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Should I self-host Shopify?

NOT REALLYkeep paying

PrestaShop can run a store. But your checkout's uptime is revenue, PCI is real, and Shopify's $5 starter buys a payments-and-fraud team you cannot hire for that money. E-commerce is infrastructure where downtime bills you directly — keep paying.

The math (nothing hidden, including your time)

Shopify (Starter)$5.00/mo
VPS share + storage−$2.00/mo
Your maintenance: 60 min/mo at $20/h−$20.00/mo
Net saving$-17.00/mo
Setup: 15 min measured (one-time)$5.00
Break-evennever
Markup Index (price ÷ real self-host cost)0.2×

Price: source, checked 2026-08-06. Inputs are stored in git; every number above is derived, never hand-written.

What you lose

  • Payments, fraud handling, PCI scope, and a checkout that's up at 3am

What you're paying Shopify for

  • online storefront
  • checkout & payments
  • inventory
  • order management
PrestaShop running from the boot-verified compose file
PrestaShop, running from the compose file on this page — screenshot from our verified instance, not marketing material.

Ranked alternatives

1. PrestaShop

A full storefront, catalogue and order pipeline on a domain you own, with no monthly platform fee sitting on top of the card rates.

PrestaShop/PrestaShop · ★ 9,186 · last commit 0d ago · OSL-3.0

Hardware

Runs comfortably on a real VPS (2 GB+).

Verification

Protocol v1 · verified by zernonia on 2026-08-10 · setup measured at 15 min · AI assistant: claude-code (allowed & stated)

Full timed log
# Shopify — verdict log

- **Date:** 2026-08-10
- **Verdict:** NOT REALLY — keep paying
- **Protocol:** v1 (2GB reference env, Docker preinstalled, AI assistant: claude-code)

## Why no compose file

- This verdict is decided by economics/capability, not setup effort — the rubric doesn't require a timed install to conclude the subscription should stay (or that the replacement's cost lives elsewhere, e.g. GPUs, egress, or an installer script).

## The call

PrestaShop can run a store. But your checkout's uptime is revenue, PCI is real, and Shopify's $5 starter buys a payments-and-fraud team you cannot hire for that money. E-commerce is infrastructure where downtime bills you directly — keep paying.

Verdict history

  • 2026-08-10: unscored → NOT_REALLY — Initial verdict: PrestaShop can run a store.