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Miva vs Shopify (2026): which should you pick?

As of Nov 13, 2026, we pick Shopify: it is first in our ranking of online store builders, and it grades higher too, 2.8 against 1.8.

Checked Oct 18, 2026 and Nov 13, 2026 · graded Oct 18, 2026 and Nov 13, 2026 by ToolGPA

Shopify grades higher on the free plan, features and ease of use. They get the same grade on value for money and platforms.

Price, platforms and features side by side. The table says where each price was read and when.

Miva

Cloud-hosted commerce platform for B2B and direct-to-consumer sellers

Paid

Shopify

Hosted commerce platform for online, in-person and social selling

Free trial · from $29/mo

Which one is for you

Pick Miva if

  • Fits if you sell to businesses and consumers from one large catalog
  • Works for merchants who need to connect an ERP or warehouse system

Look elsewhere if

  • Not for you if you want to see a price, because the page is a contact form
  • Skip it if you want to try before talking to sales, as nothing free is listed
  • Watch out: Vexture, MivaPay and InsureShield are named products, and it is unclear which are included
  • Watch out: the company is built around US sales and support, with addresses in California and Florida

Pick Shopify if

  • Fits if you sell online and at markets or pop-ups and want one stock count for both
  • Works for sellers who'll use Shopify Payments and its discounted shipping labels

Look elsewhere if

  • Pricey if you want your own payment provider, as Basic adds 2% to each of those sales
  • Not for you if you want a few weeks to try it, since the free trial is 3 days
  • Tight if you run a shop counter, as POS Pro is $89 a month per location
  • Watch out: syncing more than 50 marketplace orders a month costs 1%, up to $99 a month
  • Watch out: the next steps up are Grow at $79 and Advanced at $299, and Plus needs a 1- or 3-year term

How we grade them

1.8GPAMivaWeak2.8GPAShopifyGood
Value for money
CNo prices are published: the pricing page is a contact form that matches you with a sales specialist.
CBasic is $29 a month on yearly billing ($39 monthly), with your own domain and unlimited products. That's right at this category's middle. Shopify takes no extra cut if you use Shopify Payments, but adds 2% to each sale on Basic if you use another payment provider.
Free plan and trial
FNo free plan and no trial is listed, so you pay from the start.
DNo free plan, and the trial is just 3 days, though it needs no card. After that it's $1 a month for 3 months, a $3 start rather than a free one.
Features
CB2B and DTC on one site, multiple storefronts, a page builder and product discovery. Vexture, MivaPay and InsureShield are separate products, and the site does not say which come by default.
AIt covers the whole job: themes, checkout, stock across up to 10 locations, discounted labels, email campaigns, selling at pop-ups from your phone, marketplace and social sync, even listing products in AI chats. More than 13,000 apps cover the rest.
Ease of use
CA managed platform with an ERP or warehouse system to connect, with no store rating on record.
A4.7 from about 42,800 App Store ratings, far more than any other store here. A theme or a written prompt gets the storefront going, and Sidekick answers questions and does jobs in the admin.
Platforms and integrations
BWeb, with listed ties to ERP, OMS, WMS, shipping carriers and tax services. No phone or desktop app.
BWeb, iPhone and Android, with Amazon, eBay, Walmart, TikTok, Instagram, Facebook, Google and YouTube, plus APIs for custom apps. There's no desktop app, which keeps it off an A.
Best forwholesalers selling to businesses and consumersstores selling online, in person and on social

The GPA is the average of the five grades: an A is 4 points, an F is none. The full reasons are on each tool's page: Miva and Shopify. How we grade

Where they differ

  • Shopify also covers email campaigns and shipping labels.
In commonWebPublic APIAI featuresInventoryOnline store

At a glance

MivaShopify
PricingPaidFree trial
Starts atNot published$29 per month, billed yearly ($39 billed monthly)
Free planNoneNone
Free trialNone listed3-day free trial, no credit card required
Web
iOS
Android
Made byMiva, Inc.Shopify
Price read fromNot confirmedshopify.com
CheckedNov 13, 2026Oct 18, 2026

Worth knowing

Miva

  • No prices are published: the pricing page is a contact form that matches you with a sales specialist.
  • Built around US-based sales and support, with phone numbers and addresses in California and Florida.
  • Features such as Vexture, MivaPay and InsureShield are separate named products, and the site does not say which are included by default.

Shopify

  • Using a payment provider other than Shopify Payments adds a fee of 2% per sale on Basic, 1% on Grow, 0.6% on Advanced and 0.2% on Plus.
  • The free trial lasts 3 days; Basic, Grow and Advanced then cost $1 a month for 3 months before the regular price.
  • POS Pro for physical shops costs $89 a month per location, and syncing more than 50 marketplace orders a month costs 1%, up to $99 a month.
  • Plus is sold only on a 1- or 3-year term, starting at $2,300 a month on the 3-year term.

Key features

Miva

B2B and DTC on one site
Wholesaler applications, quote workflows, account-specific product visibility and pricing, and automated reordering, subscriptions and contracts.
Multiple storefronts
A MultiStorefront feature manages several storefronts, with products, customers and orders organized from one place.
PageBuilder
No-code editing tools for building and changing pages and designs.
Vexture product discovery
An AI search and merchandising product that the vendor positions around what shoppers mean and what the store sells.
Miva Connect and MivaPay
Native connections to ERP, order management, warehouse, shipping, tax and marketing systems, plus a native payment solution.
Hosted and maintained
Runs on cloud infrastructure that the vendor updates; the vendor lists 24/7 customer support.

Shopify

Store builder and themes
Build the storefront from a theme (Shopify lists more than 200) or from a written prompt, with hosting, SSL and a custom domain on every plan and no cap on products.
Checkout and Shopify Payments
Shopify's own checkout and payment processing are built in, with fraud analysis, local currencies and local payment methods where Shopify Payments is offered.
Inventory, orders and shipping
Track stock across up to 10 locations (200 on Plus), buy and print discounted shipping labels, with live third-party carrier rates included from Advanced up.
Selling in person and on other channels
Sell at pop-ups from the mobile app or a card reader, and sync products to marketplaces and social channels. A separate $0 Agentic plan lists products in AI chats.
Marketing email and automations
Email campaigns, customer segments, abandoned checkout recovery, discount codes and gift cards come with every plan; SMS campaigns are paid per send.
Sidekick AI assistant and apps
Sidekick answers questions and takes actions in the admin, and the Shopify App Store lists more than 13,000 apps for features the core plans lack.

Plans

Miva

Pricing could not be confirmed. See miva.com.

Shopify

  • Basic$29

    per month, billed yearly ($39 billed monthly)

    For solo sellers: online and in-person sales, card rates from 2.9% + 30¢ online, and a 2% fee on sales taken through another payment provider.

  • Grow$79

    per month, billed yearly ($105 billed monthly)

    Up to 5 staff accounts, card rates from 2.7% + 30¢ online and a 1% fee on sales through other payment providers.

  • Advanced$299

    per month, billed yearly ($399 billed monthly)

    Up to 15 staff accounts, live third-party shipping rates, card rates from 2.5% + 30¢ and a 0.6% fee with other payment providers.

  • Plus$2,300

    per month and up, billed yearly on a 3-year term

    On a 1- or 3-year term: unlimited staff, a fully customizable checkout, card rates from 2.25% + 30¢ and a 0.2% fee with other providers.

Ways to pay less

Miva

No public discounts listed.

Shopify

  • Annual discount

    Pay yearly to save about 25%

    Basic costs $29 a month billed yearly against $39 billed monthly, Grow $79 against $105, and Advanced $299 against $399.

  • Other savings

    $1 a month for the first 3 months

    After the 3-day free trial, the Basic, Grow and Advanced plans cost $1 a month for the first 3 months, then the regular price.

Common questions

Which is cheaper, Miva or Shopify?

As of Nov 13, 2026, Miva has no price we could confirm, and Shopify starts at $29 per month, billed yearly ($39 billed monthly).

Which has a free plan, Miva or Shopify?

As of Nov 13, 2026, neither Miva nor Shopify has a free plan. Shopify has a free trial.

Which platforms do Miva and Shopify run on?

As of Nov 13, 2026, only Shopify lists iOS and Android apps. Both list a web app. A platform missing from a listing is one its maker's pages did not mention.

More comparisons

How this page was made

  • The verdict at the top follows a fixed rule. When both tools are in the same category and either is in our top three for it, the verdict follows that ranking: the higher-placed tool is our pick. The top three weigh who each tool suits as well as its grades, so a pick can go against the GPA. Otherwise the page does not pick one and says which grades higher: the higher GPA first; on a tie, the one with a free plan, then the one that starts cheaper in dollars a month, counted the same way for both; if they are still level, what the choice depends on.
  • The grades are our own, from each tool’s review or report card. The GPA is their average.
  • Prices, plans and platforms come from each tool’s listing. The table above says where each price was read and when.
  • The differences and the answers to the questions are worked out from those listings.
How we review and grade