Planning your budget

What does an ecommerce platform cost?

Budget for subscriptions, payments, apps, themes and maintenance. Learn which costs to investigate before committing to software for your store.

Updated 31 October 2026 · About our coverage

The plan is only one line item

A subscription or hosting package is the starting point. Your actual costs depend on payment processing, extensions, themes and the help you need to build and maintain your store.

Separate setup from ongoing costs

List design, migration and development separately from monthly software, maintenance and processing. Include internal time so a low software bill does not hide a large workload.

Model your own sales

Use your expected order count and average order value to estimate variable fees. Ask providers for terms that apply to your country, currency and payment method.

Check the assumptions

Confirm billing frequency, tax treatment and renewal terms directly with the provider. Test more than one sales scenario before committing to a long contract.