Shopify Payments is Shopify’s built-in payment gateway, processing online transactions from 1.5% + 25p and in-person sales from 1.5% – with no additional gateway fees. Plans start at £19/month (Basic), making it the default choice for Shopify merchants. But it only works on Shopify, and using any third-party gateway incurs a surcharge of up to 2% per transaction.
Shopify Payments launched in the UK in 2014 and is powered by Stripe’s infrastructure behind the scenes. It eliminates the need for a separate merchant account – you activate it directly from your Shopify admin, and payments, orders, and inventory are unified in one dashboard.
With over 4.8 million stores globally, Shopify dominates the ecommerce platform market. But does Shopify Payments offer genuinely competitive rates for UK merchants, or are you paying a premium for convenience? Here’s the full breakdown for 2026.
- Rates from 1.5% + 25p - Competitive online transaction fees with no additional gateway charges for Shopify stores
- Best for e-commerce businesses - Seamlessly integrated with 4.6 million Shopify stores worldwide in 2026
- No monthly gateway fees - Unlike PayPal Pro’s £20 monthly charge, Shopify Payments includes gateway access
- Beats WooCommerce on simplicity - 50% faster setup compared to WordPress-based payment gateway configurations
- 2-day payout schedule - Faster than traditional merchant accounts’ typical 3-5 business day settlement periods
Quick Verdict
Shopify Payments is almost always the right choice for Shopify merchants – using a third-party gateway adds a 0.6–2% surcharge on top of gateway fees.
If you’re already on Shopify, using Shopify Payments is almost always the right move – the third-party gateway surcharge (up to 2%) makes alternatives like Stripe or PayPal significantly more expensive when used as external gateways. The rates are competitive on the Grow plan and above. However, if you’re not committed to Shopify as your platform, standalone processors like Stripe (1.5% + 20p) or Square (1.4% + 25p online) offer lower rates without platform lock-in.
Shopify Payments Pricing 2026
Rates vary by plan: Basic (2% + 25p online, 1.7% in-person), Grow (1.7% + 25p, 1.6%), Advanced (1.5% + 25p, 1.5%), with £10 per chargeback dispute.
Plan Costs and Transaction Rates
| Plan | Monthly Cost | Online Rate | In-Person Rate | Third-Party Gateway Surcharge |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Basic | £19/month | 2% + 25p | 1.7% | 2% |
| Grow | £49/month | 1.7% + 25p | 1.6% | 1% |
| Advanced | £259/month | 1.5% + 25p | 1.5% | 0.6% |
| Plus | From £1,800/month | Negotiated | Negotiated | Negotiated |
All plans are currently available at £1/month for the first 3 months (promotional pricing, billed annually for 25% discount).
The third-party surcharge is the critical number. If you use Stripe, PayPal, or any external gateway instead of Shopify Payments, you pay the gateway’s own fees plus Shopify’s surcharge. On Basic, that’s Stripe’s 1.5% + 20p plus 2% – totalling 3.5% + 20p per transaction. This makes Shopify Payments effectively mandatory for cost-conscious merchants.
Other Fees
- Chargeback fee: £10 per dispute (may be refunded if you win – not guaranteed)
- International card surcharge: Approximately 2% on top of base rate
- Currency conversion: Approximately 1.5-2%
- Refunds: Transaction fee is not returned on refunds
- Cashback credit: 1% back on sales (caps: Basic £3,500/year, Grow £5,500/year, Advanced £7,000/year)
Key Features
Built-in ML fraud scoring, Shopify Protect chargeback insurance, Shop Pay for 30% faster checkout, and BNPL via Affirm on orders from £50 to £30,000.
Fraud Protection
Shopify Payments includes machine-learning fraud analysis on every order at no extra cost. Each transaction gets a Low/Medium/High risk score based on AVS checks, CVV matching, IP analysis, and proxy detection. 3D Secure authentication runs automatically on eligible transactions.
Shopify Protect offers chargeback insurance on eligible orders – reimbursing both the disputed amount and the £10 fee. The Fraud Control app (free) adds customisable rules via Shopify Flow for automated order blocking.
Express Checkout and Wallets
- Shop Pay – Shopify’s accelerated checkout (stores card/address details, 30% faster repeat checkout)
- Apple Pay and Google Pay
- Shop Pay Installments – BNPL via Affirm: 3 interest-free payments on £50-£999, or up to 24 months on £150-£30,000. Merchants get paid upfront in full.
Multi-Currency
Display prices in customers’ local currencies via Shopify Markets. Process payments in multiple currencies with automatic conversion. Managed Markets charges 1.5% FX fee.
PCI Compliance
Level 1 PCI DSS compliant (the highest level). No separate security setup or SAQ completion required – it’s handled entirely by Shopify.
POS Hardware for In-Person Sales
Hardware starts at £49 for the Tap & Chip Reader (free for new merchants), £349 for the countertop terminal, with POS Pro at £49/month per location.
| Hardware | Price |
|---|---|
| Tap & Chip Card Reader | £49 (free for new merchants on eligible plans) |
| Countertop POS Terminal | £349 |
| Receipt Printers | £249-369 |
| Barcode Scanners | £199-289 |
| Cash Drawers | £129-139 |
Shopify POS Lite is included on all plans for basic in-person selling. Shopify POS Pro (£49/month/location) adds staff management, unlimited registers, advanced reporting, returns, exchanges, and click-and-collect.
In-person transactions processed through Shopify Payments use the flat rates shown above (1.5-1.7% depending on plan) – no per-pence charge unlike online rates.
Payout Timing (UK)
Standard settlement takes 3–5 business days with daily, weekly, or monthly options, though new merchants may face up to 14 days initial hold on payouts.
- Standard settlement: 3-5 business days from transaction
- New merchants: Initial payouts may be held up to 14 days for risk assessment
- Schedule options: Daily, weekly, or monthly (your choice)
- Weekend consolidation: Friday-Sunday transactions bundled into one Monday payout
- Payment reserves: Shopify can withhold a percentage (e.g., 10%) for 30-120 days on flagged accounts
Settlement is slower than most standalone UK processors – Square and Dojo both offer next-day settlement.
Limitations and Restrictions
Shopify Payments only works on the Shopify platform with no portability, and restricts financial services, crypto, adult content, gambling, and regulated goods.
Platform lock-in: Shopify Payments only works on Shopify. If you migrate to WooCommerce, Magento, or any other platform, you cannot take it with you.
Restricted businesses: You cannot use Shopify Payments if you sell:
- Financial services, credit products, or cryptocurrencies
- Adult content or gambling
- Counterfeit goods
- Certain regulated items (alcohol, tobacco, vaping, weapons, fireworks)
- Multi-level marketing schemes
Restricted-category sellers can still use Shopify as their ecommerce platform – they just must use a third-party gateway (and pay the surcharge).
Rate tied to plan: Your transaction rate is determined by your Shopify subscription tier. There’s no way to get Advanced-tier rates on a Basic plan.
Shopify Payments vs Stripe vs Square
Online rates: Shopify Grow 1.7% + 25p versus Stripe 1.5% + 20p versus Square 1.4% + 25p, but Square offers next-day settlement versus Shopify’s 3–5 days.
| Feature | Shopify Payments (Grow) | Stripe | Square |
|---|---|---|---|
| Platform requirement | Shopify only | None | None |
| Online rate (UK cards) | 1.7% + 25p | 1.5% + 20p | 1.4% + 25p |
| In-person rate | 1.6% | 1.7% + 10p | 1.75% |
| Monthly fee | £49 (plan cost) | £0 | £0 |
| Chargeback fee | £10 | ~£15 | £0 |
| Settlement | 3-5 business days | 2-3 business days | Next day |
| BNPL | Shop Pay Installments | Klarna, Afterpay | Clearpay |
| Fraud tools | ML scoring, 3D Secure, Shopify Protect | Radar ML, 3D Secure | Basic built-in |
| Multi-currency | Yes (Shopify Markets) | Yes | Limited |
| Developer API | Platform-bound | Extensive | Moderate |
| Best for | Shopify merchants | Developers, custom builds | Retail-first, omnichannel |
Key insight: Stripe’s 1.5% + 20p is cheaper than Shopify Basic’s 2% + 25p for online. But if you use Stripe on Shopify, you also pay the 2% third-party surcharge – making the effective rate 3.5% + 20p. The maths only favour a third-party gateway for Plus merchants where the surcharge is negotiated down.
Who Is Shopify Payments Best For?
Ideal for existing Shopify merchants and DTC brands wanting unified orders, payments, and inventory – not for in-person-first retailers who need next-day settlement.
Ideal for:
- Merchants already using Shopify as their ecommerce platform – eliminating the third-party surcharge is the single biggest saving
- DTC brands selling primarily online who want unified payments, orders, and inventory
- Merchants who value built-in fraud protection and chargeback insurance
- Businesses using Shop Pay Installments for higher average order values
Not ideal for:
- Businesses not committed to Shopify – Stripe or Square are cheaper standalone
- In-person-first retailers – Square and SumUp offer better POS experiences and next-day settlement
- Restricted-category sellers forced onto third-party gateways
- Very high-volume merchants where interchange-plus pricing from a dedicated processor would be cheaper
Pros and Cons
The key advantage is avoiding the 0.6–2% third-party surcharge, but 3–5 day settlement and non-refundable transaction fees on refunds are notable downsides.
Our Verdict
We rate Shopify Payments 7/10 – the Grow plan (1.7% + 25p) is competitive, but 3–5 day settlement and complete platform lock-in limit its appeal versus alternatives.
Shopify Payments is the obvious choice if you're building on Shopify - the third-party surcharge makes any alternative gateway significantly more expensive. On the Grow plan (£49/month), the 1.7% + 25p online rate and 1.6% in-person rate are competitive with the wider market, and the integrated fraud tools, Shop Pay checkout, and BNPL options add genuine value. The main weakness is settlement speed (3-5 days vs next-day from Square and Dojo) and the platform lock-in. If you're evaluating ecommerce platforms and haven't committed to Shopify yet, compare the total cost (plan + transaction fees) against a free platform like WooCommerce with Stripe (1.5% + 20p, no monthly fee).
