Shopify vs. Shopify Plus: Differences, pros and cons in 2024

Shopify is an established e-commerce platform and website builder that caters to all types of businesses. It’s one of the most popular options available for creating and hosting an online store due to its intuitive interface, customization capabilities and multichannel support.

However, as merchants grow and scale their operations, they may require a more advanced infrastructure with enterprise-level features. This is what Shopify Plus is designed for. In the following Shopify vs. Shopify Plus review, we go over the similarities and differences between these two offerings to help you determine which might be most suitable for your business needs.

Shopify vs. Shopify Plus: Quick overview

The Shopify platform is ideal for small- to medium-sized businesses as well as individual entrepreneurs looking to sell their products or services online. With no technological skills required, customers can set up a digital retail space and use the various tools provided to manage inventory and sales.

Shopify Plus is an upgraded version of the Shopify platform that’s tailored to larger businesses with a much higher volume of traffic and transactions. It gives merchants access to additional features and integrations that aren’t available on standard Shopify.

Pricing and value

Verdict: Tie

Shopify pricing and value

Shopify offers three main pricing tiers, ranging from $39 to $399 per month. These plans are designed for scalability, allowing single entrepreneurs and small businesses to move up to the next level of functionality as their online store scales. 

All plans have a free three-day trial option, and then users may pay $1 per month for three months while they decide if it’s a good fit for their business.

Every Shopify plan features the following:

• Unlimited product listings.
• Ten inventory locations.
• Analytics reporting.
• Abandoned cart recovery.
• POS lite.
• Shipping discounts. 

There’s also a Starter plan available for $5 per month. However, this doesn’t come with an online store. Instead, it’s meant for selling on social media networks.

Shopify Plus pricing and value

Shopify Plus pricing is based on the length of a business contract. The monthly cost starts at $2,500 for one-year terms and $2,300 for three-year terms. This includes standard setups and integrations. For businesses that do a substantial amount of sales, the flat rate price will change to a variable platform fee dependent on industry and profits. 

Along with all the features in the standard Shopify plans, Shopify Plus accounts come with the following:

• Unlimited staff accounts.
• Up to 200 inventory locations.
• Nine expansion stores.
• Up to 100 themes.
• 20 POS Pro locations.
• Access to the Shopify Plus Partner Program.

Though the traditional Shopify plans are much less expensive, we found both versions of the platform provide value to the different audiences they’re intended for. 

Web editor

Verdict: Tie

Shopify and Shopify Plus are both powerful options for building e-commerce websites. While Shopify’s web editor is sufficient for entrepreneurs and small businesses, the extra settings and features available through the Shopify Plus editor are beneficial to merchants with multiple stores or an assortment of products.

Shopify web editor

Shopify has a simple drag-and-drop editor that allows anyone to build a website regardless of their coding knowledge. There is a variety of free and paid themes to choose from, with a number of built-in features that specifically support online selling. 

Users can easily add and edit images or content to match product listings to their brand and pick from more than 8,000 apps to install for a higher degree of personalization. 

Shopify Plus web editor

Shopify Plus uses the same interface and editor as Shopify but provides access to more advanced tools and customization capabilities. New Shopify Plus merchants may also receive professional guidance through the design, development and launch processes of their online store. With Shopify Plus, businesses can create up to nine storefronts and manage them all from one dashboard through the Organization Settings tool. 

E-commerce functionality

Verdict: Tie

Both versions of Shopify provide a robust suite of e-commerce solutions to support business growth. The platform places heavy focus on the creation and management of online stores by implementing various e-commerce automations, POS options, specialized commerce apps and several other functionalities.

Shopify e-commerce functionality

Shopify’s e-commerce functionality gives businesses everything necessary to operate successfully in the digital marketplace and to provide customers with a seamless shopping experience. Along with unlimited product listings, each plan includes the following:

• Inventory tracking. 
• Gift card sales.
• Discount codes.
• Checkout capacity.

There are also numerous third-party apps available that allow online stores to add increased functionality based on their needs. Shopify sites accept all major credit cards with payment processing fees starting at 2.5% plus $0.30 for online transactions and 2.4% plus $0.10 for in-person transactions on the Advanced plan.

Shopify Plus e-commerce functionality

In addition to all of the features mentioned above, Shopify Plus also offers some exclusive e-commerce features:

• Up to 200 locations to sell products, stock inventory or ship orders.
• Unlimited staff accounts to help with store management.
• A customizable checkout unique to certain shoppers.
• Omnichannel capabilities that cater to customers both online and offline.

Only Shopify Plus merchants have access to apps such as Launchpad, which automate tasks such as sales events and inventory restocks.

Blogging

Verdict: Tie

Every Shopify store includes a built-in blog, whether on the standard platform or Shopify Plus. Though it’s a good option to have, the functionality is basic since the website builder is geared more towards selling products and services than content management.

Shopify blogging

Shopify’s blogging tool is meant to help businesses promote products and engage with customers. When launching a new store, blogs may be added as part of the setup process. For existing stores, merchants can just begin writing posts. 

Custom templates are available for blog layouts, and posts can be scheduled to publish. Once blogs become visible, an RSS feed is created, allowing readers to subscribe and receive notifications. It’s also possible to link external blogs to a Shopify store.

Shopify Plus blogging

Shopify Plus users may perform the same blogging operations that are accessible on the main Shopify platform.

Marketing and SEO

Verdict: Tie

Shopify has an array of e-commerce marketing and SEO tools to help get brands in front of their target audience. These are available on both the regular version and Shopify Plus.

Shopify marketing and SEO

Shopify offers different marketing tools designed to promote products and drive sales. For example, merchants can send out custom email campaigns, add chat capabilities to engage with shoppers and put out lead capture forms. There’s also an option to set up targeted social media ads. A marketing dashboard lets business owners track each campaign’s performance as well.

Users can implement SEO best practices across their sites by writing content for relevant keywords and editing title tags, meta descriptions, URLs and image alt texts on all blogs and pages.

Shopify Plus marketing and SEO

Shopify Plus gives merchants the opportunity to take their marketing efforts a step further with automated and customized promotions. Businesses can also give consumers a real-life shopping experience by enhancing product listings with 3D models, immersive videos and augmented reality.

Performance and security

Verdict: Tie

Shopify and Shopify Plus claim fast loading times and unlimited bandwidth for all websites. Both also seem to take security seriously and have various measures in place to protect sensitive data. 

Shopify performance and security

Shopify maintains that its stores are hosted on “fast global servers” and that the platform is regularly being improved to help optimize site performance. It also allows users to easily check their store’s speed score and provides helpful tips for increasing speeds.

Shopify operates with Level 1 PCI compliance to ensure customer data is kept confidential and SSL certificates are included with each shopping cart. Fraud analysis also comes standard with all plans. 

Shopify Plus performance and security

Shopify Plus states that its websites experience 99.99% uptime on average, indicating they’re hosted on reliable servers. Users can also install apps to help cut down on storefront response times and accelerate checkout times.

Shopify Plus sites are PCI compliant as well, and they also feature bot protection, data encryption, 3D secure checkout, fraud analysis and SOC 2 Type II compliance. 

Mobile app

Verdict: Tie

Shopify offers four different mobile apps for iOS and Android devices. Being that Shopify and Shopify Plus operate on the same platform, all merchants with an account can download and use these from any location.

Shopify mobile app

Shopify’s free mobile app gives users the ability to build, promote and manage their online store while on the go. They can list products, track sales, handle payments, fulfill orders and set up marketing campaigns just as they would from a computer. 

There are also the Shopify POS, Shopify Inbox and Shopify Balance apps. These make it easy to process payments, chat with customers and review financial information at any time.

Shopify Plus mobile app

The same mobile apps and functionalities are available to Shopify Plus users. 

Final verdict

Winner: Shopify

Shopify and Shopify Plus offer similar value to the different types of businesses they cater to, which is why they tie in all the categories we evaluated. However, even though Shopify Plus has additional features, Shopify’s much lower price point gives it a slight edge. This makes it more attainable for many merchants. 

Who is Shopify best for?

Shopify is best for entrepreneurs and small- to medium-sized e-commerce businesses that want a simple and effective online store setup. The various plans offered on the standard Shopify platform still allow for scalability and support as a business grows without the higher price tag. 

Who is Shopify Plus best for?

Shopify Plus is better for enterprise-level businesses that bring in significant revenue. These merchants need more advanced e-commerce functionality and have the funds to spend on resources designed to drive high conversion rates.

Frequently asked questions (FAQs)

When should you switch to Shopify Plus?

It may be the right time to switch to Shopify Plus if your online business has started bringing in $80,000 per month or more in revenue. You might also consider upgrading if you want more customization for your store, you require a higher number of staff accounts or you’re looking to expand to several other countries that speak a foreign language.

How do you upgrade to Shopify Plus?

To upgrade to Shopify Plus from a Shopify plan, you’ll need to contact the platform’s customer service team. A consultant will go over your options and help you determine if it’s a suitable fit for your business needs. Should you decide to move forward, your store will be upgraded within 24 business hours, and you’ll receive information for onboarding and support.