Shopify is a complete online store platform: products, checkout, payments, shipping, discounts and a storefront, all in one. It's for founders selling physical products, or a mix of physical and digital, who want a proper shop rather than a payment link. The offer is a free 3-day trial, then £1 a month for your first 3 months on most plans. After that, Basic is £25 a month paid monthly, or £19 a month paid yearly, with card rates from 2% + 25p.
What it can do for you
Launch a professional shop with a theme, take payments, manage stock and run discount codes, without hiring a developer. As you grow, apps add reviews, email marketing, subscriptions and more. The £1 months give you time to build and test before the full price kicks in.
What people like
It's the most complete and widely supported ecommerce platform, with themes and apps for almost anything. Sellers coming from marketplaces like Etsy value owning their store and customer list.
The honest downsides
- The real cost is higher than the plan. Reddit sellers are frustrated that so much is a separate subscription. Apps, a paid theme, a domain and payment fees push your monthly bill well above the headline price.
- App creep. Reddit threads complain about paying monthly for basic features that apps provide. Add them only when you've proven you need them.
- No marketplace traffic. Unlike Etsy, nobody finds your shop unless you bring them.
- Short trial. Three days is enough to look around, not to build a store.
Skip it if
- you only sell digital products (a simpler, cheaper tool will do)
- you have a handful of products and no plan to drive traffic
Alternatives
There's nothing we list that's better for a full online shop. For digital products only:
- Payhip is free forever with a 5% fee per sale and handles UK and EU VAT.
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