Shopify Review 2026: Is It the Best Ecommerce Platform?

Shopify is a powerful tool for ecommerce, but it may not be the best jumping-off point for a novice. If this is your first time creating an online store, you’ll need to learn about the platform or rely on the support center and AI assistant for guidance. 

If you’re willing to put in the work to create a thriving online business, you’ll likely find success with Shopify. It offers comprehensive tools for ecommerce, marketing, SEO, and more. To decide if this is the right platform for your ecommerce business, read our full Shopify review. 

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At a glance

Star rating summary

We last tested Shopify on January 14, 2026.

4.7

AllAboutCookies writers and editors score products based on a number of objective features as well as our expert editorial assessment. Our partners do not influence how we rate products.

2026 Editors’ Choice

Best Web Builder for Big Ecommerce

Website Builders

Shopify

• Designed for growing businesses and has automated ecommerce tools
• Offers unlimited product listing with all subscription tiers
• Excellent functionality for dropshipping and other wholesale opportunities

Learn More

Learn More

Our experience

Setting up our Shopify account was easy enough. We were asked a few simple questions about our shop, like our business experience and what types of products we planned to sell. 

Once we entered the main dashboard, it felt like we were largely left to our own devices. There's a brief setup guide that prompts us to take some first actions like adding our first product, customizing our theme, and reviewing shipping rates. 

But once we clicked the Edit theme button, the Sidekick AI assistant window opened with that same setup guide, along with suggestions for further help. 

In the past, we had to rely on YouTube tutorials to help us figure out the web builder and had trouble uploading any media. This time, we could easily upload and edit photos and videos. Sidekick was a big help whenever we couldn't figure something out. 

Even still, one of our biggest takeaways from Shopify was that it’s much better suited to people who already have a grasp on ecommerce sites. Those who are trying to create a business website for the first time may have trouble navigating the platform. 

Shopify prices and subscriptions

Shopify's pricing ranges from $29.00-$2,300.00/mo. You can pay annual or monthly, and there are four plan tiers: Basic, Grow, Advanced, and Plus.

This might seem high, but that's because the site is geared toward businesses looking to scale up to a higher profit margin. The Basic and Grow plans are for smaller businesses, while the Advanced and Plus plans are designed for higher-traffic sites.

If you have a small- to moderate-sized team, you can create access profiles for them on all accounts other than the Basic plan. Large teams will benefit from the Plus plan’s unlimited team account options. 

Shopify can be expensive, but it also comes with a reputable name, plenty of space to scale your business, and useful tools. While other sites have more intuitive features, Shopify’s strength lies in its wide reach and integration.

If you’re just starting out and want Shopify’s scalability, we suggest starting with the Basic plan until you’re turning enough profit to justify increasing your plan. If you already have an established business or a comfortable amount of startup capital, we would recommend the Advanced plan.

There’s a three-day trial, and after that period you can pay $1 for three months. That way, you can get your store up and running, hopefully making some profit, before paying the full month's charge. 

Shopify features

One of Shopify's greatest strengths is the sheer number of features, widgets, and tools available. Entrepreneurs can take advantage of Shopify’s comprehensive offerings, including:

• Website building tools
• Editing tools
• A free and paid app and widget library
• Variety of ecommerce tools and integrations
• SEO and blogging assistance
• Marketing tools

Building a website

Shopify offers a full catalog of prebuilt themes that you can apply to your website. Note that there are only about 20 free themes, while there are over 1,000 premium themes for purchase.

Depending on your goals, the AI tools in the themes catalog will help you find the perfect theme. The additional categories, blog posts, pages, navigation, and preferences can also assist you in creating a Shopify online store that works for you.

Using and editing media

Shopify allows you to do some light editing, like cropping, resizing, and drawing, on your uploaded images. You can also name your images to reap the SEO benefits of keywords. 

There are other platforms with more robust media editing tools, but these are still sufficient.

Widget library

The Shopify app store is so extensive it could easily become overwhelming. Shopify will recommend top apps for sites like yours, but you can also browse the entire library. We suggest researching the best apps for your style of store and not just relying on what’s suggested.

Ecommerce tools

Since Shopify is solely an ecommerce site (sorry, hobbyists and creatives), businesses can use various tools to create and maintain a successful ecommerce website. From analytics that let you know how your customers interact to finance tools, you’ll have a fully functional site on your first day.

SEO and blogging tools

Even though Shopify is exclusively an ecommerce site, there are opportunities for you to create SEO-rich blog posts. This can help boost your Shopify online store presence and ranking, and you’ll have an outlet to provide your customers with value-added content that doesn’t require them to purchase something.

Marketing tools

Shopify provides tools to create effective marketing campaigns, track campaign sales, and even set automation. The automation menu includes templates for customer birthdays, first purchase upsells, new subscriber discounts, back-in-stock notifications, and more.

Bonus features

If you want to take your store to the streets, Shopify offers a marketplace where you can purchase physical point-of-sale (POS) hardware. You can also enjoy Shop integration, which is an online marketplace that helps manage payments and order tracking for customers. 

In addition, Shopify customers with the Plus plan get a whole other set of features like a custom-built app and free expansion stores.

Security and bandwidth

Each plan includes a free SSL certificate. We found that the financial menu in our store included two-factor authentication for increased security. And for business owners looking for customer-facing security, Shopify includes prebuilt tools to help customers manage their data and information sharing.

If you’re concerned about bandwidth, don’t worry. Shopify accounts come with unlimited bandwidth, which lets your store grow to its fullest potential.

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4.8

AllAboutCookies writers and editors score products based on a number of objective features as well as our expert editorial assessment. Our partners do not influence how we rate products.

Editorial Rating

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Shopify customer support

Customer support isn’t as robust as you’d think with a service this expensive. Sidekick, the AI assistant, aims to answer most questions, but there’s also a support center for online guides. The AI chat assistant will eventually send you to a live agent if you're completely strapped.

Shopify offers phone and email support, but only for Shopify Plus, which is the most expensive plan tier. Considering the price point for Shopify, we’d like to see better support options.

Top alternatives

Shopify is a web building platform that's best for full-fledged businesses. If you need something more beginner-friendly or just want to save some money on your web build, consider the following alternatives.

	Wix	Hostinger	Squarespace
Best for	Best overall	Best value	Best design
Starting price	Free or $17.00/mo	$2.99/mo	$16.00/mo
Custom domain	Free for one year with premium plans	Free for one year with all plans	Free for one year with all plans
AI tools	AI tools included with all plans	Additional AI tools start with Business plan	AI tools included with all plans
Drag and drop editor + AI builder		Yes, plus WordPress builder
View plans	Get Wix	Get Hostinger	Get Squarespace

FAQs

Bottom line: Is Shopify good?

Yes, Shopify is good. It’s a top-tier service for creating a thriving online business, and there are plenty of tools and scalable features that help entrepreneurs grow. While it’s not novice-friendly, anyone who has valuable products and is willing to put in the work should be able to do well on Shopify.

See how Shopify compares to other top website builders for ecommerce:

• Shopify vs. Squarespace
• Shopify vs. Wix

4.7

AllAboutCookies writers and editors score products based on a number of objective features as well as our expert editorial assessment. Our partners do not influence how we rate products.

Editorial Rating

Learn More

On Shopify's website

2026 Editors’ Choice

Best Web Builder for Big Ecommerce

Website Builders

Shopify

• Designed for growing businesses and has automated ecommerce tools
• Offers unlimited product listing with all subscription tiers
• Excellent functionality for dropshipping and other wholesale opportunities

Author Details

Mary James

About the Author

Mary James is a cybersecurity writer and hands-on product tester at All About Cookies, specializing in VPNs, antivirus software, password managers, and ad blockers. She has written over 340 articles and has personally tested more than 75 products. Before writing about consumer security, she worked at PC Matic, a U.S. antivirus company, giving her firsthand insight into how security software is built, marketed, and tested. Her work has been featured in MSN and CNBC.

Steph Trejos