Dropshipping on Shopify is a fantastic way for budding entrepreneurs to enter the ecommerce world. Not only is it a beginner-friendly option that doesn't require a hefty upfront investment, but with a third-party managing inventory and shipping, it's a great way to practice building a brand and connecting with customers.
Learn more: What is dropshipping?
The easiest way to integrate dropshipping on your Shopify store is through the use of dropshipping apps that connect you with dropshipping suppliers, manage inventory, and process orders for shipping to customers. However, Shopify now offers multiple pathways for dropshipping success, including direct supplier partnerships and collaborative selling through Shopify Collective.
Three ways to dropship on Shopify
Shopify provides flexibility in how you approach dropshipping, allowing you to choose the method that best fits your business goals and experience level:
- Automated dropshipping apps: Connect your store to third-party apps that handle supplier relationships and order processing.
- Direct supplier partnerships: Build relationships with individual suppliers and manage products through Shopify's native tools.
- Shopify Collective: Partner with other Shopify merchants to expand your product range without holding inventory.
Using dropshipping apps on Shopify
Dropshipping apps on Shopify connect your store with a host of suppliers, enabling you to easily browse and import products to sell while automating the process of order fulfillment, as dropshipping products are processed and shipped by third-party suppliers only when purchased, eliminating the need to hold inventory.
The apps also manage real-time inventory levels to prevent overselling and provide tracking information for customer shipments, streamlining the entire order process.
Benefits of using dropshipping apps
- Discover products. Browse a wide selection of items that fit your niche.
- Import product information. Easily add descriptions, images, and pricing to your store.
- Automate order processing. Send order details to suppliers for direct fulfillment.
- Access a broader product range. Partner with various suppliers for diverse offerings.
- Compare prices. Find the best deals for your customers by evaluating different suppliers.
- Enhance inventory diversity. Cater to varying customer preferences with a wide range of products.
While dropshipping apps provide numerous advantages, they also come with some challenges. For instance, competition can arise from other sellers offering similar products.
Additionally, many apps connect to suppliers overseas, which may lead to longer shipping times. This aspect is important to consider, as it can affect customer satisfaction and retention.
Popular dropshipping apps for Shopify
Several apps stand out for their features and supplier networks:
Spocket connects you with suppliers across the United States, Europe, and international markets. The platform offers extensive product variety and maintains partnerships with major marketplaces. You can order product samples to verify quality before adding items to your store.
DSers specializes in connecting merchants with AliExpress suppliers. The app includes a Supplier Optimizer feature that identifies multiple sources for identical products, helping maintain stable inventory levels when one supplier experiences issues.
AutoDS provides comprehensive dropshipping management, from product selection to customer delivery and return processing. The platform uses artificial intelligence to analyze market trends and identify popular products for your consideration.
Partnering directly with suppliers
Working directly with suppliers offers greater control over your dropshipping operations compared to using automated apps. This approach involves building personal relationships with suppliers and using Shopify's tools to showcase and sell their products.
Each supplier operates differently—some provide online catalogs for browsing, while others prefer to negotiate individual agreements with retail partners.
Advantages of direct supplier partnerships
- Build meaningful relationships that can lead to product customization opportunities
- Negotiate custom pricing and fulfillment terms that benefit your business
- Become a preferred partner with priority treatment and exclusive access
- Gain more control over product quality and customer experience
As your store builds reputation in your chosen niche, suppliers may approach you to establish partnerships. This can result in better treatment and opportunities for negotiation.
However, direct partnerships require more hands-on coordination. You'll need to manage complex logistics when routing orders and source backup suppliers when primary partners run out of stock.
Finding reliable dropshipping suppliers
When researching potential suppliers, establish clear criteria based on your business needs. Delivery speed significantly impacts customer satisfaction, so consider prioritizing domestic suppliers located near your customer base.
Look for suppliers that store inventory near common customer locations for faster order fulfillment. If working with multiple suppliers, use automation rules to route orders to the nearest supplier with available stock.
Your supplier's inventory directly limits the products you can offer, so invest time in finding reliable partners. Read reviews from other sellers and pay attention to complaints about product availability.
Expanding with Shopify Collective
Shopify Collective allows established merchants to grow their product range by partnering with other Shopify stores. Through Collective, you can list and sell products from compatible brands while your partners handle order fulfillment.
Key benefits of Shopify Collective
- Increase average order value by offering complementary products without additional inventory investment
- Attract new customers by expanding into related product categories
- Grow your catalog with no inventory costs or risks
- Connect with compatible brands directly through Shopify's platform
Shopify Collective is available to stores that have generated more than $50,000 in sales, ensuring participants have proven track records.
How Shopify Collective works
Eligible merchants can download the Collective app and begin making connections through their Shopify admin. Browse products from potential partners or invite existing business relationships to join the platform.
Once connected, suppliers provide pricing information for your review. Selected products import directly into your store with complete product details and inventory data.
Customers can purchase items from multiple suppliers using a single checkout powered by Shopify Payments. After orders process, Collective automatically distributes payments to each store upon fulfillment and forwards returns directly to suppliers.
How to start dropshipping on Shopify
1. Create a Shopify store
If you don't already have one, start by creating an account for your Shopify dropshipping store. Set up your homepage, product pages, and menu navigation. You'll also want to add a domain to your store and set up a payment method to allow customers to purchase.
2. Customize your store design
Shopify's professionally designed themes provide a strong foundation for your store's appearance. Select a theme that matches your desired layout—many popular themes are available at no cost.
Brand your website with a cohesive color scheme, create a logo, configure your checkout process, and populate pages with basic content and images. Focus on functionality over perfection at this stage, as you can refine the design once your business is operational.
3. Optimize payment, policies, and shipping settings
Several setup steps become particularly important when dropshipping:
Payment information
The first thing you'll need to do is set up payments for your Shopify dropshipping store. This is a vital step, as you won't be able to receive money from customers if you don't add a payment option.
To add payment information, you'll need to access Shopify's Settings page. Simply select the Payments tab on the left and add your payment information.
Store policies
When you're launching your own Shopify dropshipping store, you'll need to make sure you have created the necessary store policies. Shopify has a bunch of helpful tools that automatically generate a standardized privacy policy, refund policy, and terms and conditions for your store.
You can access these tools from Shopify's settings. Click on the Checkout tab and scroll down to the bottom to find the relevant fields.
Shipping rates
It's critical that your Shopify dropshipping store has clear shipping rates. We recommend that you always offer free shipping, as this is the easiest option. If you offer different shipping rates for various regions, it can become confusing, so simply incorporate your shipping fees into the price of your products and make shipping free.
For example, if you're planning to sell a t-shirt for $20, raise the price to $25 and offer free shipping. Using "FREE SHIPPING!" as part of your Shopify dropshipping store's marketing will help you sell your products.
You can set free shipping on your store by accessing the Shipping tab in your Shopify settings.
4. Optimize your product pages
As you import products through your chosen method, avoid relying solely on default descriptions and images from suppliers. Edit product information to engage shoppers with original content that helps them make purchase decisions.
Shopify's built-in AI tools can enhance your product pages by improving descriptions with search-friendly content and transforming product photos with enhanced image editing.
When refining product pages, price your products competitively while ensuring you collect necessary taxes and retain a healthy profit margin for each sale.
5. Pick a dropshipping approach
Selecting the right dropshipping strategy directly influences how you source products and fulfill orders in your Shopify store. Here are some key factors to consider:
- Product selection: Look for options that offer a wide range of products relevant to your niche.
- Pricing structure: Review costs and fees to understand how they impact your profit margins.
- Customer support: Consider the availability of support and resources for when you encounter issues.
- User reviews and ratings: Check feedback to gauge performance and reliability based on other merchants' experiences.
- Shipping options: Evaluate delivery methods, times, and costs to ensure they meet customer expectations.
Learn more: How To Start Dropshipping: A Detailed Step-by-Step Guide
Using print-on-demand to dropship custom products
If you prefer to design your own products, a print-on-demand app may be the way to go. Print-on-demand is a dropshipping model where you're able to sell products that include your own custom designs.
Like other dropshipping models, products are manufactured, housed, and shipped by a third-party—but this approach allows you to differentiate your brand by offering exclusive designs more tailored to your specific niche. This creative control not only strengthens your brand identity but also fosters a deeper connection with customers who appreciate the originality of your offerings.
Print-on-demand helps you avoid direct competition while maintaining dropshipping's no-inventory benefits. You can create unique, branded versions of t-shirts, tote bags, household items, and more.
And who knows? Print-on-demand could serve as a gateway to building your own fashion brand, home decor line, or any niche market you're passionate about.
Check out some print on demand apps by clicking here.
Learn more: What Is Print On Demand? Your Guide to Selling Custom Products
Essential Shopify tools for dropshipping success
Successful dropshipping extends beyond supplier connections and store setup. Shopify provides marketing, analytics, and customer support tools to help you grow your business and stay competitive.
Understand your customers with data
Customer insights drive informed decisions and help create a brand voice that resonates. Shopify analytics provides clarity through detailed reports on website visitors, sales performance, and marketing campaign effectiveness.
Use these reports to identify your most popular products and the marketing content that drives traffic to your store. Refine your understanding of your target audience by answering questions like:
- What marketing content engages my audience most effectively?
- Which products encourage repeat purchases?
- Where do visitors come from and what devices do they prefer?
- What product features matter most to customers?
- What brands does my audience prefer?
Enhance customer support
Dropshipping sellers serve as the primary contact point for customer support. Poor handling of support requests can lead to negative reviews and high return rates.
When dropshipping products with extended shipping times, clearly communicate expected delivery dates to avoid disappointed customers. Shopify shipping profiles help you charge accurate fees and provide correct information.
Repeated issues with products and delivery may signal the need to find new suppliers. Plan for occasional errors and develop responses that include:
- Owning the issue: Apologize to customers and explain your solution
- Compensating customers: Offer refunds, exchanges, or product upgrades
- Involving suppliers: Good suppliers should cover the cost of their mistakes
Enhance customer support by using Shopify Inbox to create chat features for your store. Start conversations with automated greetings, let customers know when you're available, and easily follow up via email.
Expand your marketing reach
In competitive niches, a comprehensive marketing strategy helps you reach customers before competitors do. Use multiple marketing channels, such as social media and email, to promote your brand and drive store traffic.
Email marketing
When someone subscribes to your email newsletter, they're indicating interest in your products or store. Use Shopify Email to nurture leads with tailored content, choosing from templates that pull branding and products directly from your store.
Email marketing opens ongoing conversations with customers. Manage emails within Shopify to access useful metrics and refine future messages.
Social media marketing
Social media marketing provides excellent business expansion opportunities. Paid social ads offer adjustable budgets to keep costs manageable, while audience segmentation by interests and behavior helps target users likely to be interested in your products.
Even without advertising budgets, Shopify makes social selling easy. Install the Facebook and Instagram app to sync inventory and create shoppable posts for direct customer purchases.
Over to you
We've covered a lot in this Shopify dropshipping guide, but you'll learn even more while you're actually getting your hands dirty running your own business. There's no limit to the amount of money you can make with your online store, so it's time to start making sales and generating revenue. With the availability of Shopify and third-party tools, it's no longer a struggle to dropship products online.
Shopify dropshipping FAQ
What are the benefits of dropshipping on Shopify?
- Less upfront investment required
- Easy to start
- Customizable store
- Wide selection of dropshipping tools
- Various payment options
Is Shopify dropshipping worth it in 2025?
Dropshipping has some definite advantages, but it introduces a number of complexities you'll need to resolve. For instance, shipping is complicated when you're working with multiple suppliers, because each will charge their own rate for sending the item to the customer.
The good news is that with some careful consideration and planning, most of these roadblocks can be eliminated and you can progress toward building a thriving Shopify dropshipping business.
Is Shopify good for dropshipping?
Shopify is a popular ecommerce platform for dropshipping. Dropshipping apps designed for Shopify connect your store to suppliers, allowing you to import products and automate order fulfillment effectively.
How profitable is Shopify dropshipping?
Dropshipping on Shopify can be profitable for individuals and businesses. Because products are only purchased after they are sold to customers, the risk of overstocking or having unsold inventory is minimal. Typically, expenses include the cost of a Shopify plan, domain name, and marketing efforts. With effective management, these can be balanced to maximize profits.
Where can I find dropshipping suppliers on Shopify?
Browse dropshipping suppliers on the Shopify App Store. Connect supplier apps with your store to import products and forward order details for fulfillment.
Can I dropship on Shopify with no inventory?
You don't need to buy or store inventory when dropshipping on Shopify. Third-party dropshipping partners manage products and fulfill orders as you send them, shipping items directly to customers.