Shopify Managed Markets & Shopify Markets: The Ultimate Solution for Your International Expansion

As a Shopify merchant, you are probably already familiar with Shopify Markets and know that you can easily sell to multiple countries from one store. With the Managed Markets extension suite (formerly Shopify Markets Pro), you can comply with international regulations more easily and access over 150 markets without any additional effort.

We explain the other advantages and functions in this article. We also show you exactly how the tool differs from Shopify Markets.actly how the tool differs from Shopify Markets.

Internationalization in Online Stores: Why Selling Internationally Is a Must

In today’s e-commerce world, internationalization is a logical and necessary step for growing companies. Those who take a strategic approach to global expansion not only tap into new target audiences but also reduce their dependence on local market fluctuations. The barriers to cross-border commerce have never been lower—provided you use technical solutions that automatically handle currencies, taxes, and localization. Anyone who fails to take the leap into international markets today is missing out on massive revenue potential.

What is Shopify Markets?

Before we take a closer look at the comprehensive American feature Managed Markets, we would like to summarise the functions of Shopify Markets, as these may be of particular interest to merchants in the DACH region.

The tool was developed to simplify Shopify internationalization. With just a few clicks, you can enter one or more new markets and localize your individual stores within your admin area. After all, each country has its own specifics such as currency, local language, preferred payment method or holidays. It is also very easy to manage markets this way.

If you want to set up Shopify Markets, you can easily do so through the settings in the dashboard. There, you can create specific Shopify Markets and assign a dedicated Shopify international domain to each target country. Using your own Shopify international domain builds trust with local customers and boosts your SEO abroad.

Advantages of Shopify Markets

Shopify Markets offers a wide range of benefits that make it easier for merchants to expand internationally and manage their markets efficiently. This in-house solution is especially valuable for brands that want to sell internationally through Shopify with ease. Here are some of the key benefits:

• Centralised management: easy management of multiple international markets from one central dashboard. No need for separate stores for different countries.

• Automated currency conversion: Automatically adjust product prices to the customer's local currency and real-time exchange rates to ensure accurate pricing.

• Localised shopping experiences: Adapts the shop to the customer's language and currency. Offers local payment methods to increase conversion rates.

• Tax and customs management: Automatic calculation of taxes and customs duties for international orders. Support for compliance with tax and customs regulations in different countries.

• Standardised processing: Management of B2B, cross-border, online shop and POS activities in one admin area. Consolidation of all expansion activities on one platform.

• Easier market launch: Quick and easy market launch in new countries. In addition, reduced complexity in international expansion.

• Optimised shipping options: Improved international shipping options and rates as well as integration with global shipping service providers for seamless deliveries.

• Data and analyses: Access to comprehensive data and analyses to monitor performance in various markets. Insights into customer behaviour and market trends.

• Scalability: Scalable solution for businesses of all sizes and support for growth and expansion into new markets.

• Customer support: Access to Shopify's global support network and assistance in solving problems and optimising international business.

The Latest Shopify Editions Updates for Spring 2026

With the latest update, Shopify Editions Spring 2026, Shopify is reaching the next major milestone in its platform development. While previous Editions (such as Summer 2024) primarily introduced centralized management for Shopify Markets, the focus is now on automation and artificial intelligence. All the key new features at a glance:

• Agentic Commerce & AI Shopping: Shopify now automatically formats product information so that it can be understood directly by AI systems (such as ChatGPT) and displayed in AI shopping results. This creates an entirely new, direct sales channel for merchants.

• Agentic Storefront Dashboard & AI Search Insights: Merchants now have detailed insights into how their products are performing in AI-powered shopping channels and what terms customers are using to search via AI.

• Smarter Sidekick AI: The Shopify assistant Sidekick can now handle significantly more complex tasks. A particularly handy feature: Merchants can conduct multiple conversations simultaneously, which continue to run as tasks in the background even after the chat is closed.

• New B2B Features & More Flexible Product Management: Significant improvements in product management, along with new B2B features, reduce the daily workload and open up new sales opportunities—ideal for further scaling international B2B business.

• Improvements to Checkout and POS: Further optimizations to the checkout process, the Shop app, and in-store retail (point of sale) ensure smoother workflows across all sales channels.

Shopify Managed Markets: What is it?

Managed markets, formerly Shopify Markets Pro, extends the features of the multinational management tools offered by Shopify Markets, so you can further expand as well as optimize your stores to easily sell internationally. Let's take a look at the key features.

Domains and language

With Shopify Markets and Managed Markets, you adapt your store domain to each marketplace and automatically redirect your users to their local listings. You can also use the Shopify Translate & Adapt app to translate your store's content into multiple languages and adapt it to the cultural differences of each market. This increases conversion rates and improves your SEO.

Currency

Like Shopify Multi-Currency, Managed Markets allows you to sell products in your customers' local currency and include or exclude taxes based on their country of origin - giving your customers a seamless international shopping experience. With Managed Markets, you get a guaranteed exchange rate, so you don't have to worry about currency fluctuations on refunds. As with Shopify Markets, merchants using Managed Markets can set prices per marketplace to manage their margins. What will be new, however, is that they can also set the availability of certain products for each market.

Customs duties and import tax

At checkout, Managed Markets provides your customers with a guaranteed calculation before any applicable duties and import taxes are added to the total cost. This means your buyers will no longer experience any tax surprises. What's more, your clientele can pay using local, country-specific payment methods. Then, Shopify takes care of the taxes, duties, and idiosyncrasies associated with global shipping and individual jurisdictions.

Shipping

When it comes to cross-border shipping, many e-commerce projects fail due to unexpected customs delays, complex export documentation, and high shipping rates. Shopify Managed Markets drastically simplifies these international logistics processes by automatically generating customs documents and providing discounted express shipping rates directly. This not only guarantees smooth border clearance but also protects your customers from unpleasant surprise fees upon delivery.

• Purchase or print DHL Express shipping labels directly from your Shopify admin.

• Have orders fulfilled through certified 3PL partners.

• Integrate your current warehouse with Global-E via the shipping API and process international orders directly.

Requirements for using Shopify Managed Markets

In order for your business to use Managed Markets, the following requirements must be met:

• Your business must be based in the continental U.S., excluding territories such as Puerto Rico and Guam.

• You must be using Shopify Payments.

• Your products must meet the specifications for prohibited or restricted items.

• Your products must meet Managed Markets's shipping criteria.

Shopify Markets and Shopify Managed Markets in direct comparison

Below, we compare the two tools side by side to highlight their key features and differences. When comparing Shopify Managed Markets to third-party international sales tools, the deep, native integration into the Shopify ecosystem stands out as a particular advantage. Merchants don’t have to go through the hassle of linking different plugins, which often tips the scales in favor of Shopify’s in-house solution in the head-to-head comparison between Shopify Managed Markets and third-party international sales tools.

Fees for international orders

Cross-country payments

Global fulfillment and shipping

Customs duties and taxes

Localization

Both Shopify Markets and Shopify Managed Markets can:

• Localized, international domains can be used.

• Guide customers to regional domains.

• Provide language and country recommendations to shoppers (based on location and browser language).

• Stores can be translated into other languages.

Market processes

With Shopify Markets as well as with Shopify Managed Markets:

• Manage multiple markets from one admin area.

• Add individual pricing by market.

Shopify Managed Markets: The advantages at a glance

Now that we know the more technical advantages of Managed Markets, let's conclude by summarizing the concrete opportunities for you as a trader.

1. Compliance with international taxes and duties

Complying with international taxes, duties and restrictions is not that easy. Shopify Managed Markets automatically displays applicable taxes and duties in the checkout. If there are subsequent adjustments, the tool takes over the added costs.

2. Protection against foreign exchange and fraud

Fraud and currency fluctuations are also challenges that international merchants face. With Shopify Managed Markets, you are protected against card fraud and chargebacks and receive an exchange rate guarantee.

3. Faster and cheaper shipping labels

Negotiating favorable international shipping rates is difficult. With Managed Markets, managing customs documents and obtaining shipping labels is made much easier for you.

4. Great customer experience

With multiple payment methods, local payment capture, and guaranteed upfront fees, customers can shop in their local currency and not be hit with surprise fees upon delivery.

5. Compliance with product restrictions and local laws

Managed Markets ensures compliance with local regulations for international product sales and restricts the shipment of certain products to specific destinations. In addition, Managed Markets prepares and submits commercial invoices as required.

6. Guaranteed currency conversion rate

Managed Markets guarantees that refunds of orders placed within 30 days will be processed at the currency conversion rate in effect at the time of purchase. This avoids exchange rate fluctuations.

Shopify Markets Pro Pricing & Fees: Here’s What the Upgrade Costs

Cost is an important factor when deciding to expand your online store internationally. Fortunately, Shopify Markets Pro pricing (now Managed Markets) is purely transaction-based, so there’s no monthly base fee. If you take a closer look at the Shopify Markets Pro pricing, you’ll see that the fees can quickly pay for themselves thanks to the enormous operational benefits (e.g., eliminating the need for your own tax advisors abroad).

Overview of fees for international orders:

Conclusion

Managed Markets offers international merchants enormous potential. Compared to Shopify Markets, the Managed version stands out above all for its integrated Merchant-of-Record model, automatic fraud protection, and guaranteed customs clearance (DDP) directly at checkout. For merchants in the DACH region, this tool is a forward-looking option. However, it is not yet known exactly when Managed Markets will be rolled out in our region.

With Shopify Markets serving as a centralized platform for B2B, POS, and online stores, expanding businesses already have a powerful tool at their disposal. We’ll keep this post updated with the latest news!