Migrating Magento to Shopify: risks, costs and planning

Magento stores tend to arrive at a migration decision the same way: an upgrade is due, the quote is large, and someone asks whether the money would be better spent moving. This guide covers what to check before deciding, and how to plan the move if you do.

Why the question is urgent for many Magento stores

Adobe publishes a lifecycle policy for Adobe Commerce release lines. As listed on 18 October 2026:

Release line	Regular support ends
Adobe Commerce 2.4.6	11 August 2026
Adobe Commerce 2.4.7	31 May 2027
Adobe Commerce 2.4.8	31 May 2028

The same page warns that PHP 8.2 reaches end of life on 31 December 2026 and that running unsupported PHP puts PCI compliance at risk. Check your exact version and hosting arrangement against Adobe's page; Magento Open Source installations have their own support considerations.

Staying on Magento means budgeting for regular upgrades, extension compatibility work and hosting. Moving to Shopify means a one-time migration project followed by a subscription. Neither is free. The comparison is between two cost curves, not between spending and saving.

Where migrations go wrong

1. Product data structure

Magento's configurable, bundle and grouped products, attribute sets and multi-store views do not map one-to-one onto Shopify. Shopify uses products with variants, metafields for structured attributes, and collections for grouping.

Before any import, decide how each Magento product type becomes a Shopify product, which attributes become variant options and which become metafields, and how category trees become collections and navigation. Write this down as a mapping document; it becomes the specification for the import.

2. URLs and search traffic

Shopify uses fixed URL prefixes: /products/, /collections/, /pages/ and /blogs/. Almost every Magento URL will change. Google's guidance for site moves is clear: map every old URL to its most relevant new URL and use permanent (301) redirects.

Build the redirect map from three sources: a crawl of the live site, your sitemap, and the landing pages in your analytics and Search Console. Pages with backlinks or organic traffic matter most. Shopify supports URL redirects natively, and they can be imported in bulk.

3. Customer accounts

Customer records, addresses and order history can move. Passwords cannot: platforms store them as one-way hashes, so customers need to set a new password on Shopify. Plan the communication: an account activation invitation, clear wording on the login page, and customer service briefed for the first weeks.

4. Extensions and custom code

List every Magento extension and custom module, then sort them:

• Replaced by a native Shopify feature (often the case for basic promotions, gift cards and multi-currency).
• Replaced by a Shopify app. Check reviews, pricing and whether it is maintained.
• Rebuilt as a custom app or integration, usually ERP, warehouse or loyalty connections.
• Dropped, because nobody uses it.

The last category is usually longer than expected, and it is where a migration saves money.

Migration order matters

Shopify's migration guide recommends importing products first, then customers, then historical orders, so that orders link to the right products and customers. It also notes that importing historical orders can trigger a new-order notification for each one unless staff notifications are switched off during the import.

A planning sequence that works

1. Audit. Inventory products, customers, orders, content, extensions, integrations and URLs. Record counts for each.
2. Map. Field-by-field data mapping and the redirect map.
3. Rehearse. Import into a development store and compare counts and samples against the source. Fix the mapping, not the data by hand.
4. Build. Theme, apps, integrations and payment setup on the new store.
5. Freeze and delta. Agree a short content freeze, then import orders and customers created since the rehearsal.
6. Cut over. Redirects live, DNS switched, test orders placed.
7. Verify. Watch orders, payments, 404 errors and Search Console coverage for the following weeks.

What drives the cost

We do not publish fixed migration prices, because cost depends on the data rather than the platform. The main drivers are:

• Number of product types and how far they are from Shopify's model.
• Volume and age of historical orders to be migrated.
• Number of integrations to rebuild (ERP, warehouse, marketplaces, loyalty).
• Whether the storefront is redesigned at the same time.
• Whether physical outlets move onto Shopify POS in the same project.

A migration assessment turns these into a scoped plan. If you are on Magento and a support deadline is approaching, request one early enough to run a rehearsal before the date.