How Much Does Shopify Take From Sales in 2025?

Table of Contents

1. Introduction
2. The Three Layers of Shopify Costs
3. Detailed Breakdown by Plan Tier
4. The Impact of Shopify Payments
5. Hidden Costs That Affect Your Bottom Line
6. Practical Scenario: The Coffee Merchant's Margin
7. Why Digital Products Change the Fee Equation
8. Success Stories: Maximizing Shopify Revenue
9. Strategies to Reduce the Amount Shopify Takes
10. Transparency in Pricing: The Tevello Advantage
11. Conclusion
12. FAQ

Introduction

Did you know that the average e-commerce merchant often pays between 3% and 10% of their total revenue back to their platform and payment processors? For many business owners, these percentages appear as small, negligible figures on a dashboard, but over the course of a fiscal year, they can represent the difference between a struggling startup and a thriving brand. In the fast-moving world of digital commerce, understanding every cent that leaves your bank account is the first step toward true profitability. The question of how much does shopify take from sales is not just about a single transaction fee; it is about the complex interplay between subscription tiers, payment gateways, and third-party applications.

At Tevello, our mission is to turn any Shopify store into a digital learning powerhouse, and a core part of that mission is helping you maximize your margins. We believe that merchants should own their customer data and brand experience, which is why we focus on solutions that keep your audience on your own URL. In this guide, we will break down the multi-layered fee structure of Shopify, explore the costs associated with different plan levels, and explain how diversifying into digital products can help you offset traditional retail expenses.

By the end of this article, you will have a clear roadmap for navigating Shopify’s costs, optimizing your payment settings, and leveraging digital assets to build a more sustainable, high-margin business. Understanding these numbers is essential for increasing your Customer Lifetime Value (LTV) and ensuring that your growth is both scalable and profitable.

The Three Layers of Shopify Costs

When calculating how much does shopify take from sales, you must look at your expenses in three distinct categories. It is rarely a single "cut" taken by the platform; rather, it is a combination of fixed and variable costs.

1. The Subscription Fee

This is the fixed cost you pay every month to keep your "doors" open. Shopify offers several tiers—Basic, Grow (formerly the 'Shopify' plan), and Advanced—ranging from $39 to $399 per month if paid monthly. While these fees don't change based on your sales volume, they dictate the variable rates you will pay later. Choosing the right plan is about comparing plan costs against total course revenue or physical goods turnover to find the break-even point where a higher monthly fee actually saves you money on transaction percentages.

2. Credit Card Processing Fees

Whenever a customer swipes a card or enters their details online, a payment processor (like Shopify Payments) charges a fee to handle the security and transfer of funds. This is typically a percentage of the total order value plus a flat cents-per-transaction fee (e.g., 2.9% + $0.30). These fees go toward the financial infrastructure and the risk of processing digital payments.

3. Third-Party Transaction Fees

This is perhaps the most misunderstood cost. If you choose not to use Shopify’s native payment gateway, Shopify charges an additional "success fee." This is a penalty for using external processors like PayPal or Stripe. This fee ranges from 0.5% to 2.0% depending on your plan. This is a critical factor to consider when calculating your net margins.

Detailed Breakdown by Plan Tier

To understand the specifics of how much does shopify take from sales, we need to look at the current rates for 2025 across the main subscription levels.

The Basic Plan: Ideal for New Starters

The Basic plan is the entry point for most serious merchants. It costs $39 per month (or $29 if billed annually).

• Online Credit Card Rate: 2.9% + $0.30 per transaction.
• In-Person (POS) Rate: 2.6% + $0.10.
• Third-Party Fee: 2.0% if not using Shopify Payments.

For a merchant selling a $100 product, Shopify (via Shopify Payments) would take $3.20. If that same merchant used an external gateway, they would pay the gateway's fee plus an additional $2.00 to Shopify.

The Grow Plan: For Scaling Businesses

The Grow plan (formerly titled "Shopify") is designed for stores with increasing volume. It costs $105 per month (or $79 annually).

• Online Credit Card Rate: 2.6% + $0.30 per transaction.
• In-Person (POS) Rate: 2.5% + $0.10.
• Third-Party Fee: 1.0% if not using Shopify Payments.

As your volume increases, the 0.3% difference in processing fees starts to cover the higher monthly subscription cost. This is the stage where many merchants begin seeing how the app natively integrates with Shopify to add digital memberships, further increasing their average order value.

The Advanced Plan: For High-Volume Merchants

At $399 per month (or $299 annually), the Advanced plan is for established players.

• Online Credit Card Rate: 2.4% + $0.30 per transaction.
• In-Person (POS) Rate: 2.4% + $0.10.
• Third-Party Fee: 0.6% if not using Shopify Payments.

At this level, the focus is on securing a fixed cost structure for digital products and physical logistics. The lower transaction fees can save thousands of dollars a month for stores doing over $20,000 in monthly sales.

The Impact of Shopify Payments

The single most effective way to reduce the amount Shopify takes from your sales is to enable Shopify Payments. By using this native integration, you completely eliminate the "Third-Party Transaction Fee."

Beyond just saving money, Shopify Payments provides a more cohesive experience for the merchant. You can manage your orders, payments, and payouts all in one dashboard. This "Native Shopify Integration" is a philosophy we share at Tevello. We believe that physical products, digital courses, and community engagement should live side-by-side in a single ecosystem. When everything is unified, the customer journey is smoother, and the merchant’s overhead—both financial and cognitive—is significantly reduced.

Hidden Costs That Affect Your Bottom Line

Beyond the standard percentages, several other factors influence the final amount that ends up in your pocket.

Currency Conversion Fees

If you are a US-based merchant selling to customers in Europe or Australia, Shopify charges a currency conversion fee (usually around 1.5% in the US and up to 2.0% internationally). This fee is applied to the converted amount of the order. To mitigate this, many merchants use localized pricing to maintain their margins across different markets.

App Subscriptions

Most Shopify stores rely on apps for marketing, SEO, and specialized functionality. These monthly costs add to your "platform tax." At Tevello, we recognize that "app fatigue" is real. That is why we offer a simple, all-in-one price for unlimited courses rather than tiered structures that charge you more as you become more successful. We charge $29.99 per month for our Unlimited Plan, and we never take a percentage of your sales.

Shopify Tax

If you are selling in the United States and reach a certain threshold of sales (usually $100,000 annually), Shopify Tax may apply a small fee of 0.35% per order (capped at $0.99) for automated tax calculations in certain states. While small, it is another line item to track in your profitability reports.

Practical Scenario: The Coffee Merchant's Margin

Consider a merchant selling high-quality coffee beans. Their physical product has a low margin due to shipping costs, packaging, and raw material expenses. For every $30 bag of coffee sold, after Shopify’s 2.9% + $0.30 fee, shipping, and COGS (Cost of Goods Sold), they might only keep $8 in profit.

Now, imagine this merchant uses Tevello to launch a "Home Barista Basics" video course for $50. Because this is a digital product:

1. There are no shipping costs.
2. There is no physical inventory to store.
3. The "manufacturing" cost was a one-time investment in video production.

When the customer buys the course, Shopify takes its standard processing fee, but the merchant’s profit is significantly higher. By generating revenue from both physical and digital goods, the merchant diversifies their income and protects their business from rising shipping rates. If unifying your stack is a priority, start by a simple, all-in-one price for unlimited courses.

Why Digital Products Change the Fee Equation

When you sell digital products or memberships via Shopify, you are essentially "hacking" the traditional e-commerce margin. Physical goods have a "ceiling" on profitability because of the variable costs associated with every unit sold. Digital products, however, have high scalability.

We built Tevello specifically to help merchants capitalize on this. Unlike third-party course platforms that might charge you a "success fee" of 5% to 10% on every student enrollment, Tevello charges 0% transaction fees. You keep 100% of your earnings after Shopify’s standard credit card processing fee.

Our Unlimited Plan ($29.99/month) includes:

• Unlimited courses and students.
• Unlimited video hosting and bandwidth.
• All the key features for courses and communities.
• A 14-day free trial.

By keeping customers at home on the brand website, you also reduce the likelihood of them being distracted by other creators on a third-party marketplace. You own the brand experience from the moment they land on your home page to the moment they complete their final lesson.

Success Stories: Maximizing Shopify Revenue

Many merchants have successfully navigated the Shopify fee landscape by focusing on high-margin digital offerings. For instance, consider how one brand sold $112K+ by bundling courses. By combining a physical hobby kit with a digital "how-to" guide, they increased their Average Order Value (AOV) while maintaining the same customer acquisition cost.

Another powerful approach involves retention strategies that drive repeat digital purchases. When a customer buys a physical product, they are a one-time buyer. When they join a digital community or subscribe to a course, they become a long-term member of your ecosystem. We have seen examples of brands driving 50% of sales from repeat course purchasers. This recurring revenue stability is the holy grail of e-commerce, as it mitigates the impact of fluctuating advertising costs and platform fees.

Strategies to Reduce the Amount Shopify Takes

If you are concerned about your current expenses, here is a checklist of actionable steps to take:

1. Activate Shopify Payments: If it is available in your region, this is the most immediate way to drop your fees by up to 2%.
2. Audit Your App List: Are you paying for five different apps that a single, more robust app could handle? Quarterly audits can save hundreds of dollars.
3. Analyze Your Plan ROI: Calculate your monthly sales. If you are on the Basic plan but doing $15,000+ in revenue, the savings from the Grow plan’s lower transaction rates will likely exceed the higher subscription cost.
4. Incentivize Larger Orders: Since every transaction has a flat $0.30 fee, one $100 order is more profitable than four $25 orders. Use bundles to increase AOV.
5. Add Digital Upsells: Use Tevello to create low-overhead digital products that don't incur shipping or inventory costs, effectively raising your overall store margin.

Transparency in Pricing: The Tevello Advantage

At Tevello, we reject the complicated, multi-tier pricing structures common in the software world. We believe in a flat-rate plan that supports unlimited members, giving you the freedom to scale without fear of a larger bill.

We know that trust is built on transparency. That is why we are clear: our Unlimited Plan is $29.99. No hidden success fees. No per-student charges. Just a robust tool designed to amplify your existing efforts on Shopify. By start your 14-day free trial and build your first course now, you can build your entire curriculum and community before paying a cent, ensuring the platform is the right fit for your brand's future.

Conclusion

The question of how much does shopify take from sales is answered by more than just a percentage. It is a reflection of how you choose to structure your business. While Shopify provides the world-class infrastructure needed to run a global store, it is up to you as the merchant to optimize your settings and product mix for maximum profit. By utilizing Shopify Payments, selecting the correct subscription tier, and diversifying into high-margin digital products, you can significantly reduce the "platform tax" on your hard-earned revenue.

At Tevello, we are proud to be a part of the Shopify ecosystem, helping merchants transition from simple retailers to "digital learning powerhouses." Our commitment to 0% transaction fees and native integration ensures that you remain in control of your data, your brand, and your profits.

To build your community without leaving Shopify, start by reviewing the Shopify App Store listing merchants install from.

FAQ

1. Does Shopify take a percentage of my course sales if I use Tevello?

Shopify will charge its standard credit card processing fee (e.g., 2.9% + $0.30 on the Basic plan) for any sale made through their checkout. However, Tevello charges 0% transaction fees. You keep 100% of your earnings after the Shopify payment processing is complete.

2. Can I avoid the 2% third-party transaction fee?

Yes, the most effective way to avoid the additional transaction fee (which ranges from 0.5% to 2.0%) is to use Shopify Payments as your primary payment gateway. This fee is only applied if you use external providers like PayPal or Stripe as your exclusive checkout method.

3. Is it better to pay for Shopify monthly or annually?

If you have the capital available, paying annually is highly recommended. Shopify typically offers a 25% discount on subscription fees for merchants who commit to a yearly plan, which can save you hundreds of dollars that can be reinvested into marketing or product development.

4. Do I need a separate website to sell courses on Shopify?

No. One of the primary advantages of Tevello is that it is a native integration. This means your courses, lessons, and community forums live directly on your Shopify store’s URL. This provides a seamless experience for your customers and ensures you maintain full control over your branding and customer data.