Shopify offers tons of premade & affordable templates, but does that mean they will give your store the best chance to succeed? Or would it be better to hire an eCommerce web design agency?
Since Shopify is so popular, if you want your store to stick out from your competitors, using the same template design that dozens or hundreds of other stores are using is less than ideal.
For those looking to dip their toes into the Shopify waters, it’s worth taking a look at Shopify’s selection of available premade templates, if for nothing more than inspiration. For established Shopify stores looking for a new design to improve performance and be more “on brand,” a custom Shopify website design is required.
Does Shopify Design Your Website?
Shopify does not offer custom website design services, you must either choose from the templates in their store, purchase a Shopify template from a third-party, or hire a professional web design agency to design you a custom theme for your Shopify store.
While there are some decent premade theme templates available in Shopify’s store, the majority of established Shopify stores rely on a custom-designed theme, built with their brand aesthetics and online goals in mind. If you’re interested in using other platforms, read our full article on eCommerce website pricing and development costs to get an idea of what an eCommerce website can cost.
Shopify Website Design Pricing
For basic Shopify web design services, expect most agencies start around $500 to $1,000 for basic ala carte Shopify graphics or template creation. While you may be able to find an up-and-coming agency to design your entire Shopify store for $500 – $2,000 – more times than not, you get what you pay for. Most established Shopify design agencies’ costs will range from $5,000 – $20,000 for a custom-designed Shopify website.
At OuterBox, the majority of our Shopify website design projects fall somewhere in between the $10,000 – $20,000 range, with extensive projects approaching the $100,000+ mark.
Shopify website designs inherently follow a variety of unique page templates. For basic Shopify eCommerce stores, you need separate pages designed for product pages, category pages, blog pages, etc. Some Shopify store owners may develop one product page to be used for all products or may want custom-designed product pages for their more important pages. In general, the number of unique page designs and the extent of custom functionality needed beyond Shopify’s built-in features (integrations with a custom ERP or CRM, for example) quickly add to the cost of a professionally designed and developed Shopify store.
Shopify Website Marketing & Ranking On Google
Remember, building your Shopify website is only half of the battle – driving traffic to your website is a must. On average 43% of eCommerce website sales come from Google and other search engines, so it is super important to appear at the top of the search results for your most often searched keywords. You should work with an SEO company to develop a full keyword list and search engine marketing plan.
Below is an example of one of our SEO clients that run on the Shopify platform. If you need help with getting to the top of Google, contact our experts.
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General Shopify Pricing Info
Shopify is a hosted eCommerce platform based on a monthly subscription model, as opposed to a one-time purchase of a website. Shopify offers three membership levels: Basic Shopify ($29.99/mo.), Shopify ($79.99/mo), and Advanced Shopify ($299/mo.). See Shopify’s official pricing page for more details on general Shopify pricing and the features you get at each level.
SHOPIFY WEBSITE PRICING FAQ's
What other costs are associated with developing a Shopify website?
While Shopify charges $29 to $299 a month depending on the plan you choose, beware that other costs will be associated with running a successful Shopify store. These include general marketing, paid search, SEO, and the design and development of your Shopify website.
How much does the design of a Shopify website cost?
The cost for the design of your Shopify website will vary greatly depending on your design preferences. An experienced Shopify web designer can create a basic store in a matter of days, while an advanced theme could take a month plus of work.
How long does it take to build a Shopify website?
If you purchase a plan on Shopify’s website and choose a template you can have your store up and running in a matter of hours. But realize you will need to write your content, enter product data, upload images, create banners, and do a lot of heavy lifting to get your website in a position where it’s ready to launch and put in front of customers.
Justin Smith
Justin Smith is the Founder & CEO at OuterBox. He’s has more than 20 years of experience in SEO, paid search, eCommerce and digital marketing. His accomplishments have been referenced by many well-known publications and industry experts such as Forbes, Neil Patel, Clutch, CNBC, USA Today and more.