Shopify Advanced vs Plus: What’s the difference

Shopify is currently (and will be) a go-to for many businesses, thanks to its ease of use and features. If you’re choosing the Shopify platform itself, you have different tiers to choose from. 

But as your brand grows, you’re faced with a choice. Should you stick with Shopify Advanced or upgrade to Shopify Plus? Let’s explore what each offers.

Are Shopify Advanced and Shopify Plus the same thing?

Shopify Advanced and Shopify Plus are two different tiers of the same platform designed to support businesses at different stages of growth in ecommerce. 

Shopify Advanced is a platform for growing businesses, while Shopify Plus is the premium suite meant for high-volume merchants and larger operations. 

Although they share some core features like hosting your online store, they diverge significantly in scalability, support, and customization. In the image below, check all Shopify plans feature summaries and pricing.

Key features of Shopify Advanced

Shopify Advanced is great for growing businesses that are scaling up but don’t yet need the full power of Shopify Plus.

The Shopify Advanced Plan is priced at $399 per month if billed monthly. If you choose an annual subscription, you can save 25%​.

One of the biggest perks of Shopify Advanced is its detailed reports. They’re like having a magnifying glass for your sales, customers, and products. This means you can make smarter decisions about what to stock up on and what to tweak.

Nobody likes fees, right?

With Shopify Advanced, you pay less in transaction fees compared to the basic Shopify plans. Specifically, it’ll cost you 2.4% + $0.30 per transaction if you use Shopify Payments. The transaction fees would slightly differ if you do not use Shopify Payments​​. This means more money in your pocket with every sale you make.

Also, as your store gets busier, you’ll need more hands on deck. Shopify Advanced lets you add more staff accounts so that you can spread out the workload. Everyone gets to focus on what they’re good at, making your business run smoother.

Shopify Advanced offers better shipping rates, which can be a game-changer for your bottom line and a nice perk to offer customers. Cheaper shipping rates can lead to more orders, and more orders can lead to more happy customers spreading the word about your store.

When it comes to support, Shopify Advanced puts you closer to the front of the line when you need help. This quicker support can be critical, especially when you have a big sale or launch, and everything needs to run smoothly.

Exclusive features of Shopify Plus

Shopify Plus distinguishes itself by providing exclusive features designed for high-growth, high-volume merchants who need advanced functionalities that go beyond what the standard Shopify plans offer.

Shopify Plus starts at around $2,000 per month, which is significantly higher than other plans, reflecting its premium features and support.

Shopify Plus grants access to a more extensive set of apps specifically developed to handle the complex operations of large-scale businesses. These apps cater to advanced reporting, international sales, wholesale/B2B management, and more. 

Shopify Plus users also benefit from increased limits of API calls, which translates to better integration for third-party apps and systems. This means your inventory management, customer service, and marketing tools can work simultaneously, creating a streamlined backend process that supports large transaction volumes and complex workflows.

Merchants on Shopify Plus have access to the Merchant Success Program, which includes dedicated support from Shopify experts, the Shopify Plus Academy for training, and a community for networking with other high-volume merchants​. They help you leverage the full potential of Shopify Plus, ensuring you’re always at the forefront of ecommerce innovation and best practices.

Shopify Plus merchants can also create a separate, password-protected wholesale store. This feature is made for B2B customers, allowing for volume-based pricing, bulk discounts, and customer-specific pricing models that wouldn’t be possible to manage effectively on standard Shopify plans.

One of the features that gained attention is Shopify Flow, an ecommerce automation platform that helps you automate tasks and processes. You can automate campaigns, discounts, customer tagging, inventory management, and much more, freeing up time to focus on strategic growth.

With Shopify Plus, you can fully customize your checkout experience. You can add custom fields, streamline the process for speed, incorporate loyalty and rewards programs directly into the checkout flow, and optimize the process for conversions—something that can significantly affect high-volume shops’ bottom lines.

Shopify Advanced vs Plus

Shopify Plus and Shopify Advanced have distinct features. Let’s divide them into categories to compare both platforms.

Scalability and performance

Shopify Plus is built to handle the high demand. Think Black Friday-level traffic without a concern your webshop will be down. Its server infrastructure is amazing, designed to manage thousands of transactions per minute. Shopify Advanced can also handle increases in traffic, but if you’re expecting a surge that’s more like a tsunami, Shopify Plus is for you.

Flexibility

Both plans let you change your site’s look and feel, but Shopify Plus takes customization to the next level. You get more access to the code of your checkout process, which means you can customize the shopping experience even further. Shopify Plus also has a more extensive range of apps and features that are exclusive to this plan.

Pricing

Talking dollars and cents, Shopify Advanced is more wallet-friendly than Shopify Plus. But, it’s not just about the monthly fees. Consider the long-term return on investment (ROI). If Plus’s higher threshold for sales and traffic aligns with your growth, it might justify the steeper price.

Target audience

Shopify Advanced is good for growing businesses that need more than the basics but aren’t quite at the enterprise level yet. On the other hand, Shopify Plus is made for large businesses that need a platform capable of scaling up quickly. It’s also great for businesses that operate in multiple countries or require multiple storefronts.

Shopify Advanced vs Plus: Which is right for your business?

Choosing between Shopify Advanced and Shopify Plus depends on your business’s current state and future plans. Assess your needs and growth plans and consider the Total Cost of Ownership (TCO) for each plan. If you’re approaching the limits of Advanced, it might be time to consider the move to Shopify Plus.

The answer to the Shopify Advanced vs Plus question requires a careful assessment of your current performance and ambitions. We’re experts in Shopify services so we can do a full assessment of your new or existing project. Shopify Advanced might cater to your needs today, but if you’re planning for fast expansion or are already a large retailer, Shopify Plus could be the one. 

Always keep your future goals in sight and choose a platform that can grow with you, which Shopify, in general, already does.

Reach out for a consultation, and let’s determine together whether Shopify Advanced or Plus is the right path for your business. 

Need more clarity? Ask for an audit of your current setup, and we’ll help you make an informed decision.