Shopify Plus vs Shopify Advanced: Pricing plans compared

The Shopify platform has become a force to be reckoned with in the world of eCommerce, empowering over one million online stores worldwide. 

From small startups to large enterprises, Shopify addresses the diverse needs of merchants across different industries. To meet the different requirements of these businesses, Shopify offers different plans, with Shopify Plus and Shopify Advanced standing out as the most advanced options.

While many are familiar with the distinctions between basic Shopify plans, the differences between Shopify Advanced vs Plus often raise questions. In this article, we will delve into the differences between these two options, providing you with the insights you need to select the best plan for your eCommerce store.

5 Shopify plans: Basics

When it comes to choosing a Shopify plan, merchants have a range of options to suit their business needs and budget. Here are five Shopify pricing plans for 2024:

Basic Shopify:  Starting at $32 per month or $24 per month if paid yearly, the Basic Shopify plan provides essential features for small businesses. It includes an easy-to-use online store builder, unlimited products, 24/7 customer support, and the ability to sell across multiple channels.

Shopify: Priced at $92 per month or $69 per month if paid yearly, the standard Shopify plan offers additional features compared to the Basic plan. Alongside all the features of Basic Shopify, this plan includes gift cards, professional reports, abandoned cart recovery, and lower credit card processing fees as well as the increased limit of users to 5 to access and edit to the online store .

Shopify Advanced: Geared towards growing businesses, the Shopify Advanced plan costs $399 per month or $299 per month if paid yearly. This plan enhances the Shopify experience with advanced reporting, third-party calculated shipping rates, and access to Shopify's robust API for custom integrations.

Shopify Plus: Designed for high-volume merchants and enterprise-level businesses, Shopify Plus provides a fully customizable and scalable eCommerce solution. The pricing for Shopify Plus starts at $2000 and is tailored to each business's specific requirements, offering advanced features such as dedicated account management, priority support, and multi-store capabilities.

Shopify Lite: For merchants who already have an existing website or social media presence, Shopify Lite is an affordable option at $9 per month. It allows you to add ecommerce functionality to your website, sell on Facebook and Instagram, and accept payments in person with Shopify's Point of Sale system.

Options for big merchants or enterprise: Shopify Plus vs. Advanced 

For larger merchants and enterprise-level businesses, Shopify offers two powerful options that cater to their specific needs: Shopify Plus and Shopify Advanced. These plans are designed to provide advanced features, scalability, and flexibility to handle high-volume sales and complex operations.

Shopify Plus

Shopify Plus is the ultimate solution for businesses seeking a fully customizable and scalable ecommerce platform. With Shopify Plus, merchants gain access to a suite of robust tools and features, including custom checkout experiences, automation capabilities, multi-store management, and dedicated account management. This plan also offers enhanced security measures, priority support, and the ability to handle substantial traffic and sales volumes effortlessly. Shopify Plus pricing is tailored to each business's unique requirements, ensuring the utmost value for their investment.

Shopify Advanced

On the other hand, Shopify Advanced serves as a comprehensive plan that bridges the gap between standard Shopify plans and Shopify Plus. This option includes advanced reporting and analytics, third-party calculated shipping rates, and access to Shopify's API for custom integrations. Shopify Advanced provides an ideal balance of affordability, scalability, and advanced functionality, making it suitable for growing businesses looking to expand their operations without committing to the full scope of Shopify Plus.

This plan is tailored to businesses that sell large volumes and offers advanced features to support their growth. If you're not happy with any of these options there are great Shopify alternatives available.

Shopify Plus vs Shopify Advanced: Pricing plans

Shopify Plus pricing is not fixed, as it is tailored to each business's specific requirements. It is based on the individual merchant's usage, which is measured by their monthly sales volume on the Shopify platform. Initially, the pricing starts at $2,000 until the merchant's revenue exceeds $800,000. Once a merchant's revenue surpasses this amount, the pricing for Shopify Plus is determined by taking 0.25% of their monthly revenue.

The pricing model for Shopify Advanced is structured differently - you need to pay a fixed price. The monthly cost for the Advanced plan is $399 ($299 per month if paid annually). In addition to the fixed monthly fee, there is a transaction fee based on the value of each transaction. For the Advanced plan, the transaction fee is 2.4% of the transaction value plus 30 cents.

Shopify Plus or Shopify Advanced: Which to choose?

To address a frequently asked question, it is important to clarify that Shopify and Shopify Plus are not two separate platforms. When transitioning from the core Shopify plan to Shopify Plus, additional functionality becomes available within the existing ecosystem. There is no need for a new implementation, ensuring a smooth and seamless transition between Shopify, Shopify Advanced, and Shopify Plus.

Shopify Plus is by far the richest and most comprehensive version of Shopify dedicated to merchants who run large and complex businesses and have high demands. 

In the following section, we'll explore some of the key features, functionalities, services and teams that become available to merchants on the Shopify Plus plan so you can decide if you need them to grow your business or Shopify Advanced is a better fit.

Advanced Shopify vs Shopify Plus: Differences

The decision between Shopify Plus and Shopify Advanced depends on your business's specific needs, growth projections, budget, and desire for advanced features and personalized support. It's recommended to assess your requirements and consult with a Shopify representative to determine the best fit for your business.

Control of the store & checkout process

Having complete control over the checkout process is one of the standout features of Shopify Plus. This particular aspect appeals to enterprise businesses as it allows them to have full authority over the appearance and the way of functioning of their eCommerce store. 

Shopify Advanced gives you access to a wide selection of store themes that can be customized. You can modify colors, layout, add additional pages, and incorporate various functionalities. However, if you don’t like any of it, Shopify Plus takes customization to the next level. You have the freedom to customize your shop in any possible way you like, including utilizing a front-end solution other than Shopify. 

Shopify Plus grants complete access to the code of your store, including the checkout page code files, which Shopify Advanced does not. This allows your team to craft tailored and unique features and functionalities that align with your specific business requirements.

The API capabilities of the Advanced pricing plan also have certain limitations. Therefore, if you have a requirement for building numerous custom solutions on top of the Shopify platform, it is advisable to opt for the Plus version. On the other hand, if you can work with a smaller selection of connected apps provided by Shopify, the Advanced Shopify plan may be suitable for your needs.

10 storefronts in one Shopify Plus account & expanding internationally

What also sets Shopify Plus apart is the opportunity to create 10 unique and customized storefronts. You can do it using Hydrogen and Oxygen, which are available exclusively on Shopify Plus. 

These additional storefronts can be incredibly useful when expanding your brand internationally or targeting B2B customers. Each of these storefronts can be customized to cater to specific consumer segments, enabling you to stay ahead of the competition.

Having an extra storefront also provides a valuable testing environment for introducing new features to your store. This safeguards your main store from potential issues caused by buggy features. By transforming one of the 10 storefronts into a dedicated testing environment, you can mitigate risks and maintain a smooth shopping experience for your customers.

With Advanced Shopify, merchants are restricted to having only one store. This means that if a merchant has multiple stores, such as one in the US and another in the UK, they would need to purchase separate Advanced Shopify plans for each store doubling the cost. Furthermore, these accounts would remain isolated from each other.

Source: Shopify

Multiple currencies

Shopify Plus also offers another unique advantage compared to Shopify Advanced with its ability to support additional storefronts based on customer location. This feature allows merchants to provide customized storefronts based on the specific page customers visit. 

By leveraging this capability, you can offer tailored product suggestions, multilingual stores, and local currencies. Furthermore, all aspects of product inventory, sales, and customer interactions can be efficiently managed in a centralized platform.

Shopify Plus offers a solution for running sales with multiple currencies at the checkout, which is especially convenient for merchants who are unable to use Shopify Payments in their country. In countries where Shopify Payments is not available, it becomes challenging to collect foreign currencies during the checkout process. For these situations, it’s recommended either opening an additional store or upgrading to a Shopify Plus account. With Shopify Plus, merchants gain the capability to seamlessly handle transactions in different currencies, providing a more inclusive and flexible payment experience for their customers.

Special functionalities for B2B

With Shopify Plus, you have the advantage of operating both B2B and B2C businesses from a single store. As a merchant, you can choose between having a unified online store for both direct and wholesale transactions or setting up a dedicated B2B store, allowing you to create a customized eCommerce experience for your B2B customers. 

Source: Shopify

The Shopify B2B sales channel provides several benefits:

• You can set lower prices for all B2B customers.
• We have the option to create site-wide discounts or lower prices for specific product categories.
• Different customer groups can be assigned different pricing.
• Pricing can be based on order volume, providing flexibility in catering to varying customer needs.

With Shopify Plus you can:

• Shopify Plus provides a portal for B2B buyers to manage their accounts and access relevant information.
• You can make prices visible only to registered users, ensuring privacy and exclusivity. 

When it comes to automation, Shopify Plus offers two powerful tools: Shopify Scripts and Shopify Launchpad. These tools are exclusive to the Shopify Plus plan and are extremely  time-saving.

• Shopify Scripts automates repetitive tasks such as customer tagging, product collection management, inventory replenishment, and order notifications.
• Shopify Launchpad functions as an automation tool for sales launches or adding new collections. It automatically publishes products across multiple sales channels, updates the homepage, and applies discounted prices as configured. The tool can also stop the sale when needed, offering convenience and control.

You can manage different companies, locations, and buyers within your B2B operations.

Using Shopify Plus you can create and manage catalogs, controlling the availability of products for your wholesale customers. You have the flexibility to include all products or select specific ones to feature in each catalog.

If you're not satisfied with the feed optimization features Shopify offers, you can improve your data feeds further by using a specialized feed management solution like DataFeedWatch, which integrates seamlessly with Shopify.

Read also: 5 Techniques to Nail Data Feed Management if You're a Shopify Plus Seller

Shopify Plus simplifies the process of creating draft orders or generating quotes for B2B customers. It allows B2B customers to use unique shipping addresses for specific orders. You can also Implement rules for minimum or maximum order quantities for B2B transactions.

Additionally, as Shopify Plus owners, you can integrate Google Tag Manager with your Shopify store for further optimization and tracking capabilities.

Access to apps

When comparing Shopify Plus with Advanced plan, there is a significant difference in app access. Advanced Shopify includes some free apps and third-party software solutions, but many of the enterprise-level, feature-rich technologies require a monthly subscription fee. While integrating these apps can potentially lead to increased sales through features like subscription payments, upselling, loyalty programs, or subscription renewals, the monthly costs can add up.

Shopify Plus offers a range of apps specifically tailored for larger businesses that utilize the platform. These certified apps are designed to address specific business needs, providing more targeted and robust functionality. Additionally, with the increased flexibility of Shopify Plus, developers can create custom features directly for your store, eliminating the need for relying on third-party apps and saving on monthly fees.

For example, Shopify Plus has access to apps like Shopify Flow and Launchpad:

• Shopify Flow is an eCommerce automation platform that empowers merchants to automate various daily tasks. The possibilities with Flow are endless. For example, it can automatically generate support tickets in response to negative reviews or send SMS text discount codes to customers for repeat purchases. With Shopify Flow, automation becomes a powerful tool to streamline operations and enhance efficiency.
  
  
• Another valuable app available exclusively to Shopify Plus users is Shopify Launchpad. This app enables merchants to schedule tasks such as product releases, campaigns, or flash sales well in advance. By utilizing Launchpad, merchants can effectively plan and execute timed marketing events to create excitement and generate sales.

Shopify Point of Sale feature

Shopify POS Pro, a feature offered by Shopify Plus, enhances the customer experience by creating an omnichannel shopping environment. This means that customers of Plus merchants can enjoy various options such as purchasing products online and picking them up in-store. Alternatively, if a customer is physically present in a shop but prefers to think about the purchase before making a decision, merchants can follow up with them later for an online conversion.

Shopify POS Pro also enables you to synchronize your online and offline product offerings, ensuring consistency across channels. Additionally, it integrates with various apps that provide useful functionality, such as loyalty programs, returns management, appointment booking, and more. By leveraging these capabilities using Shopify Plus you reduce the gap between online and physical retail spaces.

Source: Shopify

Extraordinary support with Shopify Plus 

Shopify Plus offers more than just additional features. One significant advantage of being a Shopify Plus merchant is the dedicated support provided by Shopify Plus experts. These experts are available to assist you in various ways:

• Managing various aspects of the account such as contracts and finance
• Co-creation of the brand strategy with Shopify
• Offering guidance on business operations
• Keeping merchants informed about the latest updates from Shopify
• Granting early access to new features and beta versions
• Providing important data and analytics
• Recommending Shopify Partner and third-party solutions or apps
• Giving access to exclusive webinars and courses through Shopify Academy

If you prefer a hands-on approach, you also have access to resources within the Shopify Plus library. Additionally, you can join the official Facebook group where merchants share their valuable tips and tricks, allowing you to learn from their experiences. Furthermore, you have the opportunity to participate in Merchant Success Programs, which provide expert guidance and support to help your brand thrive online. With these support options, Shopify Plus ensures that you have the necessary resources at your disposal to succeed and elevate your business.

Conclusion

When it comes to choosing between Shopify Plus and Shopify Advanced, it's important to carefully consider your business needs, goals, and budget. Both plans offer a range of features and functionality to help you scale your business and succeed in the competitive eCommerce landscape.

If you need the extra benefits and exclusive services, you should go for Shopify Plus, but Shopify Advanced also offers a robust set of features, so you won't be disappointed if you can only afford more cost-effective options.

We hope this article has provided helpful insights into the differences between these two pricing plans. But we also want to hear from you! If you have any questions, experiences, or thoughts on the subject, please leave a comment below.

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