Bookkeeping categories
What category is Shopify in bookkeeping?
Money you pay Shopify is usually Online Software, and a Shopify payout into your bank is Sales Revenue. Even Margin tells them apart by which way the money moves, and asks you to confirm the payout.
What Shopify is for
Inside Online Software, Even Margin also tags Shopify by what it is for: Website & Ecommerce. It does the same for the 1,300+ tools on its list, so Analytics can show what your software is for: your spend on each kind of tool, side by side in one chart, with Shopify counted under Website & Ecommerce.
What Shopify charges are
Shopify does two things in your bank account: it charges you for your store plan and apps, and it pays out your sales.
How Even Margin categorizes Shopify
Online Software. Payouts are Sales Revenue, for your review list.
- Even Margin recognizes Shopify on your bank transaction, using the merchant list its team curates.
- Money you pay Shopify is categorized as Online Software with high confidence, applied without asking you.
- A Shopify payout into your bank is categorized as Sales Revenue at medium confidence and goes to your review list to confirm, since income is worth a look.
When a different category fits
Whatever category you pick for a Shopify transaction stays: Even Margin never overwrites a choice you made.
- Shopify Capital funding also arrives from Shopify, so Even Margin suggests Sales Revenue for it like a payout. Change it to Loan Proceeds on your review list: it is money you pay back, not a sale.
- Shipping labels bought through Shopify are Shipping, Fulfillment & Postage.
- Card readers and other hardware bought from Shopify are Office Supplies & Equipment.
- Shopify Payments fees charged to you on their own, rather than taken from a payout, are Merchant & Payment Processing Fees.
Why is my Shopify payout less than what I sold?
Shopify Payments takes its fees and any refunds before it pays out, and Shopify Capital repayments come out of payouts too. Shopify's payouts page lists what was taken from each one.
What if I sell on Shopify and Etsy?
Payouts from Shopify and Etsy are both Sales Revenue, so your sales add up in one place. To see each shop on its own, create a revenue category for each and write a rule per merchant.
About this page
Reviewed 2026-10-08 by the Even Margin team.
These are categories for your books; for how a cost is treated on your tax return, ask your accountant. Merchant names are trademarks of their owners, and Even Margin is not affiliated with them.