Try FreeShopify is an ecommerce platform that lets you create an online store, list products, accept payments, and manage orders — all without coding skills. Over 4 million active stores run on Shopify globally, making it the most popular platform for selling physical products online. Setting up a basic Shopify store takes 1–2 hours. Setting up a store optimized for selling custom products takes 3–4 hours with a product customizer app. Plans start at $39/month.
This guide covers everything a complete beginner needs to go from zero to a functioning Shopify store, with specific guidance for merchants selling custom and personalized products.
How Much Does Shopify Cost?
Shopify offers three main plans for most merchants. The Basic plan covers everything you need to start.
| Plan | Monthly Cost | Transaction Fee (Shopify Payments) | Staff Accounts | Best For |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Basic | $39/mo | 2.9% + $0.30 | 2 | New stores, under $10K/mo |
| Shopify | $105/mo | 2.7% + $0.30 | 5 | Growing stores, $10K–$50K/mo |
| Advanced | $399/mo | 2.5% + $0.30 | 15 | Established stores, $50K+/mo |
The Basic plan at $39/month includes everything you need: unlimited products, online store, checkout, shipping labels, abandoned cart recovery, and basic reporting. The higher plans primarily reduce transaction fees and add staff accounts.
Additional costs to budget for: a domain name (~$12/year), a product customizer app if selling custom products ($39–$79/month for BrandLift Product Personalizer), and optional paid themes ($150–$400 one-time, though free themes work well).
How Do I Create a Shopify Store?
Setting up a Shopify store follows a structured process. Here's each step with approximate time:
Step 1: Create Your Account (5 minutes)
Go to shopify.com and click "Start free trial." Enter your email, create a password, and choose a store name. Shopify provides a free 3-day trial and your first month for $1, so you can build and test everything before committing to full pricing.
During setup, Shopify asks a few questions about your business (what you're selling, how far along you are). Answer honestly — these help Shopify recommend relevant features, but they don't lock you into anything.
Step 2: Choose and Customize a Theme (30 minutes)
Your theme determines how your store looks. Shopify offers free themes that work well for most stores:
- Dawn — Shopify's default. Clean, fast, versatile. Recommended for most custom product stores.
- Craft — Designed for artisan and handmade products. Good for decoration shops.
- Taste — Minimalist with strong product imagery focus. Good for personalized gifts.
Customize your theme in the Shopify admin under "Online Store → Themes → Customize." Change colors to match your brand, upload your logo, and configure the homepage layout. For custom product stores, prioritize clean product pages over elaborate homepages — the product customizer is your selling tool, not the homepage design.
Step 3: Add Your First Products (15–30 minutes per product)
Navigate to "Products → Add product" in your Shopify admin. For each product:
- Title: Descriptive and keyword-rich. "Custom Laser Engraved 30oz Tumbler" not just "Tumbler."
- Description: Describe the product AND the customization options. What can customers personalize? What's the production method? How long does it take?
- Images: Upload 4–6 product photos showing the product with example customizations. See our product photography guide.
- Pricing: Set your retail price. For custom products, use a 2.5–3x markup on production cost. See our income potential guide for margin analysis.
- Variants: Set up size, color, and any other options using Shopify's variant system.
- Shipping: Enter the product weight for accurate shipping calculations.
Step 4: Set Up Payments (10 minutes)
Enable Shopify Payments under "Settings → Payments." This is Shopify's built-in payment processor — it has the lowest fees and supports all major credit cards, Apple Pay, Google Pay, and Shop Pay. If you're in a supported country (US, Canada, UK, and many others), Shopify Payments is the recommended choice.
Step 5: Configure Shipping (15 minutes)
Under "Settings → Shipping and delivery," set up your shipping rates:
- Free shipping (build cost into product price) — highest conversion rate
- Flat rate ($5.95 standard, $12.95 expedited) — simple and predictable
- Calculated rates (real-time carrier rates from USPS, UPS, FedEx) — most accurate but can show high prices that reduce conversion
For custom products, remember to account for production time in your shipping estimates. A product that takes 3–5 days to produce plus 3–5 days to ship has a total delivery window of 6–10 business days. Communicate this clearly on product pages. See our shipping guide.
Step 6: Set Up Your Domain (10 minutes)
Under "Settings → Domains," either buy a domain through Shopify or connect an existing one. A custom domain (yourstore.com) is essential for credibility — shoppers don't trust myshopify.com URLs.
Step 7: Set Store Policies (15 minutes)
Under "Settings → Policies," create your shipping policy, return policy, and privacy policy. Shopify provides templates you can customize. For custom products, your return policy should note that personalized items are typically non-refundable since they can't be resold — but offer reprints for production errors.
How Do I Add Product Customization to My Shopify Store?
Shopify's native product options (size, color dropdowns) don't support visual customization — customers can't type text, upload images, or preview their design. For that, you need a product customizer app.
BrandLift Product Personalizer adds real-time customization to your Shopify product pages:
- Install from the Shopify App Store (14-day free trial)
- Select a product from your catalog
- Define the print area (where customers can place designs)
- Enable customization options (text input, image upload, color selection)
- Customers see a live preview of their customized product before purchasing
- Each order generates a production-ready file for your decoration equipment or POD provider
The full setup guide for product customization takes about 10 minutes per product: How to Add Product Customization to Shopify in 10 Minutes.
For merchants who want to compare customizer options, see our Best Shopify Product Customizer Apps comparison.
How Do I Get My First Sales?
New Shopify stores don't get automatic traffic — you need to drive visitors to your store. The fastest paths to your first sale:
Share with your network. Post your store on personal social media, email friends and family, share in relevant online communities. Your first customers are almost always people who know you.
Run a small ad. A $10–$20/day Facebook or Instagram ad targeting your niche audience (e.g., "dog owners interested in personalized gifts") generates immediate traffic. Test 2–3 different ad creatives and scale what works.
List on Google Shopping. Connect your Shopify store to Google Merchant Center (free) and your products appear in Google Shopping results. This drives high-intent traffic from people actively searching for your product type.
Create content. Start posting on TikTok, Instagram, or Pinterest showing your products and the customization experience. Short-form video of the design process consistently performs well for custom products.
Approach organizations. Reach out to schools, gyms, or local businesses about setting up branded storefronts. One successful storefront can generate more revenue than months of individual sales. See our marketing playbook for detailed strategies.
What Apps Does a Custom Product Store Need?
Beyond your theme and basic settings, these app categories make the biggest impact:
Product customizer (essential). BrandLift Product Personalizer — lets customers design products with live preview. Generates production files. Includes client storefronts and bundle building. Starting at $39/month.
Email marketing (important). Klaviyo (free up to 250 contacts) or Shopify Email (included). Set up abandoned cart recovery immediately — it recovers 5–15% of abandoned carts automatically.
POD fulfillment (if applicable). Printify, Printful, or connect to Kodiak POD through BrandLift for custom drinkware.
Reviews (helpful). Judge.me (free plan) or Loox. Social proof increases conversion rates by 15–20% on average.
Don't install 20 apps on day one. Start with a customizer and email tool. Add others as specific needs arise. Every app adds potential page load time and complexity.
Frequently Asked Questions
How long does it take to set up a Shopify store?
A basic Shopify store takes 1–2 hours to set up. A store optimized for selling custom products (with a product customizer, production file generation, and optimized product pages) takes 3–4 hours.
Do I need coding skills to use Shopify?
No. Shopify's admin interface, theme customizer, and app ecosystem are all designed for non-technical users. Installing apps, configuring products, and managing orders require zero coding.
Can I sell custom products on Shopify?
Yes. Shopify is the most popular platform for custom product sellers. With a product customizer app like BrandLift, customers can personalize products with text, images, and design choices — all with real-time preview and automatic production file generation.
Is Shopify better than Etsy for custom products?
Each platform has strengths. Shopify gives you full control over branding, customer data, and customization capabilities (live preview, bundles, storefronts). Etsy provides built-in marketplace traffic but limits customization to text fields and charges higher fees (10%+). Most successful sellers use both. See our Etsy vs Shopify comparison.
How much does it cost to run a Shopify store monthly?
For a custom product store: Shopify Basic ($39/mo) + product customizer ($39–$79/mo) + domain (~$1/mo) = $79–$119/month. POD fulfillment adds no monthly fee (pay per order). Total: under $120/month before marketing spend.
Can I use Shopify for B2B sales?
Yes. BrandLift's client storefronts let you create branded stores for businesses, schools, teams, and organizations — all within your single Shopify account. This is how many decorators use Shopify for both B2C (direct-to-consumer) and B2B (organization) sales.
Written by Rob Diederich, Founder of BrandLift & Kodiak Decorated Products — running Shopify stores for custom product sales and B2B client storefronts.