Not only is it a highly popular eCommerce platform, but Shopify's credit card processing rates are also competitive with that of other major processors.
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Expert Contributor
Last updated onUpdated
REVIEWED BY
Expert Contributor
| Total Rating |
4.6 |
|---|---|
| Fees & Rates4.7 | |
| Products & Services4.5 | |
| Contract4.6 | |
| Sales & Advertising Transparency5.0 | |
| Customer Service4.0 | |
| User Reviews4.4 | |
Table of Contents
Shopify Payments is Shopify’s integrated payment processor. It allows new Shopify merchants to start processing payments almost immediately. Using Shopify Payments means you won’t have to integrate an outside payment provider, nor will you have to pay the per-transaction fee Shopify charges when you use an outside processor.
While Shopify Payments has some flaws, it remains a top credit card processing option for Shopify sellers. Read our full Shopify Payments review to get a sense of the benefits as well as the more common complaints.
| Products & Services4.5 |
|---|
| Software & Services 5.0 |
| Hardware & Equipment 4.0 |
Merchants who sign up for Shopify to sell online can choose to use Shopify’s in-house credit card processor, Shopify Payments. Shopify Payments is made possible through a partnership with Stripe (which provides the back-end processing) and is available in addition to around 100 alternative third-party gateways (such as PayPal).
All told, Shopify Payments does a great job of meeting the processing needs of Shopify merchants with its products and features, earning it an excellent rating in this category.
Let’s now summarize the products and services on offer from Shopify Payments.
| Shopify Payments Features | Availability |
|---|---|
| Dedicated Merchant Account | |
| PCI Compliance | |
| High-Risk Accounts | |
| International Accounts | |
| Contactless Payments | |
| ACH Processing | |
| Digital Wallet Acceptance | |
| EBT Acceptance | Via Forage app integration |
| Virtual Terminal | |
| Mobile POS Reader & App | |
| Hosted Online Store | |
| Payment Links | |
| Payment Gateway Integrations | |
| Shopping Cart Integrations | Shopify is its own shopping cart solution. |
| POS Integrations | |
| BNPL Integrations | |
| API Documentation | |
| Currency Conversion | |
| Recurring Billing | |
| Invoicing | |
| Cash Discount Program | |
| Cryptocurrency Processing | Via BitPay & Crypto.com Pay |
| Fees & Rates4.7 |
|---|
| Pricing 5.0 |
| Affordability 4.4 |
Shopify’s processing fees and monthly charges, while not the lowest around, are fully disclosed by Shopify with no attempt at obfuscation. We also appreciate the near-total lack of extra fees. All things considered, Shopify Payments is deserving of high marks in this category.
| Item | Value |
|---|---|
| Pricing Starts At | $5/month |
| Contract Length | Month-to-month & annual options on all plans except Plus, which requires a 1-3 year term |
| Processing Model | Flat-rate |
| Card-present Transaction Fee | 2.4%-5% + $0.00-$0.10 |
| eCommerce Transaction Fee | 2.5-5% + $0.30 |
| Equipment Cost | $49+ |
As Shopify is designed to accommodate all business sizes, from casual social media sellers to global enterprises, monthly fees and transaction fees vary significantly, depending on which plan you’re on.
| Shopify Payments Plans | Price | When To Use |
|---|---|---|
| Starter | $5/month and 5% + $0.00-$0.30/transaction | If you are just starting out and want to launch a simple online store and sell products through social media, email, SMS, product links, or in person via Shopify Lite. |
| Basic | $29/month ($39 billed monthly) and 2.6-2.9% + $0.10-$0.30/transaction | If you are a solopreneur and want a fully featured online store and in-person sales with Shopify Lite. |
| Shopify | $79/month ($105 billed monthly) and 2.5-2.7% + $0.10-$0.30/transaction | If you have a small team and want Basic features plus additional shipping discount, shipping insurance, and additional staff logins. |
| Retail | $79/month ($89 billed monthly) and 2.6-2.9% + $0.10-$0.30/transaction | If you sell primarily in person but want more advanced POS features than you can get with Starter/Shopify Lite. Includes 1 POS Pro location & limited online store. |
| Advanced | $299/month ($399 billed monthly) and 2.4-2.5% + $0.10-$0.30/transaction | If you have a growing business and want Shopify plan features plus additional staff logins, custom reports, enhanced chat support, and more. |
| Plus | $2,300/month with 3-year term ($2,500 for 1-year term). Transaction fees are customized. | If you have a more complex business. Includes 50 markets, unlimited staff accounts, wholesale/B2B sales, 200 POS Pro locations, and more. |
| Shopify Payments Extra Costs | Price |
|---|---|
| 3rd-Party Payment Processing | +0.6%-5%+ per transaction, depending on plan |
| Chargeback Fee | $15 (in the US) |
| POS Pro | $79/month ($89/month billed monthly) |
The main advantage to using Shopify Payments in conjunction with Shopify is that you won’t have to pay the additional fee that Shopify will charge if you use a third-party processor.
Except for the chargeback fee, Shopify does not charge any additional monthly fees, payment security fees, hidden fees, or setup fees on its payments service.
One optional add-on Shopify offers is POS Pro, which includes advanced POS features.
| Sales & Advertising Transparency5.0 |
|---|
| Sales Practices 5.0 |
| Web Presence 5.0 |
Shopify Payments does a great job in terms of sales and advertising transparency. You’ll find all pricing information for rates and fees clearly on the website, and users haven’t reported any bait-and-switch tactics or shady sales gimmicks listed online. For these reasons, we’re giving Shopify Payments high scores in this category.
| Contract4.6 |
|---|
| Commitment 4.7 |
| ETF & Other Fees 4.4 |
You can cancel your Shopify Payments contract at any time and there is no early termination fee (ETF). These are the exact terms we love to see from a processor.
However, if you pay for a longer 1-3 year term and at some point during that term decide to stop using Shopify, you will not receive a refund of the fees you paid in advance. You could potentially lose a lot of money this way, if, say, your business closes soon after you pay for a year’s worth of service.
| Customer Service4.0 |
|---|
| Personal Support 3.8 |
| Self-Service 4.2 |
Shopify keeps its customer service and technical support in-house, including support for Shopify Payments. You can contact support 24/7 via phone, live chat, or email. Plus, Shopify offers an extensive and robust knowledgebase for self-support.
When it comes to reaching live people at Shopify, your options may be rather limited. Shopify only emphasizes chat support on its website for most plans (only mentioning phone support for the highest-tier “Plus” plan), so phone support may be more limited. Additionally, your level of chat support depends on your plan tier, with only “Advanced” plan users and higher receiving “priority” support. This is not ideal and could indicate that Shopify uses AI chatbots for lower plans, as some on X and Reddit allege.
We’ve had good personal experiences with using Shopify’s customer service and have found representatives to be informed and prompt in their responses. Many merchants report being quite poorly served by Shopify’s support reps, though experiences are far from universal, and you are more likely to reach a live person if you have a payments-related issue (versus a website design issue or app integration issue, for example). We’re giving Shopify Payments a decent rating in this category, though there is definitely room for improvement here.
| Shopify Payments Customer Service | Availability |
|---|---|
| Phone Support | |
| Email Support | |
| Support Tickets | |
| Live Chat | |
| Dedicated Support Representative | |
| Knowledge Base or Help Center | |
| Videos & Tutorials | |
| Company Blog | |
| Social Media |
Here’s a quick breakdown of Shopify Payments’ support options:
| User Reviews4.4 |
|---|
| Customer Feedback 4.0 |
| Review Site Aggregate 4.5 |
We at Merchant Maverick read as many user reviews as possible when researching a payment processor. The challenge with Shopify Payments is that while reviews of Shopify are plentiful, reviews of Shopify Payments, in particular, are much rarer. For this reason, and because you’ll be using Shopify Payments with Shopify, we’re providing reviews for the Shopify platform as a whole.
Here’s what users think on some of the major consumer review sites:
All told, for a provider of this size and magnitude, Shopify’s public reception is remarkably good. While it’s not perfect by any means, we stand impressed by the number of positive reviews the company gets — thus, we’re giving Shopify Payments top marks in this category.
Shopify Payments, along with the Shopify eCommerce platform as a whole, is a top-notch solution that suits a wide variety of eCommerce businesses, earning it a strong overall score and our general recommendation. However, it’s not for everybody.
While it doesn’t happen to the vast majority of accounts, we’ve read enough reports of merchants getting their accounts terminated by Shopify Payments to know that it does happen.
Moreover, users on the lower-tier plans do not receive the same level of personalized customer service as merchants on higher-tier plans.
On the whole. Shopify offers outstanding value. The platform allows for a lot of flexibility and provides even more cost-efficiency when it comes time to scale up. You’ll have all the tools you need to start selling on your site or outside marketplaces and social media channels. There are great benefits to having integrated payments, and if your store follows all the rules, Shopify Payments could be the best choice for your store.
The Merchant Maverick Seal of Approval 🏆
Shopify Payments |
|---|
After hours of in-depth research and evaluation, we can confidently recommend this brand to our readers. Get started today and see Shopify Payments for yourself.
The Merchant Maverick Seal of Approval 🏆
Shopify Payments |
|---|
After hours of in-depth research and evaluation, we can confidently recommend this brand to our readers. Get started today and see Shopify Payments for yourself.
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The vendors that appear on this list were chosen by subject matter experts on the basis of product quality, wide usage and availability, and positive reputation.
Merchant Maverick’s ratings are editorial in nature, and are not aggregated from user reviews. Each staff reviewer at Merchant Maverick is a subject matter expert with experience researching, testing, and evaluating small business software and services. The rating of this company or service is based on the author’s expert opinion and analysis of the product, and assessed and seconded by another subject matter expert on staff before publication. Merchant Maverick’s ratings are not influenced by affiliate partnerships.
Our unbiased reviews and content are supported in part by affiliate partnerships, and we adhere to strict guidelines to preserve editorial integrity. The editorial content on this page is not provided by any of the companies mentioned and has not been reviewed, approved or otherwise endorsed by any of these entities. Opinions expressed here are author’s alone.
Our team of experts spends hours on every review so that we can find the best companies to recommend to our readers. Shopify Payments made the cut.
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