Shopify Plus vs. Shopify Markets: Understanding the Key Differences and Choosing the Right Solution
If you’re looking to expand your Shopify store internationally or scale your business, you’ve likely encountered two important Shopify offerings: Shopify Plus and Shopify Markets. While they may seem similar at first glance, they serve distinct purposes and often work together to help businesses grow efficiently.
A common misconception is that you must choose between Shopify Plus and Shopify Markets, or that one replaces the other. In reality, these two solutions address different challenges and can be combined to optimize your global eCommerce strategy.
This guide breaks down Shopify Plus and Shopify Markets, explaining their unique benefits, how they complement each other, and when your business might need one, both, or neither.
Shopify Plus vs. Shopify Markets: Key Takeaways
- Shopify Plus is an enterprise-level plan designed to enhance scalability, offering advanced features, automation, and infrastructure improvements.
- Shopify Markets is a built-in localization system available on all Shopify plans that helps businesses sell internationally from a single storefront.
- You don’t have to choose between them—Shopify Markets works with or without Shopify Plus.
- Shopify Plus provides additional tools (like expansion stores and custom checkout options) that make Shopify Markets even more effective.
- Shopify Markets facilitates international sales, while Shopify Plus helps manage operational complexities as businesses scale.
Let’s dive deeper into what each solution offers and how they fit into your business growth strategy.
What Are Shopify Plus and Shopify Markets?
Before comparing them, it’s crucial to understand that Shopify Plus and Shopify Markets are not competing products. Instead, they serve different roles within Shopify’s ecosystem.
What is Shopify Plus?
Shopify Plus is Shopify’s premium enterprise plan, designed for fast-growing businesses that require greater customization, control, and scalability. Unlike Shopify Markets, which is a set of localization features, Shopify Plus is a paid upgrade that provides advanced functionalities for high-volume merchants.
Shopify Plus Features:
- Fully customizable checkout using Checkout Extensibility and Shopify Functions.
- Unlimited staff accounts for large teams with granular permissions.
- Expansion stores (up to 10 storefronts) for businesses managing multiple brands or international sites.
- Wholesale/B2B functionality, including price lists and customer-specific pricing.
- Advanced automation tools like Shopify Flow and Launchpad.
- Priority API access and higher limits for large-scale operations.
💰 Pricing: Starts at $2,300 per month, typically requiring a three-year commitment.
What is Shopify Markets?
Shopify Markets is a set of localization tools that allows merchants to sell globally from a single store. It is available on all Shopify plans and helps businesses tailor their stores for international customers.
Shopify Markets Features:
- Supports multiple languages for localized shopping experiences.
- Displays local currencies with automatic or manual conversion.
- Allows region-specific pricing, product availability, and tax settings.
- Assigns local payment methods based on customer location.
- Provides options for localized domains or subfolders (e.g., yourstore.com/fr).
- Enables duty and tax collection at checkout (with or without Markets Pro).
💰 Pricing: Free to enable, but international transactions may incur 1.5%-2% currency conversion fees and small duty/tax processing fees.
Key Differences Between Shopify Plus and Shopify Markets
| Feature | Shopify Plus | Shopify Markets |
|---|---|---|
| Purpose | Infrastructure & scalability | Localization & international selling |
| Availability | Paid plan upgrade | Built into all Shopify plans |
| Pricing | Starts at $2,300/month | Free (with some transaction fees) |
| Multiple stores | Yes (Expansion Stores) | No (Single store with subfolders/domains) |
| Team access | Unlimited staff accounts | Limited by base plan |
| Checkout customization | Full access (logic, branding, integrations) | Basic customizations only |
| Wholesale/B2B | Built-in tools | Not available |
| International SEO | Separate stores for advanced strategies | Uses subfolders, hreflang, canonical tags |
| Automation tools | Shopify Flow, Launchpad, Script Editor | Not included |
| Duties/tax collection | Enabled via Markets/Markets Pro | Included |
In essence:
- Shopify Plus is built for businesses needing advanced infrastructure, control, and scalability.
- Shopify Markets simplifies selling internationally from a single store.
- They are not interchangeable—many businesses use both to optimize their operations.
How Shopify Plus and Shopify Markets Work Together
One of the biggest misconceptions is that businesses must choose between Shopify Plus and Shopify Markets. However, they are designed to complement each other.
🛠 Shopify Markets Works With All Shopify Plans — Including Plus
When you upgrade to Shopify Plus, you retain all Shopify Markets features while unlocking additional capabilities.
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What Shopify Plus Adds to Shopify Markets:
- Expansion Stores: Create independent storefronts for regions requiring different legal, tax, or content setups.
- Custom Checkout by Region: Modify checkout flow based on country-specific needs.
- Automated International Workflows: Use Shopify Flow to streamline operations across different markets.
- SEO Strategy Enhancement: Expansion stores allow country-specific domains (e.g., yourbrand.co.uk).
- Stronger Infrastructure for Global Sales: Handle high-traffic international campaigns without performance issues.
Mindset Shift:
- Shopify Markets = Localization and international selling.
- Shopify Plus = Advanced tools to scale and manage complexity.
When Should You Upgrade to Shopify Plus?
Shopify Plus isn’t for every business. But if you’re scaling rapidly, experiencing operational bottlenecks, or need advanced customizations, it may be time to consider an upgrade.
Signs You Need Shopify Plus:
✅ Your team has outgrown standard Shopify staff limits. ✅ You require full control over the checkout experience (custom payment methods, upsells, dynamic pricing). ✅ You need separate storefronts for distinct regional strategies. ✅ You’re expanding into wholesale/B2B and require dedicated tools. ✅ Your operations would benefit from advanced automation and workflow management. ✅ You’re experiencing technical constraints (API limitations, high-traffic sales events, etc.).
Common Triggers for Upgrading:
💡 Revenue approaching $1.5M–$2M+ annually. 💡 International operations with multiple regional managers. 💡 B2B/wholesale expansion plans. 💡 Frustration with checkout limitations. 💡 Need for enhanced regional branding and compliance.
When Shopify Markets Alone Is the Right Choice
Not every eCommerce business requires Shopify Plus—especially if you are in the early or mid-stages of international expansion. For many brands, Shopify Markets provides an effective and budget-friendly way to scale globally without unnecessary complexity.
Wondering if Shopify Markets is all you need? Here’s how to decide.
Shopify Plus vs. Shopify Markets: When to Choose Markets
✅ Shopify Markets is sufficient if:
- You prefer a single storefront: You don’t need separate stores for each region and simply want to localize language, pricing, and payment methods within one Shopify store.
- Checkout customization isn’t a priority (yet): You are comfortable using Shopify’s standard checkout without advanced modifications like B2B pricing, conditional flows, or regional customizations.
- You have a small and centralized team: If you don’t need multiple staff accounts or separate permissions per region, a single admin panel is easier to manage.
- Your product range is mostly the same across all regions: You may adjust pricing or exclude a few products per market, but the majority of your catalog remains consistent.
- You are testing international markets: If you are exploring global expansion into regions like Canada, the UK, or Australia without committing to separate stores, Shopify Markets helps validate demand before investing further.
💡 Example Scenario: A U.S.-based skincare brand generating $750K annually starts selling in the UK and EU. By leveraging Shopify Markets, they localize pricing, enable multi-language support, and manage taxes and duties—all without the need for expansion stores or custom checkout modifications. In this case, upgrading to Shopify Plus would be unnecessary at this stage.
👉 Key takeaway: Shopify Markets provides robust global selling tools and scales well. Don’t assume you need Shopify Plus just because you’re expanding internationally.
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How Shopify Plus Enhances Shopify Markets
If you already use Shopify Markets for international sales, upgrading to Shopify Plus doesn’t replace that system—it amplifies its capabilities.
Markets simplifies localization. Plus optimizes scale, control, and customization—especially across multiple teams and regions.
Here’s how they work together:
✅ Expansion Stores + Shopify Markets
- Shopify Plus allows you to operate up to 10 storefronts under one contract, ideal for managing markets with unique:
- Languages and currencies
- Tax regulations and compliance
- Pricing structures
- Marketing strategies and brand messaging
- Each storefront integrates Shopify Markets, combining full separation (via expansion stores) with regional flexibility (via Markets).
✅ Custom Checkout by Region Shopify Markets supports localized pricing and payment methods, but Shopify Plus enhances checkout by:
- Displaying unique checkout messaging per country
- Offering region-specific upsells and promotions
- Applying conditional logic (e.g., disabling certain shipping options in select countries)
✅ Automated International Operations Shopify Plus unlocks automation tools like:
- Shopify Flow: Automate order tagging, email triggers, and region-based workflows.
- Launchpad: Schedule promotions, product launches, and global sales across different time zones without manual intervention.
✅ SEO and Domain Strategy for Multi-Store Expansion On standard Shopify plans, Shopify Markets uses subfolders (e.g., yourstore.com/uk). With Plus, you can:
- Assign unique domains per expansion store (e.g.,
yourbrand.co.uk,yourbrand.de) - Improve SEO visibility in different regions
- Avoid duplicate content issues across international markets
👉 Bottom line: Shopify Markets gets you started with global expansion, while Shopify Plus provides the advanced tools needed to scale and optimize growth.
Shopify Plus vs. Shopify Markets: Which Solves Your Problem?
Here’s a quick comparison to help determine whether Shopify Markets alone is enough or if you need Shopify Plus.
| Challenge | Use Shopify Markets | Use Shopify Plus |
|---|---|---|
| Selling in multiple countries with localized pricing and taxes | ✅ Yes | ✅ Yes |
| Translating your store into different languages | ✅ Yes | ✅ Yes |
| Offering local payment methods by region | ✅ Yes | ✅ Yes |
| Setting up country-specific domains | ❌ No | ✅ Yes (via expansion stores) |
| Fully customizing checkout per market | ❌ No | ✅ Yes |
| Running separate stores for different brands or countries | ❌ No | ✅ Yes |
| Adding more than 15 staff accounts | ❌ No | ✅ Yes |
| Selling wholesale or managing B2B orders | ❌ No | ✅ Yes |
| Automating multi-region workflows | ❌ No | ✅ Yes |
| Managing high-traffic launches across time zones | ❌ No | ✅ Yes |
| Operating on a tight budget or early in international testing | ✅ Yes | ❌ No |
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Shopify Plus vs. Shopify Markets: Frequently Asked Questions
💡 Do I need Shopify Plus to use Shopify Markets? No. Shopify Markets is available on all Shopify plans, including Basic, Shopify, and Advanced. However, Shopify Plus provides additional tools to enhance international selling, such as expansion stores and custom checkout options.
💡 Can I use Shopify Plus and Shopify Markets together? Yes! Many fast-growing brands combine Shopify Markets with Shopify Plus. Markets streamlines localization within each store, while Plus enables multi-store management, advanced checkout customizations, and team scalability.
💡 Is Shopify Markets free? Yes, but additional fees apply for:
- Currency conversion (1.5%–2% per transaction)
- Duty and tax calculations at checkout (if applicable) There is no base cost to enable Shopify Markets.
💡 Can Shopify Markets handle multiple languages and currencies? Yes. Shopify Markets supports displaying different languages and currencies based on customer location. Translations must be added manually or via apps, but the system natively supports these features.
💡 When should I upgrade to Shopify Plus? Consider Shopify Plus if:
- You need more than 15 staff accounts.
- You require full control over checkout.
- You want separate stores per region.
- You manage high-volume international traffic.
- Your business is scaling beyond Shopify’s standard limitations.
Final Thought
Shopify Markets is a powerful tool for businesses looking to expand globally with minimal complexity. However, as operations scale and require advanced infrastructure, Shopify Plus becomes a valuable upgrade, offering enhanced flexibility, automation, and control.
If you’re just starting your international expansion, begin with Shopify Markets. If you hit operational roadblocks, that’s when Shopify Plus becomes the right solution.
Next Steps: Evaluate your business’s needs and determine whether Shopify Markets alone is sufficient—or if Shopify Plus is the next step in your global growth strategy.