IndirectLast verified 2026-09-11 · Reviewed by a person 2026-09-14
Shopify's own processor, Shopify Payments, runs on Stripe: Shopify's help center calls Stripe its banking partner and, for that reason, does not offer Stripe as a separate third-party gateway in any country where Shopify Payments is available. Connecting your own Stripe account to Shopify Checkout is therefore not a self-serve option today; the only Stripe-branded gateway, Stripe Card Payments, exists as the migration target for stores that already had the legacy Stripe connector (deadline 31 August 2025). Stripe's own Shopify app, Stripe Subscriptions, handles recurring billing but processes payment through whichever provider Shopify Checkout uses.1
UAT-Ops testing: Stripe's sandbox was verified by UAT-Ops on 2026-09-11 with the directory's card flow (6 passed) → evidence on the Stripe hub. The Shopify integration itself has not been run.
Sources checked: 18 claims from 7 sites, listed at the foot of the page.
Connects through Activate Shopify Payments from Settings > Payments; Stripe is the processing partner behind it and is not selectable as a standalone gateway where Shopify Payments operates. Existing legacy Stripe connections were migrated to the Stripe Card Payments payments app, which authenticates against the merchant's own Stripe account. Biggest gotcha: Stripe is not in the gateway list, on purpose.
How it connects
Method
Activate Shopify Payments from Settings > Payments; Stripe is the processing partner behind it and is not selectable as a standalone gateway where Shopify Payments operates. Existing legacy Stripe connections were migrated to the Stripe Card Payments payments app, which authenticates against the merchant's own Stripe account.1
Maintained by
Shopify (Shopify Payments); Stripe maintains the Stripe Card Payments and Stripe Subscriptions apps1
Cost of the integration
No app to buy. Shopify Payments online card rates per plan: 2.9% + 30c Basic, 2.7% + 30c Grow, 2.5% + 30c Advanced. Orders through Shopify Payments carry no third-party transaction fee; any other card provider on the store is charged 2% / 1% / 0.6% / 0.2% by plan. The Stripe Subscriptions app is free to install.2
Checkout modes
shopify checkout
What works on this platform
Yes: a source confirms it on this integration. Limited: supported, but only under meaningful conditions or through a subset of connector paths. Not verified here: the gateway supports it, but no source confirms this integration exposes it. No: not available. A capability with no source either way is left off.
Stripe Subscriptions app (free, by Stripe, launched 2025-12-03) creates real Stripe subscriptions; charges run on the store's Shopify payment provider, and Smart Retries are unsupported there.
Stripe supports this; no source confirms it on this integration.
Capability status reflects the integration and documentation available at the time of verification, not necessarily every capability of the underlying gateway or platform.
Testing it
There is no Stripe key to paste. Enable Shopify Payments test mode under Settings > Payments > Manage, then check out with Shopify's published test numbers, which are Stripe's (4242 4242 4242 4242 succeeds; 4000 0000 0000 0002 generic decline; 4000 0000 0000 9995 insufficient funds; 4000 0000 0000 0069 expired). Orders must exceed the equivalent of 1 USD, cannot be fulfilled, and never appear in payouts or reports. Testing a gateway needs a paid plan and customers cannot place live orders while test mode is on, so use a development store. For the Stripe Subscriptions app, tick Use test mode when connecting your Stripe account and run Shopify Payments in test mode too; the Bogus Gateway cannot bill subscriptions. Assert that a subscription contract in Shopify carries a stripe_subscription_id attribute and that the matching Stripe subscription carries shopify_subscription_contract_id metadata.11
UAT-Ops runs integration flows like this against the real sandbox and keeps the evidence. Tell me when it opens →
Gotchas
Stripe is not in the gateway list, on purpose
Search Settings > Payments for Stripe in any Shopify Payments country and nothing appears. Shopify's help center explains that Stripe is Shopify Payments' banking partner, so it is not offered as a standalone third-party gateway there, and a store that fails Shopify Payments eligibility must choose a different provider rather than Stripe. Shopify staff described the integration in 2024 as enabled by request only, so plan on Shopify Payments or another gateway.
The legacy Stripe connector was retired on 31 August 2025
Stores that did connect their own Stripe account years ago were moved to the Stripe Card Payments payments app. Stripe's support article gives 31 August 2025 as the deadline, and Shopify's update guide says Shop Pay must be reactivated afterwards and that legacy subscriptions using Stripe as a secondary gateway must migrate too. Check which app a store actually has before touching subscriptions.
Only one card provider, and the third-party fee follows the other one
Shopify allows a single credit card provider at a time and only the store owner can change it. Orders through Shopify Payments pay no third-party fee, but any other card gateway on the store is charged 2% on Basic, 1% on Grow, 0.6% on Advanced and 0.2% on Plus, on top of that gateway's own rate. PayPal Express and manual payments are the exceptions.
Stripe Subscriptions is a billing app, not a gateway
Stripe's own Shopify app, launched 3 December 2025, creates real Stripe subscriptions but charges them through whichever provider Shopify Checkout uses. Its docs warn that the Bogus Gateway fails every subscription payment, that Smart Retries are unavailable through Shopify's payment platform, and that a subscription switched to a Stripe-managed payment method keeps billing but stops creating Shopify orders, which silently breaks fulfilment.
Test mode blocks live checkout and uses Stripe's card numbers
Shopify Payments test mode is a store-wide switch: customers cannot place live orders while it is on, and testing any gateway requires a paid plan, so use a development store. The published test numbers (4242 4242 4242 4242, 4000 0000 0000 0002, 4000 0000 0000 9995) are Stripe's, orders must exceed 1 USD equivalent, and test orders never reach payouts or reports.
Last verified 2026-09-11 · Reviewed by a person 2026-09-14
Integration capabilities, requirements, pricing, availability, and vendor policies may change over time. UAT-Ops documents information based on the authoritative sources and testing available at the time of review.
Where newer information, testing, or vendor documentation materially changes a published claim, UAT-Ops may revise the page to reflect the most current verified information. Readers should confirm time-sensitive requirements with the relevant vendor before making production or purchasing decisions.