How to sell a small Shopify store

Selling a Shopify store is mostly a matter of preparation. Shopify gives you a built-in way to hand the store to a new owner, but you have to arrange the sale yourself. Shopify's help centre says store owners "must independently conduct all sales of their Shopify stores separately from the Shopify platform."

This guide covers what to prepare, how Shopify's transfer process works (from Shopify's own help centre), how small stores are valued and where to list one.

Prepare your numbers

Buyers will want to see the money in two ways: what you say the store made, and what the platforms show.

A monthly P&L for at least 12 months. Include revenue, cost of goods, shipping, payment processing fees, Shopify plan fees, app subscriptions, advertising, refunds and any freelancer costs. Buyers care about profit after everything.

Shopify analytics and reports. Expect buyers to ask for screenshots or a screen-share of your Shopify analytics showing sales, orders, returning customers and traffic sources over the same period. Ad account screenshots (Meta, Google and so on) help back up your advertising costs.

Your records. Shopify's help centre advises you to identify what data you need to keep after the sale, such as "exporting your billing history" and, if you use Shopify Payments, "exporting your payout history and transactions". Do this before the transfer, because once it's complete parts of the admin become restricted to you.

List your apps and subscriptions

Small stores often run on a stack of paid apps, and buyers need to know what they're taking on.

List every app, its monthly cost and what it does.
Mark which are essential (reviews, subscriptions, email) and which you could drop.
Note any app that stores data outside Shopify, such as reviews or email subscribers, and whether that data moves with the store.
Shopify's checklist says that if third-party apps hold your billing information outside Shopify, you should update it to the new owner's details.

Cancelling unused apps before you list also improves your profit figure honestly.

Suppliers and inventory

Suppliers: record names, contacts, unit costs, minimum order quantities, lead times and whether each supplier will work with a new owner. If you dropship, say which app or agent you use.
Inventory: Shopify recommends making sure "your store's inventory is accurate" before a transfer. Count the stock you hold and decide whether it's included in the price or sold separately at cost. Say which in your listing.
Contracts: Shopify also advises outlining any obligations that need to continue under the new owner, such as "existing contracts or professional relationships with third parties, such as fulfillment services or payment processors."

The domain

Shopify's help centre says: "If you have purchased a custom domain for your store, then you must transfer ownership of the domain to the new owner as well." If the domain was bought through Shopify, you update its contact details in Shopify. If it's held with another registrar, you transfer it there, so add it to your handover plan.

How Shopify's store ownership transfer works

According to Shopify's help centre (as at 2 November 2026), stores on plans other than Shopify Plus can change owner in two ways: to an existing user through Settings > Users, or to someone outside the store through Settings > General.

Check what blocks a transfer first:

"If you're using Shopify Capital or Shopify Credit, then you will be unable to transfer your store."
If you have an active Shopify Balance, you "must empty your Balance account and contact Shopify Support".
If you haven't met your billing threshold, "the new owner is responsible for paying" outstanding bills, so factor that into the deal.

Shopify's preparation checklist includes:

Update the store's business contact details (email, phone, address) in General settings.
Update order notification emails to the new owner's.
Update contact details for custom domains.
Update billing information to the new owner's, including any third-party apps billed outside Shopify.
Update payout bank details for every active payment method. With Shopify Payments you also update the tax details. With providers such as PayPal, switch or transfer the account.

The transfer itself, to a new owner outside your business:

From your Shopify admin, go to Settings > General.
In the Transfer store section, click Manage.
Select Transfer store to a new owner outside your business, then Continue. You may need to re-authenticate.
Enter the new owner's email address and click Transfer.

Shopify emails the new owner to accept, and you're notified when they accept or decline. You can cancel while the transfer is in progress. Once it's done, the transfer "removes account owner permissions from your Shopify login".

Do the transfer after payment is secure. Hand over the store once the buyer's money is held in escrow, not before. Shopify also recommends having a lawyer help with the contract of sale.

Valuation: a sensible range

Small stores are usually priced as a multiple of annual profit. Flippa's Shopify valuation guide says Shopify stores fall under its Ecommerce category, which in H1 2026 had "the average profit multiple at 1.55x and top-quartile businesses commanding 2.75x". These are Flippa's figures for deals on its own marketplace, not a market-wide rule.

As an illustration only, a store with $15,000 of annual profit would come to $23,250 at 1.55x and $41,250 at 2.75x.

Flippa's guide says stores that prove "profitability, customer data, traffic, independence, and financial quality" are more likely to attract higher multiples. In practice that means steady 12-month figures, returning customers, traffic that doesn't all come from one ad account, and a store that runs without you.

Where to list a small Shopify store

Money Nomad. A one-time $297 listing fee and no commission. The team reviews every listing before it goes live, to check it's complete and a good fit. It doesn't audit your figures, because due diligence is the buyer's job. Buyers contact you from the listing page, and messages reach you by email. You run the negotiation and handover. See stores currently listed, or list your store.

Flippa. Self-service packages start at $29 under $10K and $49 from $10K to $49.9K, plus 10% on self-service sales.

Acquire.com. An 8% closing fee plus $25 a month for asking prices below $250k. Acquire says it pays for escrow.

For the dollar difference on a $5k, $15k or $30k sale, see marketplace fees compared.

FAQ

Can I transfer my Shopify store to a buyer? Yes, on plans other than Shopify Plus, from Settings > General > Transfer store. The buyer accepts by email. Shopify says you can't transfer a store that uses Shopify Capital or Shopify Credit.

Does the domain transfer with the store? Not automatically. Shopify says you must transfer ownership of a custom domain to the new owner as well.

What is a small Shopify store worth? Usually a multiple of annual profit. Flippa reports that Ecommerce businesses sold on its marketplace in H1 2026 averaged 1.55x profit, and 2.75x for the top quartile.

Where can I sell my Shopify store? Shopify's help centre points sellers to third-party marketplaces. Options include Money Nomad (one-time $297, no commission), Flippa and Acquire.com.