Shopify Starter plan offers an entry into the popular Shopify experience by allowing entrepreneurs to start off their business right on their highly visited social media platforms without a full-fledged store.
For just $5 per month, Shopify merchants can monetize by sharing a link in their bio, powered by Linkpop.
Though this plan is separate from the standard Shopify subscription plans, it offers budding entrepreneurs an opportunity to kick off their Shopify journey.
Stick with me until the end to read a complete analysis of this Shopify plan!
Shopify Starter Plan Overview
Have a glance at what this basic Shopify plan offers:
| Price | $5 per month |
| Transaction fees | 5% transaction with Shopify Payments |
| Features | Sell products on social media, take payments, and monitor sales with analytics and reports. |
| Best For | New Shopify users in a free-trial period |
| Customer Support | 24×7 chat support |
Before you get bogged down with the Shopify technical terms, here is a Shopify Glossary to simplify things for you.
Do you know? 💡 There are 1.75 million Shopify merchants globally, and if you are planning to be a part of the Shopify community, the $5/month Shopify Started plan can be a great way to kick things off!
Shopify Starter Plan – Pros & Cons
One of the quickest ways to start an online business has some drawbacks. Find the good and the bad about the Shopify Starter plan listed below:
Pros
- Sell for $5/month.
- Unlimited products and bandwidth.
- Shopify order management and reports feature.
- Sell in-person with Shopify POS lite.
- Sell directly into messages on any social media.
- Linkpop integration.
Cons
- Does not offer a fully functional Shopify store.
- Limited freedom to customize and brand website.
- High transaction fees at 5%.
- No access to staff accounts.
- Marketing automation features are unavailable.
Who Is The Shopify Starter Plan For?
This lightweight Shopify plan does not come under the range of primary Shopify Plans. It is for people wanting to initiate their e-commerce business and set up a non-website Shopify business. It is not for someone willing to build a proper store.
It is also strictly for new Shopify merchants and those currently in their trial period.
Shopify Starter Plan Features
With just $5 per month, Shopify allows some really useful features like POS selling access, analytics features, and more. Have a look:
- Unlimited listings – The Shopify Starter plan allows you to add unlimited listings for the store created on social media or messaging apps of your choice.
- Linkpop Links for Selling on Social Media – Using Shopify’s Linkpop feature with the Starter plan, you can get creative and personalize your buyer’s experience.
- Basic Analytics – with access to basic analytics features, you can keep track of your orders, sales, and the profits you are making.
- Shopify Fulfillment network access—Shopify has a special network that can handle storing, packing, and delivering. The Shopify Starter plan also gives you access to this network.
- Shopify POS Selling—Merchants can use the Shopify POS feature for in-person or local market selling by getting access to the Shopify POS lite plan.
Shopify Starter Plan Pricing
This Shopify Plan is priced at only $5/month plus 5% transaction fees when using Shopify Payments. This plan gives you easy access to Shopify and lets you start selling products in no time.
The Shopify Started Plan lets you sell your products from the back of your van, garage, or in person. But at only $5/month, is this the cheapest way to start your Shopify journey?
Well, it is not technically the cheapest; stick with me till the end to learn more!
Shopify Starter Plan vs Shopify Basic (Comparison)
Shopify used to offer Shopify Lite, which was priced at $9 per month earlier, for users to get started with Shopify.
With a $4 discount for starting to use Shopify, you can now try out this e-commerce platform for much less.
But how is this new plan compared to the Shopify Basic Plan? Let’s find out:
| Features | Shopify Starter | Shopify Basic |
|---|---|---|
| Price | $5/mo | $39/mo |
| Credit Card Fees | 5% + 30¢ | 2.9% + 30¢ |
| Theme to choose | Spotlight Theme only | Choose over 100+ free and paid themes |
| Best For | Beginners wanting to sell on Social Media. | Beginners want to sell from a structured store and website. |
| Online Store/Website | ❌ | ✅ |
| Free SSL certificate | ❌ | ✅ |
| Shopify POS Lite | ✅ | ✅ |
| Customization options | ❌ | ✅ |
| Annual Discount | ❌ | 25% |
| Inventory locations | 2 | 10 |
Demandsage Bonus: Here’s a hack! You can also grab the starter plan for only $1 for your first month. If the starter plan is not what you’re looking for, you can sign up for the Shopify trial of any of the standard Shopify plans for $1 per month. Grab either of the above plans by following this guide here.
Shopify Starter Plan Features Explained
The Shopify starter plan provides a list of features from which to choose. The Shopify starter plan includes all of the below features:
- Unlimited products and bandwidth.
- Integration with Linkpop Tool.
- 24×7 customer support via live chat.
- Access to Shopify apps.
- Accept payments directly with a smartphone.
Other than the standard features, here is a brief overview of the key features of the Shopify Starter Plan.
1. Sell Anywhere
With the starter Shopify plan, you can sell anywhere and on social media networks like Instagram, WhatsApp, Facebook, TikTok, Etsy, LinkedIn, etc.
With access to POS lite, you can sell your products in person. Accepting payments is easy, too, with an option to accept payments using just a smartphone.
2. Linkpop Integration
This 100% free tool is Shopify’s e-commerce link in the bio tool. Linkpop allows you to compile all your links into one place. This helps with 2X conversions, customization, and analytic features.
Here’s an example of a few examples of Shopify Stores using link pop:
- https://linkpop.com/longhairprettynails
- https://linkpop.com/colinandsamir
- https://itsblume.com/en-us/collections/latte-mix
3. Reports And Analytics
Though the price of the starter plan is cheap, it is definitely not cheap in terms of its reporting features. The starter plan can view analytics pages, finance reports, product analytics, live view, acquisition, inventory, behavior, marketing, order, sales, retail sales, profit, and customer reports.
4. Shopify Order Management
One of the key features of Shopify is its easy inventory management. It offers a smooth dashboard to keep track of inventory. Stock keeping inside Shopify is one of the easiest methods for storing and categorizing your products.
Let’s get you signed up with this exciting plan now!
Sage Read: Know more about all the features that Shopify offers in its other plans from the Shopify review I covered separately.
How To Sign Up For Shopify Starter Plan (Guide)
Let me show you how to start your Shopify journey. Follow the steps explained below to become a new merchant on Shopify.
Step 1: Visit the Shopify official website. On the home page, click the “Start Free Trial” button on the top right corner.
Step 2: Answer a few questions about you as an entrepreneur and about your website. If you wish, you can skip a question, or all of them, from the button on the bottom right.
Step 3: Select the location where your business is located.
Step 4: Select the method for creating a Shopify account.
Step 5: Upon entering account details, you will have successfully created your Shopify store. Next, select the “pick a plan” button from the right.
Step 6: After clicking, scroll towards the middle and select the “Starter Plan”.
Step 7: Select a payment method and fill in the payment details. Read the terms and conditions, verify your payment cycle, and click “subscribe” to make a payment.
Once the payment is processed, you will have access to the Shopify Starter Plan.
Shopify Starter Plan Review: My Experience
After reviewing the Shopify Starter plan and its features, I noticed how affordable it is for a beginner. Without much stress about the investment, you can focus more on making your brand accessible across your social media network.
Given the link pop integration, you can create a page for your brand and monetize your social media reach to sell directly! For someone like me who does not have much technical skills, the customization options within helped a lot.
However, I would have liked the transaction fees to be a bit less. That is one thing that I would like to get reduced from 5%.
For a test store we opened, I could not break even the amount I invested as early as I thought we could, even after using Shopify Payments.
Conclusion: Shopify Offers Starter Plan Access At $5 per month
With the Shopify Starter plan, you can start off your Shopify selling journey right on social media or messaging apps, leveraging your reach.
If your goal is to create a simple social media sales channel for your products without breaking your head over complex e-commerce operations, you should definitely go for the Shopify Starter plan.
However, if you want a full-fledged e-commerce website or, in this case, a Shopify store, you will need to upgrade your plan to Shopify Basic and above for more features.
Take your first step from the Shopify starter plan, or use our exclusive free trial code shared in the beginning to try out the advanced Shopify plans for $1 for an entire month!
