Shopify is one of the most popular ecommerce platforms. Its core plans are excellent for small businesses looking to make a move to ecommerce, but enterprise businesses with millions of dollars in sales may need more functionality and capability.
Essentially, Shopify Plus is a more advanced version of the popular Shopify plans. It has the same core dashboard and features as other Shopify plans but with a range of new integrations, features, support options, and more.
To simplify, the Shopify plans are appropriate for small- to medium-sized businesses, while Shopify Plus is reserved for enterprise-level businesses.
Let’s take a look at some other differences between the two.
What Is Shopify Plus?
Shopify Plus is the top tier of Shopify plans and includes all the features Shopify has to offer, as well as some exclusive features. Big-name brands are using Shopify Plus with success, including Allbirds and Gymshark.
This plan is specifically designed for large businesses looking to fuel growth and comes with features designed to support that goal. Shopify Plus isn’t cheap, however.
Small- and medium-sized businesses that aren’t making high-volume sales numbers each month may find the monthly cost for the plan too cost-prohibitive. In this case, it’s better to wait until your business is making the recommended sales to upgrade.
Here are some other differences between Shopify and Shopify Plus.
Checkout Customization
Perhaps the most desirable of Shopify Plus features, checkout customization gives you an opportunity to improve the customer experience. You can customize virtually every aspect of the checkout, from adding discounts or promotions triggered by the number of products or cart totals to offering different payment options. You can also customize the shipping method.
With basic Shopify plans, you need special apps and technical skill to customize the checkout to this degree.
Unlimited Staff Accounts
Each Shopify plan offers a specific number of staff accounts, which increases as the plans increase. Enterprise-level businesses may need more than the regular Shopify plans offer, however, and that’s where Shopify Plus has an advantage.
Shopify Plus allows unlimited staff accounts and has specific permission settings, so you can control the level of access each staff account has. Your entire team can have access to the store, but you can limit the actions they can perform.
Liquid Access
All Shopify plans come with Shopify theme templates that you can customize using the editor. There’s only so much you can do to change an existing Shopify template, however.
Shopify Plus takes customization a step further with Shopify’s theme language, Liquid. With this feature, you can make code-level changes to the backend, so you have full control over the existing templates.
Launch Manager
Shopify offers user support through multiple channels, including phone, email, or live chat. If you still need help, you can hire Shopify Experts for advanced support options.
Shopify Plus takes this top-notch support a step further with dedicated and personalized support through the Launch Engineer feature. This feature provides you with a specific Launch Engineer to guide you through setup and migration for your website, manage third-party integrations, and find the appropriate partners to help you achieve what you want with your store.
Exclusive Apps
Shopify has a range of apps that you can use with your store, which is part of its widespread appeal. Shopify Plus adds to this roster with exclusive apps that aren’t available for other Shopify plans, including:
- Wholesale channel: A wholesale/B2B channel with password protection, exclusive products, bulk discounts, and more.
- Shopify Flow: An automation platform that streamlines processes and front-facing tasks.
- Script Editor: A feature that lets you personalize the shopping cart and checkout experiences to reward VIP customers, trigger discounts, reduce abandoned carts, and more.
- Launchpad: A feature to create and automate flash sales with react native, product launches, and more.
- Transporter app: A feature to import information into your store, including information about customers and products.
- Bulk Account Inviter: An inviter tool to import your customers in bulk from other platforms.
Wholesale Channels
B2B and wholesale offer incredible opportunities for ecommerce stores, but that comes with some extra costs and work. Shopify Plus streamlines the process with a separate wholesale channel and storefront that’s run from the same centralized dashboard.
The wholesale channel is password protected, allowing you to offer the same products at discounted bulk prices or exclusive products that are only available wholesale. You can also create customized price lists, discount codes, and more.
API Integrations
API is what allows two applications to “talk” to each other and what facilitates integrations with third-party apps. Shopify’s plans allow some APIs, but Shopify Plus elevates this option with an array of third-party apps to improve the user experience.
For example, User is a feature that lets you add, remove, or edit information from staff accounts. There’s also Multipass, a login feature that redirects visitors to the Shopify store. You could also build your own apps and integrate them.
Platform Integrations
Shopify can integrate with numerous apps, but Shopify Plus offers integrations with platforms that are common in enterprise-level businesses. These include:
- Inventory and order management (IMS and OMS)
- Enterprise resource planning (ERP)
- Third-party logistics (3PL)
- Product information management (PIM)
- Warehouse management software (WMS)
- Customer relationship management (CRM)
Centralized Dashboard
Shopify Plus streamlines your processes with a centralized dashboard that contains all your storefronts, staff accounts, analytics, and automation tools. You can access everything from the dashboard and see a big-picture view of your business, no matter how many storefronts, country variants, or stores you have.
Analytics
All Shopify plans have detailed analytics to see what products are performing well and review information about your site, such as returning customers and sales. Shopify Plus enhances this feature by partnering with leading analytics companies to get in-depth insights about your store and your customers.
Merchant Success Program
The Merchant Success Program is a feature that helps you maximize all the capabilities of the platform. It shows you how to use different products and third-party integrations with tips and training, and it includes a Merchant Success Manager to guide you.
If the training isn’t enough, Shopify Plus has 24/7 support and access to Shopify Plus Partners to get specific, personalized help with different aspects of your store.
Exclusive Resources
Shopify Plus has an array of resources to help you succeed, including:
- A Partners directory with access to different partners
- Shopify Plus Academy for training for the platform and its capabilities
- A Facebook community to share experiences and tips with other Shopify Plus owners
Prices
As mentioned, the extra features and capabilities of Shopify Plus come at a cost. The rest of the plans are a flat rate, whereas Shopify Plus requires a quote.
Here’s a breakdown of the Shopify plans:
- Basic Shopify ($29/month): This is the most basic plan for new or small businesses. It includes all the necessary features, such as an online storefront, unlimited product uploads, 24/7 Shopify support, and two staff accounts.
- Shopify ($79/month): This is the mid-level plan designed for growing businesses. It includes the online store, unlimited products, 24/7 support, and up to five staff accounts.
- Advanced Shopify ($299/month): The next step up is Advanced Shopify, which includes the online store, unlimited products, 24/7 support, and up to 15 staff accounts.
The leap to Shopify Plus is a big one. The prices start at around $2,000 per month or a minimum of 0.25% of sales volume per month, which is capped at $40,000 – whichever is higher. You have to contact Shopify to get a quote for your plan.
Keep in mind that the more you sell, the more you’ll pay. For example, if your store sells $2 million in products each month, you’ll have a monthly fee of $5,000 per month. Conversely, if you only have $500,000 in merchandise each month, you’ll have a monthly fee of $2,000 (the minimum).
Is Shopify Plus Right for My Business?
There’s no question that Shopify Plus has a wealth of features and capabilities, but it’s designed to support the needs of enterprise-level businesses. With a minimum monthly fee of $2,000 per month, it may be overkill for a small business that’s not hitting millions of dollars in sales each month.
If you’re getting close to those big numbers and hoping to scale, however, Shopify Plus may be the perfect fit. The plan is designed to support growing businesses and the features pay for themselves in better sales, more productivity, and more streamlined processes.
Upgrade to Shopify Plus
Simply put, Shopify Plus is the top-tier plan for Shopify. It expands on the basic features of the other Shopify plans with a variety of features and extras, including integrations and customizations.
Shopify Plus does come with a high monthly fee, however. With a minimum of $2,000 per month, it’s recommended to make the switch to Shopify Plus once you have millions of dollars in sales and you’re ready to scale your business. When that time comes, you’ll find that Shopify Plus’s features are well worth the price for what they can do for your business.