You’ve got enough exciting stuff to worry about. Let us be the reliable platform you can depend on. Make an average $68* for every $1 you spend. So boring.
If you’ve outgrown the standard Shopify platform, it might be time to upgrade to Shopify Plus. With Shopify Plus, you unlock access to a broader range of features designed to integrate, automate, and streamline ecommerce processes and transactions — all while managing and fueling ongoing business growth.
But is it worth the investment? This guide will help you make that decision by providing a brief overview of Shopify Plus and its benefits, signs it’s time to upgrade, success stories, and tips for making the switch.
Make the most of Shopify Plus with Omnisend, a platform designed for high-growth ecommerce businesses
Shopify Plus is the premium tier of Shopify’s ecommerce platform, ideal for businesses with more traffic and a higher sales volume. Some of its key features catering to scaling businesses include:
Access to automation features through Shopify Flow
Enhanced multichannel functionality for social selling
Here’s a price comparison with other Shopify plans. Note that the prices listed are based on yearly billing, as the shortest commitment for Shopify Plus is one year:
Plan
Price per year
Features
Basic Shopify
$348
Unlimited products, 10 inventory locations, 24/7 chat support, and localized global selling in three markets
Shopify
$948
Five staff accounts, and lower rates for online payments
Advanced Shopify
$3,588
The option to add global markets, 15 staff accounts, higher checkout capacity (10x), and custom reports and analytics
Here are some of the main reasons businesses should consider upgrading to Shopify Plus:
1. Better scalability
Shopify Plus offers businesses more staff accounts, inventory locations, and checkout capacity, making it easier to scale growth. It also supports multiple site variations with different languages and currencies, making it easier to expand.
2. More customization
With access to coding, a range of Shopify Plus apps, and the option to add up to 100 themes to your account, Shopify Plus allows you to customize your store however you want.
3. Priority support
Perhaps one of the biggest benefits of Shopify Plus is priority support, starting with access to Shopify Launch Engineers for migration, setup, analytics, and more. You also get help from the Plus Merchant Success Team and the Shopify Plus Academy’s exclusive support resources.
4. Exclusive access
Shopify Plus unlocks exclusive tools like Shopify Launchpad, Script Editor, and Shopify Flow. These features allow you to optimize your store, checkout page, and day-to-day operations.
5. The best performance
Thanks to its Performance Optimization service, Shopify Plus is built to deliver the fastest possible speed on the platform. That’s paired with 99.99% uptime, so you don’t miss out on any traffic or sales.
6. Wider customer reach
With Shopify Audiences, you can boost your customer reach, leveraging advanced audience segmentation and targeting capabilities to connect with potential customers more effectively (i.e., based on shopping behaviors and preferences). By focusing on high-potential customer segments, you can increase conversions and optimize ad spend.
Image via Shopify
When to upgrade to Shopify Plus?
Here are a few signs that indicate it might be time to upgrade to Shopify Plus from Basic Shopify, Shopify, or Advanced Shopify:
You’re exceeding $800,000 in gross sales per month
You’re experiencing a high volume of transactions
You require advanced customization or more specialist apps and integrations that are only available through Shopify Plus
You’re expanding into international markets
You’re selling wholesale or B2B
You require more staff accounts or better support
How much does Shopify Plus cost?
Merchants will likely consider the price first when thinking about switching to Shopify Plus, and it’s valid — the price might be a barrier when deciding to switch.
Shopify offers plans that begin at $29/month and rise to $299/month for the Advanced Plan.
Shopify Plus costs $2,500/month with a minimum commitment of a year. After a store’s turnover exceeds $800,000 annually, Shopify Plus converts to a revenue-based fee of 0.25% monthly turnover.
In addition to the monthly cost, Shopify Plus merchants will also need to account for:
Maintenance fees
Credit card processing fees
Application costs
Generally speaking, an ecommerce storefront will need to achieve high annual revenue to merit Shopify Plus. For the best return on investment, merchants will need to see revenue hit the $1 million mark or more.
How to upgrade to Shopify Plus
Upgrading to Shopify Plus is typically quite straightforward, but the process can vary depending on the size of your store and the amount of data you need to migrate. Here’s a step-by-step guide to ensure a smooth transition:
Evaluate your current Shopify setup
Start by assessing your existing Shopify store. Identify the data you need to migrate (like products, customer info, and order history) and list any third-party integrations that may need updates.
Create a migration plan
Planning is key to a successful upgrade, so devise a comprehensive plan that includes:
Migrating product data or customer information
Updating or replacing apps and integrations, and testing the site
Testing the store’s functionality before launch
Be sure to back up your current store data before making any changes.
Work with Shopify’s dedicated migration support
Shopify Plus offers priority support to assist with your migration, helping guide you through each step of the process or connecting you with accredited migration partners if necessary.
Image via Shopify
Test and optimize your new Shopify Plus store
After the migration, update your store’s theme to match your brand identity. Organize all your products, categories, and collections to ensure a smooth shopping experience.
Take advantage of new features exclusive to Shopify Plus and test everything — including checkout, payment, and shipping options — to ensure all works as expected.
Launch your Shopify Plus store and finalize the setup
If you’re upgrading to Shopify Plus from an existing Shopify plan, the upgrade should be completed within 24 business hours. You’ll receive an invitation to join Jumpstart in your introductory email, which is a merchant onboarding program. However, you can always contact the Shopify Plus Priority Support team for any assistance.
For those migrating from another ecommerce platform, you’ll need to follow these additional steps:
Import all data and content from your store
Check all products have been imported and organize them
Customize your website’s theme and design
Set up shipping, taxes, and payment options before launching your site on Shopify Plus
Add staff accounts and set up permissions
Place final test orders to ensure everything is working
Transfer your domain
Migrate to Shopify point of sale (POS), if applicable
Why Omnisend is the perfect marketing tool for Shopify Plus
If you’re considering a Shopify Plus upgrade, you know that boosting customer engagement and driving sales requires a powerful marketing solution.
Here’s why Omnisend stands out as the ideal partner for Shopify Plus stores:
Integrated SMS and email marketing
Omnisend simplifies your marketing by combining SMS and email into one platform, allowing you to reach customers across multiple channels. With Omnisend, you can send personalized messages, automated follow-ups, and promotions based on specific customer behavior.
Omnisend’s automation features allow you to easily create complex workflows, such as abandoned cart reminders, post-purchase follow-ups, and more — all tailored to customer behaviors — so you save time and maximize your sales potential.
Personalized campaigns for better customer engagement
You can create tailored promotions and product recommendations based on customer preferences, purchase history, and browsing behavior.
Using Omnisend to segment your audience and send highly personalized campaigns creates a level of personalization that boosts customer loyalty and increases conversion rates.
Seamless integration with Shopify Plus
Omnisend integrates seamlessly with Shopify Plus, syncing your store data in real time for effortless marketing management. Access customer insights, segment your audience, and launch targeted campaigns directly from the platform. Plus, it’s intuitive to use which makes it a great choice for busy Shopify Plus merchants looking to simplify their marketing operations.
Take your Shopify Plus marketing to the next level with Omnisend’s powerful tools
Gymshark, a leading fitness apparel and accessories brand, experienced rapid growth after migrating to Adobe Commerce. It needed a scalable ecommerce solution to meet its changing requirements, more urgently when the original site crashed for eight hours on Black Friday!
The brand upgraded to Shopify Plus for its robust infrastructure and scalability. By leveraging Shopify Scripts, Gymshark created a customized shopping experience, including surprise freebies for loyal customers. It also implemented Shopify Flow to automate various back-end processes.
Since moving to Shopify Plus, Gymshark has seen a remarkable improvement in site stability and performance, even during peak traffic times.
The brand now offers a more personalized customer experience with tailored promotions and discounts. Additionally, with automated workflows, the team enjoys more efficient operations.
As for results, conversion rates and average order value have both increased. Gymshark has been able to expand globally and boost international sales — with 14 online stores in 13 languages. Today, Gymshark is a prominent player in the fitness industry, and Shopify Plus is a valuable part of its success.
Allbirds, a sustainable footwear brand launched in 2016 after a successful Kickstarter campaign, chose Shopify from the very beginning for its powerful point of sale (POS) and omnichannel capabilities.
Allbirds needed a system capable of handling thousands of daily customers while being easily scaled up to 18 associates in each store. Beyond basic POS tasks, it needed to leverage customer data to guide inventory decisions and help convert customers in-store when their first product choice was unavailable.
Allbirds fully embraced the intuitive Shopify POS features, training all in-store associates to use the system. This streamlined process minimized friction and boosted conversion opportunities in every interaction. The ecommerce and in-person system is truly seamless, providing a single view of every customer in one place, wherever and however they choose to shop.
3. Heinz: Bringing a classic brand into the digital age
From beans and soup to sauces and other condiments, Heinz is a household name worldwide. With a pandemic disrupting the global market, the brand launched a direct-to-consumer ecommerce site to mitigate the impact of lockdowns on its products.
Prior to this shift, Heinz’s ecommerce platform was outdated and difficult to navigate, resulting in low conversion rates and poor customer satisfaction. To remedy this, Heinz launched a new site on Shopify Plus — one with intuitive navigation and a seamless user experience.
Key to this upgrade, the site is fully integrated with the company’s inventory management, ERP systems, and customer relationship management software. With marketing automation also in place, Heinz can now capitalize on potential and existing customers through targeted email campaigns and ads.
All in all, Shopify Plus provides a seamless, integrated, and user-friendly solution for Heinz that can cope with its wide range of products and global audience.
Wrap up
Enterprise platforms like Shopify Plus simplify expansion and multi-regional storefronts for large brands, sparing them the hassle and expense of developing custom solutions or hiring teams of pricey web developers to build ecommerce sites.
At $2,500/month (with a one-year commitment), Shopify Plus provides a relatively cost-effective alternative to many other ecommerce solutions. It delivers a suite of noteworthy features and integrations, providing merchants with a fully functional suite of ecommerce tools that are hard for individual design solutions to rival.
More importantly, merchants looking at migrating to Shopify Plus will need an equally powerful marketing platform. Omnisend seamlessly integrates with Shopify Plus, making use of its advanced features while providing many of its own to enhance the ecommerce experience.
Get started with Omnisend today & drive sales on autopilot to your Shopify store
Yes, you can move to Shopify Plus from any of the other tiers, as well as migrating from other ecommerce platforms.
What is the difference between Shopify Basic and Shopify Plus?
Shopify Basic and Shopify Plus represent two ends of the spectrum, each catering to different business needs. Shopify Basic is the entry-level platform, while Shopify Plus is for the largest businesses. Differences include:
— One account (Basic) versus unlimited accounts (Plus) — $348/year (Basic) versus $30,000/year (Plus) — 10 inventory locations (Basic) versus 200 inventory locations (Plus) — Shopify Plus also has a long list of features that Basic Shopify lacks, such as wholesale/B2B capabilities, custom analytics, and automation through Shopify Flow
Can I upgrade my Shopify account?
Absolutely. Simply head to Store > Settings > Plan and select Change Plan. New features and functionality will typically be available within 24 hours.
What is the difference between Shopify Advanced and Shopify Plus?
Compared to Advanced Shopify, Shopify Plus provides even more checkout capacity, staff accounts, and custom analytics. It also allows you to create separate stores with different currencies and languages, provides access to coding and more apps, and enables you to use Shopify Flow and Launchpad.
Richard is a Content Marketing Manager at Omnisend. An avid writer, he's said to have been born holding a pencil. Fascinated by all things handmade, if he's not reading or writing he can often be found practicing leathercraft.
Omnisend AI
OFFER
