How Much Does a Shopify Store Cost in the UAE? (2026, in AED)
A line-by-line breakdown of what a Shopify store costs in the UAE in AED, covering plans, design, apps, licensing and payment fees, with a real first-year budget example.
Short answer: a small, professional Shopify store in the UAE costs about AED 4,700–5,500 in the first year, covering the licence, the Shopify plan, design and the domain, before ads and stock. Larger stores with a fully custom theme typically run AED 15,000–60,000, and Shopify Plus builds go past AED 100,000.
Quotes in the UAE vary wildly because each one includes different things. This guide splits the cost into its parts so you can see exactly where the money goes.
1. The Shopify subscription
Shopify prices in US dollars. These are the core plans at the time of writing, converted at AED 3.67:
| Plan | Billed monthly | Billed yearly (per month) | Best for |
|---|---|---|---|
| Basic | $39 (≈ AED 143) | $29 (≈ AED 107) | New or small stores |
| Grow | $105 (≈ AED 386) | $79 (≈ AED 290) | Growing stores |
| Advanced | $399 (≈ AED 1,465) | $299 (≈ AED 1,098) | High-volume stores |
| Plus | from about $2,300 | — | Large, multi-country brands |
Annual billing saves roughly 25%. Always confirm current prices on Shopify's official pricing page, as they change.
2. Transaction fees: the cost most people miss
This is the key point for any UAE store: Shopify Payments is not available to UAE-registered merchants at the time of writing. You'll use a third-party payment gateway, and Shopify adds a transaction fee on every order:
- Basic: about 2% of the order value
- Grow: about 1%
- Advanced: about 0.6%
That is on top of the gateway's own fee (usually 2%–3.5% depending on the provider and card type). The options are covered in our guide to Shopify payment gateways in the UAE.
When does upgrading pay off? On annual billing, Grow costs about AED 183 a month more than Basic and saves 1% in transaction fees. So once you sell more than roughly AED 18,000 a month, moving to Grow saves you money.
3. Store design and development
This is where prices differ most:
| Option | Typical cost | Pros | Cons |
|---|---|---|---|
| DIY with a free theme | AED 0 + your time | Cheapest start | Generic look, weak Arabic support |
| Paid theme from the Theme Store | $150–$400 one-off | Better design | Needs Arabic and RTL fixes |
| Freelancer | AED 1,000–5,000 | Affordable | Quality and after-launch support vary |
| Specialist agency | AED 2,000–60,000+ | Custom design, integrations, support | Choose carefully |
At ShopiBuild, our packages start at AED 2,000 for Foundation and AED 3,000 for Growth, at a fixed project price. Before you hire anyone, read how to choose a Shopify agency in Dubai.
4. Apps
Many stores spend AED 100–1,500 a month on apps: reviews, search, filters, WhatsApp, translation, pop-ups. Over time apps often become the biggest monthly cost after the plan itself, and they slow the store down too.
The alternative is building core features into the theme instead of subscribing to an app for each one. We do this on every store we build, replacing more than $1,000 worth of app subscriptions.
5. Licence and government costs
You need a licence to sell online in the UAE. The cheapest route for a sole owner in Dubai is the e-Trader licence, at roughly AED 1,370 a year (licence fee plus Dubai Chamber membership) based on published figures at the time of writing. Free-zone companies usually start from about AED 6,000.
All the options are covered in our guide to the ecommerce licence in the UAE.
6. Domain and email
- A .com domain: about AED 50–70 a year
- A .ae domain: usually more, depending on the registrar
- Business email (Google Workspace or similar): from about AED 25 per user per month
Example: a first-year budget for a small store
A new perfume brand in Dubai, starting on an e-Trader licence:
| Item | First-year cost |
|---|---|
| e-Trader licence | AED 1,370 |
| Shopify Basic (annual) | AED 1,284 |
| Store design (Foundation package) | AED 2,000 |
| Domain | AED 60 |
| Essential apps | AED 0–600 |
| Total | about AED 4,700–5,300 |
Add payment fees on each order, your ad budget, stock and packaging.
How to keep costs down without cutting quality
- Pay for Shopify yearly once you're committed; it saves about 25%.
- Start on Basic and upgrade when monthly sales pass about AED 18,000.
- Keep apps to a minimum. Each one is a monthly fee and a source of slowdown.
- Don't launch cheap and rebuild later. A rebuild a year in usually costs more than doing it right the first time.
- Prepare content before design. Ready product photos and descriptions shorten the project and lower the price.
FAQ
Can I start a Shopify store in the UAE for under AED 3,000?
Yes, if you design it yourself on a free theme and start on Basic. But you also need a licence, so a realistic first-year total for a professional Arabic store is around AED 4,700 or more.
What does a Shopify store cost per month after launch?
For a small store, AED 110–400 a month for the plan and apps, plus payment fees of roughly 4%–5.5% of sales on Basic (gateway fee plus Shopify's transaction fee).
Is Shopify Payments available in the UAE?
No, not at the time of writing. You'll need a third-party gateway, and Shopify charges an extra transaction fee based on your plan.
Is Shopify cheaper than a custom-built ecommerce site?
Usually, yes. A custom site needs hosting, security and ongoing maintenance, and costs far more upfront. Shopify covers hosting, security and updates in the monthly plan.