MigrationOctober 1, 20266 min read

How Much Does a Shopify Migration Cost?

Shopify migration cost ranges by source platform and project complexity, what drives the number up or down, and how to get a quote you can actually compare.

By UVT Team

A Shopify migration costs what it costs to move your data, rebuild or replace your custom functionality, and protect your SEO — and those three things vary more by your current platform and catalogue complexity than by any fixed "migration fee." Simple stores on simpler platforms (Squarespace, WooCommerce) migrate at the lower end of the range; large catalogues with heavy customization or enterprise platforms (Adobe Commerce, Salesforce Commerce Cloud) cost significantly more, mainly because of integration and re-architecture work, not the Shopify platform fee itself.

Key takeaways

The Shopify platform fee itself (standard Shopify or Shopify Plus) is a small, predictable part of the total cost. The real cost driver is the migration project: data, integrations and custom functionality.
Source platform matters more than almost anything else — a Squarespace migration and an Adobe Commerce migration are different projects at a different scale, not points on the same curve.
The three biggest cost drivers, in order, are usually: integration complexity (ERP, OMS, CRM), how much custom functionality needs rebuilding versus Shopify already covering it, and catalogue size.
An itemized quote — data migration, theme/development, integrations, QA — tells you more than a single lump-sum number, which usually means the project hasn't actually been scoped yet.
Budget for the full first year, not just the build: platform fees, apps and a post-launch stabilization period all belong in the number you compare against staying put.

Why there's no single "Shopify migration cost" number

Every migration-cost article that gives one number is simplifying past the point of usefulness. The honest answer depends on three things that vary enormously from store to store:

What platform you're moving from. A fully-hosted SaaS platform like Squarespace or BigCommerce migrates differently — and usually faster and cheaper — than a self-hosted, deeply customized platform like Magento or Adobe Commerce, simply because there's less infrastructure and custom code to untangle.
How much is genuinely custom. Plugins, extensions and cartridges that do something specific to your business need their own decision: native to Shopify, available via an app, or worth rebuilding. The more that falls into the third bucket, the more the project costs.
How many systems you're integrated with. ERP, OMS, CRM, marketing automation, tax and shipping providers each add real scoping and development work — this is often the single biggest cost driver for established businesses, more than catalogue size itself.

Shopify migration cost by source platform

Rough relative ordering, from typically least to most expensive to migrate, driven mainly by platform complexity and how customized instances of each tend to be:

Squarespace — usually the fastest and least expensive; smaller catalogues, minimal custom logic, no infrastructure layer. See our Squarespace to Shopify guide.
WooCommerce — fully hosted on WordPress with a plugin stack; cost scales mainly with how many plugins need a specific Shopify-app replacement. See our WooCommerce to Shopify guide.
BigCommerce — similar tier to WooCommerce; both platforms are fully hosted, so cost is driven by functionality mapping rather than infrastructure. See our BigCommerce to Shopify guide.
Magento (open source) — self-hosted, so infrastructure, extensions and a larger data model add cost versus the platforms above. See our Magento to Shopify guide.
Custom-built platforms — no standard export tool, so cost includes custom data-export engineering on top of the usual migration work. See our custom platform guide.
Adobe Commerce (Magento Enterprise) — larger catalogues, B2B logic, multi-store setups and ERP integrations push this toward the top of the range. See our Adobe Commerce to Shopify guide.
Salesforce Commerce Cloud — typically the most expensive to migrate, driven by cartridge complexity and OMS integration as the critical path. See our Salesforce Commerce Cloud to Shopify guide.

What actually drives the number up or down

Within any platform, these are the factors that move a quote the most:

Integration count and complexity. Each system you connect to — ERP, OMS, CRM, tax, shipping — needs its own data-flow conversation. Three integrations cost meaningfully more than zero, regardless of platform.
Custom functionality. The more your current store does that isn't standard ecommerce behavior, the more development work a migration involves — this is true on every platform, not just enterprise ones.
Catalogue size and complexity. Matters, but usually less than integrations and custom logic. A large, simple catalogue migrates more easily than a small, deeply customized one.
Multi-store or multi-market setups. Each additional storefront, locale or currency adds its own data, content and redirect-mapping work.
Design scope. A custom Shopify theme costs more than customizing a strong existing theme — worth deciding deliberately rather than defaulting to "custom" out of habit.

What's usually not worth comparing: Shopify's platform fee alone

Shopify's own platform fee (standard plans, or Shopify Plus — check shopify.com/plus for current pricing, since it changes) is a small, predictable piece of the total cost compared to the migration project itself. Comparing "Shopify's monthly fee" against your current platform's licence cost in isolation misses most of the real number — the migration project, and what it takes to keep the new store running well afterward, matter more over a one- to three-year horizon than the platform fee difference alone.

How to get a quote you can actually compare

Ask any agency quoting your migration to break the number down by:

Data migration — products, customers, orders, content.
Theme and development — new build, customization, or custom functionality.
Integration work — per system, not a single bundled line.
SEO and redirect mapping — this is often under-scoped in a lump-sum quote.
QA and launch support.

A single number, without this breakdown, is a strong sign the catalogue and integrations haven't actually been scoped yet — which means the number is a guess, not a quote.

Frequently Asked Questions

How much does a typical Shopify migration cost?

It depends heavily on source platform and complexity — a simple Squarespace or WooCommerce migration is a different project, at a different cost, than an enterprise Adobe Commerce or Salesforce Commerce Cloud migration. Rather than one number, ask for an itemized quote scoped to your actual catalogue and integrations.

Is Shopify Plus more expensive to migrate to than standard Shopify?

The migration project cost is similar for the same source platform and complexity; the difference is mainly the ongoing Shopify Plus platform fee versus standard Shopify's. Which tier you need depends on order volume, B2B requirements, checkout customization needs and multi-store setups, not on migration cost alone.

What's the biggest hidden cost in a Shopify migration?

Integration work is the most commonly underestimated cost — ERP, OMS, CRM and marketing automation connections each need real scoping, and a lump-sum quote often hasn't accounted for them individually. Ask specifically how each integration is priced before committing a budget.

Should I expect ongoing costs after the migration itself?

Yes — budget for the Shopify (or Shopify Plus) platform fee, any apps replacing your previous plugins or extensions, and a post-launch stabilization period where issues surface and get fixed. The migration project cost and the first year's total cost of ownership are different numbers.

Why do migration quotes vary so much between agencies?

Partly genuine differences in scope and quality, and partly because some agencies quote before properly auditing your catalogue and integrations. An itemized, specific quote is worth more than a lower lump-sum number from an agency that hasn't looked closely yet.