Online Shop Costs: Shopify vs. WooCommerce Price Ranges
Honest build and running costs for Shopify and WooCommerce stores, from a starter shop to a custom-built platform.
Last updated: 2026-06
Quick Answer
An online shop in the DACH market costs between 2,000 and 80,000 euros to build, plus running costs of 50 to 1,000 euros a month. A starter Shopify or WooCommerce shop runs 2,000 to 8,000 euros, a professional custom-designed store sits at 10,000 to 30,000 euros, and a complex, highly integrated shop reaches 40,000 to 80,000 euros or more.
Price Ranges at a Glance
| Item | Range | Note |
|---|---|---|
| DIY starter shop (Shopify, your own work) | 29 to 105 euros / month | Shopify plan plus theme, you build it |
| Starter shop (freelancer, Shopify or WooCommerce) | 2,000 to 8,000 euros | Theme setup, basic products, payment, shipping |
| Professional custom shop (agency) | 10,000 to 30,000 euros | Custom design, custom features, integrations |
| Complex / high-integration shop | 40,000 to 80,000 euros+ | ERP, PIM, multi-market, custom checkout |
| Shopify monthly plan | 29 to 384 euros / month | Basic to Advanced, Plus starts much higher |
| WooCommerce hosting + plugins | 30 to 300 euros / month | Hosting, premium plugins, maintenance |
| Payment processing fees | 1.4 to 2.9% + ~0.25 euros / transaction | Per sale, on top of everything else |
| Ongoing maintenance & support | 150 to 1,500 euros / month | Updates, fixes, small changes, security |
What Drives the Cost
Shopify vs. WooCommerce
Shopify is faster to launch and has predictable monthly fees but charges per plan and sometimes per transaction. WooCommerce has no platform fee but needs hosting, plugins and more maintenance. The cheaper option depends on your volume and your in-house skills.
Template vs. custom design
A polished theme with light customization keeps the build affordable. A fully custom design with a unique storefront, brand animations and a bespoke product page is the biggest cost jump, often doubling the build budget.
Number of products and variants
Twenty products is a quick import. Thousands of SKUs with sizes, colors and bundles need a product information setup, structured data and sometimes a PIM, which adds real hours.
Integrations and automations
Connecting the shop to your ERP, accounting, email marketing, shipping carriers and a CRM is where budgets quietly grow. Each integration is custom work and each one needs testing.
Payment, tax and multi-market setup
Selling across Germany, Austria and Switzerland means multiple currencies, VAT handling, Swiss customs and localized checkout. Multi-market support meaningfully raises both build and running cost.
Conversion and tracking setup
GA4 ecommerce tracking, consent management and server-side tracking are not optional for a shop that runs ads. They cost extra to build correctly but are what let you scale paid traffic profitably.
Real-World Budget Examples
First-time seller launching a small range
around 5,000 euros build plus ~150 euros / month
Freelancer sets up a Shopify shop on a premium theme (4,000 euros), basic GA4 ecommerce and consent setup (1,000 euros), then Shopify plan plus apps at around 150 euros / month. Enough to start selling and running ads.
Established brand going pro
around 18,000 euros build plus ~500 euros / month
Agency builds a custom-designed shop with brand storefront, 200+ products, email and shipping integrations (18,000 euros), running on hosting plus plugins or Shopify plus apps and light maintenance at around 500 euros / month.
Scaling retailer with full integration
around 55,000 euros build plus ~1,200 euros / month
Custom shop with ERP and PIM integration, multi-market DACH checkout and server-side tracking (55,000 euros), plus ongoing maintenance, hosting and support at around 1,200 euros / month. Built to scale ad spend across markets.
How to Lower Your Costs
- Start on Shopify with a strong premium theme instead of a custom build, you can redesign later once revenue justifies it.
- Import products and write descriptions yourself, agency hours for data entry are expensive and easy to do in-house.
- Add integrations only when a manual process actually hurts, every connector is custom cost and maintenance.
- Budget for running costs from the start, the monthly platform, plugin and payment fees often surprise first-time owners.
- Set up GA4 ecommerce and consent tracking before launch so your first euro of ad spend is measurable.
- Get one agency to own both the shop and the ads, a fast, well-tracked store directly lowers your customer acquisition cost.
The honest answer to what an online shop costs is a wide range, because a Shopify starter store and a custom-integrated platform are different products that happen to share a name. A capable seller can launch a clean Shopify shop for the cost of the plan plus a theme, well under 1,000 euros all-in. At the other end, a custom WooCommerce or headless build with ERP integration and multi-market checkout easily passes 50,000 euros. Most growing DACH businesses land in the 5,000 to 30,000 euro band for the build, and the right number depends on your product range, your integrations and how much custom design you genuinely need.
Shopify versus WooCommerce is the question that decides much of your cost. Shopify is faster to launch, more stable out of the box and has predictable monthly fees, but you pay per plan and, off Shopify Payments, sometimes per transaction. WooCommerce has no platform fee and total flexibility, but you carry hosting, plugin licenses, security and maintenance yourself. For a small team without a developer, Shopify is usually cheaper in total once you price in the time WooCommerce maintenance eats. For a business with technical resources and unusual requirements, WooCommerce can win.
The cost that catches people out is not the build, it is the running cost and the integrations. The platform plan, premium plugins, payment fees of roughly 1.4 to 2.9 percent per sale, and maintenance add up to a real monthly number long after the build invoice is paid. Selling across the DACH region adds more: multiple currencies, VAT and Swiss customs handling, and localized checkout, all of which raise both build and ongoing cost. Plan these in from the start rather than discovering them after launch, because they decide whether the shop is actually profitable.
One part you should never cut is conversion and tracking. A shop that runs ads needs proper GA4 ecommerce tracking, consent management that respects DSGVO, and ideally server-side tracking, so you can see which campaigns drive real revenue. It costs a few thousand euros extra to build correctly, but on a shop spending money on Google Ads or Meta Ads it pays for itself fast: without accurate tracking you are scaling blind and wasting budget on channels you cannot measure. A well-built, fast, fully tracked shop is what lets you grow paid traffic profitably instead of guessing.
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Frequently Asked Questions
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Between 2,000 and 80,000 euros to build in the DACH market, plus 50 to 1,000 euros a month to run. A starter Shopify or WooCommerce shop is 2,000 to 8,000 euros, a professional custom store is 10,000 to 30,000 euros, and a complex integrated shop is 40,000 to 80,000 euros or more.
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It depends on volume and skills. Shopify has predictable monthly fees and is cheaper for small teams without a developer once you count maintenance time. WooCommerce has no platform fee but you pay for hosting, plugins and upkeep, which can win for technical teams with unusual needs.
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Platform plan or hosting (30 to 384 euros a month), premium plugins or apps, payment processing of roughly 1.4 to 2.9 percent per sale, and maintenance of 150 to 1,500 euros a month. These continue long after the build is paid for.
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Custom design, large product catalogs, and integrations with ERP, PIM, shipping and CRM are all bespoke work that needs building and testing. Multi-market DACH checkout with multiple currencies and Swiss customs adds further cost on top.
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Yes, if you run ads. GA4 ecommerce tracking, DSGVO-compliant consent management and ideally server-side tracking let you see which campaigns drive revenue. It costs extra but pays for itself by letting you scale paid traffic profitably instead of guessing.
Further Reading
Planning an online shop that has to pay for itself?
We build Shopify and WooCommerce stores with conversion tracking baked in, then run the Shopping and Performance Max campaigns that fill them. Tell us your product range and we will scope it honestly.