Sophosic vs Shopify
Shopify is a great e-commerce platform. But small businesses need more than a shopping cart. Shopify's CRM is a contact list. Shopify POS Pro costs an additional $89 a month per location. And Shopify Sidekick only talks to you, the merchant -- it does not talk to your customers. Sophosic gives you POS, a real CRM with pipeline management, an AI agent that serves your customers directly on your website, and a website builder -- all for $25 to $100 a month. No add-on fragmentation.
We're obviously biased — we built Sophosic. So we'll be straightforward about where Shopify might be the better choice.
Why Businesses Choose Sophosic
Differentiator
Real CRM, Not a Spreadsheet
45+ CRM modules with pipelines, invoicing, and AI follow-ups. Shopify's 'Customers' is a contact list with tags.
Differentiator
Customer-Facing AI, Not Just Merchant-Side
Sophia serves your customers directly — answering questions, qualifying leads, and booking appointments 24/7. Sidekick only helps the merchant.
Differentiator
No Per-Location Fees or Add-On Tax
$99.99/mo for everything — no $89/location POS fee, no add-on apps, no surprise costs that balloon to $200–$500/mo.
Feature Comparison
| Feature | Sophosic | Shopify |
|---|---|---|
| E-commerce | Online store with product catalog, collections, and Stripe Connect | Industry-leading e-commerce with deep marketplace integrations (Amazon, eBay) |
| In-Person POS | Native iOS POS with Apple Tap to Pay, included in all plans | POS Pro at $89/mo per location on top of base plan |
| CRM | Full CRM with 45+ modules: leads, deals, invoices, bookings, campaigns, analytics | Contact list with purchase history and tags — no pipelines, no lead stages |
| AI Agent | Customer-facing AI with persistent semantic memory, deployed on your website 24/7 | Merchant-side Sidekick for product descriptions and sales analysis |
| Website Builder | Full website builder connected to CRM, bookings, and AI chat widget | Full e-commerce website builder with extensive theme marketplace |
| Booking & Services | Integrated booking, service catalog, and invoicing in CRM | Requires third-party apps for booking and service management |
| Hardware Cost | $0 — runs on iPhone you already own | $0-$400 for card readers |
| Per-Location Fees | No per-location fees | $89/mo per location for POS Pro |
E-commerce
Sophosic
Online store with product catalog, collections, and Stripe Connect
Shopify
Industry-leading e-commerce with deep marketplace integrations (Amazon, eBay)
In-Person POS
Sophosic
Native iOS POS with Apple Tap to Pay, included in all plans
Shopify
POS Pro at $89/mo per location on top of base plan
CRM
Sophosic
Full CRM with 45+ modules: leads, deals, invoices, bookings, campaigns, analytics
Shopify
Contact list with purchase history and tags — no pipelines, no lead stages
AI Agent
Sophosic
Customer-facing AI with persistent semantic memory, deployed on your website 24/7
Shopify
Merchant-side Sidekick for product descriptions and sales analysis
Website Builder
Sophosic
Full website builder connected to CRM, bookings, and AI chat widget
Shopify
Full e-commerce website builder with extensive theme marketplace
Booking & Services
Sophosic
Integrated booking, service catalog, and invoicing in CRM
Shopify
Requires third-party apps for booking and service management
Hardware Cost
Sophosic
$0 — runs on iPhone you already own
Shopify
$0-$400 for card readers
Per-Location Fees
Sophosic
No per-location fees
Shopify
$89/mo per location for POS Pro
Total Cost of Ownership
| Cost | Sophosic | Shopify |
|---|---|---|
| Monthly Software | $99.99 | $128-$399 |
| Hardware | $0 | $0-$400 |
| 24-Month Total | $2,400 | $3,072-$9,976 |
When to Choose Shopify
If your primary business is e-commerce with a secondary physical presence
Shopify is the industry leader in e-commerce. If online sales are your primary revenue channel and in-person sales are secondary, Shopify's deep e-commerce features, theme marketplace, and checkout optimization may be worth the higher total cost.
If you need deep marketplace integrations (Amazon, eBay)
Shopify offers native integrations with major online marketplaces like Amazon, eBay, and social commerce platforms. If multi-channel e-commerce across these marketplaces is central to your business model, Shopify's ecosystem is purpose-built for that.
Why Businesses Switch to Sophosic
Eliminate the add-on tax
The business owner sees that Shopify's strength is e-commerce, but for a business that also needs in-person sales, real CRM, and customer-facing AI, Shopify requires expensive add-ons that still do not match Sophosic's integrated capabilities.
Get a real CRM with 45+ modules
Sophosic's CRM includes leads, deals, invoices, bookings, campaigns, forms, gift cards, tasks, tickets, and analytics — all in one profile. Shopify has a contact list. That is a CRM versus a spreadsheet.
Deploy customer-facing AI that talks to everyone
Sophia is deployed on your website as a customer-facing agent. She answers product questions, qualifies leads, books appointments, and captures contact information — 24/7, with persistent memory. Shopify Sidekick only talks to you. Sophia talks to everyone.
Switching is Easy
Create your Sophosic account
Import your data (CSV or API)
Configure your settings
Go live with zero downtime
Our team handles the heavy lifting. Most businesses are up and running within 24 hours.
Frequently Asked Questions
Sophosic includes an online store with product catalog, collections, and Stripe Connect integration. For businesses where e-commerce is one channel among many (in-person, services, bookings), Sophosic provides a more integrated solution. For pure e-commerce with marketplace integrations, Shopify's ecosystem is more specialized.
Shopify's app marketplace fills gaps with third-party solutions — but each app adds cost and complexity. Sophosic includes CRM, AI, booking, invoicing, campaigns, and more in the base subscription. No third-party apps needed for core business operations.
Yes, with no per-location fees. Shopify charges $89/mo per location for POS Pro. Sophosic's multi-workspace architecture supports multiple locations within the same subscription.
Yes. You can import product catalogs and customer data via CSV export from Shopify or through our API. Our team assists with migration to ensure a smooth transition.