Real Cost: Subscription + Commission + Apps
The platform you pick is really a total-cost decision: subscription is only the headline. Add transaction commission and the paid apps you need for marketplaces and e-invoicing, and the picture changes — often dramatically — for a store selling in Turkey.
The true cost is subscription + commission + apps
Comparing only the headline subscription price is misleading. The real bill is subscription + transaction commission + add-on apps. In Turkey, ikas charges no extra platform commission — you pay only your bank/PSP virtual POS fee. On Shopify, because Shopify Payments isn't available in Turkey, you use a third-party POS and pay an extra Shopify fee on top (Basic +2%, Grow +1%, Advanced +0.6%).
On top of that, each marketplace, e-invoicing and (often) shipping needs a separate paid app on Shopify, while on ikas these come inside the package — which is where the gap really widens.
Example: 500 orders/month across site + Trendyol + Hepsiburada
For a store running its own site plus Trendyol and Hepsiburada at roughly 500 orders/month, the totals diverge sharply:
- Shopify Advanced: ≈ 17,000+ TL/month all-in (plan + per-marketplace apps + e-invoicing app + the extra Shopify transaction fee).
- ikas Scale Plus: ≈ 8,500 TL/month all-in (marketplaces and e-invoicing already included, no extra platform commission).
In this scenario ikas comes out at roughly half the monthly cost — with less operational overhead, because the integrations are native rather than stitched together from apps.
Payments and virtual POS in Turkey
On ikas, local payment providers (PayTR, iyzico, Param, bank virtual POS) integrate natively, and there is no platform commission beyond your POS fee. On Shopify, Shopify Payments is not available in Turkey: you must connect a third-party POS via an extra app and also pay Shopify's per-plan transaction fee — two layers of cost the ikas model avoids for TL-based selling.
Marketplace & e-invoice integrations
For most Turkish sellers, marketplaces are not optional. ikas bundles Trendyol, Hepsiburada, Amazon TR, n11 and 19+ marketplaces into the package, alongside ready KVKK and e-invoice/e-archive integration. On Shopify each marketplace is a separate paid app (≈ 15–90 USD/mo each) and e-invoicing needs a third-party tool (~$15/mo). When you sell on two or three channels, these recurring apps quickly outweigh the subscription difference.
When Shopify is the smarter choice
Shopify is a strong, often better, option if your sales are heavily cross-border/global, you need very advanced customization or a specific app from its vast ecosystem, or your team is already invested in the Shopify ecosystem. Its international maturity and app depth are genuine advantages where the Turkey-specific cost factors above matter less.
When ikas is the smarter choice
For a business selling in TL in Turkey that wants marketplaces, KVKK and e-invoicing, native local payments and Turkish support, ikas generally delivers a lower total cost and far less operational load — because the local integrations come in the package instead of being bolted on as paid apps. For most domestic-focused sellers, this is the pragmatic pick.
