Shopify Free Trials 2025 (Make Sure You Get The Best Trial)

If your thinking about launching an online store but not sure if Shopify is right for you?

The last thing you want is to invest time and money into a platform that doesn’t meet your needs.

That’s where Shopify’s free trial comes in—giving you a risk-free way to test drive the platform before committing.

In this guide,

I’ll break down how to maximize your Shopify trial, avoid common pitfalls, and set yourself up for success from day one.

Whether you’re a new entrepreneur, a dropshipper, or an eCommerce pro looking to switch platforms, this trial can help you test features, explore themes, and optimize your store—without spending a dime.

Ready to find out if Shopify is the right fit for you?

Let’s dive in!

Shopify Free Trial Active And Non Active Deals

Let’s set up A Shopify Store With The 3 months for $1/month Deal

First, start at the  main page of Shopify

One key thing you can do is try to verify on the screen it’s showing a deal.

If you look at the picture below you will see “Get 3 days free than 3 months for $1/month” that let’s me know I’m on the right dedicated page for this one

From here you will be asked a few questions about your store.

Once you’re in the dashboard it should look like this.

And you will actually see there are 2 spots asking you to select a plan at the moment.

The main route through without the marketing pop-ups involved will be by clicking the setting in the bottom left corner and selecting the plan and then choosing a plan

They all lead to the same screen which is this one.

Just click the Basic plan, which is a great spot to start and then it will show you a screen like this.

Pay attention close here because it’s showing which one it recommends which works out to a small discount.

After year 1 then you can start doing annual or multi-years if that deal comes back too.

Well, there you have a nice run-through of the free trial and sign-up for a planning process.

Keep in mind, too with the basic free trial you don’t have to do this you can just start testing Shopify out.

3 Day free trial followed by 3 months of Shopify for $1/month – Active 

This one tricked me because I couldn’t find it.

What I didn’t realize at first is it’s only working on certain links.

But we got it so you’re good.

You are going to want to click here.

and it should now be showing the “3 months of Shopify for $1/month”

Bottom line: it looks like it’s just for affiliates to offer but I’m thankful I can for you too and it’s awesome that Shopify has this going on.

Plus:

I appreciate the support from you.

Shopify POS Free Trial (Plus An Extended Discount)

The basic 3-day free trial will be there.

Then

You’re getting first of all 3 months at $1 monthly. 

Then the next 6 months will be discounted to $60 monthly after this you will pay $89 monthly every 30 days.

Looks like an average of $52.50 over 12 months when you break it fully down.

Try Shopify POS Free

14-Day Free Trial – No longer active

For a while, the 14-day free trial was replaced by the 3-day free trial.

I just logged in and realized the 14-day free trial is back in the house.

I’m gonna be honest I didn’t see this coming but here it is.

Shopify 90-Day Free Trial – Not Active

This free trial was huge during COVID

I personally can’t find anything more about this myself.

So I consider this one over for now.

Shopify Free Trial For Black-Owned Businesses For 120 Days

This is a pretty low-key free trial 

Shopify has a 1 million black business goal.

What is this exactly?

The One Million Black Business & Black Entrepreneurship Initiative (1MBB) was created by Shopify and Operation Hope to help remove more of the traditional barriers to Black entrepreneurship by providing tools, resources, and education.

Keep in mind you can’t get the extended trial if you already have signed up. 

Also, this applies to the costs of the store too.

There still will be transaction fees for all your sales.

Here are a few key things you will get access to as well.

• Access to Shopify’s Build Black Programming
• Education content and programming, including workshops and webinars
• 1 on 1 coaching and mentoring through Operation Hope

Overall this is an amazing offer and one of the best deals I’ve ever seen combined with something that is amazing.

If anybody used this too I’d love to hear your comments below on the 1 on 1 coaching and mentoring through Operation Hope

Just in FYI too when you sign up just below give it about 2 minutes to receive the email stating it’s applied for your 120-day free trial

Start Free Trial 

Let’s walk through this setup really quick

First, you want to go to the main page for the 1 million black business initiative

And it’s going to look like the main picture just above. 

Or similar

Enter your email address to get started.

It’s going to walk you through a simple onboarding process just like any other store.

Looks similar to this.

Mae sure too you’re answering each one to get a custom Shopify dashboard to help you succeed the most.

It’s about 5 questions in total.

Once you’re in you’re going to see something similar to this.

Let’s go ahead now and go to plans and see if you’re discount is applied.

You’re going to see 1 or 2 buttons on the main page stating select a plan so you can go ahead and click that too.

Or, the basic navigation route is going to be by clicking the settings button which should be on the bottom left.

You will then see an option for a plan

And under the next billing date is where you should see you’re new trial period.

really quick side note:

It seems while you’re doing the onboarding process there is a good chance you have already received the email like this.

Ok, anyways.

under plans, you should be seeing a free trial with 119 days left since it’s not counting today.

Now one thing too you can do is already choose a plan if you want during this trial so that you can get selling within it.

One huge feature I really like about Shopify.

Shopify 44-day free trial

You might be seeing this when you’re researching Shopify free trials.

But keep in mind it’s adding up the 14-day free trial and assuming you get a refund of the first 30 days.

And also know,

You are not getting a 30-day refund based on the Shopify terms of service

Shopify 60-day free trial

This is a free trial you would have seen back in 2019 targeted to exclusive partners.

You would have seen a customized landing page on their website offering it too.

You can still find a ton of references to it but it’s no longer a valid free trial offered.

Shopify trial until 50 orders

I’ve dug into this and seems like a myth or offered at a time I’m not aware of.

I think what this one is talking about is where you can create a Shopify development store and have 50 test orders.

But running a store this way I believe would violate Shopify’s TOS.

I’d recommend not going this route at all.

3 day Free Trial followed by $1 a month for 1 month – Active

Currently they took down the 3 months for a dollar and turned it into 1 month.

This is common as they test out what they need to provide to convert everyone into paying too.

Pay attention as you log in though because these can change at any time or they may extend it for you too.

$1 For 1 Month – On And Off Again Actice

Should see a banner like this at the top just an FYI

I personally didn’t expect the first 3 months of Shopify for $1 to end.

But, it has now been changed to the first month for $1 on select plans.

The select plans are still for Basic, Shopify, and Advanced.

Key Things To Do During Your Free Trial

Your Shopify free trial isn’t just a chance to click around—it’s your opportunity to test drive the platform like a real store owner before you commit.

The worst mistake?

Not using your trial wisely and ending up with a store that doesn’t work the way you need it to.

This is crazy to say but I see it all the time where someone says they tested out a platform

But, then when you ask them the what they did they signed up and kind of looked around.

Yeah, that’s horrible!

Here’s what you should focus on testing—and why it’s critical to your success:

1. Store Setup & Ease of Use

➡ Pain Point: Complicated platforms can slow you down and make store management frustrating.
✔ Test: Can you easily add products, customize your theme, and navigate the dashboard? If it feels overwhelming now, it’ll only get harder later.

2. Themes & Customization

➡ Pain Point: A store that looks bad or doesn’t match your brand can hurt sales.
✔ Test: Play around with free and paid themes. Can you tweak colors, fonts, and layouts without coding? Make sure your store looks professional and user-friendly.

3. Payment & Checkout Process

➡ Pain Point: A complicated checkout can lead to abandoned carts and lost sales.
✔ Test: Set up payment gateways, test checkout flow, and ensure the process is smooth. Can customers easily complete their purchases?

4. Apps & Integrations

➡ Pain Point: Missing key features can limit your store’s growth.
✔ Test: Need dropshipping, SEO tools, or email marketing? Browse the Shopify App Store and install must-have apps to see how they work with your store.

5. Mobile Experience

➡ Pain Point: A store that doesn’t work well on phones will lose customers fast.
✔ Test: Visit your store on a mobile device. Is it easy to navigate? Does it load quickly? Over half of online shopping happens on mobile—don’t ignore this!

6. Shipping & Taxes

➡ Pain Point: Unexpected costs or confusing shipping settings can eat into your profits.
✔ Test: Set up shipping rates, test tax settings, and ensure you understand the costs involved.

7. Customer Support

➡ Pain Point: If you run into problems later, you’ll want fast, helpful support.
✔ Test: Reach out to Shopify’s support with a question. Are they responsive and helpful?

By testing these key areas, you’ll avoid surprises and feel confident that Shopify is (or isn’t) the right platform for your business. Use this free trial wisely, and you’ll set yourself up for long-term success!

🔹 Want to get the most out of your trial? Start testing today and build a store that works for YOU!

What is included in the Shopify Free Trial? 

One thing to keep in mind is that all the settings are available during your free trial.

You just can’t sell products and take your website live until you select a paid plan.

But, keep in mind.

If you are on a let’s say 90-day free trial or a 120-day free trial just because you selected a plan doesn’t mean you can’t cancel it before the end of your free trial.

So, you can make everything active to sell and take you’re site fully live.

Canceling your Shopify Trial Or Plan

One thing I enjoy is Shopify makes it simple to cancel you’re plan or deactivate your free trial.

Just go under settings and select “plan: and you will see a button to cancel.

here is one showing me the ability to deactivate the trial.

One nice thing I like to see is it shows your next billing date if you selected a plan just in case you changed your mind and wanted to keep it open for a few more days.

Just one thing to remember is they will ask you a few questions and you will have to enter your password to do this.

Which Shopify Plan should I choose after my free trial?

Personally, I’d say go these 2 routes to get started.

1 if you are selling just online on your own platform or social media I think the Shopify Starter plan is going to be a solid route for you.

I’d say the main route at a very fair cost and solid for entry-level and more is the Shopify Basic plan.

It’s most likely going to cover everything you want and it’s a price that’s fair.

I wouldn’t get so caught up in it if you really want to move forward on it either.

Just get started.

This Shopify and Shopify Advanced are gonna be key as your volume of sales grows and your customer base grows.

Is it possible to extend your free trial?

There are cases where you can extend it for valid reasons.

The easiest route to take to do this is by contacting customer support and chatting with them and helping them understand why you need to extend it.

I will say one other route you could take on your own is utilizing a Shopify Development partner or signing up for the partner program and making a development store and then transferring it to yourself.

Keep in mind you would have to get approved to join this too.

I’m not personally certain I’d want to do all of this.

But, that’s me.

What to do when my Shopify free trial ends?

So, if you forgot to select a plan before it ended it’s going to take away your access to the backend/admin store dashboard.

One plus is you can actually still pick a plan to regain access.

You will have 30 days until all your data is removed from Shopify

One other option you have to is to pause your store and it allows you to continue to work on it for $9 monthly.

Benefit Of Using A Shopify Free Trial

Using a Shopify free trial comes with a lot of perks, especially if you’re just getting started with eCommerce. Here’s why you should take advantage of it:

1. Test Before You Commit

No need to spend money upfront—explore Shopify’s features risk-free. This lets you see if it’s the right fit for your business before paying for a plan.

2. Build Your Store Without Pressure

You get time to design your website, add products, and set up everything at your own pace before launching.  Overall, as you take the time to build out your theme and add products, realizing this is free it really assists you just because you aren’t paying for anything right?

3. Try Out Shopify’s AI Tools

Shopify now offers AI-powered tools like Sidekick to help with product descriptions, store design, and more. The free trial lets you test these out without any commitment.  These tools are something you need to be trying out.  I have been using them to build out themes and product pages, and it can save you a ton of time, and writer’s block and creative block.

4. Explore Themes & Customization

You can browse and customize Shopify themes to see what works best for your brand without making a payment.

5. Test Payment & Checkout Processes

You can set up Shopify Payments and test how your checkout process works before you start selling.

6. Experiment with Apps & Integrations

Shopify has a massive App Store with tons of tools for marketing, automation, and analytics. The free trial lets you explore these before making any investments.

7. Learn the Platform with No Risk

Shopify has a learning curve, but the trial period lets you get familiar with the dashboard, settings, and features before committing.

8. Start Collecting Emails & Traffic

Even before your official launch, you can build an email list, connect social media, and start bringing in visitors to your store.

9. See If Shopify Fits Your Business Model

Whether you’re doing dropshipping, print-on-demand, or selling handmade products, the trial helps you determine if Shopify has the tools you need.

10. Get Support from Shopify’s Customer Service

You can access Shopify’s 24/7 support during your trial, making it easy to get help setting up your store.

If you’re thinking about launching an online store, a Shopify free trial is the best way to get hands-on experience before making any financial commitment. 🚀

Shopify Free Trial FAQ

My Final Thoughts On Free Trials Offered By Shopify

Tons of different Shopify free trials talked about right?

To me, you’re going to always see new ones popping up or ones talked about.

I personally always look for indicators too such as economic conditions and how Shopify performs for its shareholders.

If they are doing great probably no reason to offer as much.

But:

If they are doing badly they might have to look at ways to get people in.

If I was personally going right now I feel the 3-day free trial they offer is the easiest route.

When that’s close to ending just reach out to Shopify and ask for an extension.