How to Close a Shopify Store

Written by Coursera Staff • Updated on

When it's time to close your Shopify store, here are the steps to ensure you save the information you want and close your store properly. Learn about other options, in case you want to pause or sell your Shopify store.

[Featured Image] A shopify user is closing their shopify store.

Key takeaways

To close your Shopify store, you can take steps such as logging in to your account, exporting your data, and cancelling your plan.

  • Once you’ve closed your store, Shopify keeps your information for two years, so you can reopen it to access past bills and view any information you need.

  • If you have an e-commerce store that is doing very well and turning a decent profit, you may choose to sell it rather than close it.

  • You can export data about your products before closing your Shopify store. 

Discover how to close your Shopify store, export any data you need before doing so, and utilize alternative store closure options. If you’re ready to develop your digital marketing skills, enroll in the Google Digital Marketing & E-commerce Professional Certificate. In as little as six months, you can learn about campaign management, email marketing, e-commerce, social media management, and more.

How to close your Shopify store

Here is a quick rundown of the steps you take to close your Shopify store:

  1. Log in to your Shopify account.

  2. Save your data.

  3. From your admin panel, go to Settings > Plan.

  4. Click Cancel plan.

  5. Review your options and click Cancel plan.

  6. Select a reason for closing your store and click Continue.

  7. Enter your password and click Close plan.

Let’s take a closer look at each step.

1. Log in to your Shopify account.

Log in to your Shopify account in the same way you would to access your shop daily. 

2. Export your data.

Before closing your store, you must export any data you want to keep so you still have access to it. This is so you can access payment records and customer information and use products and other data in the future if you reopen your store or decide to sell your products elsewhere. The simplest way to do this is with the Shopify Data Exporter app or directly from your website. Here’s an example of how to export products from your store without the app:

  1. Go to your Shopify admin page and click Products.

  2. Click Export.

  3. A dialogue box should appear. From here, select all the products you want to export and the type of CSV file you prefer.

  4. Click Export products.

Follow this process for anything else you want to export from your store.

3. Select your plan.

Once you've saved all the data you want to keep, access your admin panel and click on Settings. From here, select Plan. 

4. Cancel your subscription.

After you have accessed your plan, you should see the option to Cancel plan. Click on this.

5. Review your options.

When you select Cancel plan, you can review other options before you continue. Shopify gives you the option to pause your subscription instead of canceling it. If you are sure you want to close your store, click Cancel plan.

6. Select a reason.

Shopify wants to collect data about why people close their stores, so if you choose this option, a pop-up box will ask for a reason. Select your reason from the predetermined list and click Continue.

7. Close your store.

As a final measure before closing your store for good, Shopify asks you to enter your password again and confirm that you want to Cancel plan. Once you do this, you deactivate your account, and you can no longer use your store. 

Can I deactivate my Shopify store without paying?

If you did not choose a paid plan and decide to close your Shopify account during the free trial period, you do not need to take further action. However, if you selected a plan during a promotional pricing period, you will not receive a refund for charges taking place within that period when deactivating your account. Shopify will charge your account for any outstanding balance after you cancel.

Can you reopen your Shopify store?

Once you’ve closed your store, Shopify stores your information for two years, so you can reopen it to access past bills and view any information you need. Within these two years, you can reopen your store and start trading or put it on pause for future sales.

Consider pausing your store

In some circumstances, consider pausing your Shopify store instead of closing it. Pausing, rather than deactivating your store, means you can reopen it at any time without losing any functions, apart from being able to sell momentarily. You can access your admin panel, but customers cannot access or purchase products. 

Read more: How to Add Products to Shopify

This is a great option if you are going on vacation, you want to update your store, or you're overwhelmed with the orders you need to process. 

Sell your Shopify store

If you have an e-commerce store that is doing very well and turning a decent profit, you may opt to sell it instead of closing it. Shopify used to have its own platform called the Exchange marketplace, but it closed in November 2022. Other platforms are available, such as Flippa and DealFlowAgent.

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