What's specific about Shopify accounting
- Multi-currency selling - Shopify Markets means you might sell in GBP, USD, EUR, AUD with daily exchange rate impacts on VAT and CT.
- Payment processor splits - Shopify Payments (Stripe under the hood), PayPal, Klarna, Apple Pay, Google Pay - each with different settlement timing and fee structures.
- Marketplace facilitator rules - Shopify isn't a marketplace facilitator (so VAT is your responsibility), but if you also sell on Amazon, eBay, Etsy, those ARE marketplace facilitators (different VAT rules).
- Apps and subscriptions - Klaviyo, Recharge, Loop, Yotpo, Gorgias - all monthly costs that need clean tracking.
- Inventory across channels - if you sell on Shopify + retail + wholesale + Amazon, inventory accounting gets complicated.
What good Shopify accounting looks like
- A2X or similar middleware connecting Shopify to Xero/QuickBooks - automating the daily/weekly journals so reconciliation isn't manual.
- Per-channel revenue reporting - so you can see Shopify direct vs Amazon vs eBay separately.
- Per-payment-processor reconciliation - every Shopify Payments payout, every Stripe transfer, every PayPal balance reconciled against the underlying orders.
- Inventory and COGS tracking - so your gross margin is accurate, not just an estimate.
- VAT registration and OSS if you sell into the EU - automated VAT calculation per country, quarterly returns.
- App spend tracking - all the £20-£500/month app subscriptions categorised correctly for CT.
Indicative fees for Shopify sellers
| Stage | Service | Indicative monthly |
|---|---|---|
| £0-£100K Shopify revenue | Annual accounts + CT + bookkeeping + Shopify-Xero integration | £100-£180 |
| £100K-£500K with paid acquisition | Full service + management accounts + ROAS reporting | £180-£350 |
| £500K+ multi-channel | Embedded finance + EU OSS + advanced tax | £350-£900 |
FAQ
Frequently asked questions
Should I use A2X or do reconciliation manually?+
For any Shopify business doing more than £20K/month, A2X (or similar middleware) pays for itself within months. The £30-100/month subscription saves hours of manual reconciliation and reduces errors. A specialist accountant typically sets it up as part of the engagement.
How is Shopify accounting different from generic ecommerce accounting?+
The principles are similar, but Shopify-specialist accountants have built integrations and chart-of-accounts templates specifically for Shopify. They know the quirks - Shopify Payments timing, multi-currency settlement, app subscription categorisation.
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