Starting a Shopify dropshipping store usually costs a few hundred dollars up front and roughly $130 to $600 a month to run. Ad spend is the biggest variable, and your plan, your registration choices, and how much you test all change the total.
The lowest-cost setup most beginners can run is Shopify's Basic plan at $29 a month billed yearly, or $39 billed monthly. Add a domain, a few product samples, and a modest test budget, and you have a realistic starting point. Below, each cost is broken down with current figures, plus three sample budgets you can adapt.
What is the minimum cost to start Shopify dropshipping?
The minimum practical setup is a Shopify Basic plan, a custom domain, and two or three product samples. Shopify lists Basic at $29 per month billed yearly and $39 per month billed monthly. New users can start with a 3-day free trial and then pay $1 per month for three months, though promotional offers change.
A lean starting list usually includes:
A Shopify Basic subscription
A custom domain, which is optional at first because Shopify includes a free myshopify.com address
Product samples from two or three suppliers
A small test budget for ads
Business registration, if you decide to form an LLC before your first sale
You can add more tools later, but none of them are required to launch.
What are the one-time startup costs?
One-time costs are the expenses you pay before your first sale. The main ones are business registration, a domain, product samples, and store design. Your largest cost will often be registration if you choose to form an LLC.
Business registration
Registration depends on where you live and how you structure the business. Shopify's guide puts U.S. registration fees in a range of about $50 to $500, with annual fees that can run higher depending on the state. Some sellers operate as sole proprietors at first, but forming an LLC can help separate personal and business assets. Check your state's filing fees before you decide, and consider a short session with an accountant if you are unsure which structure fits.
Custom domain
A custom domain such as yourstore.com looks more trustworthy than a myshopify.com address. Domain names typically cost about $8 to $20 a year, depending on the registrar and the extension you choose. You can buy the domain through Shopify or a third-party registrar.
Product samples
Samples let you check product quality, packaging, and shipping speed before customers see them. Shopify's guide estimates that a sample order for a product that retails at $20 to $50 often costs $50 to $100, including shipping. Expensive shipping can make samples cost more than the product itself, so plan for express shipping only when you need to.
Store design
Start with a free Shopify theme. Premium themes can cost several hundred dollars, and a well-organized free theme is enough for testing. Once you know which products sell, you can upgrade the design and add conversion features.
What are the ongoing monthly costs?
Monthly costs cover your Shopify plan, advertising, apps, email tools, and any sourcing platform you use. Your largest recurring cost will usually be advertising, not software.
Advertising
Most beginners start with paid ads on Facebook, Instagram, or Google. Shopify's guide suggests a test budget of about $100 to $300 per month, while another guide estimates roughly $150 per product for a short test. Start with a small daily budget, test a few products, and stop any product that does not produce sales within your test window.
Organic content on TikTok, Instagram, and Pinterest costs nothing in media spend, though it still takes time and sometimes a video editor. Treat organic traffic as a complement to paid ads, not a replacement.
Apps and email
Many Shopify apps have free plans, and you can start with those. Shopify's guide suggests that paid dropshipping apps often cost $20 to $50 a month as you scale, depending on features and order volume. Email platforms also offer free plans for small lists, which is enough at the beginning.
Add paid tools only when they solve a specific problem. For example, a paid review app makes sense once you have enough orders to collect reviews, and a paid email tool makes sense once you have a list worth emailing.
Doba plan and trial
If you source products through Doba, check its current plans on the Doba pricing page before you add the fee to your budget. Doba's Basic plan offers a 7-day trial for US$0.99, and its Standard plan offers a 5-day trial for US$0.99. New sign-ups can also claim 30 Pilot credits. Plan fees change, so use the live pricing page rather than a fixed number in your spreadsheet.
If you run a Shopify store, the AI Tool Hub includes an AI Store Builder designed for Shopify. It can reduce the setup work for your storefront, theme, and initial products, though it does not build stores automatically for every platform.
How much do payment fees add?
Card processing fees apply only after a customer pays. On a Basic plan with Shopify Payments, the standard online card rate is 2.9% plus 30¢ per transaction. If you use a third-party payment provider instead, Shopify charges an additional 2% on Basic.
Here is what the standard rate looks like on a few typical orders:
| Order total | Card fee (2.9% + 30¢) |
|---|---|
| $25 | $1.03 |
| $50 | $1.75 |
| $100 | $3.20 |
Your effective fee depends on your country, your payment methods, and your plan. Fees are small on each order but add up quickly, so include them in your margin calculations before you set prices.
What do three sample startup budgets look like?
These three budgets show how costs change with your choices. They are illustrative calculations based on the component costs above. They do not include Doba plan fees, card processing fees, sales tax tools, or refunds, which you should add based on your own plan and sales.
| Scenario | One-time costs | Monthly costs | First month total |
|---|---|---|---|
| A. Lean test, LLC later | $116 (domain $16, two samples $100) | $129 (Basic yearly $29, ads $100) | $245 |
| B. Lean test with LLC | $248 (Scenario A plus LLC about $132) | $129 | $377 |
| C. Active testing with LLC | $248 | $409 (Basic monthly $39, ads $300, apps $50, email $20) | $657 |
Scenario A is the lowest-risk way to test a product idea, but it leaves no room for refunds or a second round of samples. Scenario B suits sellers who plan to operate the business long term. Scenario C is for sellers who already know their supplier and are ready to test several products in parallel.
What hidden costs do beginners overlook?
Several costs do not appear on Shopify's pricing page but still affect your budget.
Sales tax tools. Automated tax calculators such as TaxJar or Avalara often charge recurring monthly fees. Shopify's guide notes that these tools can help manage sales tax obligations across states.
Refunds and chargebacks. Some orders will be refunded or disputed. Set aside a reserve from your first sale, and track your refund rate by product.
Shipping subsidies. If you offer free shipping to win customers, the cost comes out of your margin. Price products with shipping in mind.
Accounting help. A bookkeeper or accountant can save money on taxes and compliance, especially once your store grows.
Customer support tools. Help desk software and chat tools can add monthly costs as order volume grows.
How do you choose suppliers without overspending?
Supplier choice affects your costs more than most sellers expect. Slow shipping leads to refunds, and inaccurate stock listings lead to cancellations. Compare suppliers on processing time, warehouse location, and product quality before committing.
Doba is one option for sourcing products and syncing inventory with Shopify. It offers U.S.-stocked product options and supplier data, which can help you compare delivery times and stock levels. Doba does not guarantee sales or profit, and no single platform removes the need to test products and suppliers yourself.
For a deeper look at choosing reliable U.S. suppliers, read how to find reliable USA dropshipping suppliers in 2026.
How do you test your first supplier without overspending?
A low-cost trial lets you check a supplier before you commit a large budget. Many sellers use a platform trial to confirm how quickly suppliers respond and how accurate their fulfillment is.
Follow these steps before you list a product for paying customers:
Choose one supplier and two or three products. Check its average processing time, warehouse location, and fulfillment record before ordering.
Order samples and a test order. Buy one sample of each product and place a test order to an address you control. Budget for product and shipping costs separately, because a trial fee does not cover them.
Track every stage. Record how long processing takes, when tracking updates appear, whether delivery matches the estimate on the product page, and whether the packaging and product match your listing.
Check stock and support. Confirm that the stock shown on the supplier's listing matches what you can order, and send a product question to see how quickly the supplier responds.
Decide before you scale. Add the products to your live store only after the test meets your benchmarks for delivery time, product accuracy, and response speed.
For the warning signs to watch for during this process, read 7 Shopify supplier red flags to avoid in 2026.
How do you keep the first 90 days under budget?
The first three months are when most sellers overspend on tools they do not need. A few habits keep costs predictable:
Start with a free theme. Customize it before paying for a premium design.
Use free app tiers first. Upgrade only when a paid feature solves a problem you are facing.
Test organic content alongside ads. Short videos and product posts cost time rather than media spend.
Delay plan upgrades. Move from Basic to Grow only when your order volume and team size justify the higher fee.
Review costs every two weeks. Compare spending against orders and refunds, and cut any line that does not contribute to sales.
For the full startup sequence, including registration, product research, and launch steps, see the beginner's guide to starting a dropshipping business in 2026.
Frequently Asked Questions
Q1:Can I start Shopify dropshipping for under $100?
Possibly, but it is tight. A Basic yearly subscription at $29 a month plus a domain fits under $100 for the first month. Registration, samples, and ads usually push the total above that, so most beginners need a few hundred dollars to test properly.
Q2:Is Shopify cheaper paid monthly or yearly?
Yearly billing is cheaper. Basic costs $29 a month billed yearly, compared with $39 a month billed monthly. Commit to yearly billing only after you are confident you will use the store for the full term.
Q3:Do I pay for Shopify during the free trial?
No. Shopify offers a 3-day free trial with no credit card needed to start. After the trial, promotional pricing may apply, such as $1 per month for three months. Check the current offer before you sign up, because promotions change.
Q4:Do I pay anything if I make no sales?
Yes. Your Shopify subscription, domain, and any ads you run are charged whether or not you make a sale. Card processing fees only apply when a customer pays.
Q5:How much should I set aside for ads at the start?
A common starting range is $100 to $300 per month for testing. Start small, test a few products, and increase spend only on products that show real demand.
Q6:Does Doba's $0.99 trial cover product samples or shipping?
No. The trial fee does not include product samples or shipping costs, so budget for those separately. Check Doba's current trial terms on the pricing page before you sign up.
