Factors that Make Shopify and Shopify Plus Differ: What’s Better for You?

Shopify, the ultimate eCommerce destination for all budding entrepreneurs, is a reliable name in the industry. May it be the appealing themes or availability of the best Shopify apps, there is an endless scope of customization available for you to make your store unique. 

Over time, Shopify has always undergone impeccable changes and upgrades, with a vision to offer your customers a high-end shopping experience and to give you a better conversion rate. In this quest to upgrade the efficacies of this platform, Shopify Plus was introduced. 

Now, what is Shopify Plus? Is it something different from Shopify that you already know? 

Well, if you are one among people who are just starting with Shopify as their eCommerce platform, there is a high chance you don’t know about Shopify Plus and how it differs from standard Shopify. 

Therefore, this article is here to help educate you on the differences between Shopify and Shopify Plus so you can learn about their independent capabilities and decide on what would go well with your business needs. 

What is the Significance of Shopify Plus over Shopify?

As the name suggests, Shopify Plus consists of add-on features and functionalities than the standard Shopify version. The purpose of introducing it was to help large-scale eCommerce businesses run enterprise-grade online stores, just like WooCommerce or Magento. 

If you are an established business that intends to acquire higher sales and better conversions, Shopify Plus is the ideal model for you to consider while choosing an eCommerce platform. You get the best features that your business will need for achieving specific milestones. 

When you decide to upgrade your Shopify store to the Shopify Plus plan, you will be able to acquire third-party integration and expert assistance. On the other hand, the basic Shopify plans are ideal for small and medium-scale businesses with a small turnover. 

To give your perspective on the turnover comparison, you must know that Shopify Plus is recommended for businesses that have their turnovers recorded in millions. Even the top celebrities, such as Kim Kardashian, Kylie Jenner, and Rihanna, have built their online stores with Shopify Plus, as the sales rate and traffic flow are always higher on their sites. 

How Does Shopify and Shopify Plus Differ from One Another?

To help you get an insight into the practical differences between Shopify and Shopify Plus, here are a few distinguishing factors for you to count on:

1. Pricing:

The biggest point of comparison between the Shopify plans is their pricing on one end, where the Starter, Basic, and Regular Shopify plans are priced at $5, $39, $105, and $399, respectively, per month. On the other hand, the Shopify Plus plan starts at $2000 per month. 

2. Analytical Capabilities:

With the Starter and Basic plans of Shopify, you don’t get any analytics capabilities, and in the Regular and Advanced plans, you get a basic level of analytical reporting features. But with Shopify Plus, you get extraordinary analytical capabilities for you to count on. 

3. Staff Account Access:

The maximum staff account access you can attain with the standard Shopify plans is 15, which is available with the Advanced plan of the platform. But with Shopify Plus, there is no limit on how many staff account access you provide for your store management. 

4. Inventory Locations:

With the standard Shopify plans, you can have up to 8 inventory locations, available with the Advanced plan. The Starter, Basic, and Regular plans support 1, 4, and 5 inventory locations, respectively. But, if you are running a large business, acquire Shopify Plus to attain 20 inventory locations. 

What More Does Shopify Plus Offer Over Shopify?

Shopify is very much aware of the need associated with keeping your customers satisfied. And that’s possible only when you offer a seamless shopping experience to them. When you hire Shopify developers for your project, creating the store isn’t enough, as you ought to choose the right plan as well. 

Therefore, to help you better understand the efficacies of Shopify Plus over Shopify, here are a few things that it offers as enhancements to your basic plans:

1. Personal Store or Project Manager

When you opt for the Shopify Plus plan, a lot of the in-house experts who are officially managing the platform will be allocated to look after your store and provide you with 24/7 support. You will have the liberty to connect with such experts at times when you are facing any problem associated with your Shopify store. 

With Shopify Plus, you will also be able to avail of personalized support for the business alongside the cool features. Shopify will appoint a dedicated developer for you to ensure your store runs without any downtime or hiccups. Not only that, but this developer will also be your guide to help your site grow. 

2. Theme Customization Proficiency

When using the usual Shopify plans, you will only be able to customize your themes or templates using the built-in editor. However, transitioning the theme into a unique appeal might be too challenging for the standard plans. Shopify Plus, on the other hand, will offer you immense customization features and will grant you access to a dedicated theme language, Liquid. 

When you have Liquid as the toolkit for your theme customization, you will be able to implement the modifications conveniently and at the coding level. Thus, you will have better control over the customization process, and the uniqueness quotient for your Shopify store will also be higher. 

3. Personalized Checkout

A better shopping experience is nothing if your checkout feature isn’t responsive or user-friendly enough. The customers find themselves restless if they have to fill out a lot of steps before actually reaching the final payment step. As a result, they will eventually leave your store and abandon the cart. 

With the standard Shopify plans, you will have to integrate the best Shopify apps in order to streamline your checkout process. It is important, as without it, the customers will have to go through a lengthy process. With Shopify Plus, you don’t have to integrate any add-on app to streamline the checkout process. 

It is because you get Shopify Scripts, a built-in script editor that will give you the ability to customize the checkout page and enhance the customers’ experience on your platform. 

Final Verdict

Both Shopify standard plans as well as Shopify Plus are packed with numerous features for you to get started with your online business. But you ought to choose one among the two to get along with the next steps of setting up your store. 

So, the final point of consideration should be the requirements associated with your business goals. If you are tight on your budget and are a newbie business owner, you should stick to the usual plans of Shopify, as the feature gaps can be filled by using the best Shopify apps. 

But, if you are willing to set up a well-established eCommerce store that has a spectacular growth rate and needs impeccable functionalities to be properly managed, you must go with Shopify Plus. In case you need any help, talk to a team of experts and come to a feasible decision!