Shopify Transaction Fees by Plan Explained
Shopify transaction fees have three components: the subscription, the card rate per plan (2.9%, 2.7%, or 2.5% plus 30 cents online), and the payment method surcharge (2%, 1%, or 0.6% extra for third-party gateways). The 30-cent fixed fee means small orders pay a higher effective rate: a $15 order on Basic loses 4.9% to card fees while a $150 order loses 3.1%. International cards add surcharges above the base rate.
Every fee on every transaction, and why your average order value matters more than your plan.
The three pieces of every transaction
Every Shopify sale carries up to three costs. First, the subscription, amortized across your orders. Second, the card processing rate, which depends on your plan: 2.9% plus 30 cents on Basic, 2.7% plus 30 cents on Grow, 2.5% plus 30 cents on Advanced, all for online sales through Shopify Payments. Third, the gateway surcharge, which is zero with Shopify Payments and 2%, 1%, or 0.6% per transaction with a third-party gateway, charged on top of whatever that gateway charges you.
Shopify Payments is the default and usually the right choice. The card rates are competitive with standalone processors, and avoiding the third-party surcharge is worth hundreds per month at any real volume. The main reasons stores use third-party gateways are regional availability, high-risk categories Shopify Payments will not serve, or negotiated rates with an existing processor that beat Shopify's headline numbers after the surcharge.
The 30-cent fixed fee and your order value
The fixed 30 cents per transaction is the most misunderstood part of Shopify pricing. On a $150 order at 2.9%, the card fee is $4.65, an effective 3.1%. On a $15 order, the fee is $0.74, an effective 4.9%. Stores selling low-priced items pay a structurally higher rate than stores selling expensive items on the same plan. This is why two stores on Basic can have effective rates a full point apart.
If your average order value is under $20, the fixed fee dominates your fee math, and plan upgrades barely move the needle: the 0.2 point saving from Basic to Grow is dwarfed by the fixed-fee drag. The lever for low-AOV stores is raising order value with bundles, free-shipping thresholds, and multi-packs, not changing plans. A store that lifts AOV from $18 to $32 cuts its effective card rate by nearly a point without touching anything else.
In-person and international sales
In-person sales through Shopify POS carry lower rates: 2.6% plus 10 cents on Basic, 2.5% plus 10 cents on Grow, 2.4% plus 10 cents on Advanced. If you sell at markets or a retail counter alongside your online store, the POS rates meaningfully reduce the blended fee. International cards add surcharges above the base rate: 1.5% on Basic and 1.0% on Grow and Advanced, plus a 1.5% currency conversion fee on Basic for multi-currency sales. Stores with heavy international volume should model the blended rate, not the headline rate.
Premium cards are the newest wrinkle. Shopify Payments now separates Standard and Premium card types, charging more for commercial, corporate, and business cards plus domestic American Express. If your buyers skew business, your realized rate runs above the headline number. There is no way to decline premium cards without declining the sale, so treat the headline rate as a floor.
Worked example: $20,000 a month at $65 AOV
Take a Basic store doing $20,000 per month at a $65 average order value: about 308 orders. Card fees: 308 x (2.9% of $65 + $0.30) = 308 x $2.19 = $673. Add the $39 subscription: $712 total, a 3.56% effective rate. On Grow: 308 x (2.7% of $65 + $0.30) = 308 x $2.06 = $633, plus $105 = $738. Basic wins by $26 per month, which is why the calculator keeps this store on Basic. Now add a third-party gateway at 2%: another $400 per month, and the effective rate jumps past 5.5%. The gateway decision dwarfs the plan decision.
What to do with this
First, compute your effective rate with the calculator above using your real sales and order value; the headline card rate is not your rate. Second, if you use a third-party gateway, price the switch to Shopify Payments; it is usually the biggest single fee saving available. Third, if your average order value is low, work on order value before plan upgrades. Fourth, revisit annually, because Shopify adjusts card-type pricing and surcharges more often than plan prices.
Prices current as of October 2026. Sources: Shopify pricing page (shopify.com), US rates; annual billing saves roughly 25%. New stores: 3-day free trial, then $1/month for 3 months on most plans.