The Short Answer
Shopify is a hosted platform reachable from anywhere with an internet connection. You can sign up, build a store and sell to customers worldwide from the overwhelming majority of countries. Shopify restricts signups only where it is legally required to — a short list of sanctioned jurisdictions.
So "does Shopify work in my country?" almost always resolves to yes. The questions that actually determine whether it works well are these four:
- Is Shopify Payments available here? This is the big one.
- Can I get paid? Payouts need a local bank account in a supported country.
- Do local customers have a payment method they trust? Cards are not universal.
- Can I ship affordably? Usually the hardest of the four.
Why Shopify Payments Availability Is the Whole Question
Where Shopify Payments is supported, you use it and pay only card processing. Where it is not, you connect a local or international gateway — and Shopify adds its third-party transaction fee on top of whatever that gateway charges.
| Plan | Extra fee if you cannot use Shopify Payments | Cost on $10,000/mo |
|---|---|---|
| Basic | 2.0% | $200/mo |
| Grow | 1.0% | $100/mo |
| Advanced | 0.6% | $60/mo |
Shopify Payments is available across North America, most of Western and Central Europe, the UK, Ireland, Australia, New Zealand, Singapore, Hong Kong, Japan and a growing set of other markets. It is not available across much of Africa, South Asia, Southeast Asia, Latin America and the Middle East — which is precisely where the country guides below matter most, because the local gateway you choose is a real financial decision rather than a detail.
Availability changes as Shopify expands, so treat any list as a snapshot and confirm at signup. The full mechanics are in Shopify transaction fees explained.
What Actually Changes Country to Country
| Factor | Why it matters |
|---|---|
| Preferred payment method | M-Pesa in Kenya, PIX in Brazil, iDEAL in the Netherlands, UPI in India, COD across much of South and Southeast Asia. Offering the wrong method is the same as being closed. |
| Payout currency and banking | Determines whether you can be paid directly, or need a provider like Payoneer or Wise. |
| Sales tax / VAT / GST | Registration thresholds and rates vary enormously, and getting this wrong is expensive later. |
| Shipping and last mile | Usually the real constraint, not the platform. Address quality, rural coverage and customs all vary. |
| Language | English-first works in some markets and kills conversion in others. |
| Dominant marketplace | Where you compete for attention — Jumia, Mercado Libre, Shopee, Allegro and so on. |
Each guide below covers these for one market specifically, with local carriers, gateways, tax authorities and marketplace share rather than generic advice.
Where Shopify Does Not Work
Shopify does not permit stores in countries subject to comprehensive sanctions, and this is a legal restriction rather than a business decision — it is not something support can waive. The list changes with international sanctions policy, so check Shopify's current terms if you think you may be affected.
Separately, and more commonly: some countries can host a store but cannot receive payouts easily because no supported gateway operates there. That is a solvable problem — usually through a cross-border payment provider or an entity in a neighbouring market — but it is worth knowing before you build rather than after.
Country Guides: Find Yours
One guide per market, covering payment methods, gateways, tax, shipping, localisation and the local competitive landscape.
Africa (18 guides)
- Botswana
- Cameroon
- Egypt
- Ethiopia
- Ghana
- Ivory Coast
- Kenya
- Mauritius
- Morocco
- Mozambique
- Nigeria
- Rwanda
- Senegal
- South Africa
- Tanzania
- Tunisia
- Uganda
- Zimbabwe
Asia-Pacific (24 guides)
- Australia
- Bangladesh
- Brunei
- Cambodia
- China
- Fiji
- Hong Kong
- India
- Indonesia
- Japan
- Laos
- Malaysia
- Mongolia
- Myanmar
- Nepal
- New Zealand
- Pakistan
- Singapore
- South Korea
- Sri Lanka
- Taiwan
- Thailand
- Vietnam
- the Philippines
Europe (37 guides)
- Armenia
- Austria
- Azerbaijan
- Belgium
- Bulgaria
- Croatia
- Cyprus
- Czech Republic
- Denmark
- Estonia
- Finland
- France
- Georgia
- Germany
- Greece
- Hungary
- Iceland
- Ireland
- Italy
- Kazakhstan
- Latvia
- Lithuania
- Luxembourg
- Malta
- Norway
- Poland
- Portugal
- Romania
- Slovakia
- Slovenia
- Spain
- Sweden
- Switzerland
- Turkey
- Uzbekistan
- the Netherlands
- the United Kingdom
Middle East (9 guides)
Americas (22 guides)
- Argentina
- Bolivia
- Brazil
- Canada
- Chile
- Colombia
- Costa Rica
- Dominican Republic
- Ecuador
- El Salvador
- Guatemala
- Honduras
- Jamaica
- Mexico
- Nicaragua
- Panama
- Paraguay
- Peru
- Trinidad and Tobago
- Uruguay
- Venezuela
- the United States
Frequently Asked Questions
Does Shopify work in every country?
Nearly. Shopify permits store signups from the overwhelming majority of countries and restricts only jurisdictions subject to comprehensive international sanctions. The more useful question is whether Shopify Payments is available where you are, because that determines whether you pay an additional transaction fee on every order.
What happens if Shopify Payments is not available in my country?
You connect a third-party gateway — often a strong regional one such as Paystack, Flutterwave, Pesapal, Razorpay or Mercado Pago — and Shopify charges its third-party transaction fee on top of that gateway's own fee. That fee is 2% on Basic, 1% on Grow and 0.6% on Advanced, so at $10,000 per month in sales it costs $200, $100 or $60 respectively.
Can I sell internationally from a country Shopify Payments does not support?
Yes. Store location and customer location are independent. Many merchants in markets without Shopify Payments sell primarily to customers in the US and Europe, using a gateway that supports cross-border card acceptance and a payout provider such as Payoneer or Wise.
Do I need a registered business to open a Shopify store?
Not to open the store. You will generally need one to accept payments, because gateways run identity and business verification, and you will need it for tax compliance once you are selling. Requirements vary by country and are covered in each country guide.
Which currency will my Shopify store charge in?
You set a store currency, and Shopify can present prices in a customer's local currency where supported. If your selling currency differs from your payout currency, a conversion fee applies, typically around 1.5% domestically and about 2% cross-border.
Is Shopify worth it in a country with low ecommerce adoption?
Often yes, because the constraint is usually logistics and payments rather than the platform, and Shopify solves the parts you would otherwise build. The country guides are candid about which markets are genuinely hard and why — low card penetration and unreliable last-mile delivery matter far more than which platform you choose.
💡 Ready to put this into practice? Shopify's free 3-day trial — then $1/month for 3 months, plus 1% of sales back in credits — is long enough to set it up and see the numbers. Start your free trial → (affiliate link)