Shopify Plus: When is the upgrade worthwhile for your growing business?
If your online store is growing and you realize that you need more than the standard Shopify features, then Shopify Plus could be just the thing for you. Shopify Plus can be the next step for companies that want to take their e-commerce business to the next level. But when is the upgrade really worth it? In this blog post, I’ll show you what Shopify Plus can do, what benefits it offers and how you can find out if it’s the right choice for your business.
Table of contents:
1 Introduction: Why Shopify Plus?
2. the most important advantages of Shopify Plus
3. costs vs. benefits: When is the upgrade worth it?
4 Shopify Plus features in detail
5 The importance of a dedicated account manager
6 B2B stores with Shopify Plus: perfect integration for hybrid business models
7 Migration to Shopify Plus: What you need to consider
8 Conclusion: Is Shopify Plus right for your business?
9 Additional resources
Introduction: Why Shopify Plus?
As your online store grows, you will eventually reach the limits of Shopify’s standard features. You may realize that you need more flexibility, power and support to take your e-commerce business to the next level. This is where Shopify Plus comes in. It offers the perfect solution for companies looking to take their Shopify business to the next level. Shopify Plus offers you some advanced features and capabilities that are not included in the normal Shopify plan. In addition, Shopify offers you direct support to scale your store and expand internationally, for example. In this blog post, you’ll find out exactly what Shopify Plus is, what benefits it offers and how you can find out if it’s the right choice for your business.
The most important advantages of Shopify Plus
Shopify Plus is a larger version of the normal Shopify plans. It offers customized solutions specifically for growing businesses. Here are some of the main benefits:
- Unlimited scalability: Shopify Plus is designed to help growing businesses scale without limitations.
- Increased customization and integration options: You get access to extended APIs and more options to customize your store, e.g. adjustments in the checkout.
- Better performance and loading times: With Shopify Plus, you get the best performance Shopify can offer, which is especially important for high traffic.
- Advanced automation tools: Features like Shopify Flow and Launchpad help you automate many processes and increase your efficiency.
| Shopify | Shopify Plus | |
| Costs | 29 – 299 USD per month | From 2000 USD per month |
| Scalability | Suitable for small to medium-sized stores | Unlimited scalability for large stores |
| Customization | Standard APIs and themes | Advanced APIs, customized themes |
| Automation | Limited automation options | Shopify Flow, Launchpad |
| Support | 24/7 standard support | Dedicated account manager, extended support |
| Multi-channel sales | Integrated sales channels | Comprehensive multi-channel support, including B2B |
| Performance | Good performance for medium-sized stores | Outstanding performance even with high traffic |
Costs vs. benefits: When is the upgrade worthwhile?
Switching to Shopify Plus is a major investment, so it’s important to understand if and when this upgrade is worth it for your business. Shopify Plus starts at around $2000 per month, while regular Shopify plans range from $29 to $299 per month. This price difference makes it clear that Shopify Plus isn’t for everyone – but for those who need it, it can be a real game-changer.
When is Shopify Plus worthwhile?
- If your store has a high sales volume: With a high volume of sales, the additional features and improved performance of Shopify Plus can help maximize your ROI (return on investment).
- When you need customized solutions: Businesses that have specific requirements – such as custom checkout experiences, special discounts or deep integration with other systems – benefit from advanced customization options.
- If you’re looking to expand internationally: Shopify Plus offers advanced support for multi-channel and international selling, making it ideal for businesses looking to scale globally.
- If you want to further automate your business processes: With Shopify Plus, you can automate many processes, which increases efficiency, minimizes errors and thus saves you capital.
Example calculation 1: Savings for a store with €100,000 turnover
Imagine your store generates €100,000 in sales per month, with 10,000 orders and an average order value of €100. Let’s take a look at how much you could save on transaction fees with Shopify Plus.
Assumptions:
Sales: €100,000 per month
Number of orders: 10,000
Average order value: €100
Shopify fees (standard plan):
Transaction fee: 2.6% + $0.30 per order
Total transaction fee: 2.6% of €100.000 = 2,600 €
0.30 USD per order: 10,000 x 0.30 USD = 3,000 USD → 2,727.27 € (converted)
Total fee: 5,327.27 €
Fees for Shopify Plus:
Transaction fee: 2.15% + 0.30 USD per order
Total transaction fee: 2.15% of €100,000 = €2,150
0.30 USD per order: 10,000 * 0.30 USD = 3,000 USD → €2,727.27 (converted)
Total fee: €4,877.27
Savings:
€5,327.27 – €4,877.27 = €450 per month
This means that with a turnover of €100,000 per month, Shopify Plus would save you €450 in transaction fees.
This saving already brings you closer to the monthly cost of approx. 2000 USD for Shopify Plus.
Sample calculation 2: Break-even revenue for Shopify Plus
To calculate how much revenue or orders are necessary for Shopify Plus to pay for itself through the saved fees alone, we assume a monthly cost of USD 2000.
Assumptions:
Shopify Plus costs: USD 2,000 per month
Difference in transaction fee: 2.6% – 2.15% = 0.45%
Average order value: €100
Break-even revenue:
Savings per €100 of revenue: 0.45% of €100 = €0.45
To cover 2.000 USD (1,820 €) in costs:
Required turnover: 1,820 € / 0.45 € = 4,044 orders or 404,400 € turnover per month
This means that with a turnover of approx. 404,400 € per month or 4044 orders, Shopify Plus is financed by the fees saved. If your store reaches this level, an upgrade to Shopify Plus makes sense from a cost perspective alone.
Weighing up costs vs. benefits
To find out if Shopify Plus is worthwhile for your business, you should perform a simple break-even analysis. Compare the additional costs of Shopify Plus with the potential revenue or savings you could make by using the advanced features.
Another criterion is time savings. If Shopify Plus helps you to automate processes and increase efficiency, you save valuable time that you can invest in other areas of your business.
Shopify Plus features in detail
Shopify Plus offers a host of advanced features that allow for more flexibility, control and scalability. These features offer significantly more than is available in the regular Shopify plans. They help you to make your store more efficient and more individualized.
Shopify Scripts: Individualized discount and checkout experiences
With Shopify Plus you have access to Shopify Scripts. This is a powerful tool that allows you to customize the shopping experience for your customers. You can create custom discount rules, free shipping offers and special checkout experiences. This means you can increase your conversion rate by offering exactly what your customers want, exactly when they want it.
Multi-channel sales and international e-commerce
Shopify Plus allows you to sell seamlessly across multiple channels – from your online store to marketplaces like Amazon and eBay to social media platforms like Instagram and Facebook. Additionally, Shopify Plus offers features for international selling, such as accepting multiple currencies and supporting different languages. This makes it easy to expand your business globally and reach new markets.
Support for high-volume stores and larger teams
As your online store grows and you process more traffic and orders, it can be difficult to maintain performance and efficiency. Shopify Plus is designed to handle large amounts of traffic and transactions without sacrificing performance. In addition, Shopify Plus offers advanced user and permission controls so you can manage larger teams efficiently. This makes collaboration easier and ensures your team can access what they need without compromising on security.
API access and custom integrations
With Shopify Plus, you get extended API rates and additional integration options that allow you to deeply connect your store with your existing systems and tools. Whether it’s ERP systems, CRM platforms or custom applications, Shopify Plus gives you the flexibility to customize your store to your exact needs.
The importance of a dedicated account manager
Another outstanding feature of Shopify Plus is access to a dedicated account manager. This personal contact person from Shopify is on hand to make sure you get the most out of your Shopify Plus experience.
The account manager is not just a support employee; they are your strategic partner. They will help you find the perfect solutions for your business, whether it’s optimizing your store performance, introducing new features or planning your international expansion. It’s not just about technical support – the account manager will also provide valuable insights into best practices and help you make strategic decisions that will drive your business forward. From our own experience, we can say that the Shopify team is a great pleasure to work with.
B2B stores with Shopify Plus: perfect integration for hybrid business models
Shopify Plus is not only optimized for B2C businesses, but also offers powerful features to integrate B2B stores into your existing store. With Shopify Plus, you can run a hybrid business model that effectively serves both B2C and B2B customers. This saves you the detour via costly third-party apps from the Shopify App Store, which often only work 80% of the time and are far inferior to Shopify’s native solution.
You can offer different price structures, exclusive products and special checkout processes for your business customers without having to operate a separate store. This seamless integration saves time and money and allows you to unite both target groups under one roof.
Migration to Shopify Plus: what you need to consider
Switching to Shopify Plus is a big step that requires careful planning. A successful migration is crucial so that your store continues to run seamlessly and your customers don’t experience any disruption. This is where working with a specialized agency like ours can be of great help. As an official Shopify Plus Partner, we work directly with the Shopify Plus team and can offer you comprehensive support. From providing additional information to organizing calls with your team and Shopify. We’ll make sure your migration goes smoothly and you can realize the full potential of Shopify Plus.
Contact me now for a free initial consultation! 👇🏼
The migration process: step by step
- Preparation and planning: Before you start the migration, all aspects of your existing store need to be analyzed. This includes: backing up data, checking your current integrations and making sure that all the features you need are supported in Shopify Plus.
- Testing the migration: Before the live store is migrated, a test run should be carried out. Create a copy of your store on Shopify Plus and test all important functions. In particular, test the checkout, payment methods and shipping options. This will ensure that everything works smoothly after the migration.
- Going live: Once you have successfully completed the test, you can migrate your live store. This should be done at a time when the traffic in your store is rather low to minimize potential disruptions. During the live connection, it is important to monitor continuously to ensure that all data has been transferred correctly and the store is running as expected.
Potential challenges and how to overcome them
One of the biggest challenges when migrating to Shopify Plus can be the customization and integration of existing systems. If you have many custom features or integrations in your current store, it might be necessary to redevelop or customize some of these systems to ensure they are compatible with Shopify Plus.
Another potential stumbling block can be data migration, especially if your store contains a large amount of orders, customer information and product data. It is crucial to ensure that all data is migrated correctly and completely to avoid problems after the migration.
Successful migration: tips and best practices
- Engage experts: Consider bringing in an experienced team or agency that specializes in Shopify Plus. As an official Shopify Plus Partner, we can work directly with the Shopify Plus team to ensure the migration goes smoothly. We’ll help you get the most out of your migration and provide you with comprehensive advice and technical support.
- Communicate with your customers: Inform your customers about the migration in good time. This will ensure that they are aware of possible short downtimes and are prepared for them.
- Take the opportunity to optimize: A migration is also a good opportunity to optimize your store. Review your existing processes and systems and consider whether there is anything you can implement during the migration.
Conclusion: Is Shopify Plus right for your business?
After all this information, the question arises: Is Shopify Plus the right choice for your business? The answer depends on various factors. As described above, Shopify Plus offers a wealth of benefits, from advanced features and scalability to personalized support from a dedicated account manager. However, these benefits also come with higher costs.
Decision-making: criteria you should consider
- Turnover and order volume: If your store has a high turnover and a large number of orders, Shopify Plus could bring you significant savings on transaction fees, making the upgrade worthwhile.
- Complexity of requirements: If you have specific requirements, such as custom checkout experiences or deeper integrations, then Shopify Plus may be the right choice.
- Internationalization and expansion: Are you planning to expand your business internationally or use multiple sales channels? Shopify Plus offers advanced features to help you achieve these goals.
- Customer support and assistance: If you attach great importance to personal support, Shopify Plus can offer you exactly that.
Next steps for companies considering the switch
If you feel that Shopify Plus is the right choice for your growing business, the next step is to conduct a detailed analysis of your current situation. Consider whether the benefits of Shopify Plus justify the additional cost and whether you’re willing to make the investment to benefit from its advanced features.
Our agency can help you with this. As a Shopify Plus partner, we can support you in the decision-making and planning of the upgrade. Not only can we help you with the technical implementation, but we can also provide strategic advice to ensure you get the most out of Shopify Plus. Contact us for a no-obligation consultation.
Additional resources
If you want to learn more about Shopify Plus or have specific questions, there are several resources available to you. These will help you make an informed decision and get the most out of your e-commerce platform.
- Official Shopify Plus website: Here you will find detailed information on all the features and benefits of Shopify Plus as well as case studies of companies that have already successfully switched to Shopify Plus.
- Shopify Plus Blog: The blog provides regular updates, tips and best practices for using Shopify Plus. Ideal for finding out about the latest developments and strategies.
- Webinars and events: Shopify Plus regularly offers webinars and events where experts provide deeper insights into specific topics. These are particularly helpful to learn more about the use of Shopify Plus in different industries.
- Free advice from our agency: If you’re looking for a personal consultation to find out if Shopify Plus is right for your business, we’re happy to offer you a no-obligation consultation. As a Shopify Plus partner, we can help you make the right decision and guide you through the entire migration process. Contact us here to find out more.
Ready for the next step? Click here to go to our contact form to arrange a no-obligation consultation. Let’s find out together how Shopify Plus can help your business!
