How much does an online store cost in 2026?

An online store's price comes down to three choices: which platform it runs on, how many products it has, and which other systems it has to talk to. Below are the 2026 numbers from public sources, the costs that repeat every month, and the rules that apply once you sell online. Prices for brochure-style business sites are in how much does a website cost.

What it costs: 2026 ranges

Project Cost Estimator's medians come from its estimation model, calibrated on quotes and public rate benchmarks, not from a survey of finished projects, so read them as a starting point. Its US figure is higher than its Western European baseline, and agencies come out at about 2.4 times the freelancer price.

Hosted platform, WooCommerce or a custom store?

For most small stores, a hosted platform is the simpler start. A custom store earns its cost when the platform forces you to work differently from how your business works: different prices for different customers, products the customer configures, scheduled deliveries, or an inventory system with no ready-made connector. The two platforms compared in detail: Shopify vs WooCommerce.

What you pay every month and on every order

• The platform plan. Shopify charges $29, $79 or $299 a month for Basic, Grow and Advanced on annual billing, or $39, $105 and $399 billed monthly.
• Card fees. Every card payment pays the processor. With Shopify Payments, online cards cost 2.9% + 30¢ on Basic, 2.7% + 30¢ on Grow and 2.5% + 30¢ on Advanced. Use another provider and Shopify adds 2%, 1% or 0.6% on top of that provider's own fee. How Stripe, PayPal and Square compare is in how to accept payments on your website.
• Shipping. Paid per parcel. What saves the most time is having labels created from the order automatically, instead of copying addresses by hand.
• Apps. Reviews, subscriptions, upsells, accounting sync: each one is often its own monthly fee.
• The domain, and hosting if the store isn't on a hosted platform.

Marketing usually ends up being the largest monthly cost of a new store, and it isn't in any of the numbers above.

The rules that apply once you sell online

• Sales tax. Since the Supreme Court's 2018 decision in South Dakota v. Wayfair, states can require out-of-state sellers to collect sales tax once their sales into the state pass a threshold. Each state sets its own. Platforms can calculate the tax at checkout; registering and filing are still on you.
• Shipping promises. The FTC's Mail, Internet, or Telephone Order Merchandise Rule requires a reasonable basis for any shipping time you state, or for shipping within 30 days if you state none. If you can't meet it, the customer must be offered the choice to cancel for a full refund.
• Reviews. The FTC's rule on consumer reviews and testimonials, in force since 21 October 2024, bans fake reviews, buying reviews and suppressing negative ones, with civil penalties for knowing violations.
• Accessibility. The Department of Justice's guidance says the ADA applies to the websites of businesses open to the public. Checkout is where accessibility problems cost the most sales.

What to ask when you compare two quotes

1. Which platform is the store built on, and who pays for the plan or hosting?
2. How many products are included in the setup, and from what source (a spreadsheet, an export from another store)?
3. Which payment providers and shipping carriers are connected automatically?
4. Is sales tax set up for the states where you already have to collect?
5. Are the privacy policy, terms and returns page included?
6. Who handles updates after launch, and what does that cost?
7. Whose name are the domain, the platform account and the payment account in?
8. Can you export products, customers and orders if you change providers?

How we build online stores

We build online stores as web apps: products, a cart, card payments, delivery or pickup, and connections to the software you already use, through its API. After a first conversation we can tell you whether a hosted platform is enough or whether a store built around the way you sell is worth it.