How Much Does a Shopify Store Cost in Saudi Arabia in 2026?

Shopify plan fees (recurring)

Shopify bills in USD, not riyals. At the time of writing, Shopify's published pricing is Basic at $39/month, the mid plan at $105/month and Advanced at $399/month when paying monthly, and roughly 25% less on each when paid yearly. Prices change, so check shopify.com/pricing before you budget.

Converted at the pegged rate of SAR 3.75 to the dollar, that is roughly SAR 146, SAR 394 and SAR 1,496 per month respectively. Most new Saudi stores fit the Basic plan comfortably. You only need the mid plan when reporting and staffing needs grow, and Advanced mainly when you need lower card rates or calculated shipping at scale.

Domain and theme (small, mostly one-time)

• Domain: about SAR 40-60 per year for a .com, more for a .sa. Buy it yourself so the business owns it, not the developer.
• Theme: the free Dawn theme is genuinely good and supports right-to-left Arabic layouts, which is where I suggest most Saudi stores start. Paid themes in the official store run about $150-400 (SAR 560-1,500) one-time, and make sense when a specific layout need is clear - not as a default.

Apps (recurring, easy to underestimate)

A typical small Saudi store ends up with SAR 0-375 per month ($0-100) in apps. Common additions: reviews, WhatsApp chat, an Arabic translation or RTL helper, email marketing, and a COD (cash on delivery) helper, since COD is still a large share of Saudi e-commerce orders. The trap is installing ten apps that each cost $10; audit apps every few months and remove what you do not use, because each one also slows the store.

Payments in Saudi Arabia

Shopify Payments is not available in Saudi Arabia at the time of writing, so stores use third-party gateways such as Tap, PayTabs or HyperPay, each with their own rates and approval requirements. mada, the national debit scheme most Saudi shoppers pay with, is supported through these gateways rather than directly by Shopify. BNPL providers Tabby and Tamara are popular with Saudi shoppers and take a merchant fee per order. Gateway approval depends on your commercial registration (CR) and business documents, so no developer can guarantee it - budget time for the approval process, not just money.

VAT and legal costs (not optional)

Saudi VAT is 15%. If your taxable turnover crosses the registration threshold, VAT registration with ZATCA is required, your store must show VAT-inclusive prices, and ZATCA's e-invoicing rules (Fatoora) apply to your invoices. A commercial registration is its own cost, separate from Shopify entirely. These are business costs, not website costs, but they belong in the real budget from day one. For anything beyond the basics, speak to a Saudi accountant or business-setup consultant.

Development cost (the widest range)

• DIY: SAR 0 beyond your time. With a free theme and a small catalog, a careful owner can launch alone. Realistic for simple stores.
• Freelancer setup: for a standard store - theme configured, catalog loaded, payments and delivery set, policies written, basic SEO - expect quotes roughly in the SAR 3,000-10,000 range depending on catalog size and content quality.
• Custom design or complex builds: custom theme work, migrations from another platform, integrations or Arabic/English bilingual setups commonly run SAR 10,000-25,000+ with agencies at the higher end.

Worth knowing: Salla, a Saudi platform, is popular with Arabic-first stores that sell only locally; Shopify's strength is its app ecosystem and selling internationally. I build on both kinds of stacks and will tell you plainly which fits. Any quote that hides recurring costs inside a one-time number should be questioned. Ask what the monthly total will be after launch, not just the build price.

A realistic first-year budget for a small Saudi store

Basic plan paid monthly (~SAR 146), domain (~SAR 50/year), free theme, a couple of apps (~SAR 100/month), plus a freelancer build at the modest end: roughly SAR 6,000-9,500 for the first year all-in, excluding your commercial registration, product photography and advertising. DIY the build and it drops to around SAR 3,500. Numbers move with your catalog and choices - treat this as a planning frame, not a quote.

Common questions

What is the minimum monthly cost to run a Shopify store in Saudi Arabia?

A small Saudi store can run on about SAR 150-450 per month in platform costs: the Basic plan works out to roughly SAR 146 per month at the pegged dollar rate, plus a few essential apps. A domain adds about SAR 40-60 per year. The one-time build ranges from a free DIY weekend to SAR 15,000 or more for a custom project.

Does Shopify bill in Saudi riyals?

No. Shopify bills in US dollars: Basic at $39 per month, the mid plan at $105 and Advanced at $399 when paying monthly, and roughly 25% less on each when paid yearly. At the pegged rate of SAR 3.75 to the dollar, that is roughly SAR 146, SAR 394 and SAR 1,496 per month. Check shopify.com/pricing before budgeting, since prices change.

Is Shopify Payments available in Saudi Arabia?

No, not at the time of writing. Saudi stores use third-party gateways such as Tap, PayTabs or HyperPay, which also give shoppers mada, the national debit scheme. BNPL providers Tabby and Tamara are popular with Saudi shoppers. Gateway approval depends on your commercial registration and documents, so budget time for approval, not just money.

Do I need to charge VAT on my Saudi Shopify store?

Saudi VAT is 15%. If your taxable turnover crosses the registration threshold, VAT registration with ZATCA is required, your store must show VAT-inclusive prices, and ZATCA's e-invoicing rules apply to your invoices. Confirm your obligations with a Saudi tax consultant, since the rules depend on your turnover and setup.

Working with me

I am Afnan CH, a Shopify developer and digital marketer based in Kerala, working remotely with businesses in Saudi Arabia and the Gulf. If you are planning a store, I will tell you plainly which of these costs you actually need and which can wait. See digital marketing for Saudi businesses, my services and starting packages, or real work on the projects page. Selling in the UAE too? Read what a Shopify store costs in Dubai and the UAE.