3 Legit Ways to Make Money With Shopify

Search "make money with Shopify" and you will find promises of overnight stores and six-figure months. Here are the three ways that are actually legitimate, with realistic expectations for each.

1. Run your own Shopify store

The obvious one. You sell products to customers through a store built on Shopify.

Business models:

Your own products, made or sourced in bulk.
Dropshipping, where a supplier ships for you. See dropshipping vs wholesale.
Print on demand, where designs are printed per order.
Digital products such as templates, ebooks and courses. See selling digital products on Shopify.

Costs to expect: a Shopify plan, domain, apps, product samples and marketing. Payment processing fees apply to each sale. Our guide to what percent Shopify takes breaks this down.

Reality check: most new stores take months to become profitable, and some never do. Starting with a product you understand and a small test budget limits the downside.

2. Sell services to Shopify merchants

Millions of merchants use Shopify, and many need help. In-demand services include:

Store setup and theme customisation
Product photography and descriptions
Email and SMS marketing setup
Paid ads management
SEO and content
App configuration and migrations

You can find clients through freelance sites, the Shopify Partner directory, communities and referrals. This route needs skill more than capital. See the best freelance websites and is it worth hiring a Shopify expert for the client's view.

3. Become a Shopify Partner

The Shopify Partner Program is free to join and covers three main earning paths:

Apps. Build an app and list it in the Shopify App Store.
Themes. Design a theme that passes Shopify's review for the Theme Store.
Referrals and affiliates. Earn when merchants you refer start paid plans, under program terms. See our ecommerce affiliate programs guide.

Partners also get development stores to build and test without paying for a plan.

What is not legit

Be cautious with:

Courses promising guaranteed income from "winning products".
Paid "done-for-you" stores sold with income projections.
Schemes that mainly earn by recruiting others.

The FTC's guidance on business opportunity scams is worth reading before you buy any income program.

Getting started this week

Store route: pick one product idea, open a trial, build one strong product page and show it to ten potential customers.
Services route: choose one service, write a short offer and contact five Shopify store owners you could genuinely help.
Partner route: create a free Partner account, set up a development store and explore the app or theme documentation.

Whichever you choose, start small and learn from the first customer before scaling.

Which path suits you?

You have	Best fit
A product idea and some budget	Your own store
A marketable skill	Services to merchants
Development or design skills	Partner apps or themes

Not sure about ecommerce at all? Read is it worth it to get into ecommerce first.

Frequently asked questions

Can you make money on Shopify with no money?

Selling services to Shopify merchants needs almost no upfront cost. Running a store needs at least a plan subscription, a domain and usually some product or marketing spend.

Is Shopify dropshipping still profitable?

It can be, but margins are thinner and competition is heavy. Profitable dropshippers usually have a strong niche, reliable suppliers and good marketing.

How does Shopify pay partners?

Partners earn revenue share on apps sold in the Shopify App Store, sell themes in the Theme Store, or earn referral commissions for new merchants, under the terms of the Partner Program.

Sources and further reading

Platform features, prices and policies change. Check the official help pages linked above before you act on a detail that matters to your store.

3 Legit Ways You Can Make Money With Shopify