Ecommerce website cost in the UK: every cost of starting and running an online shop
Short answer: a simple online shop you build yourself can cost from around £20 to £30 a month. Having one built typically costs £2,000 to £5,000 with a freelancer and £5,000 to £15,000 with an agency, according to Bark, and more for custom design and integrations. On top come ongoing costs for the platform, payments, apps, domain and connection to your accounts. Payment fees, taken on every sale, often become the biggest ongoing cost as the shop grows.
Online retail is big business. Internet sales made up around 27 percent of all UK retail sales in August 2026, and peaked above 32 percent in November 2025 (ONS). There is money to be made, but it pays to know the costs before you start.
The one-off cost: building the shop
| Option | Rough cost | Suits you when |
|---|---|---|
| Build it yourself with a ready-made theme | Your time, plus a theme if you buy one | Small range and time to learn |
| Freelancer | About £2,000 to £5,000 | A standard shop on a theme |
| Agency | About £5,000 to £15,000 | Custom design, integrations and a shop that needs to grow |
The ranges come from Bark's 2026 UK price guide, which says e-commerce sites typically start at around £5,000 (Bark). Treat them as a rough guide. What drives the price is custom design, the number of products to load, migration from an old shop and connections to other systems.
The platform
Shopify
In the UK, Shopify costs £19 a month for Basic, £49 for Grow and £259 for Advanced billed yearly, or £25, £65 and £344 billed monthly (Shopify). Hosting, security and updates are included. If you use a payment provider other than Shopify Payments, Shopify adds a fee of 2 percent on Basic, 1 percent on Grow and 0.6 percent on Advanced.
WooCommerce
WooCommerce is a free WordPress plugin. Instead, you pay for hosting. IONOS's e-commerce WordPress plan, for example, costs £20 a month excluding VAT after the introductory price (IONOS). You or your agency are responsible for updates and security.
Which platform suits you is about more than price. Read WooCommerce vs Shopify and about building a Shopify shop.
Payments: cards, Apple Pay and Klarna
Payment fees are taken on every sale and grow with your revenue. UK shoppers expect cards, Apple Pay and Google Pay, and often PayPal and buy now, pay later. Examples of published prices:
| Payment method | Fee per sale | Source |
|---|---|---|
| Cards via Shopify Payments, Basic | 2% + 25p | Shopify |
| Cards via Shopify Payments, Grow and Advanced | 1.7% and 1.5% + 25p | Shopify |
| Klarna via Shopify Payments | 4.99% + 30p | Shopify |
| UK cards via WooPayments | 1.5% + 25p, plus VAT on the fee | WooCommerce |
| Standard UK cards via Stripe | 1.5% + 20p | Stripe |
Shopify Payments is available in the UK (Shopify Help Center). International and premium cards and currency conversion cost more with every provider.
Worked example: a shop selling £10,000 a month with an average card order of £50 pays around £200 in percentage fees and £50 in fixed fees with Shopify Payments on Basic, so roughly £250 a month.
Domain, hosting and accounts
- Domain. A .co.uk domain costs around £10 a year, for example at IONOS (IONOS).
- Hosting for WooCommerce, from a few pounds to around £20 a month for a shop-ready plan.
- Apps and extensions. Subscriptions, reviews, shipping and newsletters often cost a few pounds to tens of pounds a month each.
- Xero with Shopify. Xero's own Shopify integration is free and syncs sales, payouts, fees and taxes (Xero App Store).
- Xero with WooCommerce. The official Xero for WooCommerce extension creates invoices in Xero automatically (WooCommerce). Read Xero API for custom connections.
Three example budgets
The examples are simplified and based on the prices above. VAT, shipping and marketing come on top.
| Small shop, built yourself | Growing shop, built by an agency | Larger shop with integrations | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Build | Your time | Around £5,000 to £8,000 | £10,000 and up |
| Platform per month | Shopify Basic, £19 | Shopify Grow, £49 | Shopify Advanced, £259 |
| Apps | £0 to £30 | £50 to £150 | £200 and up |
| Accounting connection | Free Xero integration | Free Xero integration | Custom integration |
| Payment fees | Around 2% + 25p per sale | Around 1.7% + 25p per sale | Negotiated rates |
Costs people forget
- Product photos and copy. Good images and your own product descriptions sell, but take time or money.
- Terms and the right to cancel. Customers can cancel up to 14 days after delivery without giving a reason. If you do not tell them about that right, they can cancel at any time in the next 12 months (GOV.UK).
- VAT. Show prices including VAT to consumers. The standard rate is 20 percent (GOV.UK).
- Accessibility. Under the Equality Act 2010, businesses serving the public must make reasonable adjustments for disabled people (legislation.gov.uk). If you sell to consumers in the EU, the European Accessibility Act may also apply (European Commission).
- Cookies. Non-essential cookies, for example for ad tracking, need consent (ICO).
- Maintenance, especially with WooCommerce. Read WordPress maintenance and security.
- Marketing. A shop with no traffic sells nothing. Plan a budget for SEO and ads from the start, and read What is a good ROAS?
Frequently asked questions
How much does an ecommerce website cost in the UK?
Built yourself, a simple online shop can cost from around £20 to £30 a month. According to Bark, freelancers typically charge £2,000 to £5,000 and agencies £5,000 to £15,000. Platform, payment fees, apps and an accounting connection come on top.
How much does Shopify cost in the UK?
Shopify Basic costs £19 a month billed yearly or £25 monthly. Grow costs £49 or £65, and Advanced £259 or £344. Payment fees and apps come on top.
What are the card fees for an online shop in the UK?
Shopify Payments charges from 2% + 25p on Basic, WooPayments 1.5% + 25p for UK cards plus VAT on the fee, and Stripe 1.5% + 20p for standard UK cards. International cards cost more.
Can I connect my online shop to Xero?
Yes. Xero has its own free Shopify integration, and there is an official Xero for WooCommerce extension. Shops with special needs can use a custom integration on the Xero API.
What legal requirements apply to a UK online shop?
Customers have a 14-day right to cancel, prices for consumers should include VAT, non-essential cookies need consent, and the Equality Act requires reasonable adjustments for disabled customers.
Sources
- Pricing, Shopify UK
- Shopify Payments in the United Kingdom, Shopify Help Center
- WooPayments fees, WooCommerce
- Pricing, Stripe UK
- WordPress hosting, IONOS UK
- .uk domains, IONOS UK
- Website design prices 2026, Bark
- Shopify by Xero, Xero App Store
- Xero for WooCommerce, WooCommerce
- Internet sales as a percentage of total retail sales, Office for National Statistics
- Online and distance selling for businesses, GOV.UK
- Equality Act 2010, section 29, legislation.gov.uk
- European Accessibility Act, European Commission
- , ICO
