Shopify payouts, explained
Shopify payment fees, explained: where the percentages actually go
The headline rate looks simple. The bank deposit says otherwise. Here's what Shopify actually takes out of an order, and why your effective rate is always a bit higher.
A plain-English guide for store owners
The fees, one by one
- Card processing fee. A percentage + fixed amount per transaction, set by your plan and country. The fixed part is why small orders cost proportionally more.
- Third-party gateway surcharge. Using PayPal/Stripe instead of Shopify Payments adds Shopify's own transaction fee on top of the gateway's.
- Currency conversion. Selling in another currency adds a conversion percentage before the money joins a payout.
- Refunds. The customer is made whole; the original processing fee usually isn't returned to you.
Why your effective rate is higher than the headline
Add those together over a month — fixed fees on many small orders, a few refunds, some FX — and a store on a nominal 2.9% often really pays 3.3-4%. The gap isn't a billing error; it's arithmetic nobody shows you in one place.
How to see it per order
Open a payout and export the Transactions CSV: each row carries gross, fee and net. Total the fee column and you have your true cost of getting paid — per payout, per month, per channel.
See it on your own payout
NetClear rebuilds each payout from your export and tells you in plain English exactly where every pound went — reserves, fees, refunds and all.
Try it — free →Free while in early access · no card · your file is only ever read, never changed
Frequently asked
What fees does Shopify actually charge on an order?
With Shopify Payments you pay a card processing fee per transaction (a percentage plus a fixed amount, set by your plan and country). If you use a third-party gateway instead, you pay that gateway's fee plus Shopify's additional transaction fee.
Why don't my Shopify fees match rate × sales?
Because the rate applies per transaction with a fixed component each time (many small orders cost proportionally more), refunded orders don't always return the fee, currency conversion adds its own percentage, and UK/EU fees are VAT-inclusive.
Where can I see the exact fee per order?
Finances → Payouts → open a payout → Export the Transactions CSV. Every row shows gross, fee and net per charge — it's the only place the fee per transaction is spelled out line by line.
Do I get the processing fee back when I refund an order?
Generally no — the customer gets the full amount back, and the original processing fee usually stays charged. A busy refund month quietly raises your effective fee rate, which is worth seeing rather than guessing.