Shopify setup
Use this page to settle the Shopify-wide setup questions first, then open your state guide for the exact registration order, local checks, and direct-sales tax branches that still change by state.
Primary route
Short answer first. Official links. Local checks.
Core signup, document, payout, and early-risk questions.
Exact filing order, official links, and local checks.
Start here
This section keeps the safest Shopify order short: choose the direct-store identity, payment path, and tax registration assumptions first, then let the state route confirm the filing and local operating sequence.
Most beginners should do this first
Quick answers
Usually yes. Shopify’s public new-store checklist says you can wait until the end of the trial to choose a plan, then finish the business, billing, payments, shipping, taxes, checkout, and domain steps before launch.
No. Shopify’s public tax guidance says tax is the merchant’s responsibility unless you separately use Shopify Tax automated filing, so the state route still has to confirm registration, resale, and filing order.
Not always. Shopify Payments is one supported path, but it is only available in supported countries and for eligible business types. Some store features, like subscription products, do rely on Shopify Payments as the primary provider.
Not casually. Shopify’s public help says the store currency should be chosen before the first sale, and changing it after the first sale requires Shopify Support.
They should not. Shopify’s public setup and fulfillment docs tie together locations, shipping profiles, rates, weights, packages, checkout settings, and test orders before launch.
Before you sign up
Use this checklist to avoid the most common direct-store registration, payment, and launch-order mistakes.
Shopify is a storefront default, not a marketplace-only shortcut, so decide the real selling entity and registration path before you treat the store like a low-compliance test channel.
If you want Shopify Payments, the supported-country, business-type, identity, and verification requirements matter early and can hold payouts until verification is complete.
The store currency, domain path, and customer-facing identity should be stable before the first sale so you are not rebuilding core settings after orders start.
Locations, weights, zones, profiles, and package dimensions all affect checkout rates, so shipping cannot be treated as a cosmetic afterthought.
Shopify can help calculate tax, but the merchant still owns registration and filing, so the tax and checkout decisions need to stay aligned with the state route.
What the state guide settles
This is where the state guide turns Shopify’s guarded storefront baseline into the exact registration branch, local home-business checks, inventory rules, and printable packet.
Shopify does not inherit marketplace-only shortcuts, so the state route still has to confirm sales-tax registration, resale treatment, and filing timing as a direct seller.
Trade-name rules, LLC maintenance, annual filings, and state tax-account upkeep vary enough that the storefront page should not guess them.
Home storage, pickup traffic, local business-tax overlays, and address-specific permits can all change once the exact city is known.
Hiring help or moving into warehouse, local pickup, or 3PL flows changes the local and state checklist quickly even if the first store launch is simple.
What stays true
The approved baseline says to start from direct-sales registration and merchant-owned tax duties, not from a marketplace-facilitator assumption.
Shopify Payments can require two-step authentication, identity and business documents, and later updates, and payouts can be held while verification is incomplete.
Locations, shipping profiles, rates, domain setup, checkout settings, and test orders all belong in the real prelaunch path, not in a post-launch cleanup phase.
Shopify can support tax calculation, but the merchant still owns registration, filing, and the legal timing of those state duties unless a separate automated filing path is used.
Choose your lane
Best when you want the lightest direct-store launch with the least operational and compliance friction.
Best when domain, checkout, customer accounts, and the full branded storefront experience matter early.
Best when multiple locations, local pickup, warehouse storage, or 3PL use are likely to arrive sooner.
Baseline launch order
Official links to open first
Public end-to-end prelaunch checklist for plans, business info, payments, shipping, taxes, checkout, and test orders.
Shopify pricing ↗Public plan pricing, trial context, and live re-check point for current plan terms.
Shopify Payments overview ↗Public baseline for supported countries, eligibility, payouts, and verification themes.
Shopify Payments account setup ↗Public account-setup and verification path for merchants using Shopify Payments.
Fulfillment setup ↗Public baseline for locations, shipping, and fulfillment setup.
Taxes overview ↗Public reminder that tax is the merchant’s responsibility and that Shopify tax tools are not a substitute for state registration.
Every state route
Use the full state list when you want the exact registration branch, local home-business checks, inventory-location rules, and printable packet for the state where the storefront really operates.