Shopify Fees Explained: A Complete 2026 Breakdown with Calculator

Every fee Shopify charges in 2026 (and how to minimize them)

Shopify charges a monthly plan fee plus a per-transaction payment processing fee. Most dropshippers know about the monthly fee but underestimate the per-transaction fees — and the per-transaction fees are what actually eat your margin. This guide breaks down every fee Shopify and Shopify Payments charge in 2026, when third-party processors cost more, and how to minimize fees on small orders.

Shopify plan pricing (2026)

Shopify has three main plans for dropshippers, each with different payment processing rates:

The savings from upgrading plans only make sense when your volume is high enough. At $5K/month in sales, upgrading from Basic to Shopify saves you 0.3% × $5K = $15/month in fees — but the plan costs $66 more per month. Not worth it. At $50K/month, upgrading from Basic to Shopify saves 0.3% × $50K = $150/month in fees — but the plan costs $66 more per month. Worth it. The break-even point is around $22K/month in sales.

Payment processing fees

Shopify Payments is Shopify's built-in processor. If you use it, you pay the rates in the table above. If you use a third-party processor (Stripe, PayPal, Braintree), Shopify charges an additional 0.5-2% transaction fee on top of the processor's fee:

This means: on the Basic plan, if you use PayPal for a $40 order, you pay PayPal's fee (3.49% + $0.49 = $1.89) plus Shopify's 2.0% transaction fee ($0.80). Total = $2.69, which is 6.7% effective fee. Compared to using Shopify Payments alone (2.9% + $0.30 = $1.46), PayPal costs you $1.23 more per $40 order. Across 100 orders/month, that's $123/month in extra fees.

The fix: enable Shopify Payments as your primary processor, and only enable PayPal as an alternative for customers who specifically request it. Most customers will use Shopify Payments (which includes credit card, Shop Pay, Apple Pay, Google Pay) — only ~15-25% will choose PayPal when given the option.

PayPal fees (if you use it)

PayPal charges 3.49% + $0.49 per transaction in the US. This is significantly higher than Shopify Payments (2.9% + $0.30). The flat $0.49 (vs $0.30) is brutal on small orders. On a $20 order:

• Shopify Payments: $0.88 (4.4% effective)
• PayPal: $1.19 (5.95% effective)

PayPal is 35% more expensive than Shopify Payments on small orders. The savings from disabling PayPal (and forcing Shopify Payments) can be substantial. However, ~15-25% of customers prefer PayPal, so disabling it may reduce CVR by 5-10%. Test it both ways and see which is more profitable for your store.

Additional Shopify fees to know

• Shopify Shipping — Free with all plans, but carrier rates are marked up 10-15% vs. commercial rates.
• Shopify Capital — Funding advances with factor rates equivalent to 20-30% APR. Use cautiously.
• Shopify Email — Free up to 10K emails/month, then $0.001/email. Cheaper than Klaviyo for small lists.
• Shopify domain — Free .shopify.com subdomain, but custom domains cost $14-$25/year (cheaper to buy from Namecheap).
• App subscriptions — Range from $5-$200/month. The average dropshipping store spends $50-$150/month on apps.
• Theme — Free themes available, but premium themes ($180-$400 one-time) often have better conversion.

How to minimize Shopify fees

1. Use Shopify Payments — Avoids the 0.5-2% third-party transaction fee.
2. Push AOV above $40 — The flat $0.30 fee drops from 3% of a $10 order to 0.75% of a $40 order. Use bundles and free-shipping thresholds.
3. Upgrade plans only at break-even — Calculate the savings from lower processing rates vs. the higher monthly cost. Break-even is around $22K/month (Basic → Shopify) and $170K/month (Shopify → Advanced).
4. Audit apps monthly — Most stores have 5+ apps they no longer use. Cancel anything you have not opened in 30 days.
5. Disable PayPal for orders under $30 — The flat $0.49 fee is brutal on small orders. Or push AOV up so PayPal becomes a smaller percentage.

Use the Fees Calculator

Our free Shopify & Payment Fees Calculator calculates total fees for any order across all Shopify plans and processors. Enter your order total and plan — the calculator shows your Shopify Payments fee, PayPal fee (if enabled), net to seller, and effective fee percentage.