Companies instead of individual customers
The core difference: in B2B mode Shopify manages companies, not people. A company can have several buyers who log in separately but share terms and addresses.
That sounds like a detail and is the heart of it. It lets you answer questions that make no sense in a consumer store: which employee may order, up to what amount, and on whose invoice.
Price lists: the actual lever
Create suitable B2B pricing catalogs. Basic, Grow and Advanced allow up to three active catalogs assigned to B2B markets and require the new Shopify Markets. Plus additionally provides unlimited catalogs and direct assignment to companies or company locations.
Volume tiers and minimum quantities come on top. A customer who gets a different price from fifty units no longer needs a manual quote.
- B2B market catalogs on standard plans; direct company or location assignment on Plus
- Fixed prices or a percentage off list price
- Volume tiers and minimum order quantities per item
- A separate currency per company for international buyers
| Feature | Basic / Grow / Advanced | Plus |
|---|---|---|
| Company accounts and net payment terms | Available | Available |
| Active B2B market catalogs | Up to three; new Markets required | Unlimited |
| Direct company or location catalog assignment | Unavailable | Available |
| Deposits with B2B payment terms | Unavailable | Available |
Payment terms and ordering on account
Business customers rarely pay by card at checkout. Shopify can store payment terms per company, for example net thirty days.
Payment terms require a workflow distinguishing the invoice or receivable from later payment. An export triggered only by payment does not yet account for an unpaid invoice. In its described standard workflow, zrapp creates documents on payment; invoicing before payment therefore needs a suitably configured additional process.
What is different on a B2B invoice
Eligible EU B2B goods sales can be exempt intra-community supplies, with the purchaser accounting for the intra-community acquisition. This differs from reverse charge for certain cross-border services. Check VAT ID, goods movement and supporting evidence for the actual transaction.
And since 1 January 2025, German businesses must be able to receive electronic invoices in B2B. The e-invoicing timeline covers what that means and by when.
Where setups usually stall
Not on Shopify. In almost every project the bottleneck sits upstream: terms have grown organically, live in people’s heads or a spreadsheet, and nobody can state them in full.
Before anything gets configured you need three lists: which customer groups exist, what price or discount each one gets, and which payment terms apply. That is commercial work, not technical — but without it the store never ships.
When a custom app joins in
The standard feature set covers a lot. Custom development pays off when your terms follow rules Shopify does not know — prices based on annual volume, approvals above a threshold, or a catalog that comes out of your inventory system.
Then we build an app that models that rule, instead of rebuilding it in price lists and maintaining it by hand forever.
