Shopify Ecom

How Shopify Collective Works

Sell products from other Shopify stores — no inventory, no commission. Live in 38 countries and regions, retailer margins run 20–50%, and retailer and supplier must share a country and currency.

Updated 13 min read

Key Insights in 60 Seconds

Skim the highlights first, then dive into sections that match your business model.

Shopify Collective is free — no subscription, no commission; available on every plan with Shopify Payments active.
Two roles: retailer and supplier — retailers import and sell products; suppliers share inventory and fulfill orders.
Retailers keep 20–50% margins — the supplier's price list sets the margin; retailers can adjust the retail price, with zero inventory cost.
Available in 38 countries and regions — both parties must share a country and currency.
Physical products only — no digital products or gift cards; also incompatible with Managed Markets and POS pickup.
Better than traditional dropshipping — faster shipping, branded packaging, real partners, and automatic inventory sync.

What You'll Learn

1What Shopify Collective is and who it is for
2Step-by-step setup for retailers and suppliers
3How Collective compares to dropshipping
4Key features: price lists, discovery, auto-sync
5Eligibility requirements and supported countries
6Realistic margin expectations and revenue model
7Known limitations and incompatible apps
8When Collective makes sense

The Short Answer

Key takeaway

Shopify Collective is Shopify's native merchant-to-merchant sales channel. A supplier creates wholesale price lists for their products. A retailer discovers those products, imports them to their store, and keeps the margin the supplier set — or adjusts the retail price. When a customer buys, the retailer collects the full price, the order goes to the supplier automatically, and the supplier ships directly to the customer.

Verdict by store profile

Your situationVerdictWhy
You have traffic and an audience but a thin catalog, and you don't want to buy stockYes — join as a retailerThe channel costs $0, the supplier's price list sets your margin — typically 20–50% — and you can adjust the retail price, with no inventory to buy.
You're a DTC brand that already manufactures or stocks products and wants distributionYes — install the Supplier channelRetailers sell on your behalf while you receive your cost price per unit, with no extra fees and no marketing spend.
You want a wider catalog and want your own products in other storesYes — run both roles at onceA single store can install the Collective app and the Collective: Supplier sales channel side by side.
You're on Pause and Build, sell digital products, or your partner is in another countryNo — Collective won't workIt needs an active plan with Shopify Payments activated, physical products only, and both stores in the same country and currency.
Shopify Collective lets you connect with other Shopify stores and sell each other's products in Shopify.
Shopify Help Center — Shopify Collective ·
  • Retailers — import and sell products from other Shopify stores, with no inventory to buy or warehouse.
  • Suppliers — share products via price lists, get orders automatically, and ship directly to end customers.

The entire system is free to use — no subscription, no commission, no revenue share. Your only costs are your existing Shopify plan and standard Shopify Payments processing fees. Collective is a partnership channel, not a plan feature: it works on any active Shopify plan — from Basic ($39/mo) to Plus; the only plan Shopify's requirements pages rule out by name is Pause and Build.

Selling wholesale from your own store is the other job, and Shopify's native B2B toolkit has been included on Basic, Grow, Advanced and Plus since April 2026.

$0
Collective fee
38
Supported countries and regions
20–50%
Typical retailer margin

Source: Shopify Help Center

One store, two roles
A single Shopify store can be both a retailer and a supplier simultaneously. Install the Collective app (for retailing) and the Collective: Supplier sales channel (for supplying) side by side.

Who Is Shopify Collective For?

Key takeaway
You're a Retailer if…You're a Supplier if…
You want more products without buying inventoryYou manufacture or stock your own products
You have traffic/audience but limited catalogYou want distribution through other stores
You want to test new niches with zero riskYou want more sales without marketing spend
You run a boutique, gift shop, or curated storeYou're a DTC brand open to wholesale partnerships

How Shopify Collective Works

Key takeaway

For Retailers

Key takeaway

As a retailer, you use the Shopify Collective app to discover products from other merchants and add them to your store.

1
Install the app
Install 'Shopify Collective' from the Shopify App Store. Complete ID verification if prompted.
2
Find suppliers
Browse the Discovery page to find suppliers in your niche. Send connection requests or import from public price lists instantly.
3
Import products
Select products from a supplier's price list. They appear in your store as draft products — edit titles, descriptions, and images as needed.
4
Check your margin
Products import with the supplier's retail price and a cost price set by the supplier's margin (typically 20–50%). Retail-price sync is off by default, so you can raise or lower the retail price — Shopify suggests agreeing on it with the supplier first.
5
Customer places order
When a customer buys, you collect the full retail price via Shopify Payments. Shopify automatically forwards the order to the supplier.
6
Supplier fulfills
The supplier ships directly to your customer. Tracking info syncs back to your store automatically.

For Suppliers

Key takeaway

As a supplier, you use the Shopify Collective: Supplier sales channel to share your products with retailers who sell on your behalf.

You can sell your products through other retailers on Shopify by using the Shopify Collective: Supplier sales channel. Shopify Collective can help you reduce operational costs and risk, and drive more sales without investing more into your own marketing.
Shopify Help Center — Shopify Collective for suppliers ·
1
Install the channel
Install 'Shopify Collective: Supplier' sales channel from the App Store. Complete ID verification if prompted.
2
Create price lists
Build wholesale price lists for your products — set the retailer margin (at least 5% on public lists), choose which products to share, and decide visibility (public or invite-only).
3
Connect with retailers
Use Discovery to find retailers or invite them directly. Approve connection requests from interested stores.
4
Retailer sells your products
Connected retailers import your products at your retail price less the margin you set, and may adjust the retail price. You receive the cost price per unit.
5
Fulfill orders
When a retailer's customer buys, you receive the order automatically. Ship directly to the end customer.
6
Get paid
Shopify transfers your cost price automatically. No manual invoicing — payments flow through Shopify Payments.
How Shopify Collective Helps Build a Store Without InventoryLearn With Shopify walks through using Shopify Collective to source products from US-based suppliers and build a store with zero upfront inventory investment.

Shopify Collective vs Traditional Dropshipping

Key takeaway
FactorShopify CollectiveTraditional Dropshipping
Supplier typeVerified Shopify merchantsAliExpress, overseas factories
Shipping speedDomestic (2–7 days)International (15–30+ days)
Cost to useFree (no commission)Free tools, but often hidden costs
Inventory syncAutomatic, real-timeOften manual or delayed
Payment handlingAutomated via Shopify PaymentsManual (pay supplier separately)
Quality controlVerified partner ecosystemVariable, hard to verify
BrandingSupplier ships with their packagingGeneric or unbranded packaging
Country requirementSame country & currencyAny country
Platform lock-inShopify-to-Shopify onlyWorks with any platform

Deciding between Collective and app-based dropshipping (DSers, AutoDS, Spocket, Zendrop)? See our full side-by-side comparison of both sourcing models.

Key Features

Key takeaway
Discovery Marketplace
Browse and connect with Shopify merchants in your niche. Filter by category, country, and product type.
Price Lists
Suppliers create wholesale price lists. Public lists allow instant imports; private lists require approval.
Auto Inventory Sync
Product data, inventory levels, and variant availability sync automatically between supplier and retailer stores.
Automatic Order Routing
Orders are forwarded to suppliers instantly. Tracking numbers sync back to the retailer's store.
Automated Payments
Shopify splits payments automatically — retailer collects full price, supplier receives the cost price.
Trust & Safety
Both parties are verified Shopify merchants. ID verification, community guidelines, and eligibility checks protect the ecosystem.

Price Lists Explained

Key takeaway

Suppliers create price lists — curated selections of products with wholesale pricing. Price lists can be:

  • Public — any retailer on the Discovery page can instantly import products.
  • Private (invite-only) — only retailers who receive a direct invitation can access the price list.

Retailers see the cost price (what they pay the supplier — the supplier's retail price minus the margin set in the price list) and can raise or lower the retail price on their own store, since retail-price sync is off by default. The difference is their profit; the margin itself is the supplier's call, with a 5% floor on public price lists.

Order & Payment Flow

Key takeaway

When a customer buys a Collective product from a retailer's store:

  1. The retailer collects the full retail price via Shopify Payments.
  2. Shopify automatically creates an order on the supplier's store.
  3. The supplier fulfills and ships directly to the customer.
  4. Tracking information syncs back to the retailer's store.
  5. Shopify transfers the supplier's cost price automatically.

There is no manual invoicing. The entire payment split is handled by Shopify's infrastructure, similar to how Shopify Payments processes card transactions.

Requirements & Eligibility

Key takeaway
RequirementRetailerSupplier
Active Shopify plan✓ Any active plan (not Pause and Build)✓ Any active plan (not Pause and Build)
Shopify Payments✓ Fully activated, payouts active, payout currency = store currency✓ Fully activated, payouts active, payout currency = store currency
Supported country✓ One of 38 countries and regions✓ One of 38 countries and regions
Same country & currency✓ Must match supplier✓ Must match retailer
ID verificationMay be requiredMay be required
Tax setupUK & EU: Shopify Tax, Basic Tax or a tax app (not Manual Tax), plus a verified VAT number if VAT-registeredSame for UK & EU; Canada: a tax app plus a verified GST/HST number
Network Intelligence✓ Must be turned on (privacy settings)✓ Must be turned on (privacy settings)
Minimum salesNoneNone

Shopify Collective is free to use with all Shopify plans, subject to store eligibility. There is no minimum store sales requirement.

Supported Countries

Key takeaway

As of September 2026, Shopify Collective is available in the following 38 countries and regions — the same list for retailers and suppliers. The store's default currency must also be one of 18 supported currencies (USD, CAD, MXN, AUD, NZD, JPY, SGD, HKD, GBP, EUR, CHF, DKK, SEK, NOK, PLN, CZK, HUF, RON); it doesn't have to be the domestic currency of the store's country.

Americas & Asia-Pacific

  • United States
  • Canada
  • Mexico
  • Australia
  • New Zealand
  • Japan
  • Singapore
  • Hong Kong

Europe

  • United Kingdom, Ireland
  • Germany, Italy, Spain
  • Netherlands, Belgium, Austria
  • Denmark, Sweden, Norway, Finland
  • Portugal, Switzerland, Gibraltar
  • Poland, Czechia, Hungary, Romania
  • Bulgaria, Croatia, Greece, Slovenia
  • Estonia, Latvia, Lithuania
  • Luxembourg, Malta, Cyprus, Liechtenstein
Not in a supported country?
The list above is the whole rule, and the absence of a country is an answer in itself. France is the one large European market Shopify leaves off it, so a French store can connect as neither a retailer nor a supplier — and the same holds for any market that is not named. Partnering across a border is not a way around it either: retailer and supplier must share the same country and currency. If your market is missing, the sourcing decision moves elsewhere — compare the alternatives in our Collective versus dropshipping apps breakdown, or look at overseas wholesale in our Alibaba and Shopify guide.

Margins & Revenue Model

Key takeaway

The Collective revenue model is simple: the retailer's profit = retail price − supplier's cost price, where the cost price is the supplier's retail price minus the margin they set in the price list. There is no Shopify commission or platform fee on Collective transactions beyond standard Shopify Payments processing fees.

Weighing that against the margins you would keep sourcing the classic way? Our breakdown of dropshipping profit margins walks the same subtraction with app-based suppliers, where the fees Collective does not charge reappear elsewhere.

Source: Shopify Help Center

Real-World Margin Example

Key takeaway

The figures below assume a US retailer on the Basic plan, whose Shopify Payments online rate is 2.9% + 30¢. A retailer on a higher plan pays a lower processing rate and keeps slightly more of the same order.

MetricAmount
Customer pays (retail price)$80.00
Supplier's cost price (35% retailer margin)−$52.00
Shopify Payments fee — US Basic (2.9% + 30¢)−$2.62
Your net profit per order$25.38
Effective margin31.7%
Supplier benefit
Suppliers don't pay extra fees either. They gain additional sales volume through retailers' audiences without spending on marketing, ads, or customer acquisition. The only cost is fulfillment — which they'd handle for their own orders anyway.

Limitations & Incompatibilities

Key takeaway
Not Supported
  • Digital products & gift cards
  • Managed Markets
  • POS pickup in store
  • Metafields & bundles (not synced supplier → retailer)
  • Subscriptions & combined listings (supplier side)
  • Pause and Build plan
  • Cross-border / international partnerships
Compatible
  • Shopify Flow automation
  • Product bundles (retailer side)
  • Subscriptions (retailer side)
  • Combined listings (retailer side)
  • POS (order & ship, not pickup)
  • All active Shopify plans
Same-country requirement
Retailers and suppliers must be in the same country and use the same store currency to connect. Collective cannot bridge two countries, so overseas sourcing still means traditional wholesale import — our Alibaba and Shopify sourcing guide covers landed cost, Trade Assurance and 2026 tariffs. Selling wholesale from your own store is a different job entirely, and that is Shopify's native B2B toolkit.

The Bottom Line

Key takeaway

Shopify Collective sits in a unique spot: it's not traditional dropshipping, and it's not B2B wholesale. It's a free, lightweight, domestic partnership tool that any Shopify merchant can use.

The lowest-risk way to diversify revenue. Zero inventory investment for retailers, zero marketing costs for suppliers. No commission — you keep your margins.
Your Next Step by Stage
RetailerExpand your catalog risk-freeInstall Collective →
Supplier / BrandGet into other storesSupplier channel →
Scaling wholesaleAdd native B2B on your own storeB2B wholesale guide →

Ready to Expand Your Catalog?

Start selling products from other Shopify stores — no inventory, no risk, no commission. Collective is live in 38 countries and regions, and retailer margins typically run 20% to 50%.

Start $1/Month Trial

Frequently Asked Questions

Yes. There is no subscription fee, commission, or revenue share for using Shopify Collective. Both the retailer app and supplier sales channel are free to install and use on any active Shopify plan. Your only costs are your existing Shopify plan and standard Shopify Payments processing fees.
Shopify Collective works on any active Shopify plan — Basic, Grow, Advanced and Plus. Shopify's requirement is simply that your store is on an active plan with Shopify Payments set up and payouts active. The one plan Shopify's requirements pages rule out by name is Pause and Build; Starter is not mentioned on them, and Shopify no longer offers Starter to new stores anyway.
Yes. A single Shopify store can act as both a retailer (importing products from other stores) and a supplier (sharing products for others to sell). You install both the Collective app (retailer) and the Collective: Supplier sales channel.
Unlike traditional dropshipping with AliExpress or overseas suppliers, Collective connects you with verified Shopify merchants in your own country. This means faster shipping (domestic, not 15–30 days), real brand partnerships, automatic inventory sync, and Shopify handles the payment splits automatically.
As of September 2026 Shopify Collective is available in 38 countries and regions: the United States, Canada, Mexico, Australia, New Zealand, Japan, Singapore, Hong Kong, the United Kingdom, Switzerland, Norway, Gibraltar, Liechtenstein and 25 of the 27 EU countries. France and Slovakia are the EU absences — a French or Slovak store can join as neither retailer nor supplier. Both the retailer and supplier must be in the same country and use the same store currency.
Yes. Shopify Payments must be activated and fully set up on your store. This is a mandatory requirement for both retailers and suppliers. Your payout currency must also match your store's currency.
No. Shopify's documentation states the Collective app doesn't support digital products or gift card products, so the channel is for physical goods. Subscriptions and combined listings are a separate case: Shopify lists them among compatible features for retailers, but not on the supplier side.
The supplier handles all fulfillment. When a customer purchases a Collective product from a retailer's store, the order is automatically forwarded to the supplier, who ships directly to the customer. Tracking information syncs back to the retailer's store.
The retailer collects the full retail price from the customer via Shopify Payments. Shopify then automatically transfers the supplier's cost price. There is no manual invoicing — the entire payment flow is handled by Shopify.
Partially. Collective products can be added to your POS channel for purchase, and customers can place orders in-person. However, products are shipped to the customer's address by the supplier — pickup in store is not supported for Collective products.
The retailer margin is set by the supplier in their price list — Shopify's own documentation puts typical margins at 20% to 50%, with a 5% minimum on public price lists. You buy at the resulting cost price, and because retail-price sync is off by default you can raise or lower the retail price on your store, which changes your profit per order.
Yes. Shopify Collective is fully compatible with Shopify Flow for both retailers and suppliers. You can automate workflows like tagging Collective orders, sending notifications, or updating inventory thresholds.
About This Article
Shopify Developer & Editorial Director
9+ years with Shopify since 2017

Front-end developer specializing in Shopify since 2017. Experienced in building custom Liquid themes, optimizing storefront performance, and integrating third-party apps. Directs the editorial process behind Shopify Ecom: sets each topic, and checks facts, links, and interactive elements before publication.

This article was written entirely by AI under human editorial direction. The editor sets the topic and structure, runs multi-stage validation on facts, links, and interactive elements, and verifies the output is useful from a business perspective. All claims are checked against official Shopify sources. Details may change — always confirm critical data at shopify.com.

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