How to charge clients monthly for an online store, and what to include
24 Oct 2026 · Updated 24 Oct 2026 · 8 min read · Gaurav Kunal, Founder, DripFunnel
A monthly fee for an online store works when the client can see exactly what it pays for. Here is what to put in the plan, what to keep out, how to write the agreement and how to bill it.
- A monthly fee for an online store should pay for three things the client can name: the shop itself, your care of it, and a fixed amount of your time.
- Growth work such as ads, photography and new pages is better sold as extras, so the monthly plan stays simple and easy to renew.
- Write a short agreement that covers the billing date, payment in advance, notice to cancel, price changes and what happens when the client leaves.
- On a white-label platform the shop part of your fee sits on top of a wholesale fee per store. In DripFunnel you see that fee and what you keep on every price you set.
Most clients don’t object to paying every month. They object to paying every month for something vague. “Website maintenance” sounds like a bill for nothing; “your shop, kept running, with up to two hours of changes and a monthly check-in” sounds like a service. This guide is about that difference: how to charge clients monthly for an online store, and what to include so the fee feels fair on day one and on day 365.
If you are new to the idea of selling shops as a service, start with how web and marketing agencies can sell online stores as a monthly service, which covers packaging plans, onboarding and support. This article goes one level down, into the contents of the fee and the terms around it. It is the starting point for our series on earning monthly from client stores; the full list is at the end.
What does a monthly fee for an online store pay for?
A clear monthly fee has three layers. Name each one in your proposal, and the client knows what they are buying.
| Layer | What it covers | Who does the work |
|---|---|---|
| The shop | The software, hosting, security fixes and new features of the store platform | The platform (on a white-label platform, under your brand) |
| Your care | Answering questions, checking the shop works, looking into problems | You and your team |
| Your time | A fixed number of small changes each month: a banner, a new page, a price update | You and your team |
The first layer is what the client would otherwise pay a store builder for. The second and third are why they pay you instead. If your fee only covers the first layer, a client can always find it cheaper elsewhere. If it covers all three, you are selling something no store builder sells: a person who knows their business.
What to include in a monthly store plan
Keep the list short, specific and countable. A checklist that works for most agencies:
- The shop on your platform, with the features and limits of the plan they chose (products, staff accounts and so on).
- A support channel and a response time, for example email answered within one working day.
- A set amount of change time, such as one or two hours a month, that does not roll over.
- A monthly check-in: a short email with last month’s sales, what you changed and one suggestion.
- Help with the basics the client will need again and again: connecting a domain, adding a payment method, adding staff.
Countable beats generous. “Unlimited small changes” invites arguments about what “small” means. “Two hours a month” doesn’t.
What to keep out of the monthly fee
Anything that varies a lot from client to client, or month to month, belongs outside the plan, priced on its own:
- the set-up of the shop (design, product import, training), charged once;
- product photography, copywriting and new collections;
- advertising, search and email campaigns, as a separate retainer;
- large changes beyond the included hours, at your hourly or day rate.
This keeps the monthly plan stable, so renewing it is an easy decision, while your bigger work is still paid properly. How to price the one-off part next to the monthly part is the subject of ecommerce website pricing for agencies: a set-up fee plus a monthly plan.
How do you write the monthly agreement?
You don’t need a long contract, but you need a written one. Cover these points in plain words:
- Start and billing date. The plan starts when the shop goes live (or when the trial ends) and renews on the same day each month.
- Payment in advance. Each month is paid at its start, not after the work.
- Minimum term and notice. For example, no minimum after the first three months, and 30 days’ notice to cancel.
- Price changes. How much notice you give before a new price applies.
- Late payment. What happens if a payment is missed, and after how long you pause the service.
- Leaving. What the client takes with them when they go, and what help you give.
The last point matters more than agencies expect. Clients sign more easily when they know they can leave cleanly. Read who owns a client’s store on a white-label platform before you write that clause, so your promises match your platform contract.
Should you bill monthly or yearly?
Offer both. Monthly billing is easier to start with; yearly billing gives the client a lower price and gives you fewer moments when they might cancel.
| Monthly | Yearly | |
|---|---|---|
| Example price | 49 a month | 490 a year |
| What the client pays in a year | 588 | 490 |
| Client’s saving | 98, about two months free | |
| Times the client decides to renew | 12 | 1 |
A yearly discount costs you money up front, so check what it does to your margin before you offer it. The worked maths is in agency margin maths: the wholesale fee, your price and what you keep.
How to set the price itself
Three numbers set the floor and the ceiling. The floor is your platform cost per store plus the cost of the care and time you include. The ceiling is what the client pays today for their shop, apps, hosting and the odd developer invoice. Your price sits between the two, closer to the ceiling the more of your time and knowledge it includes. Don’t aim to be the cheapest: a client who chose you on price will leave you on price.
How DripFunnel handles the shop part of your fee
DripFunnel’s white-label partner programme gives you the first layer, the shop, under your own brand, so you can concentrate on the care and the time. More than 75 partners across the globe use it. If white-label is new to you, read what white-label ecommerce is and how agencies use it.
- Your own plans. You build them in the partner console: the name and description your clients see, what each includes, a free trial of 7, 14 or 30 days or none, and monthly and yearly prices in each currency your contract allows (Create your plans).
- Your margin on every price. Your contract sets DripFunnel’s wholesale fee per store per month for each plan. When you type a price, the console shows the fee and what you keep, and warns you if the price is below the fee.
- Price changes with notice. When you change a plan stores are on, you choose: new sign-ups only, or everyone at their next renewal, with an email to them 30 days ahead.
- Your numbers. Reports show growth and monthly recurring revenue by plan, with a spreadsheet export for your accountant.
How the money moves between you, your clients and DripFunnel is agreed in your contract. Tell us how you bill clients today when you talk to us about becoming a partner.
Read next: earning monthly from client stores
- How web and marketing agencies can sell online stores as a monthly service: packaging plans, onboarding and support.
- Ecommerce website pricing for agencies: a set-up fee plus a monthly plan: what to charge up front and every month.
- Agency margin maths: the wholesale fee, your price and what you keep: the numbers per store and across all your stores.
- Moving existing clients from one-off projects to monthly plans: how to make the switch with clients you already have.
- How to keep clients on monthly store plans: reducing churn: why clients cancel and how to see it coming.
- Why monthly store revenue makes your agency worth more: what recurring income means if you ever sell.
Still deciding how your agency should earn overall? Compare the options in ecommerce agency business models: project fees, retainers or monthly plans.
Questions
What should a monthly fee for an online store include?
Three things the client can name: the shop itself (software, hosting and updates), your care of it (support with a response time), and a fixed amount of your time for small changes each month. A short monthly check-in with last month’s sales helps the client see the value.
Should the set-up of a shop be in the monthly fee?
Usually not. Charge the set-up (design, product import, training) once, and keep the monthly fee for running and caring for the shop. That keeps the monthly plan simple to renew and your set-up work paid properly.
Is it better to bill clients monthly or yearly for a store?
Offer both. Monthly is easier for a client to start with; a yearly price with a discount gives the client a saving and gives the agency one renewal decision a year instead of twelve. Check what the discount does to your margin first.
What should a monthly store agreement say about cancelling?
It should state the notice period, any minimum term, what happens to the shop and its data when the client leaves, and what help the agency gives. Clear exit terms make clients more willing to sign.
How do agencies know their margin on a white-label store plan?
By subtracting the platform’s wholesale fee per store from the price they charge. In DripFunnel’s partner console, each plan price shows DripFunnel’s fee and what the partner keeps, and warns if the price is below the fee.