What is Shopify Plus?: Benefits, Features, and Pricing

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Whether you have a big or small business, you might feel the need to upgrade from Shopify to Shopify Plus. But what exactly does Shopify Plus give you and how much will you have to invest in it? Find out all about Shopify Plus pricing, its features, pros and cons in this article.

What is Shopify Plus?

Shopify Plus is the premium, enterprise-level offering within Shopify’s suite of e-commerce solutions. With a distinct focus on meeting the specific requirements of large businesses and high-volume merchants, Shopify Plus offers a host of advanced features and benefits that go beyond the capabilities of the standard Shopify platform.

MORE: What is Shopify?

Benefits of Shopify Plus

What Does Shopify Plus Offer? Let’s take a look at what you can expect from Shopify Plus’s plan:

Superior Customization

One of the most significant advantages of Shopify Plus is its superior customization options. With this service, you get greater flexibility in tailoring the appearance of your online store. Through the exclusive use of the Shopify Script and Shopify Flow, businesses can create a bespoke user experience. These tools let you tailor your storefront’s look and feel, create customized promotions, and automate personalized workflows.

MORE: The best Shopify themes

Dedicated Support

With Shopify Plus, you don’t just get an eCommerce platform; you get a partnership. Each Shopify Plus merchant is assigned a dedicated Merchant Success Manager who provides guidance and support. This personalized service includes help with setup, migration, and scaling your business. It also includes 24/7 priority support, ensuring that help is always at hand when you need it.

Enhanced API Limits

API limits dictate the number of actions that can be performed per minute on your online store. Higher API limitations indicate that your website can handle more actions, resulting in smoother operations during high traffic periods. Shopify Plus significantly increases these limits, which can be a critical factor for high-volume stores. With a higher API rate limit, you can integrate more apps, execute more updates, and perform more backend operations without slowing down your store’s performance.

Exclusive Access to New Features

As a Shopify Plus merchant, you will get early access to new features and updates. This exclusive access allows you to leverage the latest innovations and stay ahead of the competition. You can test out and implement new functionalities before they’re rolled out to the broader Shopify community. 

MORE: How does Shopify compare to Shopify Plus?

How Much Does Shopify Plus Cost?

The cost of Shopify Plus, Shopify’s enterprise eCommerce platform, varies considerably from its standard pricing structure. While standard Shopify plans come with fixed monthly fees, Shopify Plus presents a more intricate pricing framework that hinges significantly on sales volume, starting at a baseline of $2,000 per month.

Unlike the straightforward costs of standard Shopify plans, the Shopify Plus pricing model is explicitly designed to scale with businesses as they grow. This tailored approach means that as a Shopify Plus merchant, your fees will fluctuate in direct correlation with your monthly sales volumes.

Under this model, Shopify Plus guarantees you won’t pay more than $2,000 per month until your sales surpass the $800,000 threshold. At this point, the pricing structure transitions from a flat fee to a revenue-based model. As your sales continue to climb, so will your monthly Shopify Plus fees—but not indefinitely. There’s a cap in place to ensure that no merchant ever pays more than $40,000 per month, regardless of their sales volumes.

For businesses ready to scale, it’s essential to thoroughly understand this flexible pricing structure and its impact on operational expenses. Embracing the Shopify Plus model requires a strategic approach to eCommerce growth, considering it links your success directly to your expenditure. With this knowledge, you can better plan your growth trajectory and make informed decisions about your enterprise eCommerce journey.

MORE: How much does a Shopify store cost?

Shopify Plus Features

Some of the features included on Shopify’s website include:

  • Increasing your conversion rate by up to 18% with Shop Pay’s speedy checkout.
  • Making use of built-in augmented reality, video, and 3D media capabilities on product pages for an immersive shopping experience.
  • Catering to different markets with distinct stores, supporting multiple currencies and languages, suitable for both B2B and DTC.
  • Personalizing your checkout process and providing advanced discount and shipping rate options.
  • Improving your paid ad performance and reducing conversion costs using Shopify Audiences.
  • Guaranteeing a smooth shopping experience with unlimited transactions, unlimited products, and a stellar 99.99% uptime.
  • Managing not just your store, but your entire business from one platform. 
  • Overseeing all your stores, staff accounts, and automated workflows from a central location in your Shopify admin.
  • Saving time and resources by automating complex procedures, campaigns, and discounts.
  • Starting selling quickly with fast integration across your technological tools and stack.
  • Effortlessly migrating data.
  • Collaborating with certified partners.

MORE: How Shopify branding works

Who Uses Shopify Plus?

Shopify Plus serves as the ultimate eCommerce solution for high-grossing businesses and rapidly scaling start-ups, providing an unmatched platform for enterprise-level online sales. It’s the go-to choice for premier brands seeking superior customization capabilities, expansive scalability, and robust features to streamline their complex e-commerce operations. 

From fashion giants like Rebecca Minkoff and Gymshark to household names like Heinz and Allbirds, these industry leaders rely on Shopify Plus to manage their booming online sales effectively. 

The expansive clientele of Shopify Plus encapsulates its exceptional capacity to handle complex eCommerce demands, driving unparalleled customer experiences and facilitating large transaction volumes with ease.

MORE: How does reporting work on Shopify?

Shopify Plus Pros and Cons

Using Shopify Plus will have its pros and cons, we’ve listed some points you should take into consideration as you choose between Shopify and Shopify Plus:

ProsCons
High Performance: Shopify Plus provides a robust and highly scalable platform that can handle significant traffic spikes and sales volumes.High Cost: The premium services of Shopify Plus come with a hefty price tag which may not be feasible for small businesses.
Extensive Customization: With exclusive APIs, Shopify Plus allows merchants to tailor storefronts and customer experiences to meet specific business needs.Complex Features: The advanced capabilities, while beneficial, could be overwhelming for users who aren’t tech-savvy.
Premium Customer Support: Shopify Plus users have access to dedicated 24/7 priority support and a personalized Merchant Success Program.Extra Costs for Apps and Themes: The need for additional functionalities might necessitate buying apps or themes, adding to the overall cost.
Seamless Integrations: Shopify Plus offers robust integration with a range of third-party systems, including CRM, email marketing, and logistics platforms.Migration Difficulties: Transitioning to Shopify Plus from another platform can be a complex task that may require professional assistance.
Multi-Channel Selling: Shopify Plus supports sales across numerous channels including web, mobile, social media, and marketplaces, all from a single platform.Limited Advanced Features: Despite the range of features Shopify Plus offers, it might lack certain advanced features required by specific businesses.
Internationalization Capabilities: With Shopify Plus, businesses can easily expand globally with multiple stores, each tailored for different countries or regions.Template-based Customization: While customization is possible, it is often template-based, which may limit the design flexibility compared to fully custom-coded platforms.

It’s important to note that the advantages and disadvantages of Shopify Plus can vary depending on your specific business size, type, and needs. Always consider these factors when choosing an eCommerce platform.

Remember that to open a successful Shopify store, you will need a memorable business name. Check out our Shopify Name Generator and find the ideal name for your business in a few simple steps.

MORE: How to change a Shopify shop name

Takeaway Points

Shopify Plus, Shopify’s premium tier, offers a range of advanced e-commerce solutions tailored for high-volume businesses. The platform stands out with its superior customization abilities, dedicated support, enhanced API limits, and early access to innovative features. Its user-friendly interface, seamless integrations, and robust capabilities facilitate smooth operations, whether for a single store or a global multi-store operation. 

Notably, it hosts a variety of big-name clients, attesting to its ability to manage complex eCommerce demands efficiently. However, potential users should consider the high cost, complexity, potential for additional expenses, migration difficulties, and potential limitations in advanced features and customization.

Frequently Asked Questions (FAQ)

The key difference between Shopify and Shopify Plus rests in their distinct feature sets and user targets. While Shopify provides an excellent platform for small to medium-sized businesses, Shopify Plus caters to larger enterprises, offering more advanced features, customizations, and support for high-volume transactions.

The advantages of Shopify Plus are numerous and significant. Shopify Plus provides businesses with the ability to scale up effortlessly, superior customer support round the clock, and access to exclusive features such as custom checkout.

Assessing the worth of Shopify Plus depends on your business's needs and growth projections. If your store handles high traffic volumes, requires multiple storefronts, or needs advanced customization and integrations, then Shopify Plus's premium features and scalability could be a worthwhile investment, contributing to significant long-term growth.

When comparing Shopify Advanced and Shopify Plus, the key differences lie in their intended user base and features. While Shopify Advanced provides additional features to medium-sized businesses, Shopify Plus is tailored to larger enterprises.

While Shopify Plus does not have a specific set of requirements, it's generally best suited for businesses that are high-volume, experiencing rapid growth, or require advanced features not available on other Shopify plans.

Shopify's primary revenue stream comes from its platform subscriptions, offering diverse plans to cater to various business needs. It also earns from its POS Pro service, a premium Point of Sale solution. Additional income is generated through selling custom themes and apps, allowing businesses to personalize their stores. Domain registration services offered by Shopify further contribute to its earnings.

Transitioning from Shopify to Shopify Plus is typically a straightforward process. As a business grows and requires access to more advanced features, higher scalability, and stronger support, Shopify facilitates this change, allowing businesses to scale up seamlessly with their growing needs.

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