The verdict in three sentences
For a manufacturer whose PrestaShop has piled up dozens of modules and overrides, Shopify Plus sharply reduces maintenance cost and includes native B2B: company accounts, customer-specific catalogues, payment terms. The migration budget runs from 30,000 to 80,000 EUR excl. VAT over 3 to 4 months, plus a subscription from 2,300 USD a month (about 2,000 EUR). The main risk is SEO: with an exhaustive redirect plan, the traffic dip stays limited to 5 to 10% for 4 to 8 weeks.
Migration budget by workstream
Cost depends mostly on the number of customizations to rebuild and on data quality. The ranges below fit a catalogue of 3,000 to 8,000 products with variants.
| Workstream | Content | Budget excl. VAT 2026 | Share of project |
|---|---|---|---|
| Audit and scoping | Inventory of modules, flows, URLs, B2B rules | 3,000 to 6,000 EUR | 8% |
| Theme and front end | Online Store 2.0 theme adapted to the brand, 8 to 12 templates | 8,000 to 20,000 EUR | 25% |
| Data migration | Products, variants, customers, orders, reviews | 4,000 to 10,000 EUR | 12% |
| B2B setup | Company accounts, catalogues, volume pricing, payment terms | 5,000 to 15,000 EUR | 18% |
| Integrations | ERP, PIM, carriers, accounting software | 6,000 to 20,000 EUR | 25% |
| SEO and redirects | Mapping every URL, tags, post-launch monitoring | 2,000 to 5,000 EUR | 6% |
| Testing and training | QA, team training, 4-week hypercare | 2,000 to 4,000 EUR | 6% |
2026 order of magnitude. A 30,000 EUR project assumes few integrations; beyond two custom ERP or PIM connectors, you quickly exceed 60,000 EUR.
Total cost of ownership: PrestaShop vs Shopify Plus
The comparison should cover three years, including hosting, modules, maintenance and fees.
| Annual item | Customized PrestaShop | Shopify Plus | Comment |
|---|---|---|---|
| Licence or subscription | 0 EUR | 24,000 to 28,000 EUR (2,300 USD a month on a 3-year term) | Above 800,000 USD monthly sales, 0.4% variable fee |
| Hosting and managed services | 6,000 to 15,000 EUR | Included | Scaling handled by Shopify |
| Modules and apps | 2,000 to 5,000 EUR | 6,000 to 15,000 EUR | B2B, reviews, search, subscription apps |
| Maintenance and upgrades | 20,000 to 40,000 EUR | 8,000 to 15,000 EUR | No more version upgrades or module conflicts |
| Security and PCI compliance | 3,000 to 6,000 EUR | Included | PCI DSS Level 1 certified |
| Transaction fees | Depends on PSP | Shopify Payments, or third-party PSP with 0.15 to 0.6% extra fees | Negotiable with volume |
| Estimated annual total | 31,000 to 66,000 EUR | 38,000 to 58,000 EUR | Small gap, but more predictable budget |
The gain is therefore not always financial: it lies in speed of change. An e-commerce team spends less time fixing and more time selling.
Traps that cost a lot
Four mistakes recur on B2B migrations. Shopify URLs follow a fixed format (/products/, /collections/): every old PrestaShop URL needs its 301 redirect, otherwise organic traffic drops 20 to 40%. Customer passwords cannot be migrated: plan an account activation campaign, or 30% of B2B customers will call sales. PrestaShop's complex pricing rules (specific prices by group and quantity) must be rewritten as B2B catalogues and volume tiers. Finally, Shopify's limit of 2,048 variants per product sometimes forces a catalogue restructure.
Mini case study
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Thomas, e-commerce director at a commercial furniture manufacturer in Bordeaux, sells 8 million EUR online, 40% of it to 1,200 B2B accounts. His PrestaShop runs 74 modules and costs 52,000 EUR a year in hosting and maintenance. The migration, priced at 65,000 EUR excl. VAT, with an annual Shopify Plus cost of 45,000 EUR, saves only 7,000 EUR a year. However, self-service B2B ordering with 30-day terms lifts the share of accounts ordering online from 35 to 55%, about 640,000 EUR in extra B2B revenue. At a 25% margin, the project pays back in 5 months.
FAQ
How long does a PrestaShop to Shopify Plus migration take?
Allow 3 to 4 months for a catalogue of a few thousand products with two integrations. Projects with a custom ERP and several international stores take 5 to 6 months.
Will we lose organic search traffic?
A 5 to 10% dip for 4 to 8 weeks is normal with a full redirect plan. Without exhaustive mapping, losses can reach 30 to 40% and last several months.
Does Shopify Plus really handle B2B?
Yes, since 2023 B2B features are native on Plus: company accounts with multiple buyers, customer-specific catalogues and prices, 30 or 60-day payment terms. Complex quotes and multi-level approvals still need a third-party app at 100 to 500 USD a month.
Can we keep order history?
Yes, past orders and customers can be imported via migration tools or a dedicated script. Allow 1,500 to 4,000 EUR depending on volume, with history older than 3 years often archived elsewhere.
Should we migrate all at once or step by step?
A one-shot cutover on a Sunday, with a catalogue freeze 72 hours before, remains the safest method. Phased migration complicates stock sync and costs 15 to 25% more.
Let's scope your project. Send us your list of PrestaShop modules, integrations and B2B volume: we will price the migration between 30,000 and 80,000 EUR excl. VAT with a 3 to 4 month plan. Detailed quote within 48 h. WhatsApp +221 77 596 93 33.
Mohamed Bah
Fondateur, Kolonell
Passionate about digital and entrepreneurship in Africa, Mohamed has been helping Sénégalese businesses with their digital transformation since 2020. Founder of Kolonell, he believes every SME deserves a professional and accessible online présence.
