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Shopify vs Shopify Plus? Shopify is a popular e-commerce platform that enables merchants to create and manage online stores. Over the years, it has evolved to include more advanced features and capabilities, leading to the creation of Shopify Plus. Shopify Plus is a more powerful and customizable version of Shopify, designed for enterprise-level businesses with complex needs.
If you’re considering Shopify or Shopify Plus as your e-commerce platform, it’s essential to understand the differences between the two, since each version offers unique features and capabilities.
In this article, we’ll compare Shopify vs. Shopify Plus in 2023 and highlight key differences to help you choose the version that’s right for your business.
Table of Contents:
When it comes to selecting an e-commerce platform, Shopify and Shopify Plus are two of the most popular options available. But what exactly sets them apart? In this article, we’ll dive into the differences between these two platforms and help you determine which one is best suited for your business needs.
Shopify Plus is an enterprise-level e-commerce platform designed for high-volume merchants and large businesses. It offers a range of advanced features that cater to specific demands, including training companies and large online stores.
Shopify Plus is best suited for businesses that generate over $60,000 per month or $1M in annual revenue. Additionally, brands that require more advanced features than what’s available on the Basic plan should consider Shopify Plus.
It’s important to note that Shopify Plus does not offer a trial period. However, we’ve compiled a list of its functionalities and benefits to help you make an informed decision.
Shopify Plus is best suited for businesses that make over $60,000 a month or $1M in annual revenue. It’s also ideal for businesses that require more advanced features, such as customized automation, wholesale selling, and more extensive integrations with third-party apps.
Note that Shopify Plus is a premium solution and comes at a higher price point than Shopify. The pricing for Shopify Plus starts at $2,000 per month, and it can increase depending on your business’s requirements and the level of support needed.
To better understand the differences between Shopify and Shopify Plus, take a quick look at the comparison table to start with:
| Feature | Shopify | Shopify Plus |
|
Hosting |
✅ |
✅ |
| Staff Accounts |
2 |
Unlimited |
| Bandwidth |
Unlimited |
Unlimited |
| Products |
Unlimited |
Unlimited |
| Sales Channels |
10 |
Unlimited |
| Wholesale Channel |
Additional Cost |
✅ |
| Customizable Checkout |
Limited |
Fully Customizable |
| Discount Codes |
Basic |
Advanced |
| Shopify Scripts |
❌ |
✅ |
| APIs |
Limited |
Full Access |
| 24/7 Priority Support |
❌ |
✅ |
| Launch Engineer |
❌ |
✅ |
| Dedicated Account Management |
❌ |
✅ |
While Shopify is an excellent choice for small to medium-sized businesses, Shopify Plus offers more advanced features and dedicated support than larger businesses require. Ultimately, the choice between the two will depend on the size and specific needs of your business.
Now—
Let’s look at each of the features more in-depth.
Shopify provides various essential features to create, manage, and expand your e-commerce business. The platform allows you to set up an e-commerce website, and point-of-sale (POS) system, and customize the customer experience throughout the buyer’s journey. However, Shopify Plus takes it a step further by providing additional features to handle high-demand and complex businesses. Here are some of the key features of Shopify Plus:
✔️ Shopify Organization Admin
Shopify Plus offers a single admin for multiple stores that allows you to manage multiple stores in different languages, multi-currency, or offering different products from a single panel. This feature includes Shopify Flow to automate workflows, Users to manage user permissions, and Stores to manage multiple storefronts from a single admin panel.
✔️ Specialized Apps and API Resources
Shopify Plus provides access to advanced Shopify and Shopify Plus partner apps, designed to help high-growth merchants run their stores at a high standard. Shopify Plus merchants can use channels such as a wholesale channel, a launchpad, a script editor, and integrations with Avalara AvaTax services. Moreover, this plan supports additional API calls (REST API and GraphQL) that you can use to integrate with custom apps, offering gift cards, and personalized offers to your shoppers during the holiday season.
✔️ Customizable Checkout
Shopify Plus users have access to checkout.liquid, which is a checkout page layout that provides a customizable checkout page. This feature allows you to fit the checkout page to your company’s style and feel, giving you more control over the checkout process and improving the customer experience.
✔️ Launch Team Support
The launch support team helps Shopify Plus merchants launch their online store quickly. The team will assist you in using migration tools to move your online store into Shopify and set it up. It also helps you create a strategy, custom integrations, and solutions to meet your business requirements. Additionally, the Merchant Success Program offers a merchant success manager to help you with the ongoing strategy for your e-commerce business, ensuring you get the most value out of the Shopify Plus plan and keep growing your online store.
✔️ Unlimited Staff
Unlike Shopify Basic or Advanced, Shopify Plus has no limits on the number of staff accounts, allowing you to grow your personnel without any limitations.
✔️ Permissions
Shopify Plus store owners get additional permission settings to control the actions of team members and what each of them is allowed to do. These permissions include separate professional report exports and access to specific apps, ensuring your online store is safe from unauthorized and inexperienced staff members.
✔️ Expansion Stores
Shopify Plus supports up to nine online stores, making it easier for you to manage your international business or different e-commerce websites. You can manage all these stores through one admin panel by upgrading to Shopify Plus from your regular Shopify account.
✔️ Shopify Plus Partner Program
Shopify Plus Partner Program provides you with technical expertise and solutions to some of the issues your company is struggling with, along with access to the Shopify Plus Academy for self-guided training on key topics related to business growth and improvements.
✔️ Themes
Shopify Plus allows you to add up to 100 Shopify themes to your account, enabling you to create seasonal versions of your theme and test changes you want to make to your online store’s theme without deleting the existing website look.
✔️ Shopify POS Pro
Shopify Plus provides access to the POS Pro for all your store’s locations at no extra charge. This feature allows your customers to pay with debit and credit cards in your store seamlessly and syncs your e-commerce marketplace to your brick-and-mortar effortlessly.
It is a well-known fact that Shopify Plus is significantly more expensive than the basic or advanced Shopify plans. However, the cost of Shopify Plus varies based on a company’s business needs and is usually determined during discussions with Shopify’s sales team. Typically, businesses can expect to pay a minimum of $2,000 per month for setup and integrations.
Here is a comparison table of Shopify Plus vs Shopify pricing, providing a quick overview of the various plan costs:
| Shopify Plan | Pricing |
|---|---|
| Starter | $5/month |
| Basic Shopify | $29/month + Additional $89/month for POS Pro |
| Shopify | $79/month + Additional $89/month for POS Pro |
| Shopify Advanced | $299/month + Additional $89/month for POS Pro |
| Shopify Plus | From $2,000/month, POS Pro included |
The price of Shopify Plus is higher due to the larger offering and the range of additional features that come with it.
One of the benefits of Shopify Plus is that it has lower transaction fees for using third-party payment processors. The plan only charges 0.15% per transaction to cover additional security requirements. In comparison, transaction fees for other Shopify plans range from 0.5% to 5%.
In addition, the price of Shopify Plus includes the main online store and up to nine expansion Shopify stores, whereas basic or advanced Shopify accounts only allow for one online store. Companies would need to purchase separate accounts for each online store, which could end up being more costly than Shopify Plus in the long run.
So, despite the higher price point, why should companies use Shopify Plus?
If you’re running a business and looking for an ecommerce platform, Shopify Plus might have caught your attention. But the question is, is it worth the investment? In this article, we’ll take a look at the benefits of Shopify Plus and help you decide if it’s the right choice for your business.
First, let’s go over the benefits of Shopify Plus. One of the most significant advantages is the dedicated account manager that Plus merchants receive. You’ll have a direct point of contact with Shopify’s customer support team who can assist you with any issues or questions you may have.
Another benefit is the level of control you have over the checkout experience. With Shopify Plus, you can customize the checkout process to fit your business’s specific needs. This is especially useful for companies with complex or unique checkout requirements.
Shopify Plus also offers unlimited staff accounts, so you can add as many team members as you need to manage your online store. And if you have multiple online stores, Shopify Plus allows you to manage all of them from a single location.
Plus merchants also get access to exclusive third-party apps and API integrations, allowing you to expand the functionality of your online store. And with in-depth analytics, you can track your store’s performance and make data-driven decisions to improve your business.
Now, the big question is – is Shopify Plus worth it?
The answer is, it depends on your business’s needs. If you have an enterprise-level business with multiple online stores, specific functionality requirements, or need high-level security and support, then Shopify Plus might be the right choice for you.
However, if you’re a startup, small business, or medium-sized company with a single ecommerce website, the standard Shopify plans are a better fit. With Shopify Basic and Shopify, you’ll get all the features you need at a more affordable price point.
To summarize, Shopify Plus is a great choice for businesses with specific needs and requirements. However, for most SMBs, the standard Shopify plans are a better investment. So, consider your business’s needs and make the decision that makes the most sense for you.
If you do decide to upgrade to Shopify Plus, the process is straightforward. Contact the Shopify team, and they’ll guide you through the process of subscribing to the Plus plan.
If you are interested in upgrading your ecommerce store to Shopify Plus, there are a few things you need to know. Firstly, if you haven’t already, you can sign up for a Shopify Plus account by visiting the registration page and filling out the necessary form. A member of the Shopify team will then reach out to you.
If you already have a Shopify account, the process is even simpler. Here are the steps you need to take:
And that’s it! However, upgrading to Shopify Plus is just the beginning. There are several changes you’ll need to make to your ecommerce store to take full advantage of the platform. For instance, you’ll need to customize your checkout, integrate across platforms and sales channels, and expand to new markets to increase your reach.
Fortunately, Shopify Plus provides a team of skilled engineers who are dedicated to building high-quality ecommerce websites. They also offer 24/7 support to help you with all the necessary changes, launch your online store, and manage your ongoing strategy.
Ultimately, upgrading to Shopify Plus can provide many benefits for your ecommerce business.
Choosing between Shopify and Shopify Plus ultimately depends on your business needs. If you’re a small or mid-sized business with a limited budget and traffic, Shopify is likely the best option for you. Shopify offers an intuitive interface, affordable pricing, and essential features to help you run an online store.
On the other hand, if you’re an enterprise-level business with complex needs, Shopify Plus may be the better option for you. Shopify Plus offers advanced customization options, scalable infrastructure, and 24/7 support, making it a suitable option for businesses that need high-level support and advanced features. However, it’s important to weigh the cost of Shopify Plus against the benefits it provides to ensure that it’s the right choice for your business.
In conclusion, both Shopify and Shopify Plus are powerful e-commerce platforms that can help you run a successful online store. The key differences between the two lie in cost, scalability, customization, support, and features. When choosing between the two, consider your business needs, budget, and long-term goals to determine which version is right for you.
Shopify is a popular ecommerce platform that suits small and medium-sized businesses. It’s a great option if you’re just starting and don’t have a lot of sales volume or require too many advanced features.
On the other hand, Shopify Plus is a fully-hosted enterprise ecommerce platform for large businesses and growth merchants. This platform provides an additional set of advanced features and services for businesses dealing with high sales volume, and more specific requirements.
Yes, Shopify is an excellent platform for beginners who are starting an online business. Shopify’s user-friendly interface and intuitive setup process make it easy for anyone, even those without any prior experience in e-commerce, to build and run an online store. With Shopify’s powerful tools and resources, beginners can easily manage inventory, process payments, and fulfill orders, among other things, without having to worry about the technical aspects of running an online business.
Yes, Shopify is an excellent fit for small businesses looking to sell their products online. With Shopify, small businesses can easily set up an online store without having to worry about the technical details of e-commerce. Shopify provides a wide range of tools and resources that are specifically designed for small businesses, including an easy-to-use interface, customizable themes, and payment processing capabilities. Additionally, Shopify’s pricing plans are affordable and scalable, allowing small businesses to grow their online presence without breaking the bank.
When it comes to uptime, Shopify comes out on top with a 99.99% overall uptime, while Shopify Plus maintains 99.98%. Despite this slight difference, Shopify Plus offers faster storefront loading times compared to other SaaS platforms, with a 2.97x faster load time. In summary, both platforms can help reduce bounce rates, which can negatively impact your business’s conversion rates.
When should I upgrade from standard Shopify to Shopify Plus? If your online business is growing rapidly, and you need more features and capabilities to keep up with the demands of your customers, then it might be time to consider upgrading to Shopify Plus. Shopify Plus is designed for high-volume merchants, with more advanced features such as advanced automation, custom checkout, and higher API limits. Additionally, Shopify Plus provides dedicated support, so you can get the help you need when you need it, ensuring that your online business runs smoothly and efficiently.
Whether or not Shopify is worth the investment depends on your specific needs and the quality of the platform itself. If you’re looking for an easy way to launch an online business from scratch, even without any development experience, Shopify is a great option. It provides professionally designed storefront themes and a highly secure payment method. However, if content marketing is a core focus of your business, other platforms like WordPress or Medium may be better suited due to their more robust blogging features. Ultimately, the decision of whether or not Shopify is worth your investment will depend on your business goals and needs.
But if you still cannot decide on your own? No need to worry, we’re here to help!
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