Choosing Between Free and Premium Shopify Themes

Engaging visitors effectively is crucial for success on Shopify. Research shows that individuals decide within just 50 milliseconds if they'll stay on a website or leave. This brief moment is critical for your business's success. To optimize engagement, it's important to consider whether a free or premium Shopify theme best serves your needs.

Ensuring Maximum User Engagement on Shopify

To maximize user engagement on your Shopify store, it's essential to choose a theme that appeals directly to your target audience. This Shopify Theme decision goes beyond just selecting attractive colors and fonts, which can be customized later. The focus should be on delivering a seamless and resonant experience for your desired customers, ensuring the theme aligns with their preferences and expectations.

Selecting the Ideal Shopify Theme: A Detailed Guide

Choosing the right Shopify theme is crucial for creating an online store that not only attracts but also retains customers. To make an informed decision, consider the following criteria for your theme:

Ease of Navigation: Can your ideal customers effortlessly find what they're looking for on your site?
Modern and Clean Design: Does the theme sport a contemporary, clean, and appealing aesthetic?
User Experience: Is the shopping experience on your site smooth and straightforward for your customers?
Conversion Features: Does the theme include functionalities that could potentially increase customer conversions?

This analysis narrows down your options to two primary categories: free Shopify themes and premium Shopify themes.

Free Shopify Themes

Free Shopify Themes are suitable for those just starting out or operating on a limited budget. These themes offer essential features and design elements necessary for a basic store setup. However, they lack extensive customization options and are not designed for complex or highly robust online stores.

Premium Shopify Themes

Premium Shopify Themes, in contrast, provide a wealth of features and greater design flexibility, essential for creating a compelling online shopping experience. These themes often come with advanced functionalities like product reviews, lookbooks, mega menus, sliders, and custom page templates. They also boast superior design elements and enhanced performance, crucial for stores aiming to stand out in a competitive market.

The choice between free and premium Shopify themes significantly depends on your budget and specific business needs. There is no universal solution; each store is unique and demands a customized approach. By thoroughly assessing your requirements and exploring both free and premium options, you can identify the most suitable theme for your store. This careful consideration ensures you select a theme that not only meets your business needs but also maximizes customer engagement and satisfaction.

getting started with Shopify

Setting Up Your Shopify Store

Establishing a Shopify store is straightforward, and selecting the perfect theme for your shop is a critical step in this process. Shopify offers a variety of theme options to cater to diverse business needs and aesthetics. You can choose from 10 free themes for a cost-effective start, or explore 70 premium designs, with prices ranging from $100 to $400 USD, to elevate your store's appearance and functionality.

For those seeking even more distinctive designs, there are additional sources outside of Shopify’s own selection. However, understanding the importance of Shopify themes and the distinctions between the free and premium options is essential.

Why Themes Matter: A theme is not just about the look of your store; it’s about the customer experience. The right theme can make your shop inviting, easy to navigate, and reflective of your brand, thus significantly impacting visitor engagement and sales.

Free vs. Premium Themes:

Free Themes are ideal for new businesses or those with limited budgets. These themes offer basic but effective designs and functionalities to get your store up and running. While customization options may be more limited compared to premium themes, they are a solid starting point for launching your online presence.
Premium Themes come with a cost but offer extensive features and customization options that can help create a more professional, unique, and engaging online store. Premium themes often include advanced features such as customizable content sections on homepages, drop-down navigation support, and unique design elements tailored to specific industries. They are designed to cater to a wider range of business needs and can provide a significant return on investment through a more polished and user-friendly shopping experience.

Choosing between free and premium Shopify themes depends on your business goals, budget, and the level of customization you desire. Each option offers its own set of benefits, and understanding these can help you make an informed decision that aligns with your store’s needs and aspirations.

While you're here, take advantage of our expert marketing and branding services!

We’re a startup branding agency that can help guide your e-commerce business to success with a stunning theme, polished web design and an online store that will capture potential customers' attention.

Looking for all the answers but don't know where to start?

Shopify Premium Themes and Free Shopify Themes

Free Shopify Theme Features

Free Shopify themes are typically limited in features and design flexibility.

They offer basic features such as product carousels, page templates, and a responsive design but do not come with advanced features or customizability.

They also tend to be generic in terms of look since they use the same theme for all stores.

That being said, these themes are great for stores with a limited budget or if you’re just starting out.

Premium Shopify Themes Features

On the other hand, Premium Shopify Themes provide more features that can help your store stand out and increase conversions.

These themes come with advanced features such as product reviews, lookbooks, mega menus, sliders and custom page templates.

They also provide a higher level of design flexibility so you can make your store more unique and visually appealing.

Additionally, Premium Shopify Themes are designed to be robust stores with improved performance that can handle larger orders and more customers.

Ultimately, deciding between a Shopify Premium Theme and a Free Shopify Theme depends on your budget and business needs.

Consider the features, design flexibility, and performance of each option before making a decision.

Regardless of choosing a premium theme or a free theme, your chances of success are the same.

A particular Theme may be better for your online business, than others.

Not all the stores are created the same; each requires a different approach and design experience for your customers. A fashion store, coffee shop store, beauty store and other stores may be best to go with

Where Can You Find Good Shopify Themes?

If we could explicate the psychology of sales through themes for an eternity, it wouldn't matter if you don’t know where to locate them; that would be a dilemma!

Shopify Theme Store is your go-to destination if you're looking to download Shopify themes!

After getting started with Shopify, you'll find a good choice of free (and Premium) design templates right on their site.

You can use filters to select the correct category for your needs.

You can also **take inspiration from online stores you have seen online** (even from your competitors!)

When searching for Shopify inspiration, why not use the online stores you already admire?

Simply copy and paste their URL into the the Shopify theme detector to discover which themes your competitors are utilizing.

With this knowledge on hand, it will be easier than ever to create a website that stands out from the rest!

If you're looking for an alternative to Shopify's official themes, third-party sites like Themeforest, Template monster and 99 Shopify provide plenty of options.

But before downloading, be aware that there could be consequences — only themes with Liquid code are compatible with the platform. Ignoring this requirement may result in penalties for your store.

However, if the theme contains valid Liquid code and meets all other technical requirements set by Shopify then you can safely import it into your site without worry!

Before downloading a theme from an external site, it is essential to remember that you won't have the benefit of direct help from Shopify customer service.

To make sure your chosen theme will be beneficial, don't forget to read other merchant reviews before buying or downloading it!

Want to create an online store but don't have the budget?

Don't worry – there are plenty of free Shopify themes available for you to use!

Check out these top 3 FREE options, equipped with everything you need and ready to be used.

If you're looking for a theme in the Shopify Theme Store, we suggest thoroughly reviewing its features section.

This way, you can be sure that it meets your requirements before making any decisions. Get to know your themes straight from their creators!

Debut: (Free)

Debut may be one of the most used and popular free themes on Shopify, and that's for a reason.

As the name suggests, it offers everything you need if you are new to Shopify.

Shopify designed Debut for a small catalogue (10/20 products); besides, it has many features and tools, such as "Product recommendations" and "predictive search".

Thanks to them, you'll increase the discoverability of related products that your client may be interested in purchasing.

It is highly customizable, and it comes with two different styles right out of the box; you can implement videos, blogs, and other exciting features as you grow your shop and products.

Supply (Free)

This theme is the exact opposite of Debut.

Shopify built “Supply” to offer a free template for a general store, and they did a great job.

Supply will be your best friend if you have a large number of products and catalogues.

It is easy to navigate through the main menu, and your customers can use filters such as price, brand, and other customizable options to find what they were looking for.

Brooklyn (Free)

Brooklyn is a must, especially if you have a brand store for your small business.

Right off the bat, we can see this theme coming with two different styles: Classic and Playful.

They both have a modern and dynamic appeal; you can add a slide show in the header featuring your best photos and videos on the page.

The layout of the products automatically changes based on how many products are displayed on the homepage; this is another little aspect that suggests how modern this theme aims to be.

The best feature so far remains the product pages.

Interacting with the products is easy and fun; a lot of room is left for images, so you don't have long descriptions surrounded by white space; there's always an image to look at.

Try the demo yourself, and you'll be amazed.

The top 3 PREMIUM Shopify Themes to Boost Your Store

If you have a site that is doing well and you want to revamp it, making it more professional, it is time to move to a Premium Theme.

Showcase ($250 USD)

***"Clear, nifty, and great customer support"***

Showcase is a Premium theme designed especially for clothing, health, beauty, and sport.

As you can see in the image above, we at the Branded Agency used this theme (customizing and implementing it) to create the online store for one of our clients, Look Optometry.

The result we had was a fast website, a straightforward design with no clutter and a beautiful experience for people looking for solutions to eye problems.

One of the best features of Showcase is the technical flexibility and design expertise every store needs, even on a limited budget. Customer support is always available and efficient.

It comes in four different styles: Betty, Beard, Native, and Luna.

You'll love the mobile-friendly features, such as mobile optimization, which will be a top priority in 2022.

Empire: ($300 USD)

***"Amazon-Inspired, vast, sell anything."***

Meet the upgraded version of the free "Supply" theme we have seen before.

Empire is an Amazon-inspired theme, and Shopify has no problems admitting that, as they state in their description.

Even if it features many products and catalogues, Empire offers easy and intuitive navigation. You should be looking at if you have a vast quantity of products in your catalogue.

One of its best features is surely the "Mega Menus."

A mega menu is an extensive drop-down menu that expands and shows a lot of options horizontally.

With minisite maps, product features, and a fantastic support team, mega menus make Empire a no-brainer for any business.

Turbo: (400$)

Turbo is by far the most expensive theme on our list, but if you want to upgrade your free theme and choose a definitive solution with all the features we have discussed so far… you want Turbo.

It has all the features an agency or a brand is looking for: Mega Menus, Predictive Search to increase discoverability of products, high-resolution full-width images that don't compromise the page speed, and pop-ups for the newsletter.

It also uses algorithms to predict the next page a user will visit; it is called "Smart Page preloading" and ensures ultra-fast navigation.

Features you will want for your Shopify Theme

Design

Dynamic Homepage Content

Sliders

Mega Menu

Predictive Search

Responsive slideshow

Over effects

Ajax cart

Product zoom

Wishlists

Quick views

Hover effects

One-click checkout

Retina-ready graphics

Product comparison tool

Advanced filters and sorting options

By having these features in your Shopify theme, you can ensure that customers have an easy and enjoyable shopping experience.

Having the right theme with basic functionalities is important for your online store and regardless if you are on on a free Shopify theme, or premium theme you are still able to customize your online store into an amazing ecommerce website.

The Best Shopify Themes

No matter which Shopify theme you choose, there are quite a few different aspects that should be taken into consideration when deciding on the perfect theme.

Whether it is a free or premium theme, the features, design flexibility and customer support available can make your ecommerce website look professional and polished to draw in more customers. With the right combination of

At the end of the day, choosing a theme is a personal decision.

Different businesses have different needs and budgets when it comes to their online store.

Free Shopify themes are great for those who want to save some money, but still require basic functionalities and design capabilities for their ecommerce website. Premium Shopify themes offer extra features

The Best Free Shopify Themes

Choosing the right theme for your online store can be a daunting task.

Whether you go with a free Shopify theme or premium one, there are features and design considerations that should be taken into account in order to provide your customers with an enjoyable shopping experience.

Free Shopify themes are great for those who want to save money but still require

In the end, choosing a Shopify theme is a personal decision.

Different businesses have different needs and budgets when it comes to their online store.

Free Shopify themes are great for those who want to save some money, but still require basic functionalities and design capabilities for their ecommerce website.

The Best Premium Shopify themes

Some of the best premium Shopify themes are not that different in functionallity from the best free Shopify themes.

When it comes to choosing the right Shopify theme for your online store, there are a few things to consider.

Free themes offer basic features and design options that can be enough for some businesses.

However, if you want more advanced features and better support, Premium themes can provide what you need.

No matter which option you choose, make sure you take into account the features, design flexibility and customer support available before making a decision.

This will ensure that your website runs smoothly and efficiently while providing customers with an enjoyable shopping experience.

At the end of the day, regardless of whether you choose a free or premium Shopify theme – both come with their own pros and cons. It is important to keep in mind your budget.

Minimalist themes VS Modern Themes

When it comes to choosing the right Shopify theme for your online store, there are several factors to consider.

Free themes offer basic features and design options that can be enough for some businesses.

However, if you want more advanced features and better support, Premium themes can provide what you need.

No matter which option you choose, make sure you take into account the features, design flexibility and customer support available before making a decision.

This will ensure that your website runs smoothly and efficiently while providing customers with an enjoyable shopping experience.

Ultimately, when selecting between a free or premium Shopify theme – both come with their own pros and cons - so do your research to find out which one is best suited for your needs!

Conclusions: What Do You Really Need
From Your Shopify Theme?

Investigate the countless advantages of both Free themes and Premium Shopify themes before selecting the perfect solution for your store.

Here are two key things to consider while making a decision!

Customer Support is always essential and unavoidable.

Although we may wish for a world where the Shopify themes are forever ready to be used with no issues, this isn't reality; thus, requiring customers to seek out assistance from Customer Support teams.

Unfortunately, it's not the most pleasant news you'll hear today - but nonetheless an important factor that needs addressing.

To avoid the hassle of managing your store, it is essential to select a theme with exemplary customer support.

To ensure you are making an informed decision, take some time to peruse reviews on the official Shopify Store and discern whether other merchants had positive or negative experiences.

Prebuilt themes, whether free or premium, may not properly reflect your business's brand identity.

As these are usually designed to fit nearly any customer in that industry, it can be difficult to distinguish yourself from those using the same themes.

Curating a customized Shopify theme is therefore essential for creating an individualized store and speaking directly to your customers with your own voice.

On Shopify, you have the choice to either personalize a theme and handle customer service yourself or entrust these duties to experienced professionals so as to save time.

At The Branded Agency, we help Business owners with Shopify Development, customer support, and theme customization, so you'll have an efficient and high-converting store while you keep working on your business.

If you are looking to give your Shopify store a makeover or get off on the right foot, don't hesitate to reach out!

We would love to hear from you.

Here are some very specific step by step branding guides for: Real Estate, Lawyers, Accounting, Doctors, Dentists, Optometrists, Jewellery, Makeup & Beauty, Skincare, Pet Food, Fashion and Construction.

Let's Chat!

Bonus Tips for Your Shopify Theme

There are simply some elements that you cannot miss in your Shopify store and should be looking for in a Shopify theme.

Colour Coordination (The right colour palette that reflects your brand identity)
Good looking and professional images (Be sure to compress them before uploading. Otherwise, they will slow down your site)
Good descriptions, excellent copywriting on the site (Default descriptions won’t do the job, you need to find the most persuasive words for your target).
Good solid logo design.
Efficient funnel checkout (The most critical part of your funnel is the end; if you don't provide an easy and intuitive checkout experience, you'll have your products sitting in your customer's cart forever)

Want to succeed in ecommerce?

Here's a tip: When starting off, it can be tempting to cast the net wide with a general store. But before you do that, remember this - less is more! It's better for your bottom line and sanity if you hone in on only those products which are proven winners and keep them at a reasonable number - say 10-15 items max.

Once you have success there, then consider broadening your offerings.

Your online stores going to need visually appealing images, website design, custom layouts and a Shopify template that is a paid theme.

The Best Shopify theme is Turbo, the best free Shopify Theme is Dawn, and another good theme is Blum. So, setup your ecommerce store today with a minimalist theme and your ecommerce business will thrive!

We hope this article was helpful; if you plan to start with Shopify, now you have an excellent basis to start.

To learn more, take a look at our blog to discover more articles on growing your business and strengthening your brand!

Shopify Premium Themes vs Free Shopify Themes: Which Is Best for Your Business?