Shopify apps

Shopify's revenue share page lists 0% on the first $1 million of lifetime gross app revenue and 15% above that, for developers under $20 million in prior-year App Store earnings and $100 million in company revenue. Only revenue from January 1, 2025 onward counts toward the $1 million, and larger developers pay 15% on everything. The same page adds a separate 2.9% processing fee on billing, which takes $2.90 of every $100 billed.

No source measures typical developer earnings. RevenueHunt's 2026 report estimates that 72% of app revenue goes to the top 1% of apps.

How app revenue works

Merchants pay for your app through Shopify's billing, and Shopify pays you after taking its revenue share and fees. Shopify App Pricing supports recurring (free, monthly or yearly), usage-based and combined pricing. The billing overview says the older manual Billing API also supports one-time charges.

What Shopify developers actually earn

Shopify's changelog says earnings are aggregated at partner level, including associated developer accounts, so the totals don't map to individual apps. RevenueHunt's figures are estimated from pricing and usage, not billing data. Shopify doesn't publish median developer earnings.

Where the hours go

Build, support and marketing time has no published figure, so enter your own hours in the calculator and see how to calculate your actual hourly earnings. Shopify's getting paid page says a successful merchant payment is required before payout, and the review process page says apps must meet all listed requirements before review.

What it costs to start

Hosting, development tools and support time have no published Shopify price.

Where to sell a Shopify app

Apps sold to more than one merchant must be published through the App Store, per Shopify's revenue share page.

Off the store, a custom app for one client can be shared by install link from the Partner Dashboard, according to Shopify's help center. Shopify's distribution page says custom distribution across several stores works only within the same Plus organization.

Requirements and rules for app developers in the U.S.

Shopify's App Store requirements say apps must bill through Shopify and operate within its core systems. Unapproved payments, marketplaces and lending services are barred, and the App Review team can reject apps at its discretion. Apps move through Draft, Submitted, Reviewed and Published statuses, per the review process page.

Business licensing rules vary by state and city, so check with your state's business licensing office.

The Partner Program Agreement makes partners responsible for taxes arising from their activities. The IRS self-employed individuals tax center says self-employed people file Schedule C and Schedule SE and pay quarterly estimated tax. IRS Topic 554 covers when self-employment tax applies.

Risks and red flags

Shopify's partner terms let it terminate a partner immediately in its sole discretion, and explicitly let it develop or market products that compete with a developer's apps, regardless of similarity. Shopify's Spring '26 edition describes its Sidekick AI as a way to consolidate workflows because merchants lose time switching between apps. That suggests simple single-purpose apps may face overlap.

Upkeep is ongoing. Shopify releases new API versions every three months and retires older ones, and unversioned APIs can change without notice.

Who building Shopify apps fits, and who should skip it

Fits you if:

• You can already write and maintain web software.
• You can wait for a merchant payment before any payout.
• You'd rather build one product sold to many merchants than bill clients by the hour.
• You can keep up with quarterly API version changes.

Skip it if:

• You need money soon. Rating AI responses pays per task, with no product to build or review to pass.
• You don't code. Paid website and app user testing needs no build time.
• You'd rather not market a product. Paid research studies pay per study, with nothing to promote.
• You can't accept that Shopify may launch features that overlap with your app.

How to start

1. Create a Partner account and a development store from the Dev Dashboard to test, as described in Shopify's app-building help page.
2. Read the App Store requirements and the privacy law compliance page before you write much code.
3. Pick a pricing model from Shopify App Pricing.
4. Pay the registration fee on the revenue share page, then submit through the review process.
5. Set up payouts using Shopify's payout management page and track net earnings for the IRS.