Shopify Pricing Singapore: Plans, Hidden Costs & PSG Grant (2026)

“How much does Shopify cost?” is one of those questions with a genuinely misleading simple answer.

The answer most people find first is “SGD $42 per month.” That’s technically correct for the Basic plan on annual billing. But it’s not what you’ll actually spend in Year 1 if you’re building a real Singapore ecommerce store.

This guide breaks down every cost — the plan, the gateway fees, the apps, the build — and shows you what Year 1 actually looks like for a typical Singapore brand.

Shopify Plan Comparison in SGD (2026)

Shopify prices in USD. At current exchange rates (roughly SGD $1.35 to USD $1), here’s what you’re paying:

Plan	USD/month	SGD/month (approx)	SGD/year (annual billing)	Transaction fee*
Starter	$5	$7	—	5%
Basic	$29	$42	$470	2%
Shopify	$79	$113	$1,270	1%
Advanced	$299	$432	$4,800	0.5%
Plus	from $2,300	from $3,100	from $37,000	0.15%

*Transaction fee applies when using non-Shopify gateway (all Singapore stores, since Shopify Payments isn’t available here).

Annual vs monthly: Always pay annually if you’re committed — you save roughly 25%. Monthly plans make sense only if you’re testing before committing.

Which plan for a new Singapore store?

• Starter: Only for social commerce (Instagram DMs, WhatsApp links). No proper storefront.
• Basic: Where most Singapore new stores begin. Covers 2 staff accounts. The 2% transaction fee starts hurting around SGD $8,000+/month in revenue.
• Shopify Plan: The step-up plan. If you’re doing SGD $10K/month, the transaction fee saving vs Basic ($200/month) often covers the plan cost increase ($71/month). Do the maths at your own volume.
• Advanced: For higher-volume stores or when you need advanced reporting and third-party calculated shipping.

The Hidden Costs Nobody Talks About

The plan fee is just the start. Here’s what actually appears on your credit card:

Payment Gateway Fees

Since Shopify Payments isn’t available in Singapore, you’ll use a third-party gateway. The two most common:

• HitPay: 2.85% + SGD $0.50 per transaction (supports PayNow, GrabPay, NETS)
• Stripe: 3.4% + SGD $0.50 per transaction (stronger for international cards)

On a SGD $100 order using HitPay on the Basic plan: SGD $2.85 (gateway) + SGD $2.00 (Shopify 2% fee) = SGD $4.85 in fees. That’s 4.85% of revenue going to payment processing alone.

App Subscriptions

Most stores end up running 5–10 paid apps. Common ones for Singapore SMEs:

App category	Typical monthly cost
Email marketing (Klaviyo, Omnisend)	SGD $22–55/month
Reviews (Judge.me, Yotpo)	Free–SGD $55/month
Loyalty/rewards	SGD $20–50/month
SEO tools	SGD $15–30/month
Live chat	Free–SGD $30/month
Upsell/cross-sell	SGD $15–30/month

A realistic mid-tier app stack: SGD $80–150/month. Don’t dismiss this — it compounds.

Theme Cost

Shopify’s free themes (Dawn, Craft, Sense) are genuinely good and work for most stores. Paid themes from the Shopify Theme Store run SGD $160–330 as a one-time purchase. Third-party premium themes (not from the Shopify Theme Store) are not recommended — they often have bloated code that hurts performance.

Custom Development

If you want custom functionality beyond what apps offer — bespoke product configurators, loyalty tier systems, custom wholesale pricing, multi-vendor setups — you’re looking at developer time. In Singapore, Shopify developer rates run SGD $80–200/hour depending on experience and agency.

Agency Build Cost Ranges in Singapore

If you’re hiring a Shopify agency (which many Singapore SMEs do, especially for their first store), expect:

Project type	Typical range
Template-based build, 20–50 products	SGD $1,500–4,000
Semi-custom design, 50–200 products	SGD $4,000–10,000
Fully custom design + development	SGD $10,000–30,000
Complex with custom features, integrations	SGD $30,000+

At Soodo, most of our Singapore SME clients fall in the SGD $5K–$15K range. That includes design, development, product upload (for smaller catalogues), payment setup, and 6 months of post-launch WhatsApp support. See what a Soodo build includes →

PSG Grant — Up to 50% Co-Funding for Your Shopify Build

This is the section most Singapore ecommerce guides skip, and it’s the most valuable thing in this article.

The Productivity Solutions Grant (PSG), administered by Enterprise Singapore, co-funds technology adoption for eligible Singapore SMEs. The current co-funding rate for digital solutions: up to 50%.

Who qualifies:

• Singapore-registered business
• At least 30% local shareholding
• Annual turnover ≤ SGD $100M or ≤ 200 employees

For Shopify specifically: You must use a PSG-approved vendor with a pre-approved Shopify solution package listed on the Business Grants Portal (business.gov.sg). Not every agency qualifies — check BGP and look for vendors with approved Shopify ecommerce packages.

The critical rule: Apply BEFORE you start the project. Retroactive claims are rejected.

Worked Example: Year 1 Cost for a 200-SKU Singapore Fashion Brand

Let’s make this concrete. Here’s a real cost breakdown for a mid-sized Singapore fashion brand:

Scenario A: DIY Build

Cost item	Annual cost (SGD)
Shopify Basic (annual)	$470
HitPay gateway fees (est. $8K/month GMV × 3.35%)	$3,216
Shopify transaction fee 2% (on $8K/month)	$1,920
App stack (email, reviews, loyalty)	$1,440
Domain name	$35
Theme (paid)	$270
Total Year 1 (excl. marketing)	~SGD $7,350

Note: DIY doesn’t mean free — your time has value. At 6 hours/week × 52 weeks × your effective hourly rate.

Scenario B: Agency Build (No Grant)

Cost item	SGD
Shopify agency build (mid-tier)	$8,000
Shopify plan (annual)	$470
Payment fees (same as above)	$5,136
App stack	$1,440
Domain	$35
Total Year 1	~SGD $15,081

Scenario C: Agency Build with PSG Grant (50% co-fund on build)

Cost item	SGD
Agency build: $8,000 minus 50% PSG = net	$4,000
All other costs (same as Scenario B)	$7,081
Total Year 1	~SGD $11,081

The PSG grant effectively pays for itself if it gets you a professional build that converts better and launches faster.

When Shopify Pays for Itself vs Staying on Shopee

The break-even question every marketplace seller should run:

Your Shopee cost: If you’re paying 15% commission + 2% transaction fee = 17% of GMV going to Shopee.

Your Shopify cost: Say 5% in payment/transaction fees + SGD $100/month in platform + apps = roughly 6–7% of GMV at SGD $10K/month volume.

At SGD $10,000/month GMV:

• Shopee cost: $1,700/month
• Shopify cost: ~$800/month
• Saving: $900/month

Annual saving at this volume: $10,800. That covers a professional Shopify build in Year 1.

The catch: Shopee gives you traffic. Your Shopify store doesn’t come with an audience. Factor in SGD $500–2,000/month in paid ads or organic marketing time to replace that marketplace traffic.

The honest take: if your category is highly competitive on Shopee (fashion, electronics) and you have an existing customer base, moving DTC is almost always financially smarter by Year 2. If you’re still building a brand from zero, start on the marketplace while building your Shopify presence simultaneously.

Frequently Asked Questions

Is Shopify free to try in Singapore?

Shopify offers a 3-day free trial (no credit card required), then SGD $1/month for the first 3 months on select plans. This changes periodically — check Shopify’s site for the current trial offer. Use the trial period to set up your store structure, upload a sample product range, and test the checkout with a test gateway.

Why does Shopify charge a transaction fee in Singapore?

Because Singapore stores can’t use Shopify Payments (Shopify’s own gateway, which would waive the fee). Shopify earns revenue from Shopify Payments in markets where it’s available. In Singapore, it partners with third-party gateways and charges a transaction fee as partial compensation. The fee decreases as you move to higher plans (2% → 1% → 0.5%). You can partially offset this by negotiating volume rates with your gateway provider.

Are Shopify apps included in the plan price?

No. Most useful apps are paid subscriptions billed separately. The Shopify plan fee only covers the platform itself. Always check the total app stack cost before committing to a plan tier — some stores find the per-app costs rival the plan cost.

Can I switch Shopify plans later?

Yes, you can upgrade or downgrade at any time. When you upgrade mid-billing period, you’re charged a prorated amount. When you downgrade, Shopify credits the difference. There’s no penalty for switching — but if you’re on annual billing, downgrading may affect your annual rate.

Does PSG cover Shopify app costs?

Generally no. PSG-approved solution packages cover the development and configuration work, not ongoing subscription costs. The exact scope of what’s covered depends on the specific vendor’s approved solution package. Read the package description on BGP carefully before applying.

What’s the cheapest way to launch a Shopify store in Singapore?

Shopify Basic (annual) + Dawn free theme + HitPay for payments + free tier apps where possible. You can launch a functional store for SGD $505 in Year 1 (excluding payment fees on actual sales). The question is whether a bootstrap build will convert at a rate that justifies the opportunity cost. A store that converts at 0.8% is not better than a store that costs $5K more to build but converts at 2.5%.