If you're thinking about starting an online business, you'll hit this decision fast: Do you buy a ready-made Shopify store, or build one from scratch? On paper, building it yourself sounds cheaper. In reality, most beginners (and even experienced people) get hit with hidden costs—money, time, stress, and endless "I'll fix it later" tasks that quietly delay the real goal: getting sales.
In this guide, I'll break down the true cost to start a Shopify store, and answer the big question: buy dropshipping store vs build—which one is actually smarter?
The Real Goal Isn't "Launching a Store"
Success isn't about just going live—it's about launching a store that looks trustworthy, loads fast, and converts visitors into paying customers.
A basic store with a product and a checkout is easy. A store that people trust enough to pay is where the cost and time adds up.
Building a Shopify Store from Scratch (DIY)
DIY sounds simple until you account for the hidden costs in time, tools, and delayed momentum that most beginners don't see coming.
Let's talk about what "DIY" really includes. Most people assume it's: Shopify plan, domain, add products, start ads. But that's the simplified version. Here's what you actually end up paying for—either with money or with your time.
Shopify Subscription & Domain Costs
These baseline costs are unavoidable whether you build or buy, but they're just the beginning of your real investment.
Shopify plans vary, but most new sellers start on the basic plan. This is the same whether you DIY or buy a ready-made store. You'll also need a domain to look legit, typically with yearly renewal costs.
Theme Costs (Where Hidden Money Starts)
Free themes exist, but most sellers end up buying premium themes because they convert better and look more professional to cold traffic.
Yes, Shopify has free themes. But many free themes feel "starter" unless you customize heavily. Most people end up buying a premium theme because it looks cleaner and converts better. Hidden cost: paid themes plus time to set them up properly.
Logo & Branding Expenses
A store without branding looks like a scam to cold traffic—people don't say it, they just leave and never come back.
So you either pay someone for a logo and brand kit, or spend hours making one yourself and redoing it later. Hidden cost: logo design fees, brand assets, and multiple revisions.
Copywriting (The Real Time Killer)
Product pages, policies, FAQs, and trust copy can't be skipped—bad copy kills conversions faster than anything else.
Product pages, home page sections, shipping policy, FAQs, "About Us," trust badges, announcements, banner copy… You can't skip this. Bad copy kills conversions. If you write it yourself, you pay with time. If you hire, you pay with money.
Apps You End Up "Needing"
Even basic dropshipping stores require multiple apps for reviews, upsells, and trust—and those monthly subscriptions stack up fast.
Even a basic dropshipping store usually needs apps for things like reviews, upsells, email capture, bundles, currency/location handling, shipping estimates, trust badges, and page builders. Many are monthly subscriptions. They stack up fast.
Product Research & Supplier Setup
Finding winning products isn't "just import"—it's research, pricing strategy, description writing, and endless cleanup work.
This is the part nobody counts properly. Finding products that aren't dead, checking competitors, setting pricing, writing descriptions, matching images, setting variants, importing, cleaning titles… It's not "just import products." It's setup work.
The Biggest Hidden Cost: Delay
Every extra week spent building is a week you're not testing ads, collecting data, or making sales—delay is expensive.
Every extra week you spend building is a week you're not testing ads, not collecting data, not improving conversion rates, and not making sales. Delay is expensive because it pushes your learning curve further away.
DIY Summary: What It Really Costs
DIY has two price tags—cash cost for tools and branding, plus time cost that quietly kills momentum and delays your first sale.
When people ask "what's the cost to start a Shopify store?" they usually count the obvious. But DIY has two price tags: cash cost (themes, apps, branding, tools) and time cost (the slow leak that kills momentum). Even if you keep cash spending low, your time cost can be brutal—especially if you're trying to do everything while also learning Shopify, marketing, product strategy, and ads.
Buying a Ready-Made Store (The Shortcut That's Often Cheaper)
Buying a ready-made store means paying to skip the "setup tax" and starting with a foundation designed to convert from day one.
Buying a ready-made store is basically paying to skip the "setup tax." Instead of spending days or weeks building, you start with a store that already has a complete layout, branding, product pages, essential pages (policies, FAQs, contact, etc.), and a structure designed to convert. At EcomChief, the point is simple: you buy a store that's already built so you can spend your energy on the only thing that matters—traffic and sales.
The $99 Reality Check: Why It's Often Cheaper Than DIY
Even if you're capable of building yourself, buying is often cheaper because your time has real monetary value.
This is the part most people don't want to hear: Even if you're capable of building a store yourself, it's often still cheaper to buy one—because your time has value. If you DIY, you usually spend time on theme setup and edits, mobile layout fixes, branding and logos, writing copy, product page formatting, importing and cleaning products, creating policies and FAQs, and basic conversion setup. Even for a "simple" store, many people spend 20–60 hours before they feel ready. And if you're a beginner, it's often longer.
Who Should Build From Scratch?
DIY makes sense if you enjoy design work, know Shopify well, and have time to spare—just be honest about choosing a slower start.
DIY makes sense if you enjoy design and setup work, you already know Shopify well, you have time to spare, or you want something very custom from day one. Just be honest: if you DIY, you're choosing a slower start. That's not wrong—just a tradeoff.
Who Should Buy a Ready-Made Store?
Buying makes sense when you want speed, professional results, and the ability to focus on marketing instead of endless setup tasks.
Buying a ready-made store makes sense if you want to launch fast, you want a professional look immediately, you don't want to get stuck in setup, you want to focus on marketing and growth, or you're testing multiple niches and want speed. For most beginners, buying is the smarter move because it removes the biggest risk: quitting before you even launch.
The Final Answer: Which One Wins?
If your goal is results, a ready-made store wins on speed, fewer mistakes, lower hidden costs, and earlier sales testing.
If your goal is to learn Shopify design, DIY can be a fun project. But if your goal is to start a business and get results, a ready-made store usually wins on faster launch, fewer mistakes, lower "hidden costs," less stress, and earlier sales testing. And when you compare the real cost to start a Shopify store, the surprise is this: A $99 ready-made store often costs less than doing it yourself. Not because DIY is impossible—because DIY has hidden fees, time drains, and delays that most people don't account for.
Want the Fastest Route to Launch?
Skip the setup phase and start with a store foundation that's ready to run—so you can focus on traffic and sales from day one.
If you want to skip the setup phase and start with a store that's ready to run, browse the ready-made Shopify businesses on EcomChief.com. You focus on traffic. The store foundation is already done.
