As your store grows, every limitation becomes a risk. Processes can no longer be properly automated, the checkout process remains inflexible, and international markets can only be reached through workarounds.
Many e-commerce shopsystems promise flexibility, but in practice they offer too little control over checkout, integrations, or automation.
This is exactly where Shopify Plus comes in. With advanced features, technical depth, and full control over critical areas of your store, it provides the foundation for scalable brands.
As a Shopify Plus agency Datora develops tailored solutions that help you fully unlock your potential. In this article, you’ll learn about the specific advantages of Shopify Plus and when it makes sense to switch.
What is Shopify Plus?
Shopify Plus is the enhanced version of the well-known e-commerce platform. It is designed for brands that need more freedom, performance, and control than the standard plans can offer. From a technical perspective, it provides access to features specifically built for scalable business models.
Unlike the basic version, the focus is not on quick setup but on maximum customization and operational efficiency. This makes Plus ideal for companies that want to optimize their processes and deliberately strengthen their market position.
Shopify Plan: Overview in the table
Shopify offers several plans tailored to different needs. While the Basic and Advanced versions are suitable for small to medium-sized businesses, the Plus plan is designed for brands with complex structures and high volumes.
The following Table shows how the plans differ from each other :
|
criterion |
Basic (39 €/month) |
Shopify (105 €/month) |
Advanced (384 €/month) |
Shopify Plus (from €2,000/month) |
|
Target group |
Start-ups, retailers |
Growing shops |
Professional traders |
Scaling brands with special needs |
|
Checkout customization |
- |
- |
Restricted |
Fully customizable |
|
API limits |
Small amount |
Medium |
High |
Very high + exclusive endpoints |
|
automation |
Only through third parties |
Only through third parties |
Restricted |
Fully integrated with Shopify Flow |
|
Multi-Store |
- |
- |
- |
Up to 10 shops included |
|
Support |
standard |
standard |
Prioritized |
Personal contact |
|
B2B functions |
- |
- |
Only with detours |
Native B2B features |
|
Employee accounts |
2 |
5 |
15 |
unlimited |
A direct comparison of shop systems shows that the basic plans are sufficient for simple setups. Those who need multiple markets, complex processes, or full checkout control quickly reach their limits. Plus is the logical next step for brands that want to scale.

15 important advantages at a glance
Growth requires more than standard features. The following points show what the most powerful plan lets you do.
1. Full control over the checkout
The checkout is one of the most important parts for generating revenue in e-commerce, and at the same time it is one of the most limited areas in many shop systems. In Shopify’s standard plans, this area remains largely untouched.
With Plus, this changes completely. You get full access to your store’s checkout code and can adjust the entire process to fit your business model.
This applies not only to design and text, but also to logic, fields, pricing rules, and discount logic. This helps remove obstacles, build trust, and reduce conversion barriers.
This advantage is especially noticeable for products that need explanation or for B2B structures. Whether you need extra input fields, automated availability checks, or dynamic pricing tiers. With Plus, you can tailor the checkout technically and strategically to your exact requirements.
2. Automation with Shopify Flow
Manual processes take time, cause mistakes, and don’t scale. This is exactly where Shopify Flow provides real relief.
This tool is only available in the Plus plan and allows you to fully automate recurring tasks without extra apps or external tools.
You set up workflows based on triggers, conditions, and actions. Examples include automatically moving orders into specific workflows, custom tagging rules, or notifications based on certain cart actions.
Complex logic can be created in just a few minutes and adjusted at any time. This not only saves operational resources but also increases the speed at which your system can react.
Especially as your volume grows, this advantage becomes a strong driver of efficiency and stability.
3. Plan actions with Launchpad
Sales promotions take up resources, especially when they have to be carried out manually. Launchpad solves this problem by allowing you to schedule changes in your shop.
You can set up designs, prices, products, or entire campaigns in advance and have them go live automatically at a defined time.
This is especially useful for seasonal business, product launches, or sales events like Black Friday. Your team no longer has to log in at night or worry about perfect timing.
Instead, all changes run automatically at the planned time, including resetting everything after the promotion ends. This gives you full control over all live processes without creating operational bottlenecks.
Launchpad reduces complexity, minimizes potential errors, and gives you more room for strategic work.
4. Employee management without limits
Growth brings team structure. The more roles your company has, the more important clean permission management in the backend becomes. In the standard plans, the number of staff accounts is heavily limited.
With Plus, this limitation is completely removed. You can create as many users as you want and assign granular access rights that match your internal processes.
This not only improves security but also increases efficiency in daily operations. Whether it’s marketing, customer service, warehouse staff, or management, every role gets the access it needs without relying on workarounds or shared accounts.
This flexibility is a clear advantage, especially for teams with multiple brands, markets, or departments. It allows you to distribute responsibility without compromising on control or clarity.
5. Manage multiple shops centrally
Once you operate internationally or run multiple brands, a single store is often no longer enough. Plus allows you to manage up to ten separate stores within one account.
Each of these stores can be customized individually by language, currency, product range, or target audience. Everything is managed centrally through one backend.
This not only saves time on administration but also ensures consistency across all touchpoints. Price lists, products, and campaigns can be controlled for each market separately.
At the same time, processes like logistics or accounting can still be managed across all stores. For brands with multiple target groups or international ambitions, this feature is a key driver for scaling.

6. Personal contact
As your volume grows, your requirements for support and response times increase as well. In the Plus plan, you have a dedicated success manager at your side.
This person knows your store, understands your technical needs, and supports you in developing your platform further.
The difference compared to regular support is not just availability, but the strategic depth. You don’t receive generic answers, you get specific recommendations based on your goals and challenges.
Whether it’s performance questions, new features, or scaling strategies, your success manager makes sure you can use the technical possibilities. For companies with fast-paced operations, this direct line is a major advantage.
7. Increased API limits and exclusive interfaces
Integrating external systems is essential for stores that are scaling. Standard plans quickly reach technical limits, especially with API requests, data volumes, or connections to ERP, PIM, or CRM systems.
Shopify Plus raises these limits significantly and also gives you exclusive endpoints that are only available in this plan.
This means you can exchange larger amounts of data more quickly, automate more complex processes, and integrate external systems deeply into your store's backend.
Whether it's real-time inventory syncing, custom customer segmentation, or synchronized product data, with expanded API resources, your store becomes the central control platform. Technically experienced teams benefit from this maximum level of freedom.
8. Native B2B functionality
Many growing brands serve not only end customers but also business customers. In the regular Shopify plans, this can only be implemented in a limited way. Plus offers a dedicated B2B infrastructure that is fully integrated and ready to use.
You can create company profiles, assign individual price lists, define payment terms, and tailor the entire sales process to B2B customers.
You use the same platform as for your D2C sales, but you keep full control over access, assortment, and conditions. Orders on account, quantity-based pricing, or customer-specific discounts can also be handled without additional systems.
This level of depth creates a solid foundation for professional business customer relationships and reduces the workload in sales.
9. Lower transaction costs at high volume
As your revenue grows, transaction fees have a direct impact on your margin. In the standard plans, additional fees of up to two percent may apply, depending on whether you use Shopify Payments or not.
With Plus, you benefit from a much cheaper model. The fees drop to only 0.25 percent per transaction.
Especially with monthly revenue in the six- or seven-figure range, this difference adds up to a significant amount.
The lower fees not only improve your calculations but also give you financial room for further investments, whether in marketing, development, or staff.
10. Headless Commerce
Modern brands require maximum creative freedom, especially on the frontend. With Shopify Plus, you can completely separate your storefront from the backend.
This so-called headless model allows you to build custom frontends that match your branding, target audience, and use case.
Through the Storefront API and GraphQL, you can control any interface flexibly, whether it's a mobile app, a web portal, or an interactive product experience. At the same time, central shop management remains in the familiar backend.
This separation gives you completely new opportunities in design, performance, and user experience. Headless commerce is a major strategic advantage, especially for technically experienced teams or complex use cases.
11. Access to exclusive Shopify Plus apps
Not all functions can be handled with standard apps. Plus gives you access to applications that are only available with this plan.
These include tools for campaign management, personalized discount mechanisms, or special B2B extensions that go far beyond what is normally offered in the App Store.
These exclusive apps are deeply integrated into the system and optimized for high scalability. They allow you to automate processes, target audiences more precisely, and map different sales models.
This is especially valuable if you need fast time-to-market cycles or want to test features before developing them individually.

12. Integrated Content Delivery Network
Loading times are a key factor for conversion, user experience, and SEO. Plus uses a global content delivery network (CDN) that automatically distributes your content, from images to scripts, to servers worldwide. This keeps your shop fast everywhere, no matter where visitors are located.
Technically, this means that resources are loaded from the server that is geographically closest. This reduces latency and prevents bottlenecks during heavy traffic. For brands operating internationally, this is a clear advantage.
You don’t need to build your own infrastructure or integrate third-party CDNs. High performance is already built into the system.
13. Stability during high traffic
Growing shops must remain performant even under heavy load. Plus is designed to run smoothly even with strong traffic, such as product drops, sales events, or seasonal peaks.
According to the provider, the platform can handle up to 11,000 checkouts per minute and guarantees 99.99 percent uptime.
For you, this means no stress at campaign launches, no losses due to outages, and no emergency plans in the background. The technical foundation scales automatically without requiring investments in server capacity or performance optimization.
This reliability gives you planning security in daily business as well as in long-term growth strategies.
14. International expansion without system limitations
Expanding into new markets pushes many shop systems to their structural limits. With Shopify Plus, you can run international shops with their own domains, languages, and currencies, technically separate, but centrally managed.
Up to ten independent storefronts can be managed within one account and customized individually.
This makes localization easier and allows differentiated strategies for each market. Pricing, shipping options, content, or tax models can be defined per country without losing functionality or clarity.
This multi-store capability makes the Plus plan an ideal solution for brands that think globally but want to manage efficiently.
15. Scalable structure for individual developments
Many brands reach the limits of pre-built features. Shopify gives you a stable technical foundation to integrate custom features, whether through APIs, custom apps, or connections to third-party systems.
You are not limited to templates or existing workflows, but can build exactly what your business model needs.
For performance-driven companies, this openness becomes a major advantage. You can continue developing where others have to stop.
Combined with the scalable architecture of Plus, your system remains fast and expandable even as your volume grows.
Datora supports you with custom solutions that not only work but give you a real competitive advantage. As an e-commerce agency, we specialize in technically scalable Shopify setups.

Shopify Plus: How does the upgrade work?
Switching to Shopify Plus is straightforward, but it doesn’t happen through the backend like a regular plan change.
Instead, you request the upgrade directly through Shopify’s sales team. After a personal conversation, you will receive a customized offer based on your business model and your requirements.
Once the contract is signed, the onboarding begins. In most cases, it takes less than 24 hours for your shop to be moved into the new environment.
You gain access to all advanced features, including Flow, Launchpad, and checkout customization. At the same time, you are enrolled in the Jumpstart program, which supports you in setting up and using the new possibilities effectively.
Alternatively, you can rely on specialized Shopify Plus consulting from experienced partners to align the system even better with your structure.
Whether the upgrade is worthwhile depends less on revenue and more on your needs. Plus shows its strengths when processes become more complex, internationalization increases, or your shop reaches structural limits.
If you, for example, want to serve multiple target groups with different shops, need personalized checkout logic, or want to integrate your existing ERP deeply, an upgrade makes sense.
You also benefit from Shopify Plus Plan if you want lower transaction fees or rely on native B2B features. In comparison to other e-commerce systems, Shopify stands out because of its balance between technical openness and operational stability.
You don’t get a completely open playground, but you are not restricted by rigid limits either.
For performance-driven brands that want to grow quickly while staying efficient, that balance makes all the difference.
Anyone who takes a closer look at the Shopify Plus pros and cons will quickly see that the extended capabilities justify the investment when the business model is a good fit.






