Shopify Pause and Build Plan: Cost, Steps, and What to Know 

Maybe sales have slowed down, and you need time to rethink your product line, or maybe you’re just burned out and need a break from fulfilling orders every day.

Whatever the reason, you don’t want to lose your store, your products, or the SEO rankings you’ve spent months building. That’s exactly what Shopify’s Pause and Build plan is for. It lets you temporarily close your Shopify store while keeping everything intact for $9 per month.

This guide covers what the plan includes, what it costs, how to activate it on desktop and mobile, what to do while your store is paused, and how pausing compares to fully deactivating your account.

Key Takeaways

• Shopify offers a “Pause and Build” plan for its merchants taking a break from selling.
• The plan costs $9 per month.
• Merchants can stay on this plan indefinitely.

What is the Shopify Pause And Build Plan?

The Shopify “Pause and Build” plan is a feature designed for Shopify store owners, allowing them to temporarily halt sales while still maintaining and enhancing their stores. With this plan, you can partially unpublish your Shopify store.

This option disables the checkout, preventing new orders, which is ideal for vacations or catching up on existing orders. It’s a handy feature for those who need a temporary respite without shutting down entirely.

Cost & functions of the Shopify Pause And Build Plan

With the Shopify Pause and Build plan available at a reduced fee of $9 USD monthly, you can halt sales yet retain vital store access. While customers can view products, the checkout is disabled, preventing purchases.

With this plan, merchants can access:

• Your full Shopify admin dashboard
• Product editing and catalog management
• Basic store performance reports
• Your storefront (customers can browse but not buy)
• One staff account

However, some functionalities are restricted during this period:

Feature	Status on Pause and Build
Online checkout	Disabled
Point of Sale (POS)	Disabled
Discount codes	Unavailable
Gift cards	Unavailable
Abandoned checkout recovery	Unavailable
Third-party sales channels (Facebook, Google)	Paused
Draft orders	Can create, but can’t convert to live orders

One thing that catches many merchants off guard is that third-party app billing continues even while you’re on the Pause and Build plan. Shopify doesn’t automatically pause your app subscriptions. You’ll need to manually uninstall any paid apps before switching plans, or those recurring charges will keep hitting your account.

Who Is Eligible?

Not every store qualifies for the Pause and Build plan. Here are the requirements:

• You must be the store owner: Staff accounts can’t initiate a pause.
• Your store must be past the free trial: You need to have been on a paid plan for at least 60 days (excluding any trial period).
• All outstanding invoices must be settled: Unpaid bills will block the plan change.
• The Shopify Pause and Build plan is not available for Shopify Plus users: If you’re on Plus, you’ll need to contact Shopify support directly to discuss your options.

If you’re seeing that the Shopify pause and build plan is not available in your settings, it’s likely because one of these requirements isn’t met. Double-check your billing status and account role first.

When to pause your Shopify store

There are several reasons you might think about temporarily pausing your store. Here are a few:

• Redesign or rebrand purpose: Pausing allows you to concentrate fully on updating your website or product images.
• Seasonal purpose: If your business thrives only during specific seasons or holidays, pausing during off-peak times could save costs.
• Order Overload Purpose: If you’re swamped with orders and struggling to keep up, a temporary halt can help you manage and dispatch existing orders efficiently.
• Personal Break purpose: Everyone needs downtime. By pausing your store, you ensure no new orders come in, letting you truly relax and recharge.
• Inventory gap: If you’re waiting on new stock and don’t want to show “out of stock” across your entire catalog, a temporary pause keeps things clean.

So, when NOT to pause?

Pausing isn’t always the right move. Consider alternatives if:

• Very short breaks (a few days): You’ll need to pick a new plan when you come back. For quick pauses, just add a banner or mark products as “sold out.”
• Active Shopify Capital advances: Pausing can complicate repayment. Contact Shopify support first.
• Store suspended for policy violations: A suspension requires resolving the issue with Shopify’s Trust and Safety team. It’s not the same as a voluntary pause.

Pre-Pause Checklist for Shopify Pause And Build Plan

Before you switch plans, take care of these items to avoid surprises:

1. Fulfill all outstanding orders: Complete or cancel every open order before checkout gets disabled.

2. Uninstall paid apps: Third-party apps billing continues on Pause and Build. Go to Settings > Apps and sales channels to remove paid apps. Screenshot your list first so you can reinstall it later.

3. Notify your customers: Send an email with your pause dates and an estimated return date.

4. Settle your Shopify Capital balance: Pausing can affect repayment terms. Check with Shopify support first if you have an outstanding advance.

5. Settle all outstanding invoices: Unpaid bills block the plan change. Clear your balance in Settings > Billing.

6. Back up your data: Export products, customers, and order history as CSV files. Shopify’s data retention policy keeps your data for up to two years after full deactivation, but a local backup is always smart.

7. Check Google Search Console: Note your current indexing status as a baseline. Your pages stay indexed during the pause, but monitoring helps you catch issues early.

How to Activate the Pause and Build Plan (Step-by-step guide)

Here’s how to change your Shopify plan to Pause and Build on both desktop and mobile.

On Desktop

• Step 1: Log in to the store admin panel as the owner.

• Step 2: Navigate to Settings > Plan.

• Step 3: Click the “Deactivate store” button.

• Step 4: In the pop-up window, review your billing details and select “Pause and build.” Fill in the necessary information to finish the process.

On mobile

• Step 1: Open the Shopify app and log in as the store owner.
• Step 2: Tap the three dots menu, then tap Settings.
• Step 3: Tap Cancel plan.
• Step 4: Enter your password when prompted, then tap Cancel plan again.
• Step 5: Select Pause and Build from the available options.
• Step 6: Tap Switch to Pause and Build to confirm.

The mobile process follows the same flow as the desktop. You’ll see the same confirmation screen and billing details before the switch happens.

Note: If you don’t see the Pause and Build option, check the Shopify Pause and Build plan help center or verify that your store meets the eligibility requirements listed earlier in this article.

What to do with your store while using the Pause And Build Plan

Your store isn’t completely frozen on the Pause and Build plan. Use this time to make improvements that you’d normally be too busy to tackle.

Customer Communication

Add a sticky banner or announcement bar to your storefront explaining the temporary pause. Something simple works: “We’re taking a short break. Orders will reopen on [date].”

And, consider hiding the “Add to Cart” button through your theme settings to avoid confusion. Customers can still browse, but removing purchase options makes the experience cleaner.

Store Optimization

This is your window to get things done without the pressure of incoming orders:

• Rewrite product descriptions to improve SEO and conversion rates. You can use SEO On: AI Product Description to significantly speed this up.
• Update product photography and optimize image sizes for faster load times.
• Clean up your navigation and category structure.
• Review and update your store policies (shipping, returns, privacy).
• Set up a “notify me” email capture form so interested visitors can leave their email for when you reopen.

Protect Your SEO

One concern merchants have about pausing is whether it hurts their search rankings. The short answer: your store stays indexed by search engines during the Pause and Build period, so your SEO doesn’t disappear overnight.

That said, a prolonged pause can affect rankings over time. Here’s how to minimize the risk:

• Keep your content live: Don’t password-protect your store unless absolutely necessary. Password protection prevents your pages from being indexed by Google.
• Don’t delete pages or products: Removing URLs creates 404 errors. If you must restructure, set up 301 redirects to preserve link equity.
• Monitor Google Search Console periodically. Watch for crawl errors, deindexed pages, or drops in impressions.
• Keep your blog active if possible. Even one post per month signals to search engines that the site isn’t abandoned.

If your pause is less than 3 months, the SEO impact is usually minimal. Beyond that, expect some ranking fluctuation that you’ll need to recover from when you reopen.

How to Reopen Your Store After Pausing

When you’re ready to start selling again, reactivating is straightforward. Note that your previous plan becomes invalid when you switch to Pause and Build, so you’ll need to select a new plan.

• Step 1: Log in as the store owner.
• Step 2: Navigate to Settings > click the “Change plan” button in your Shopify admin.

• Step 3: View and select an appropriate shopify fulfillment pricing option for your store.

• Step 4: Review the details thoroughly and finish the registration process.

Once you’ve selected your plan, you’re ready to resume sales. If your store had a password set during its pause, remember to remove it to enable customer access.\

After Reopening

• Reinstall any apps you uninstalled before the pause.
• Send an email blast to your customer list announcing you’re back.
• Check Google Search Console for any indexing issues that came up during the pause.
• Run a test order to make sure checkout, payment processing, and shipping all work correctly.

Pause and Build vs. Deactivate: Which Should You Choose?

This is where merchants often get confused. Shopify offers two ways to step away from your store: Pause and Build and full deactivation. They’re very different, and choosing the wrong one can cost you.

Feature	Pause and Build	Full Deactivation
Monthly cost	$9/month	$0 (free)
Admin access	Yes	No
Store visible to customers	Yes (browse only)	No
Product editing	Yes	No
SEO indexing continues	Yes	No, pages get deindexed
Data retention	Indefinite (while paying)	Two years, then deleted
Reactivation	Pick a new plan instantly	Must contact Shopify within two years
Shopify Capital	May complicate repayment	May trigger full repayment

The question of deactivate vs pause Shopify comes down to one thing: are you coming back soon? If yes, pause. If you’re not sure, pause anyway. Nine dollars a month is cheap insurance.

Alternatives to Pausing Your Shopify Store

The Pause and Build plan isn’t the only way to take a step back. Depending on your situation, one of these alternatives might work better:

1. Password Protection

Instead of switching plans, you can password-protect your entire store. This keeps you on your current plan (so you retain full functionality) but hides your storefront from the public.

Best for: Short breaks of one to two weeks, where you still want full admin and checkout capabilities but don’t want customers ordering.

Downside: Password-protected pages are removed from Google’s index. This can hurt your SEO if the protection stays on too long.

2. Seasonal Closing Announcement

Keep your store on its regular plan, but add a prominent banner announcing that you’re not currently accepting orders. Hide the “Add to Cart” button through your theme editor.

Best for: Very short pauses (a few days to a week) where switching plans would be overkill.

Downside: You’re paying full subscription price for a store that isn’t generating revenue.

3. Hide Products Selectively

If you only need to pause certain product lines (waiting on inventory, for example), you can set specific products or collections to “Draft” status. Your store stays fully operational for everything else.

Best for: Partial pauses where some products are still available.

Conclusion

The Shopify Pause and Build plan gives you a straightforward way to step away from selling without losing your store, your data, or your search visibility. At $9 per month, it’s a low-cost option for seasonal breaks, personal time off, or store redesigns.

Before you pause, work through the pre-pause checklist: fulfill orders, uninstall paid apps, notify customers, and back up your data. When you’re ready to come back, picking a new plan takes about two minutes and your store is live again immediately.

FAQs