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Depop vs Shopify: Resale App or Your Own Store (2026)

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Depop hands you a built-in resale audience with no setup cost. Shopify hands you full ownership of a store nobody’s heard of yet.

Table of Contents

Why This Comparison Matters

Most resale sellers start on Depop because it costs nothing to try. You photograph a few items from your closet, list them in minutes, and Depop’s app puts them in front of a fashion-focused audience that’s already primed to buy secondhand and vintage.

The question shows up later, once the shop is actually working: do you keep selling inside Depop’s app, or do you move some (or all) of that inventory to a store you own on Shopify? This comparison breaks down what each platform actually costs, what you get for it, and which type of resale seller each one fits, so you can decide without guessing.

We’ll cover pricing and fees, features, ease of use, and a realistic look at migrating between the two if you decide to make the jump.

Depop Overview

Depop is a mobile-first marketplace built around secondhand, vintage, and streetwear fashion resale, with a buyer base concentrated among younger, style-driven shoppers. Listings live inside Depop’s app and are discovered through its feed, search, and follow system rather than through search engines like Google.

Strengths:

  • No monthly subscription fee, and no selling (commission) fee on standard listings for sellers based in the US or UK
  • A large, ready-made audience of resale-focused buyers who are already browsing the app, so you don’t need to drive your own traffic to make a sale
  • Fast to list: a few photos and a price, no store design or setup required

Weaknesses:

  • No custom domain or independent branding. Every listing lives under Depop’s name, not yours, and you can’t build a store front page that looks distinctly like your own business
  • No built-in email list or direct access to customer contact data, so repeat buyers have to find you again inside the app rather than through your own marketing
  • The optional Boosted Listings feature, which increases visibility in search, takes a meaningful cut of any sale it produces, so heavy use of it erodes the “zero fee” advantage
  • Growth is capped by how the app’s discovery algorithm treats your shop, not by how much marketing effort you put in

Pricing summary: Depop dropped its 10% seller commission for sellers in the US and UK. Sellers there still pay Depop’s standard payment processing fee on each sale, and buyers pay a separate marketplace fee of up to 5% of the item price plus up to $1 (Depop newsroom). Sellers outside the US and UK selling in other currencies may still see a selling fee apply.

Shopify Overview

Shopify is a hosted ecommerce platform for building a store you fully own, on your own domain, with your own branding. It works for any product category, resale and vintage included, but unlike Depop it comes with zero built-in shopper traffic on day one.

Strengths:

  • Full ownership of the storefront, brand, and customer data, including an email list you can market to directly
  • No marketplace commission on sales. Shopify’s cost structure is a flat monthly plan plus a per-transaction processing rate, not a cut of your revenue taken by the platform itself
  • A wide app ecosystem for reviews, upsells, email marketing, and even listing the same inventory to channels like Instagram or TikTok Shop from one dashboard
  • Predictable plan tiers that scale as sales volume grows, with lower processing rates on higher plans

Weaknesses:

  • A monthly subscription cost applies even in months with zero sales
  • No built-in audience. Every buyer has to be found through your own marketing, whether that’s paid ads, social, SEO, or an existing customer base you bring with you
  • Store setup (theme, product pages, shipping and tax configuration) takes real time compared to Depop’s photograph-and-list flow, even though no coding is required

Pricing summary: Shopify’s core plans are Basic at $39/month billed monthly ($29/month billed annually), the mid-tier plan (confusingly also just named “Shopify”) at $105/month billed monthly ($79/month billed annually), and Advanced at $399/month billed monthly ($299/month billed annually), each with a lower Shopify Payments processing rate at the higher tiers (Shopify pricing). New stores currently get a 3-day free trial followed by a discounted $1/month rate for three months before standard billing starts. Pricing changes, so confirm current rates on Shopify’s own pricing page before committing.

Head-to-Head: Pricing & Fees

Fee TypeDepopShopify (Basic plan)
Monthly plan$0$39/mo billed monthly, $29/mo billed annually
Selling/commission fee0% for US and UK-based sellers on standard listings0% marketplace commission (you own the store)
Payment processingReported at roughly 3.3% + $0.45 per transaction on Depop Payments for US sellers, per independent fee trackers (feescal.com); confirm current rate in-app before relying on it2.9% + 30 cents per online transaction with Shopify Payments
Buyer-side marketplace feeUp to 5% of item price plus up to $1, paid by the buyer, confirmed by Depop’s own newsroomNone
Boosted/promoted listingsReported around 12% of the sale for US/UK boosted listings, per third-party trackers; treat as an estimate and check Depop’s app for the current rateNo platform cut. Paid promotion (Google, Meta) is bought separately and isn’t a percentage of the sale

Fees change on both platforms. Always verify current rates on Depop’s in-app fee breakdown and Shopify’s pricing page before finalizing a decision based on the numbers above.

The practical read: Depop’s zero commission looks unbeatable until you factor in the buyer-side marketplace fee, which makes your item pricier to the shopper even though it doesn’t touch your payout directly, plus Boosted Listings if you use them. Shopify has no commission at all, but the flat monthly cost only pays for itself once you’re generating consistent sales, since a slow month still costs the same $39 as a busy one.

Head-to-Head: Features & Audience

Depop’s biggest feature is the one that’s hardest to replicate elsewhere: a resale-specific audience that’s already browsing, following sellers, and buying secondhand fashion without you having to convince them the category is worth shopping in. The app’s feed, hashtags, and follow system function like a built-in discovery engine.

Shopify’s feature set runs the other direction. It gives you the tools to build a distinct brand (custom theme, product photography layout, About page, email capture) and the app ecosystem to run marketing once you have traffic, but none of the audience discovery Depop provides natively. A resale seller who moves to Shopify has to build the top-of-funnel that Depop was previously handling for free.

One middle path worth naming: Shopify stores can connect to other sales channels, including social commerce apps, from the same product catalog, which means a seller doesn’t have to choose one audience source exclusively.

Head-to-Head: Ease of Use

Depop wins decisively on setup speed. Downloading the app, photographing an item, and publishing a listing takes minutes, with no design decisions to make.

Shopify requires actual store setup: picking a theme, writing product descriptions and policies, configuring shipping rates and tax settings, and connecting a payment processor. None of it requires code, and Shopify’s setup guides walk through each step, but it’s a project measured in hours or days, not minutes, especially the first time.

If you’re deciding between other resale-focused options before committing to build a standalone store, the setup-speed gap holds across most app-based marketplaces compared to any store-builder platform.

Building a Resale Brand Beyond the App

Sellers who outgrow Depop’s built-in reach tend to hit the same wall: the algorithm decides how much visibility a shop gets, and there’s no way to email past buyers directly about new inventory drops. That’s the point where a Shopify store starts to make sense, not as a replacement, but as a second channel that captures the customers Depop already found for you.

A common pattern is running both at once for a stretch: keep listing on Depop for discovery and quick sales, and build a Shopify store for repeat buyers, wholesale sourcing relationships, or vintage curation that benefits from a distinct brand identity. Sellers weighing a similar wholesale-versus-retail tradeoff face the same core decision: chase an existing audience or build your own.

Who Should Choose Depop?

  • You’re starting out with unsold closet items or light vintage sourcing and don’t want any upfront cost
  • You don’t yet have a repeat customer base or an email list worth building around
  • You want to test whether resale is a viable side income before investing time in a branded store
  • You’re comfortable with Depop’s fee stack and app-native discovery model, including the buyer-side fee that applies to your listings
  • Speed to first sale matters more right now than long-term brand ownership

Who Should Choose Shopify?

  • You already have repeat buyers, a growing vintage or resale sourcing pipeline, or wholesale relationships worth building a brand around
  • You want to own your customer email list and market directly to past buyers instead of relying on an app’s discovery algorithm
  • You’re ready to invest in driving your own traffic through paid ads, social, or SEO rather than depending on built-in marketplace reach
  • You plan to sell across multiple channels (your own site, social commerce, wholesale) from one product catalog
  • The flat monthly cost is affordable relative to your current or expected sales volume

Migration Guide: Moving From Depop to Shopify

Depop doesn’t offer a straightforward bulk export tool for individual sellers, so moving inventory takes some manual work. Here’s a realistic path:

  1. Audit your Depop listings. Pull photos, descriptions, and pricing for the items you want to carry over. Depop doesn’t offer a one-click catalog export for individual sellers, so this is manual copy-and-paste work.
  2. Pick a Shopify plan and set up your domain. Basic covers most sellers starting out; you can upgrade once volume justifies the lower processing rate on the mid-tier “Shopify” plan.
  3. Rebuild product listings on Shopify. Reuse your Depop photography where it’s good enough, but write fresh descriptions optimized for search rather than in-app browsing, since Shopify traffic largely comes from outside the platform.
  4. Connect a payment processor and configure shipping and tax settings. This is the step with no Depop equivalent, since Depop handles payments and much of the logistics for you.
  5. Keep Depop live in parallel while you build Shopify traffic. Don’t shut down your existing discovery channel until the new store has its own momentum, whether through paid ads, social, or an email list you’ve started building.

Budget at least a few weeks for a smooth transition if you’re moving a full shop’s worth of inventory and setting up marketing from scratch, longer if you’re also sourcing new inventory during the move.

Frequently Asked Questions

Which is cheaper overall, Depop or Shopify?

It depends on your sales volume. Depop has no monthly fee and no seller commission on standard listings, so at low or inconsistent sales volume it costs less out of pocket. Shopify’s flat monthly fee makes more sense once you have steady sales that outweigh the cost of the subscription, especially since Shopify has no per-sale commission beyond payment processing.

Which is better for beginners?

Depop is easier to start on since listing takes minutes and there’s no store to design. Shopify has a learning curve around store setup, though it doesn’t require coding.

How long does it take to migrate from Depop to Shopify?

Plan for at least a few weeks if you’re moving a full inventory and building marketing from nothing, since Depop doesn’t offer a straightforward bulk export tool and you’ll need to drive your own traffic once you launch.

Are there hidden fees on either platform?

On Depop, the Boosted Listings feature and the buyer-side marketplace fee can catch new sellers by surprise since neither is a straightforward seller commission. On Shopify, watch for the surcharge that applies if you use a third-party payment gateway instead of Shopify Payments, and any paid apps you add to your store.

Can you sell on both Depop and Shopify at the same time?

Yes. Many resale sellers keep a Depop presence for discovery and quick sales while building a Shopify store for repeat customers and a distinct brand. There’s no exclusivity requirement on either side.

Which has better tools for building a brand identity?

Shopify, by a wide margin. Depop listings all live under Depop’s own branding and app design, while Shopify gives you a custom domain, full theme control, and your own product photography layout.

Which has better SEO and discoverability outside the platform’s own app?

Shopify stores can be indexed by Google and found through search, which Depop listings generally are not, since Depop’s discovery is built around its in-app feed and search rather than external search engines.

What happens to your customer relationships if you leave Depop?

You lose access to any followers or past buyers inside the app, since Depop doesn’t provide seller-owned contact data for marketing outside the platform. This is the core reason sellers with repeat buyers eventually consider a move to their own store.

Does Shopify support resale and vintage items specifically?

Yes. Shopify isn’t built exclusively for resale the way Depop is, but there’s nothing about the platform that limits it to new inventory. Many independent vintage and resale brands run entirely on Shopify with product tagging and collections built around condition, era, or sourcing story.

What happens to your Shopify store if you cancel?

Canceling a Shopify subscription eventually removes your store from public view, though you can typically export your customer and order data first. Confirm current data-export options directly with Shopify support before canceling, since policies can change.

Is there a free way to try Shopify before committing to a paid plan?

Shopify currently offers a short free trial followed by a discounted rate for a few months before standard plan pricing applies. Confirm the current offer on Shopify’s pricing page, since promotional trial terms change.

The Bottom Line

Depop and Shopify aren’t really competing for the same seller at the same stage. Depop is the better starting point if you have no existing audience and want to test resale with zero upfront cost, since its built-in discovery does the marketing work you’d otherwise have to do yourself. Shopify becomes the better fit once you have repeat buyers, a sourcing pipeline worth branding, or a reason to own your customer relationships instead of renting an algorithm’s attention.

If you’re just getting started clearing out a closet or testing vintage sourcing, start on Depop. If you already have buyers who’d follow you to your own store, Start building your Shopify store once you’ve confirmed you can drive your own traffic to it.

Related Articles

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More Shopify comparisons:

About This Research

CartCompare Editorial Team is CartCompare’s organizational byline covering e-commerce platform research and comparisons for marketplace sellers and small operators.

This article is based on direct review of Depop’s official newsroom fee announcements and Shopify’s own pricing page, cross-referenced against independent fee-tracking sites for figures not published directly by Depop, with rates confirmed as of the date below.

Content reviewed and updated: 2026-09-16

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CartCompare is an independent e-commerce platform research site. Have a platform we haven’t covered yet, or think we got a fact wrong? Reach out via ecomcartcompare.com/about.

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