How much does an online shop cost?
In short: An online shop has a one-time cost for the build and running costs for hosting, maintenance and extensions. Unlike a website, it also costs with every order: the payment provider charges a fee for each payment, the carrier its postage for each parcel. What the build costs depends above all on your products, the payment and shipping methods, the languages and the software the shop connects to.
What drives the price of an online shop?
Mainly your products, and how much of the work around each sale should run by itself:
Products
Every product needs photos, a description and a price, and often variants such as size or colour. If the data already exists in a spreadsheet or an old shop, it can usually be imported.
Less work: A few products
More work: A large range with variants
Payment
Customers are more likely to buy when they can pay the way they’re used to, by card, PayPal or Klarna for example. Each payment method is set up and tested.
Less work: One payment method
More work: The payment methods your customers know
Shipping
Shipping methods, shipping costs and delivery countries are set. If you like, orders go to shipping by themselves, to DHL for example: the label is created from the order, and your customers get their tracking number.
Less work: Shipped by hand
More work: Sent to the carrier automatically
Integrations
If the shop should work with software you already use, such as stock management, accounting or newsletters, each connection is added. In return, your stock and orders match everywhere.
Less work: A shop on its own
More work: Connected to your software
Languages and countries
If you sell in several languages, each one needs its own product descriptions, checkout, emails and legal pages, and its own currencies and shipping zones if you like.
Less work: One language
More work: Several languages and currencies
Photos and copy
Good product photos and clear copy do part of the selling, and photos in one style make the range look tidy. If you supply them, this part drops out; if they need to be made, they are separate items in the quote.
Less work: Supplied by you
More work: Newly made
Design
An adapted template is ready sooner. A design of your own shows your brand, and it matters most on the product page, in the cart and at checkout: that is where people decide to buy.
Less work: Adapted template
More work: A design of your own
What applies to every website is covered in How much does a website cost? This article is about what makes a shop different.
What do you pay once, every month and per order?
You pay once for the build, then regularly for everything that keeps the shop secure and up to date. On top of that come fees with every order, which grow with your sales.
Onceup to launch
- Planning and design
- Setting up the shop
- Adding or importing products
- Setting up payment and shipping
- Connections to your software
- Copy, photos and translations
- SEO for the launch
Ongoingmonthly or yearly
- Hosting or the shop platform’s fee
- Domain and email accounts
- Maintenance: updates, backups, monitoring
- Extensions with an ongoing licence
- Support and changes to products
- SEO and ads if you like
Per ordergrows with your sales
- The payment provider’s fee
- Postage for shipping
- On some shop platforms, a share of your sales
With us, the build and the running costs are listed separately in the quote. The fees per order are set by the payment provider and the carrier, and you can look them up in their price lists beforehand. We bill hosting and maintenance monthly or yearly, with no minimum term.
Hosted or self-hosted shop: which suits you?
A hosted shop platform, which you rent, comes with its server and technology and charges a monthly fee for them. A self-hosted one runs on a server of your choice, and your web studio takes care of the technology and updates.
| Hosted, such as Shopify | Self-hosted, such as WooCommerce | |
|---|---|---|
| Server and technology | The provider | The studio |
| Updates | The provider | The studio, checked afterwards |
| Running costs | A monthly fee to the provider | Hosting and maintenance |
| Extensions | Apps from the provider’s store | Set up and maintained by the studio |
| Design and setup | The studio | The studio |
| Managing products | You, or the studio if you like | You, or the studio if you like |
Which platform fits depends on your products and your plans. We build shops with WooCommerce or Shopify, for example, and suggest what suits you in the quote. More on our page about online shop development.
What should a good quote for a shop include?
A good quote names all three kinds of cost and is clear enough to compare with another one:
Quote
The scope
How many products are added, which payment and shipping methods, languages and integrations are included, and who supplies the legal pages.
The price of the build
It refers to exactly this scope, so it’s clear what it covers and what it doesn’t.
The running costs, listed separately
Hosting or the platform fee, maintenance and licences, how they are billed and how long you are tied in.
The fees per order
Which payment providers and carriers are connected, so you can check their fees beforehand.
The schedule
When the shop should go live, and what you supply by then, such as product data, photos and shipping rules.
Who owns what
After launch, the shop, the domain and all files should belong to you, and your accounts with the payment provider and the carrier should be in your name. Then you can switch at any time.
Frequently asked questions
How much does an online shop cost per month?
Every month you pay for hosting or the shop platform’s fee, plus the domain, email, maintenance and licences for extensions, and SEO if you like. On top come the fees per order, which grow with your sales.
How much does a small online shop cost?
A small shop with a few products, one language and the usual payment methods is a manageable project. For the price of exactly your plans, use our form: we send it to you personally.
How much money do I need to start an online shop?
The shop itself is only part of it. You also need your stock, packaging and shipping, advertising so customers find the shop, and the legal pages. Plan for the running costs of the first months as well, before the first orders cover them.
Which payment methods should my shop offer?
The ones your customers know, such as card, PayPal, Klarna, Apple Pay and Google Pay. They run through providers such as Stripe, Mollie or PayPal, and each provider charges its own fee per payment.
Can my shop sell in several languages?
Yes. Products, checkout, emails and legal pages are then in every language, with several currencies if you like. One example is the bookshop of Arwad, where readers buy in English, German or Arabic, each in their own language.
Can you take over my existing shop?
Yes, even if we didn’t build it: we take over its care, move it from your current provider or renew it with a redesign.
Do I own the shop and the domain?
With us, yes: after launch the shop, the domain and all files are yours. Check that every quote you get says so.