When Does Shopify Plus Actually Make Sense?

Shopify's sales team will happily tell you all the reasons to upgrade to Plus. We'll give you a more balanced view, based on actually building on both tiers.

What Plus Actually Gets You

Checkout Customisation

This is the big one. On standard Shopify, the checkout is basically untouchable. On Plus, you can add custom fields, show conditional content, modify the layout, and run custom logic with Shopify Functions. If you need checkout customisation, you need Plus.

Higher API Limits

If you're building custom integrations, running a headless frontend, or have high-volume automation, you'll hit API limits on standard Shopify. Plus roughly doubles these limits.

Multiple Stores

Plus includes expansion stores at reduced cost. If you're running separate stores for different regions or brands, the maths can work in your favour.

Dedicated Support

You get a launch manager during setup and ongoing access to the Merchant Success team. For complex implementations, this matters.

When You Don't Need Plus

If you're doing under £500K annually, unless you have specific technical needs that require Plus features, standard Shopify is probably fine. The core platform is capable, the app ecosystem covers most needs, and the cost difference is significant.

Many successful stores stay on Advanced Shopify (the tier below Plus) for years. Don't upgrade just because it feels like you should.

The Cost Calculation

Plus pricing scales with your revenue, and the subscription is significantly higher than standard plans. Factor in your payment processing setup—Plus gives you better rates on Shopify Payments, which can offset some of the subscription cost at high volumes.

Also consider what you're currently spending on workarounds. Apps that replicate Plus features, custom development to work around limitations, manual processes that Plus automation could eliminate. The total cost of ownership often tells a different story than the subscription price alone.

Our Recommendation

Talk to us before deciding. We'll look at your specific situation and tell you honestly whether Plus makes sense now, might make sense later, or probably isn't necessary at all.