Shopify Free Trial (2026) — 90 Days / $1 Per Month

Shopify free trial FAQ

How can I sign up for a Shopify free trial?

You can sign up for a Shopify free trial on the Shopify website.

How long does a Shopify free trial last?

A Shopify free trial lasts three days. However, if you sign up for a plan at the end of this period, you get the option to use Shopify for three months for just $1 per month. The video below shows you how to do this.

Do I need to submit my credit card details to start my trial?

No, you don’t need to submit your credit card details to start your trial. You will need to submit your email address however, and consent to receive marketing information from Shopify.

Note: to avail of the $1 per month offer (in effect an extended trial, you will need to enter credit card details).

Can I extend a Shopify free trial?

If you have a good reason for requesting an extension to your trial, Shopify may grant it. You will need to contact Shopify’s support team with your store URL (yourstorename.myshopify.com), stating the reason why you want to extend your trial.

Can I sell products during my Shopify free trial?

While you can build your store, apply a store theme and add products to collections as soon as your free trial begins, you can’t start selling anything until you’ve purchased a Shopify plan.

Can I dropship during a Shopify free trial?

While you can prepare your business for dropshipping and install the relevant apps to do so during a free trial, you will need to be on a paid-for Shopify plan to actually dropship.

Can I use a custom domain name during my Shopify trial?

If you’re using the standard free trial, it’s not possible to map a custom domain name (i.e., yoursitename.com) to your store. However, if you use the extended three-month trial, you can.

What happened to the Shopify dropshipping starter kit?

For a long time Shopify offered users a ‘dropshipping business starter kit’ that bundled its free trial with some useful video and PDF guides about dropshipping. Although the sign-up page for this remains in existence, it seems as though you no longer get the resources. However, you can still access quite a lot of useful dropshipping resources and advice on the main Shopify website.

Does the Shopify trial let me use point of sale features?

You can use the 3-day trial to set up certain aspects of Shopify’s point-of-sale system, but you can’t use it to actually start accepting in-person payments. Once you extend your trial for three months at $1/mo however, you get the fully-functional Shopify POS system bundled with your plan at no extra cost — this lets you sell in person in one location.

How do I get a 90 day free trial on Shopify?

Technically speaking, there isn’t a 90 day free trial of Shopify available, but you can get access to the platform for 90+ days at a very low cost, via its ‘3 months for $1/mo’ paid trial. You can avail of this offer here.

Why have I heard about a 90 day free trial, then?

To help merchants during the COVID-19 pandemic, Shopify temporarily made a 90-day free trial of the platform available. When this free trial was withdrawn, the company introduced a ‘3 months for $1 per month’ offer, where Shopify was made available to merchants for around 90 days for just $1/mo. You can avail of this offer here.

What happens if I subscribe to a Shopify paid plan while I’m still on a free trial?

If you take out a paid Shopify subscription while you’re on a free trial, you won’t lose any of your trial days — fees won’t commence until your trial expires.

How do I cancel my Shopify trial?

If you don’t subscribe to a paid-for Shopify plan or trial extension during your 3-day trial, then your Shopify account will simply be frozen at the end of the free trial, and you won’t be charged anything. However, if you start a $1/mo paid trial, then you’ll get charged the full Shopify subscription fees after three months. You can learn more about cancelling a Shopify store here.

Can I cancel Shopify after my free trial?

Yes. You can cancel your plan at any point — with any outstanding balance (transaction fees, shipping label charges, app subscriptions, etc.) being charged at the point of cancellation. You can also avail of the option to pause payments for your Shopify store.

Does Shopify automatically charge me after the free trial?

No. If you don’t choose a pricing plan during your free trial, your account will be frozen at the end of it — you won’t be charged for anything. However, your store won’t work again until you subscribe to a premium plan or the $1/mo trial.

Can I install apps from the Shopify app store whilst on a free trial?

Yes, it’s perfectly possible to install apps from the Shopify app store during the free trial period. Depending on the apps involved, you may not be able to use all features until you upgrade to a paid plan, however.

How do I accept payment using Shopify?

You can accept credit card payments with Shopify via its built-in payment gateway, Shopify Payments, or alternatively use a third-party payment gateway (over 100 are available). If you go down the latter route however, transaction fees will apply.

Are Shopify themes free?

At the time of writing (January 2026), there are 24 free Shopify themes and 1,000+ paid-for ones available. Using the paid themes involves paying a one-time fee of between $100 and $500, depending on the template involved.

How much does Shopify cost?

Shopify fees vary from $5 to $399 per month, depending on the plan you choose (Shopify Starter, Basic Shopify, Grow or Advanced Shopify). An enterprise plan, ‘Shopify Plus,’ is also available — prices for this are negotiable, but it typically costs between $2,300 and $2,500 per month. You can learn more about these fees and the differences between plans in our guide to Shopify pricing or our article on determining the true costs of a Shopify website.

Are there any discounts available for Shopify?

The main discount that’s available for Shopify right now is its $1 per month offer — this lasts for three months and you can access it here.

Additionally, if you pay for your Shopify trial on an annual basis, you can reduce your subscription fees by 25%. To avail of this reduction in fees, sign up for a Shopify trial using this link, then when your trial ends, choose to pay annually when upgrading.

There’s also the option of using Shopify credits to reduce your plan costs (so long as you are using Shopify’s own payment gateway, ‘Shopify Payments’). These are earned as you sell, and can be redeemed against your monthly fees.

Finally, if you’re a nonprofit organization, you can avail of two discounted Shopify plans: a ‘Shopify NPO Lite’ subscription and a ‘Shopify NPO Full’ one. You will need to contact Shopify directly to learn more about these plans, however, and an application/evaluation process is involved.

How do I contact Shopify?

To contact Shopify, you need to log in to your Shopify account and then visit the support page on the company’s website. Once you’ve done that, you’ll need to select the topic that you need support with. You’ll see a page with resources about that topic — and if you scroll down to the bottom of it, you’ll see a ‘Contact Support’ button. This will initially connect you with an AI chatbot, but you can ask to be connected to a human agent if the suggestions it makes don’t resolve your query adequately.

Do other ecommerce platforms offer free trials?

Most of Shopify’s competitors offer free trials, including BigCommerce, Squarespace and Wix. The following resources can help you learn more about them:

Does Shopify have a 14-day trial?

Shopify’s trial length was originally 14 days, but it has been reduced to just three. However, once the three-day trial is over, you can use the platform for three months at very little cost ($1 per month) — this effectively gives you an extended trial period.

Why is the Shopify trial only three days in length?

Shopify’s trial length and structure is unusually short by comparison to those of its competitors. It’s likely that the company has settled on the three-day limit plus $1 per month offer by looking at conversion rates and establishing that this proposition generates the most Shopify subscriptions. In fairness to the company, however, the $1 per month for three months offer provides merchants with a lot of value, and effectively gives them a longer trial period than those typically provided by competing solutions.

What are the ‘credits’ referred to on the Shopify free trial sign-up page?

Shopify is currently running an initiative that lets you earn credits as you sell — its ‘Shopify Rewards’ promotion. This gives you 1% of your sales income back in the form of credits that can be redeemed against your Shopify plan costs.

In order to receive credits however, you must be using Shopify’s own payment gateway, ‘Shopify Payments.’ Additionally, you have to reach $1,000 USD (or local equivalent) in sales before you can access these credits, and limits apply to how many credits you can receive. These are determined by your plan type, as follows:

• Basic Plan: a maximum of $5,000 USD back in credits for $500,000 USD in sales.
• Grow Plan: a maximum of $7,500 USD back in credits for $750,000 USD in sales.
• Advanced Plan: a maximum of $10,000 USD back in credits for $1,000,000 USD in sales.

What are the main alternatives to Shopify?

Popular alternatives to Shopify include Squarespace, Wix, Square, Webflow and WooCommerce.