Can you start a Shopify store with no money and no products?

Quick picks

What do print on demand, dropshipping and the other words mean?

So here are the words you'll run into, in plain language.

• Print on demand means you make a design, and a printing company prints it on a shirt, mug or poster only after someone buys. The printing company also ships the order. You never hold stock.
• Dropshipping means you list another company's product in your store. When someone buys, you order from that company, and it ships the product straight to your buyer.
• A digital product is a file, like a printable or a template. The buyer downloads the file after paying, so nothing ships.
• Base cost is what the printing company or supplier charges you for each item. Your profit on a sale is your price minus the base cost, shipping, and Shopify's or Etsy's fees.
• A card fee is the percentage plus a few cents that a payment processor takes from every card sale. A payment processor is the company that handles the card payment for you.
• Private mode is Shopify's setting that keeps a new store closed to buyers. Shopify's help page says trial stores start in private mode.

What can I do on Shopify for $0?

Now Shopify's 3-day free trial lets you build the whole store. Shopify's pricing page says the trial is 3 days free with no credit card needed, checked October 17, 2026. The table below shows what costs nothing on Shopify.

If you stop after the 3 days and never pick a plan, Shopify's help page says the store is paused until you choose a paid plan. Nothing is charged. I walk through the signup screens and the card screen in my free trial and $1 offer guide.

Shopify's card screen, with the Skip button in the top right corner, September 2026, from Shopify Ecom Store Pro's video. The dates on this screen are from that video, so your own screen will show different dates.

And keep in mind that a paid app you install during the trial still gets billed. Shopify's help page says app charges are added to your next invoice. So I'd stick to free apps while you build.

Why can't I take a real order on the free trial?

So here is why a trial store can't take orders. Shopify's help page says trial stores start in private mode. It also says you need to set up a payment provider, which is the payment processor I explained above, to sell and accept orders during the free trial. Choosing a paid plan is what turns checkout on, according to the same page.

Basically, a trial store is a place to build and look around. A customer can't buy from it until you pick a plan or turn off private mode. That is why the real smallest number isn't $0.

What is the smallest amount I have to pay to sell on Shopify?

So the smallest number is $1 a month for the first 3 months, then $39 a month on the Basic plan paid monthly. Shopify's pricing page lists 3 days free, then $1 a month for 3 months. It lists Basic at $39 a month paid monthly or $29 a month paid yearly, checked October 17, 2026. Shopify's plan picker shows the $1 price on the Basic, Grow and Advanced plans.

Shopify's plan picker, September 2026, from Shopify Ecom Store Pro's video. Basic shows $1 a month with $39 crossed out, which matches Shopify's pricing page as checked October 17, 2026.

And keep in mind that the $1 signup screen says "No commitment, cancel anytime." But Shopify's free trial help page says charges from the $1 months aren't refunded if you close the store during those 3 months, checked October 17, 2026.

Here is the math for the first 12 months, so you can redo it. This assumes Shopify's Basic plan paid monthly, no domain, no paid theme, no paid apps, and leaves out card fees and taxes.

1. The 3 free days cost $0.
2. Months 1 to 3 at the $1 offer cost 3 x $1 = $3.
3. Months 4 to 12 at $39 cost 9 x $39 = $351.
4. The plan for the first 12 months is $3 + $351 = $354.
5. A domain is optional, and Shopify's domains page says domains typically start at $9 a year. With a $9 domain the first year is $354 + $9 = $363.

Now a Shopify store works without a domain on the free myshopify.com address. So I'd leave the domain for later. Shopify's domains page says domains auto-renew and that the renewal price may differ from the first price. That was checked October 17, 2026.

And every sale costs more on top. Shopify's pricing page lists 2.9% + 30 cents per online card sale on Basic for US stores, checked October 17, 2026. It adds 2% if you use an outside payment provider instead of Shopify Payments. Shopify's card fees only come out of a sale. Nothing is charged when nothing sells. My real monthly cost of Shopify guide adds up the whole bill at $1,000, $3,000 and $5,000 a month in sales. And my Shopify plans guide compares Basic, Grow and Advanced.

What does print on demand cost to start?

So print on demand is the one most people mean by "no inventory." You connect an app from a printing company, add your design to a product, and the company prints and ships after each sale. Printful and Printify both have a free plan. Here is what each lists, checked October 17, 2026.

Something to note is the Printful trial. Shopify's App Store listing says the Growth plan has a 90-day free trial. Printful's own pricing page says the Growth trial is 14 days. Both pages are Printful's words, and they don't agree. Neither page says which trial length applies to which signup, so check the trial length on the screen where you sign up before you start it. Printful's free plan doesn't need a trial at all.

And here is a real base cost. Printful's Unisex Staple T-Shirt (Bella + Canvas 3001) page shows $11.92 with one print included, and shipping to the US starting at $4.95, checked October 17, 2026. Printful's page says the price changes with the print method, print placement, color, size, taxes and shipping.

Printify's pricing table inside Shopify, March 2025, from Metics Media's video. It shows one print company's costs from 2025, so they differ from the $11.92 Printful figure above. It is here to show where the production cost sits next to your profit, not to give a current price.

What are the catches with print on demand?

• You pay a base cost on every sale. Your profit is your price minus the base cost, shipping, the card fee, and your Shopify plan.
• Shipping is charged separately. Either your customer pays for shipping or you cover it.
• The design has to be yours. Etsy's Creativity Standards do not allow someone else's art or a brand's logo, and I'd follow the same rule on any store.
• Samples cost money. Printful's pricing page lists 20% off samples on the Free plan, limited to 1 sample order a month with up to 3 items, checked October 17, 2026. Samples aren't required, but I'd order one of your own product before you list it, so you see the print quality.

What does one print on demand sale look like in dollars?

So here is the math for one Printful t-shirt. The $40 price is an assumption to show how the costs line up, not a price I'm telling you to charge. The print and shipping cost uses Printful's starting figures above, so a bigger size or a second print costs more.

• Price to the customer: $40, with shipping included in the price.
• Print and shipping cost to you: $11.92 + $4.95 = $16.87, from Printful's tee page.
• Paid by card on Shopify Basic: 2.9% x $40 + $0.30 = $1.16 + $0.30 = $1.46.
• Left per sale before the plan fee: $40 - $16.87 - $1.46 = $21.67.

So from month 4 on, Shopify's $39 Basic plan takes 39 / 21.67 = 1.8, which rounds up to 2 sales a month just to cover the plan. In the first 3 months at $1, 1 sale covers the plan.

And here is the same $40 order at three monthly sales totals. Each order is $40, so that is 25, 75 and 125 orders. Each one costs $16.87 for Printful's print and shipping. Shopify is on Basic paid monthly at $39, with Shopify Payments at 2.9% + $0.30 a sale. Printful stays on its free plan. On Etsy, each sale pays the $0.20 listing renewal, the 6.5% transaction fee and 3% + $0.25 processing. The Etsy rows leave out Offsite Ads and the set-up fee.

To redo the Etsy row, each $40 order pays $0.20 + $2.60 (6.5% of $40) + $1.45 (3% of $40 plus $0.25) = $4.25. If Etsy's Offsite Ads apply to a sale, Etsy's fee policy lists 15% for shops under $10,000 in sales over the past 365 days. That would be $6.00 on a $40 order. My Offsite Ads guide explains that fee.

This table only shows how the costs line up. It says nothing about how many sales a store gets, and it leaves out ads, returns, refunds, taxes and your time.

What did one real print on demand test look like?

Now here is one reported case, so you can see how much of the money goes to costs. In December 2023, the creator Mark Tilbury tested print on demand on Etsy with wall posters. He used the company Gelato, not Printful or Printify. The numbers are in British pounds from his video below.

• 11 sales and £549.89 in revenue.
• £60.77 spent on designs bought on Fiverr, £35.74 to Etsy, and £371.69 for product and shipping.
• £81.69 left, which is £81.69 / £549.89 = about 15% of the revenue.

Keep in mind that this is one person from 2023, and a creator who already has an audience. I'd treat it as an example of the costs, and not as a sign of what you'd earn.

What does dropshipping cost to start?

So the monthly app cost is small, but the product cost, the shipping risk and the ads are where the money goes. Shopify's own dropshipping articles, What is dropshipping (November 21, 2025) and How to start dropshipping (June 12, 2026), call the upfront investment "minimal" and give no dollar figure. They also say you need a store with a domain name and may need an ad budget.

One order tool is DSers, which places orders with AliExpress suppliers. The DSers Shopify listing, checked October 17, 2026, shows a free DSers Basic plan and Advanced at $19.90 a month or $190.80 a year. Pro is $49.90 a month or $478.80 a year. The Advanced and Pro plans each list a 14-day trial. The listing says extra fees apply if your product count goes over the plan's limit, and the listing doesn't print the limits.

DSers' plan screen in early 2026, from Judge.me's video. The screen also shows an Enterprise plan with a note to contact DSers for more information. DSers' Shopify listing doesn't show the Enterprise plan, so I don't count it.

What are the catches with dropshipping?

• The supplier's price isn't on the app listing. You usually pay the supplier from your own card when a customer orders. Shopify Payments, Shopify's own payment processor, can hold back payouts from a new store's first sales, which my payout holds guide explains. Shopify's payout timing page lists 3 business days for US stores, checked October 17, 2026. So you can owe a supplier before the sale money reaches your bank.
• Shipping time and refunds are yours. Shopify's article says products shipped from overseas can take significantly longer to arrive, which risks unhappy customers. The same article lists intense competition and lower profit margins.
• The margins in Shopify's article have no source. The article says typical margins from open marketplaces range between 10% and 15%, and that Shopify Collective partners can expect 20% to 50%. It cites no study for either figure, so treat them as Shopify's own claims.
• Ads may be needed. Shopify names an ad budget as a possible cost and gives no number.
• You can't dropship on Etsy. Etsy's Creativity Standards do not allow reselling goods you didn't make, design or handpick.

And something important to note is that this next part is law, not a platform rule. The FTC's Mail, Internet, or Telephone Order Merchandise Rule applies to US online sellers. Say you can't ship in the time you promised, or within 30 days when you gave no time. Then you have to get the customer's consent to the delay or offer to cancel. If the customer doesn't consent, you must promptly refund them without being asked. The FTC's business guide to the rule has the details. The FTC rule applies to you even though your supplier holds the product.

My guide on whether dropshipping is worth it and my dropshipping store setup guide go deeper.

What does selling digital products cost to start?

Now a digital product has no print cost and no shipping, so the main thing at risk is your time. You need to be able to make the file yourself.

• On Shopify, the Shopify Digital Products app is free and made by Shopify, checked October 17, 2026. It attaches files or links to products, sets access limits, and sends download links after purchase. The listing doesn't print a file size limit.
• On Etsy, a digital listing can have up to 5 files at 20MB each, according to Etsy's digital listings help page. Etsy's rules say digital items must be made or designed by you. Etsy's same $0.20 listing, 6.5% transaction and 3% + $0.25 processing fees apply, checked October 17, 2026.

Etsy's fee policy notes that sales tax can still apply to digital items in some states, and gives Washington as an example. See the tax section below.

Is Etsy a lower cost way to start?

So Etsy has no monthly fee, which is why it can cost less at the start. Etsy's fee policy, checked October 17, 2026, lists these charges.

• $0.20 per listing, and another $0.20 when a listing renews after a sale.
• A 6.5% transaction fee on the price, shipping and gift wrap.
• Payment processing of 3% + $0.25 per order.
• Offsite Ads of 15% if they apply to a sale. Offsite Ads are ads Etsy runs for your listings on other websites, and shops under $10,000 in sales over the past 365 days can opt out. My Offsite Ads guide has the details.
• A one-time shop set-up fee that may apply. Etsy's policy doesn't print an amount. Billing screens from 2026 have shown $29, so treat $29 as reported and confirm the amount on Etsy's screen. Etsy's policy says the set-up fee is non-refundable once paid.

Now here are the catches with Etsy. Etsy asks for an ID check, a bank account and a card to open a shop. Etsy only allows what you made, designed or handpicked, so dropshipping is out. Print on demand is allowed when you disclose your production partner, which is the company that prints your design. And your price has to cover the 6.5%, the 3% + $0.25 and the $0.20.

Shoppers already visit Etsy, but my is Etsy worth it guide covers what is and isn't known about new shops. My Etsy setup guide and Etsy fees guide have the full steps and fee math, and my Shopify vs Etsy guide puts the two side by side. The fee sources are Etsy's fee policy and Etsy Payments policy.

How do I pick a first product when I have no idea?

So Shopify and the two creators below say only a little about picking a first product, and this page has no list of "winning products." Here is what each of them says.

• Shopify's dropshipping article (June 12, 2026) says you can choose a niche you know or care about, or one based on market demand. It says to calculate your costs, set a profit margin for each product, and compare prices with similar products. It also says competition is often fierce. Its FAQ suggests a niche with high demand but low competition, and the article gives no data behind that.
• Shopify's setup screen asks "What do you plan to sell?" and one choice is "I'll decide later." I cover that screen in my Shopify setup guide.
• Jensen Tung's video below says to pick a product that people already buy a lot, that stays in style, and that you can sell at about a 30% margin. That is his opinion.
• Ac Hampton's video below says to test many products and not spend weeks on a logo before your first sale. That is his opinion too.

And here is my own plain advice, not a fact from a source. Look at what people already pay for on Etsy, and count how many listings sell the same thing. Then work out your profit with real numbers: price minus base cost, shipping and fees. My guide to dropshipping, print on demand and your own products compares the three.

What order should I do things in?

1. Decide if you're fine spending $3 for the first 3 months of Shopify. If yes, pick Shopify. If you'd rather pay nothing until a sale lands, look at Etsy and its $0.20 listing fee, plus the set-up fee if Etsy asks for it.
2. Use the 3 free Shopify days to build. Skip the card screen, pick a free theme, add 3 to 5 products at most, and connect a print on demand or digital downloads app on its free plan. Don't install paid apps.
3. Choose a Shopify plan only when you're ready for checkout to go live, because choosing a plan turns checkout on. The steps to cancel are in my free trial and $1 offer guide.
4. If you sell print on demand, order one sample of your product before you list it.
5. Leave the domain for later. The free myshopify.com address works.

My how to start a Shopify store guide has every screen, and my print on demand store guide goes deeper on that route. And my guide on how long until your first sale covers what is and isn't known about timing.

Do I need an LLC or to charge sales tax before I start?

So taxes are not a start-up cost, but sales tax may apply to your sales depending on your state. My LLC and EIN guide covers what you need before opening a Shopify store and how sales tax works. Keep in mind that this page is general information. Your state tax agency or an accountant can confirm what applies to you.

When is starting with no money the wrong choice?

• If you need money coming in soon, a new store that nobody visits yet is a poor fit. Shopify's own dropshipping article says you may need ads, and it gives no number.
• If you can't make a design or a file, print on demand and digital products are out. Then dropshipping on Shopify is the route left, with the catches above.
• If you want to dropship, Etsy is the wrong platform, because Etsy's rules don't allow resold goods.
• If you can't spend $3 and then $39 a month, Etsy's per listing and per sale fees may fit you better than a Shopify plan.

Which parts are law, platform rules, and opinion?

• Law: the FTC order rule for shipping delays and refunds, and any state sales tax.
• Platform rules: Shopify's trial and private mode, every plan price and fee, Etsy's fees and Creativity Standards, and the printing and dropshipping apps' prices.
• Reported: the $29 Etsy set-up fee seen on billing screens, and Mark Tilbury's results.
• Opinion: the product advice from the two creators, and my own advice to look at Etsy before picking a product.

Which videos are worth watching?

And if you want to see how other people think about starting small, here are three videos. You can play each one right here, and YouTube's usual controls work. Under each one is a short summary. Keep in mind that these three creators earn money from tools and links in their video descriptions. I don't link those.

More starting out guides

How long until your first Shopify sale, and what does zero sales after launch mean?

No one has measured how long a first Shopify sale takes. But you can check whether zero sales means your store is broken.

Is dropshipping still worth it in 2026, and how do you check a dropshipping course before paying?

So dropshipping is cheap to try, but nobody can honestly promise you'll make money from it. Below I show you the math on one order, the real costs and the FTC's own checklist for courses.

Do you need an LLC or an EIN before you start a Shopify store?

A plain answer from someone who doesn't sell LLC filing, with the government and Shopify pages behind each point.

See all starting out guides