Shopify Sidekick Pricing, Cost and Break-Even Value
By Paige Gilmore, Founder, NetLift · Published 2026-08-07 · Updated 2026-08-29
Prices checked 2026-08-31 against official vendor pricing pages.
Shopify Sidekick is included as a standard feature across all paid Shopify plans, starting at $29 per month (billed annually) for the Basic tier. There is currently no separate add-on fee or per-user cost for the AI assistant.
Shopify Sidekick is bundled into existing platform subscriptions rather than sold as a standalone product. For operations teams, the cost of entry is the Basic plan at $29 per month on an annual contract, or $39 per month for monthly billing. All core plans currently offer a 3-day free trial followed by a $1 per month promotional rate for the first three months.
Because the AI assistant is a native feature, finance leads do not need to account for additional per-seat licensing. The primary cost consideration is the subscription tier required for your broader business needs, ranging from the Basic plan to Shopify Plus starting at $2,300 per month.
Current official pricing
| Plan | Price | Billing | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|
| Shopify — Trial Offer | $1 | per month | 3 days free, then $1/month for 3 months. |
| Shopify — Basic | $29 | per month | Billed yearly. |
| Shopify — Grow | $79 | per month | Billed yearly. |
| Shopify — Advanced | $299 | per month | Billed yearly. |
| Shopify — Plus | $2,300 | per month | Starts at $2,300/mo. Pricing for 1 or 3 year terms. Try for $399 (limited offer stated on page). |
Is there an additional fee for Sidekick AI?
Sidekick is integrated directly into the Shopify admin. Current pricing facts indicate that the assistant is included in the Basic, Grow, and Advanced plans. This means the "cost" of the AI is effectively the cost of your Shopify subscription. Organizations can test the tool's impact with minimal upfront risk using the 90-day $1/month promotional period.
How does pricing scale with business size?
Value scales based on the platform tier rather than AI usage limits. Small stores on the Basic plan ($29/month) get the same core Sidekick access as those on the Advanced plan ($299/month). Larger enterprises on Shopify Plus pay a minimum of $2,300 per month for a package that supports more complex business requirements alongside the AI capabilities.
To determine if Sidekick justifies your platform spend, you must measure the reduction in manual effort for site building and administrative tasks. NetLift enables you to benchmark these time savings against your previous baseline to calculate a true net return on your Shopify subscription.
Sources
All pricing on this page comes from official vendor pages:
- https://www.shopify.com/pricing — retrieved 2026-08-29
Frequently asked questions
Does the Shopify Basic plan include Sidekick?
Yes, the Basic plan includes the Sidekick AI assistant and website builder for $29 per month billed annually or $39 per month billed monthly.
Are there any promotions available for Sidekick access?
Yes, Shopify offers a 3-day free trial followed by a promotion of $1 per month for the first 3 months on Basic, Grow, and Advanced plans.
What is the enterprise cost for Shopify with Sidekick?
For enterprise-level organizations, Shopify Plus starts at $2,300 per month and includes the platform's AI features.
Can developers build extensions for Sidekick?
Yes, developers can use Sidekick App Extensions to build AI-powered Shopify admin apps, allowing for customized AI functionality within the store's backend.
About the author
Paige Gilmore is the founder of NetLift, the AI Value Management platform that helps organisations measure the cost, savings and return of AI adoption. Paige Gilmore on LinkedIn