What Is Shopify Plus and Who Is It For?
Shopify Plus is Shopify’s enterprise commerce platform designed for high-volume merchants — businesses processing millions of dollars in annual revenue, operating complex B2B relationships, or needing advanced customization capabilities that standard Shopify plans don’t support. It offers significantly expanded capabilities: unlimited staff accounts, checkout customization, advanced automation, dedicated support, multi-store management, and enterprise-grade infrastructure guarantees.
This guide explains what Shopify Plus includes, what it costs, when the upgrade makes financial sense, and what capabilities it unlocks that aren’t available on standard plans.
Shopify Plus Pricing
Shopify Plus starts at $2,000/month with a revenue-based model that scales: stores processing over $800,000/month move to a revenue-share model of approximately 0.25% of monthly revenue (capped at a maximum). For most Shopify Plus customers, the monthly cost ranges from $2,000-$10,000+ depending on sales volume.
The math works when: lower processing rates on Shopify Payments save more than the plan cost increase, expanded capabilities drive meaningful revenue, or enterprise needs (compliance, support, multi-store) justify the investment. For stores doing $1M+ annual revenue, Shopify Plus typically pays for itself in reduced transaction fees and improved conversion alone.
What Shopify Plus Includes That Standard Shopify Doesn’t
Checkout Customization:
- Checkout UI Extensions — add custom fields, apps, and branding to checkout without replacing it
- Checkout.liquid access — full HTML/CSS/JS customization of the checkout template (being phased out in favor of Extensions)
- Checkout branding API — customize fonts, colors, and visual identity of checkout
- Post-purchase checkout extensions — add content and offers between order completion and order status page
Automation and Flow:
- Shopify Flow — available on Shopify Plus (and now Shopify plan), enables advanced automation workflows
- Launchpad — schedule flash sales, product launches, and discount activations with automatic rollback
B2B Commerce:
- Native B2B features — company profiles, custom price lists per company, net payment terms, draft order management
- Customer-specific catalogs — show different products and prices to different customer groups natively
- Quantity rules — minimum order quantities, case-packs, and purchase increments per customer
Multi-Store Management:
- Shopify Organization Admin — manage up to 10 stores from one dashboard (included in Plus; additional stores vary by contract)
- Shopify Audiences — audience targeting tool using Shopify’s first-party buyer data network for paid ads
- Unified analytics across stores
Infrastructure and Support:
- 99.99% uptime SLA (vs. standard Shopify’s 99.9%)
- Dedicated Plus support via phone, priority tickets, and account management
- Unlimited staff accounts (standard Shopify limits staff by plan)
- Unlimited locations for POS
Shopify Plus vs. Standard Shopify: When to Upgrade
Consider Shopify Plus when:
- Revenue — you’re doing $1M+ annually and growing; the math on transaction fee savings often justifies Plus above this threshold
- B2B needs — you’re adding wholesale or trade accounts and need native B2B features without workarounds
- Checkout customization — your conversion optimization requires checkout fields, branding, or logic unavailable on standard Shopify
- Multi-store operations — you run multiple brands, geographies, or channels from Shopify and need unified management
- Flash sales or launches — Launchpad’s scheduled automation is critical for coordinated product drops
- Enterprise compliance — SOC 2 reports, DPA agreements, or other compliance requirements your contracts mandate
Do NOT upgrade to Plus if: you’re under $1M annual revenue with straightforward needs, you just want “enterprise” perception, or the cost would meaningfully impact your business’s runway.
Shopify Plus B2B Features in Detail
Shopify Plus’s native B2B capabilities are among its most compelling features for wholesale brands:
- Company profiles — each wholesale company gets its own profile with contacts, locations, and custom settings
- Price lists — assign custom price lists per company or customer segment; customer logs in and sees their negotiated prices automatically
- Net payment terms — configure Net 30/60/90 terms per company; orders create invoices with due dates instead of immediate payment
- Draft orders — sales reps create orders on behalf of wholesale customers for approval workflows
- Quantity rules — enforce minimum order quantities, case pack requirements, and quantity increments per product per company
For brands doing both D2C and wholesale from the same Shopify store, Plus B2B eliminates the need for separate wholesale platforms or complex app workarounds.
Shopify Functions (Formerly Scripts) on Shopify Plus
Shopify Functions allow custom serverless code to run in Shopify’s checkout for discount logic, shipping customization, and payment method control. While basic Functions are now available on standard Shopify, advanced Function capabilities (complex discount combinations, custom shipping logic) remain Plus-exclusive or Plus-enhanced.
For brands with complex pricing rules (quantity breaks, customer-segment discounts, conditional shipping logic), Functions running on Plus provide the checkout customization flexibility that drives conversion for high-volume stores.
Shopify Plus Resources and Support
Plus merchants receive:
- Dedicated Plus support — priority phone, chat, and ticket support with faster SLAs
- Merchant Success Manager — dedicated account manager for larger Plus accounts
- Shopify Plus Academy — exclusive training resources for Plus-specific features
- Shopify Plus Partner program — access to vetted Plus-specialized agencies and technology partners
- Shopify Plus community — private community of Plus merchants for peer learning and networking
Frequently Asked Questions
What’s the minimum revenue to justify Shopify Plus?
The commonly cited threshold is $1M-2M annual revenue, where lower Shopify Payments processing rates and increased checkout conversion from customization typically offset the plan cost increase. However, B2B needs, multi-store operations, or specific compliance requirements may justify Plus at lower revenue levels. Calculate your specific math: current processing costs + transaction fees vs. Plus plan cost + lower Plus processing rates.
Can I customize checkout on standard Shopify?
Limited customization is available on standard plans via Checkout Extensibility (adding apps to checkout, basic branding). Full checkout customization (custom fields, deep logic, checkout.liquid template access) requires Shopify Plus. If checkout conversion is a known constraint and your business can afford Plus, the customization capabilities alone often drive ROI.
Does Shopify Plus include all apps?
Shopify Plus does not include third-party app costs — you still pay separately for Klaviyo, Gorgias, Yotpo, and other apps. However, some apps offer discounted or free plans for Shopify Plus merchants, and Shopify negotiates preferred rates with many technology partners as Plus benefits. Check with your key vendors for Plus-specific pricing.
Can I downgrade from Shopify Plus if I no longer need it?
Yes, though Plus contracts typically have minimum terms (usually 1 year). After the contract period, you can downgrade to standard Shopify plans. If you’ve implemented Plus-specific features (B2B catalogs, checkout customizations, Scripts), you’ll need to remove or replace these before downgrading, as they won’t function on standard plans.
What’s the difference between Shopify Plus and Shopify Advanced?
Shopify Advanced ($299/month) is the highest standard Shopify plan. It offers lower processing rates (2.4% online), advanced reporting, and 15 staff accounts. Shopify Plus ($2,000+/month) adds: checkout customization, native B2B features, unlimited staff, Launchpad, multi-store management, dedicated support, and higher infrastructure SLAs. The gap between Advanced and Plus is significant — Plus is for enterprise needs, not just “bigger business.”
Final Thoughts
Shopify Plus is a powerful platform for the right merchants — high-volume D2C brands, wholesale-heavy businesses, multi-brand operators, and enterprises needing checkout customization and compliance capabilities. For the wrong merchants, it’s an expensive distraction from the more impactful work of marketing, product development, and customer service that drives growth regardless of platform tier.
For more on Shopify capabilities across all plan levels, explore our guides on Shopify Flow automation, Shopify Scripts and Functions, and Shopify Payments.
