Shopify Plus is the Shopify plan for brands that need advanced checkout customization, extra stores and deeper automation on top of the standard platform. The question is rarely "can we afford it". It is "which of its features will we use in the first 90 days". This article answers that, then covers what changes when you migrate to Plus and whether to move before or after.
We are noprob agency and we sell the Shopify Launch Sprint, so here is how we answer. We stay with what Shopify’s own documentation says about Plus, we publish no price for it (Shopify sets it, see shopify.com/plus), and we keep the opinions clearly marked as ours. For the migration itself, our Shopify migration guide has the full path; this piece covers what Plus adds to it.
What is Shopify Plus and how does it differ from the other plans?
Shopify Plus is the same platform as the other Shopify plans, with more control over checkout, more stores, deeper automation and higher-end support. It is not a different product you move to; it is a plan. The official list is on Shopify’s Plus plan page, and these are the parts that matter in a migration.
- Checkout. Shopify’s documentation says advanced checkout customization is available only on Plus: apps on the information, shipping and payment steps and the Checkout Branding API are Plus only, while the checkout editor and branding basics are on lower plans too. Plus also lets you run separate checkout flows for B2B and D2C customers in one store.
- B2B. Shopify B2B exists on several plans, not only Plus. Plus extends it: catalogs assigned to companies and locations, deposits and partial payments. Check Shopify’s features-by-plan table before you assume you need Plus for wholesale.
- Expansion stores. Plus lets you add extra stores to the account, meant for internationalization, separate physical locations and similar uses. Each live expansion store needs its own theme license, and the cap is in the documentation.
- Automation. Shopify Flow is a free app on Basic, Grow, Advanced and Plus. What needs Plus is running tasks from custom partner apps. Flow alone is not a reason to upgrade.
- API and Functions. The plan page lists extended API resources, higher API rate limits on request and Shopify Functions for custom backend logic, which matter when you integrate an ERP or a warehouse system.
- Operations. Custom user groups, unlimited staff, staging stores to test changes away from the live store, and priority support.
Read the list again and note how short the Plus-only part is. Several things people associate with Plus (B2B, Flow) are available below it. The Plus-only core is checkout, expansion stores, the extended API and the operations tools. The decision sits there.
When does Shopify Plus pay off?
Shopify Plus pays off when a limit of the standard plans costs you money you can name, and a Plus feature removes it. Revenue is a proxy for that, not the reason. A store with a large turnover and a simple checkout may gain nothing; a smaller store with wholesale rules in its checkout may gain a lot. These are the signals we look for.
- Checkout rules you cannot build today. Different shipping or payment rules by customer type, required fields, logic that a standard checkout cannot express. If you can write the rule on one line and nobody can implement it, that is a Plus signal.
- Wholesale next to retail. Company accounts, negotiated catalogs, payment terms for B2B buyers, with a retail checkout that must stay untouched.
- More than one store by design. Separate brands, regions with different catalogs, a physical location with its own setup. Our view: do not open a store per country by reflex. Start with one store and Shopify Markets, and add an expansion store when the catalogs genuinely diverge.
- Integration pressure. An ERP or warehouse system that reads and writes orders all day and hits API limits, or logic that has to run inside the backend rather than in an app.
- Manual operations at scale. Tags, holds, fraud checks, routing, handled by a person today. Flow does much of this on standard plans; Plus matters when the tasks come from partner apps.
- A team that outgrew roles and staging. Many people in the admin, each needing the right permissions, and changes that must be tested before they reach customers.
Now the opposite. These are not Plus signals: "we are a serious brand", "a competitor is on it", "we hope it makes the checkout convert better". Plus is not a conversion feature: conversion comes from what you build with its tools. Our rule: write down the Plus features you will use in the first 90 days. If the list is empty, stay where you are. If it has one or two lines, price those lines against building the same thing another way.
Shopify publishes the price, so open the official Plus page the day you decide. The other half of the comparison is the one-off cost of the move: our Shopify migration cost article breaks down the eight lines of a quote.
What changes when you migrate to Shopify Plus?
A migration to Plus is the same migration as any other, with four extra areas to plan: data, checkout, apps and B2B. The base work does not change: products, customers, order history, a 1:1 redirect map, tracking, testing. Our migration SEO checklist covers it. Here is what Plus adds.
Data
Customers, orders and products move as usual. With B2B, add companies, locations, price lists and the buyers attached to them, because these usually live in an ERP or a spreadsheet, not in the old store. Ask for a reconciliation report that compares counts between old and new and explains every difference. On the Cumini case, the starting platform was proprietary and tied to the ERP: in a project like that, the first job is to map what the ERP owns (case study).
Checkout
Checkout is where Plus changes the build. Shopify’s direction is checkout extensibility and Shopify Functions, replacing the older ways of customizing the checkout, so a rule from your old platform becomes an extension, a Function or an app. Read the current status in Shopify’s documentation rather than in an article: dates move. In the migration, list every checkout behavior of the old store (fields, shipping rules, payment rules, discounts), decide for each whether it is still needed, then choose how to build it. Often a good part of that list can simply go.
Apps
Old platforms rely on plugins for things Shopify does natively, and Plus adds more native tools. Audit every plugin and ask: replaced by a Shopify feature, replaced by an app, or built? Each app is a monthly fee and a possible slowdown, and this is where our Custom AI System helps: code written for your store only, with no dead code and no app where a few lines do the job. Use a Plus staging store to test the stack before launch.
B2B
B2B is a project inside the project. Company accounts, catalogs, payment terms and the way orders reach the ERP each need a decision. Our view: do not mix a B2B portal and a platform migration into one go-live if you can avoid it. One risk at a time. Migrate the store with its redirects and tracking intact, then build the complex B2B layer on a store that is already live and measured.
None of this removes the SEO work. On Nazzi, we checked 215 archived WooCommerce URLs and delivered the CSV of 301 redirects (case study). Google’s guide on site moves with URL changes is the reference, whichever Shopify plan you land on.
Should you move to Shopify Plus before or after the migration?
Move to Plus before the migration only if Plus features are part of day one; otherwise migrate first and upgrade when a limit appears. Plus is a plan on the same platform, so the upgrade later does not mean a second migration. The work sits in what you build on top of the Plus features, and that is what you must time.
- Start on Plus if your launch needs custom checkout logic, B2B company accounts, expansion stores or heavy ERP integration from the first day. Building these on a lower plan and rebuilding them later is paying twice.
- Migrate first, upgrade later if the standard checkout and B2B features of your plan cover launch. You get the new store live, the tracking verified and a baseline to measure against. The upgrade decision then rests on data from your own store, not on a forecast.
- Never upgrade just to feel safe. A migration is already the riskiest moment for a store. Adding Plus-only builds that nobody needs on day one adds risk without a return.
Coming from Magento? Read Magento to Shopify; from WooCommerce, WooCommerce to Shopify. Either way the plan choice comes after the scope: define what the store must do on launch day, then pick the plan that does it.
How does a Shopify Plus agency work on a migration?
A Shopify Plus agency should give you a fixed calendar, a written scope and a way to measure the result, not just a team that knows the Plus features. Ask any agency the same three things: what is the scope in writing, what happens if the date slips, and how are the redirects tested. This is how we answer them with the Shopify Launch Sprint.
- 14 days from kickoff to a store ready for launch, built with our Custom AI System, with go-live between day 15 and day 30.
- What the price covers: data with a reconciliation report, a 1:1 replica of your store, apps and integrations, a 1:1 redirect map tested automatically before and after go-live, tracking, QA and project management.
- Plus-specific builds (custom checkout logic, company accounts and catalogs, expansion stores) are scoped with you on a video call before you sign.
- 90 days after go-live we work as your eCommerce manager on SEO, conversion, average order value and tracking. Maintenance (security, updates, instructions, technical support) stays included.
- 4 written guarantees: store ready on day 14 or we refund the first installment; organic traffic below baseline at 90 days and we work free until it returns; store offline at launch through our fault and we pay an installment; checkout that converts less than before at 90 days and we optimize it free until it beats the old one.
The price follows revenue. The tier above €20M is €12,800, VAT excluded, in four installments; the other tiers are €5,800 under €2M and €8,800 between €2M and €20M. The Shopify plan, Plus included, is paid directly to Shopify.
What happened on the stores we moved is on the case pages: it is what followed the move, with other work alongside. Nazzi’s online sales were up 105% in the first 85 days on Shopify, and Cumini’s up 67.7% over the twelve months after. Cumini’s tracking audit went from 31/100 to 92/100. To choose between agencies, our guide to choosing a Shopify migration agency has the questions to ask.
Frequently asked questions
What is Shopify Plus?
Shopify Plus is Shopify’s plan above the standard ones. Per Shopify’s documentation it adds advanced checkout customization, expansion stores, extended API resources, unlimited staff and priority support, on the same platform.
How much does Shopify Plus cost?
Check Shopify’s official Plus page: prices change, so we do not copy a figure here.
Do I need Shopify Plus to sell B2B?
Not necessarily. Shopify lists B2B on Basic, Grow, Advanced and Plus, with the depth depending on the plan. Plus extends it, so compare Shopify’s B2B table with what your wholesale customers need.
Can I migrate to Shopify Plus directly from another platform?
Yes. Plus is a Shopify plan, so the migration is the usual job: data, design, redirects, tracking, testing. The Sprint covers WooCommerce, Magento, PrestaShop, BigCommerce, Wix, Squarespace, proprietary platforms and ERP-linked stores.
Should I move to Shopify Plus before or after the migration?
Before, if checkout logic, B2B or expansion stores are part of day one, otherwise you build twice. After, if they are not: migrate, launch, measure, then upgrade when a limit costs you something you can name.
How much does the Shopify Launch Sprint cost for a larger store?
The tier above €20M in revenue is €12,800, VAT excluded, in four installments. The other tiers are €5,800 under €2M and €8,800 between €2M and €20M. The Shopify plan is paid directly to Shopify.
The Shopify Launch Sprint moves your store to Shopify in 14 days with our Custom AI System: a fixed calendar, a public price and 4 written guarantees.
Antonio Manitta
Founder & eCommerce Manager at NoProb Agency
For over 7 years I have helped fashion, supplements, and DTC brands scale their eCommerce. I work in long-term partnership with three brands at a time, building stable systems that compound.
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