Shopify Partner earnings

Note

We announced changes to our partner earnings model on July 7, 2026. New terms will apply starting August 10, 2026, and will be reflected on this page.

As a Shopify Partner, you earn money based on your contribution to the Shopify ecosystem (your activities). Your earnings might vary based on your location and the location of the merchants you work with. Your earnings might be subject to taxes depending on your location and applicable tax regulations.

The tables below break down the payout conditions and terms based on your activities.

Note

Partner Program referral earnings are sometimes referred to as "revenue share" or "commission".

You'll only receive referral earnings after a merchant starts paying for their Shopify subscription. All referral earnings are calculated on the fees paid by the merchant to Shopify, net of any discounts or credits. This means that merchants on unpaid plans or free trials, and stores without an associated subscription fee, such as Plus Expansion stores, don't contribute to your referral earnings.

Learn more about how your earnings are calculated.

Client transfer store terms

To perform a client transfer store referral, you must create a client transfer store in the Dev Dashboard and then transfer it to a client. Partners become eligible to receive an incentive payout only after the client activates the plan through this partner-initiated process.

Only client transfer store transfers are eligible for recurring commission. Collaborator accounts aren't eligible.

Stores activated on Shopify subscription plans by executing a contract through Shopify sales teams are not eligible for this incentive. Refer to Sales Plus or Enterprise Referral Terms and Shopify Launch Terms for eligible incentives on those agreements and stores.

A breakdown of Partner commission rates and terms for different Shopify store plans when referring client transfer stores to merchants

	Store plan	Earnings	Terms
1.1	Basic Grow Advanced	A recurring commission equal to 20% of the merchant's monthly subscription fee. For merchants on annual plans, you earn 20% of the discounted monthly rate, paid monthly.	Recurs monthly as long as the merchant remains a paying Shopify customer.
1.2	Plus	For a store created, transferred, and plans activated before July 1, 2025, a recurring commission equal to 20% of the Plus merchant's monthly base platform fee on the billing store, for each net new merchant referred by Partner that signs a Shopify Plus deal. For a store created, transferred, and plans activated on or after July 1, 2025, a recurring commission equal to 20% of the merchant's monthly billed platform fees for each net new or automatically upgraded Shopify merchant that signs a Shopify Plus deal.	Partners can build a Plus store for a merchant. Refer to Sales Plus referrals refer here.
1.3	Starter Lite	Not eligible for commission.	Partners are not eligible for recurring commission on the merchant's monthly subscription fee.

Sales Plus or Enterprise Referral Terms

A comprehensive overview of Sales referral terms, including eligibility criteria, commission structure, and payout terms

Partner location	All
Merchant location	All
Earnings	For partner-referred, sales-assisted deals contracted on the Shopify Plus or Enterprise plan on or after April 30, 2026, eligible Partners receive a one-time payout of $2,500 USD.
Terms	To receive the Earnings for this incentive, Partners and their referrals must meet the respective Partner requirements and Referral requirements below. Partner requirements: The referral must be submitted through the Shopify Plus lead form, within the Partner Dashboard. The lead form submission must contain contact information that enables Shopify to contact the referral, including their website, email, and phone number. Referral requirements: The referral must be net new to Shopify (not an existing Shopify customer). The referral must result in a fully executed Shopify Plus or Enterprise agreement with Shopify's sales team. The referral must generate > $5,000 Gross Merchandise Volume (GMV) on Shopify, excluding returns, test transactions, fraudulent transactions, and chargebacks. The referral must not have been in contact with the Shopify Sales team prior to the time of submission. The referral must be qualified by Shopify within 90 days of the referral submission date. Eligible Partners will receive their Earnings as follows: Payouts will be made within 30 days from the date all Terms are met. Payouts will be made through the Payouts section of the Partner Dashboard. Additional considerations: In the event that multiple Partners submit the same referral, eligibility will be awarded to the first Partner who submitted the qualified lead. If the referral is not qualified within 90 days of submission, then the referring Partner must resubmit the referral to maintain eligibility. GMV requirements apply to all fully executed Shopify Plus or Enterprise agreements with a contract start date on or after April 30, 2026. The final decision to grant sales referral commissions is at Shopify's discretion.

Shopify Launch Terms

A comprehensive overview of Shopify Launch terms, including eligibility criteria, commission structure, and payout terms

Partner location	All
Merchant location	All
Earnings	For sales assisted deals contracted on or after July 1, 2025, a recurring commission equal to 15% of the Shopify Plus or Enterprise merchant's monthly billed platform fees on the billing store.
Terms	Partners become eligible for Shopify launch commission upon verified launch of a net new Shopify Plus or Enterprise merchant with the execution of a contract through the Shopify sales team. Shopify launch commission eligibility terms: For Shopify sales-assisted opportunities for net new merchants and new contracts only Only applicable on contracts for Plus or Enterprise solutions executed with the Shopify sales team An executed SOW between the partner & merchant must be attached to the opportunity to provide proof of contracted launch services. Only 1 partner will be awarded revenue share per qualified opportunity and store Revenue share will not be awarded for upgrades or adds of existing merchant accounts, or if another partner is already receiving revenue share for the merchant. Revenue share won't be combined with client store transfers. If the merchant activates through an executed contract with the Shopify sales team, then the only revenue share applied will be based on the launch requirements and value. Launch commission payout terms: The final decision to grant Shopify launch commissions is at Shopify's discretion. Partners that are owed a Shopify launch commission become eligible for payout after the merchant pays its first platform fee invoice. Commission payments recur monthly to Partner as long as the net new merchant remains a Shopify merchant in good standing. Shopify reserves the right to verify the merchant launch, implementation or migration is complete and actively using the platform in order to continue paying revenue share. All launch earnings are calculated on either the base or variable platform fees paid by the merchant to Shopify, net of any discounts or credits. This means that stores without an associated billed platform fee, such as expansion stores, are not factored into the calculation of launch earnings. For merchants on annual plans, the Partner launch commission will be paid on an annual basis following the end of the calendar year. The winning Shopify launch Partner will be notified of its award status approximately 30 days after the deal has closed. If, for any reason, the merchant fails to pay during the contracted period, then Shopify reserves the right to claw back a prorated portion of the payout.

Shopify apps

The percentage of total revenue that you earn depends on your gross app earnings and gross company revenue.

This percentage applies to the one-time sale price or recurring subscription fees and all app purchases or upgrades made through the Shopify App Store.

This revenue share plan is based on earnings beginning January 1, 2025.

A breakdown of Shopify App Store revenue sharing tiers based on prior year earnings, including eligibility requirements and revenue percentages

	Prior calendar year's earnings	Earnings	Terms
2.1	Developers who earned $20,000,000 USD or more in gross earnings through the Shopify App Store in the prior calendar year, or who have a gross company revenue of $100,000,000 USD or more in the prior calendar year	Earn 85% of total revenue	All apps must comply with the Shopify Partner Program Agreement. Only the Partner who manages the app is eligible for earnings from app sales. If you want to enroll in the revenue share plan, then you must register to sell in the App Store and report all Associated Developer Accounts.
	Developers who earned less than $20,000,000 USD in gross earnings through the Shopify App Store in the prior calendar year, and who have a gross company revenue under $100,000,000 USD in the prior calendar year	First $1,000,000 USD in revenue earned on or after January 1, 2025: Earn 100% of total revenue Revenue over $1,000,000 USD: Earn 85% of total revenue

Shopify themes

A breakdown of Shopify Theme Store revenue sharing structure, including earnings percentages and eligibility requirements for theme developers

	Earnings	Terms
3.1	85% of the total revenue from themes sold through the Shopify Theme Store.	All themes must comply with the Shopify Partner Program Agreement. Only the Partner who manages the theme is eligible for earnings from theme sales.

Promotions

The following promotions are available to Partners:

• Shopify POS Payments & Pro Referral Bonus

4.1: Shopify POS Payments & Pro Referral Bonus

A comprehensive guide to the Shopify POS Payments & Pro Referral Bonus program, including eligibility criteria, commission structure, and program requirements

Partner location	All
Merchant location	Australia, Belgium, Canada, Czech Republic, Denmark, Finland, France, Germany, Ireland, Italy, Luxembourg, Netherlands, New Zealand, Singapore, Spain, Switzerland, UK, USA
Earnings	Referring Partners will earn "20% Shopify POS Payments Profit-Share" for twenty-four (24) months and/or a one-time "$500 USD POS Pro Activation Bonus", depending on the Terms of this Promotion which the "Referred Merchant" meets.
Terms	A "Referred Merchant" is a Shopify merchant who is referred by a Partner through submission of a POS Lead Form within their Partner Dashboard. Referred Merchants must meet the requirements up to fifteen (15) days before the lead submission or within six (6) months of the POS Lead Form submission. For the Referring Partner to earn the "20% Shopify POS Payments Profit-Share" over twenty-four (24) months, the Referred Merchant must meet the following requirements: Referred Merchant is new to Shopify Payments on Shopify Point of Sale (POS) (has not processed any sales through Shopify Payments via Shopify POS in the last 365 days); and Referred Merchant achieves >$1,000 Gross Payments Volume through Shopify Payments on Shopify Point of Sale (POS). For the Referring Partner to earn the one-time "$500 USD POS Pro Activation Bonus", the Referred Merchant must meet the following requirements: The Referred Merchant pays the full, undiscounted fees associated with a POS Pro subscription for at least two (2) consecutive months, or pays for an annual POS Pro subscription, or the Referred Merchant is an active Shopify Plus merchant who adds a POS Pro location; and Referred Merchant is new to Shopify POS Pro (has not had an active POS Pro subscription in the 365 days preceding the referral); and Referred Merchant has ten (10) or more days of transacting through Shopify POS within one (1) calendar month, for at least two (2) months following the initial referral, and has >$1,000 Gross Merchandise Volume per month at that location. In addition to the commission requirements described above, the Referred Merchant must meet the following requirements: Referred Merchant must be introduced to Shopify by the Referring Partner actively promoting Shopify POS Pro; Referred Merchant was not introduced or referred to Shopify by any other party, including Shopify itself; Referred Merchant must be introduced to our sales team (assuming sales support is requested) by Referring Partner; Referring Partner must provide services related to the Referred Merchant's move to Shopify POS, and/or participate in any other activities that support Shopify's sales teams and/or the Referred Merchant launch on Shopify POS Pro and/or Payments. The "20% Shopify POS Payments Profit-Share" commission pays Partners twenty-percent (20%) of "Shopify POS Payments Profit". "Shopify POS Payments Profit" represents the net-profit derived by Shopify from the total dollar value of orders facilitated through Shopify POS Pro software and processed through Shopify Payments, net of refunds, chargebacks, and inclusive of shipping and handling, duty and value-added taxes. Partners will be paid for twenty-four (24) months, assuming the commissions are not terminated for any reason. Partners will begin to receive their Earnings once all terms are met. Shopify will process monthly payments for qualifying Earnings through the Partner Dashboard's Payouts section. Referring Partners are not eligible to receive Earnings for this promotion if their referral signs up to a Shopify for Enterprise plan. Shopify reserves the right to conclude or adjust the terms of this Promotion at any time.

Taxes on earnings

In some cases, Shopify charges you taxes on its fees or pays out taxes on your referral commissions. These taxes vary based on your location, the type of Partner activity, and the tax information you provide in your Partner Account settings.

All taxes charged or paid to you by Shopify are recorded in an invoice. To learn how to view your fee and commission invoices, refer to Getting paid.

Note

Your tax obligations are different depending on the type of services that you offer and where your business is registered. Discuss any tax issues that are related to your business with a local tax professional.

Taxes charged on Shopify fees

In some cases, Shopify charges taxes on its commission fee and other applicable fees for app, theme, or service sales on the Shopify platform. Any applicable taxes are deducted from your payout and reflected on your Shopify fees invoice.

Taxes are charged on Shopify fees in the following cases:

Canada

If your Partner Account contact information lists an address in Canada, then Shopify charges you taxes on Shopify fees. Shopify charges the applicable sales tax for your province or territory.

The United States

If your Partner Account contact information lists an address in the United States, and your address is in a state that charges sales tax on services performed by billing agents, then Shopify charges you taxes on Shopify fees. Shopify charges the applicable sales tax for your state.

Taxes paid out on referral commissions

If you provide a Canadian business account number (BN) in your Partner Account tax information, then Shopify adds an additional 13% Ontario HST to your referral commission payout. This tax is added to your payout and reflected on your referral commission invoice. You're responsible for remitting these taxes to the appropriate government authority.

Note

For any questions related to your Partner Program earnings, contact Shopify Support. When you log in, select your Partner organization name for questions related to your Partner Account.

Regulatory Operating Fee

In some countries or regions, a Digital Services Tax (DST) is applied to products and services that are sold digitally. The DST is calculated as a percentage of the gross revenue from the sale of a digital service. The DST rate varies depending on the country or region where a merchant is based.

Starting January 5, 2022, Shopify will charge a Regulatory Operating Fee on public app and theme sales in the affected countries or regions to accommodate the DST. The following Regulatory Operating Fees apply when the merchant's business address is located in one of the listed countries or regions:

A breakdown of Digital Services Tax (DST) rates that apply to app and theme sales in different countries and regions where merchants are based

Country or region	DST rates
United Kingdom	2%
Italy	3%
Türkiye	5%
Spain	3%

You can view the Regulatory Operating Fees applied to your app and theme sales in your Partner Dashboard or in the Partner payout CSV. Learn how to view payouts, or how to export payouts to a CSV file, refer to Tracking Partner earnings.

Glossary

To learn more about the different types of Shopify Partners, refer to the following resources:

• Shopify Partners
• Developers

Refer to the following table to learn about terms you might need to understand as a Shopify Partner.

A comprehensive glossary of key terms and definitions for Shopify Partners, including platform fees, referral types, and sales processes

Term	Definition
Base platform fee	The fixed, monthly base subscription fee for the Shopify Plus or Enterprise plan. Learn more about Shopify Plus base platform fee pricing here.
Billed platform fee	The subscription fee - either Base Platform fee or Variable Platform fee - that is billed to the merchant for the Shopify Plus or Enterprise plan. Learn more about Shopify subscription fee options here.
Billing store	The first store opened under a Shopify Plus merchant's contract. It's considered the primary store for the merchant organization. Financial information, such as billing for the platform fee, is accessed through the billing store.
Co-sell	The Partner's collaborative involvement with a Shopify sales team in support of the sale of Shopify products and solutions, that progresses the sales cycle between the merchant and Shopify.
Store transfer	Shopify Partners can create client transfer stores. A client transfer store is a free version of a Shopify store that can be used to set up and develop a store for a merchant. Partners are eligible to earn a recurring referral commission when they build a client transfer store and transfer it to a merchant. Only the primary store (where billing is centralized) is eligible for referral commissions; clones of the store are not eligible. When a partner builds a Shopify client transfer store and the merchant selects the Shopify Plus plan directly from that store created by the partner, the partner becomes eligible to earn Shopify Plus referral commission. The merchant must not have had any previous contact with the Shopify sales team.
Disqualified Shopify Plus lead referral	After 90 days of a Shopify Plus lead form being submitted, it will be unqualified if a Shopify Plus sales opportunity is not created from that lead form. Within 90 days of a Shopify Plus lead referral form being submitted, it can be an disqualified lead referral if it hasn't been nurtured enough to be forwarded to a sales team. These referrals are not eligible for commission. Examples of unqualified lead referrals: The merchant is not yet aware of the cost of Plus. The merchant is not yet ready to move to Plus. There is already an open opportunity. The merchant didn't respond to the Partner or Shopify. The merchant is better suited for a core Shopify plan. The merchant decides that they no longer want Plus.
Enterprise Commerce	Enterprise Commerce is the modern, composable stack of products for enterprise retail. Shopify merchants can select components of the Shopify platform offering to integrate with their own systems.
Launch	The process of configuring, activating, implementing, or migrating a merchant on the Shopify Platform for the first time, enabling the sale of goods and or services. A merchant is considered launched when they have transacted a portion of the total GMV (not including test transactions) reported at the time of sale.
Net new	A prospective Shopify merchant that has never been a paying Shopify customer, joining the platform for the first time.
Partner assisted Plus auto-upgrade	A way for Shopify Partners to send Plus auto-upgrade invitations to prospect merchants through the Partner Dashboard. The prospective Shopify Plus merchant must: Click the upgrade link provided by the partner and Upgrade to Shopify Plus using that link in order for the partner to be eligible for Shopify Plus referral commission.
Processing fee	App billing is subject to a 2.9% processing fee. As of August 1, 2021, processing fees and taxes are charged on a separate line item. All processing fees are recorded on the payouts page.
Qualified lead	A Plus or Enterprise lead is considered "qualified", or a "qualified lead", when both of the following two (2) conditions have been met within 90 days of the lead referral form being submitted: The lead is registered before the sales opportunity is created in Shopify's customer relationship management platform; The Partner a) provides all requisite qualifying information about the merchant to the Shopify sales team to efficiently establish a relationship (for example, details about the prospective merchant such as headquarters location, estimated revenue, budget confirmation, or implementation timeline) and b) participates in the merchant introduction or handoff where necessary (for example, hand-off, kick-off calls, or meetings).
Referral commission or "commission"	The commission Shopify pays you for referral activities, including Shopify Plus referrals and client transfer store referrals. All referral commissions are recorded in a referral commission invoice.
Sales opportunity	Shopify deals that are in progress. Opportunity records track details about deals, including which accounts they're for, who the parties are, their stage in the sales funnel, and the amount of potential sales.
Shopify fees	Commission fees that represent Shopify's share of app, theme, or service sales. For example, if you sell a theme and are entitled to 70% of the sale price, then Shopify charges you a Shopify fee for 30% of the total theme sale and the remaining 70% is payable to you. All Shopify fees are recorded in a Shopify fees invoice.
Shopify Plus B2B	Shopify Plus Business to Business (B2B) is a suite of powerful and flexible B2B features built into the core of Shopify Plus.
Shopify Plus Expansion Stores	An additional store opened to complement the Plus merchant main store. This can be for the purposes of selling in different languages or currencies. Plus expansion stores are not the main billing store, and don't have a platform base fee.
Shopify Plus lead referral form	A form for submitting Shopify Plus referral leads to Shopify. The form is available in the Partner Dashboard.
Shopify Plus B2B lead referral form	A form for submitting Shopify Plus B2B referral leads to Shopify. The form is available in the Partner Dashboard.
Variable platform fee	The amount that is billed to the merchant for each store's eligible platform transactions for online customer transactions, in-person (retail) consumer transactions, and business-to-business transactions.