AfterShip vs Shopify
AfterShip and Shopify are both E-commerce tools. AfterShip is aimed at E-commerce and small businesses, while Shopify is aimed at small businesses and enterprise. AfterShip costs less, from $29/mo versus $39/mo for Shopify. Only AfterShip has a free plan.
Shipment tracking, returns and post-purchase suite for online stores
The leading hosted e-commerce platform
| Pricing | Freemium · $29 | Paid · $39 |
| Starting price | $29/mo | $39/mo |
| Free plan | Yes | No |
| Free trial | 7 days | 3 days |
| Built for | E-commerce, Small businesses, Enterprise | Small businesses, Enterprise |
| Platforms | web, ios, android | web, ios, android |
| Country | — | CA · 2006 |
| Rating | — | — |
Choose AfterShip if
Shopify and multi-channel ecommerce brands shipping thousands of orders a year that want branded tracking and fewer support tickets.
- Very wide carrier coverage for cross-border sellers
- Measurably cuts where-is-my-order support tickets
- Deep Shopify integration with a free starter app plan
Look elsewhere if: Merchants mainly looking for discounted shipping labels (Shippo, ShipStation) or an all-in-one EU shipping tool (Sendcloud).
Choose Shopify if
Merchants of any size who want a managed, scalable store and are in a Shopify Payments country.
- Most complete hosted commerce stack
- Reliable checkout with high conversion (Shop Pay)
- Enormous app and theme ecosystem
Look elsewhere if: Digital-only creators (Gumroad, Payhip) or teams wanting full code control (WooCommerce, Medusa).
AfterShip vs Shopify pricing
AfterShip
- Free (Shopify app)$0Shopify App Store plan with 50 shipments a month
- Tracking Essentials$35/mo$29/mo billed yearly; 6,000 shipments/yr, $0.08 overage
- Tracking Premium$70/mo$59/mo billed yearly; 6,000 shipments/yr, API and webhooks
- EnterpriseCustomCustom volumes, SLAs and support
Shopify
- Basic$39/mo$29/mo billed annually; 2.9% + 30¢ online card rate
- Grow$105/mo$79/mo billed annually; 2.7% + 30¢, 5 staff accounts
- Advanced$399/mo$299/mo billed annually; 2.5% + 30¢, 15 staff accounts
- Plusfrom $2,300/moEnterprise features, B2B, checkout customization
AfterShip · Key features
- Branded tracking pages with product recommendations
- Email and SMS delivery notifications across 1,300+ carriers
- AI-predicted estimated delivery dates on product and checkout pages
- Self-serve returns and exchanges portal (AfterShip Returns)
- Shipping labels and rate comparison (AfterShip Shipping)
- Shipping protection priced per declared order value
Cons
- Pricing differs between direct site and Shopify App Store
- API access requires Premium, not Essentials
- Overage fees per shipment add up during peak season
Shopify · Key features
- Themes and a drag-and-drop online store editor
- Shopify Payments, Shop Pay and multi-currency with Markets
- Inventory, orders, shipping labels and POS
- App store with 8,000+ apps and Flow automation
- Checkout extensibility, B2B and headless (Plus)
- Shopify Magic AI and Sidekick assistant
Cons
- Transaction fees unless using Shopify Payments (not available everywhere)
- App costs add up quickly
- Theme customization needs Liquid knowledge
AfterShip vs Shopify: FAQ
Which is cheaper, AfterShip or Shopify?
AfterShip starts at $29/mo and Shopify at $39/mo. Both prices are checked on the vendors' own pricing pages.
Do AfterShip and Shopify have a free plan?
AfterShip has a free plan. Shopify has no free plan, a 3-day free trial.