Grow around R80,000/month revenue; Advanced pays for itself only near ~R1.5M/month.
• Start with the trial, launch, and review your plan quarterly.

Newsletter CTA

Get South African digital marketing insights in your inbox — Shopify plan changes, fee updates and practical ecommerce guides for local sellers. Subscribe to the CrazyClicks newsletter.

CrazyClicks Service CTA

Not sure which plan fits your business? CrazyClicks is a full-service digital agency in Cape Town specialising in Shopify development, ecommerce strategy and digital marketing. We'll recommend the right plan, set up your gateway and build your store properly. Start a project or compare pricing.

Ready to Pick Your Plan?

You now know exactly what each Shopify plan costs, includes and who it's for. The best next step is free: take the trial, build a test store on Basic, and run your own numbers with the revenue checklist above. Start your Shopify store today and claim the $1/month introductory offer where it's active.

Sticky sidebar: CrazyClicks services card (link to /services).