Instagram Shop or your own store?
Start with your own store. An Instagram Shop is a storefront on top of it, not a replacement.
Can you sell on Instagram without a website?
Not through an Instagram Shop. Since September 2025, Shops on Facebook and Instagram use website checkout, so buyers pay on your own site.
Your shop keeps its home page, collections and product pages. Meta no longer processes payments, manages orders or handles disputes in shops.[1]
What does Instagram require before you can open a shop?
A professional account, a website you own where the products can be bought, and a business in a supported country.
| Requirement | What Meta says |
|---|---|
| Account | An Instagram professional account |
| Website | One full domain you sell through; Meta may ask you to verify it |
| Location | A supported country |
| Trust | An authentic, established presence, which may include enough followers |
| Policies | Refund and return policies that are easy to find |
Sources [2]
Which countries can use Instagram Shops?
Only the US has every feature. Thirteen countries are in an open beta, and eight more have limited features.
| Level | Countries |
|---|---|
| Full | United States, not including US territories |
| Open beta | Canada, Mexico, UK, France, Germany, Italy, Spain, Australia, India, Japan, Korea, Taiwan, Thailand |
| Limited, no Shops ads | Brazil, Denmark, Netherlands, Norway, Sweden, Switzerland, Ukraine, Indonesia |
Sources [3]
What can't you sell in an Instagram Shop?
Services, downloadable digital products, used cosmetics, and health products such as supplements, under Meta's Commerce Policies.
| Item | Meta's rule |
|---|---|
| Services | Not allowed, with narrow exceptions |
| Downloadable digital content | Not allowed |
| Used cosmetics | Not allowed |
| Medical products, ingestible supplements | Not allowed |
Sources [4]
What does your own store cost on Shopify?
Shopify's Basic plan costs $39 a month, or $29 a month billed yearly. New stores get 3 days free, then $1 a month for 3 months.
| Plan | Billed monthly | Billed yearly |
|---|---|---|
| Basic | $39 a month | $29 a month |
| Grow | $105 a month | $89 a month |
| Advanced | $399 a month | $359 a month |
Online card payments cost 2.9% + 30¢ on Basic, and using another payment provider adds 2%. These are US prices. The cheaper Starter plan isn't available to new stores.[5, 6]
Should you choose an Instagram Shop or your own store?
Your own store first, then an Instagram Shop on top if you sell physical products in a supported country. The fit by need is our reading of Meta's rules.
| If you | Choose |
|---|---|
| Sell physical products in the US | Your store, plus an Instagram Shop |
| Sell from a beta or limited country | Your store; a shop may lack features |
| Sell services or digital products | Your store only |
| Sell supplements | Your store only |
| Have a new account with few followers | Your store first; Meta looks for an established presence |
To link a Shopify store, you need a published online store, a Facebook Page and an Instagram professional account connected to that Page. Your Shopify myshopify address can be changed only once, so check the name first in the box below. More for beauty brands on Brand names for beauty & skincare.[2, 3, 4, 7, 8, 9]
Which platforms should you claim before you open a shop?
Shopify, Instagram and the .com.
Checks Shopify store, Instagram and the .com in one search.
Sources (9)
- PrimaryMeta Business Help Center: About changes to Shops and checkout on Facebook and Instagram (archived)
- PrimaryMeta Business Help Center: Commerce eligibility requirements (archived)
- PrimaryMeta Business Help Center: Supported countries for Shops on Facebook and Instagram (archived)
- PrimaryMeta: Commerce Policies
- PrimaryShopify: Pricing (archived; US prices, the live page shows local prices)
- PrimaryShopify Help Center: Starter plan
- PrimaryShopify Help Center: Facebook and Instagram by Meta requirements
- PrimaryZero To 1000's platform catalog: Shopify and Instagram sign-up rules from each platform's own pages
- PrimaryShopify Help Center: Domains (the address can be changed once)