How to Start an Online Store in Australia (2026)
You start an online store in Australia by registering a free ABN, picking a platform (Shopify, WooCommerce or Squarespace), sourcing stock you can sell at a real margin, connecting payments and a shipping account, and publishing a returns policy that complies with the Australian Consumer Law — most lean stores launch for $2,000–$6,000 including first stock. The build is the easy part; the money is made or lost on margins, postage and finding your first 100 customers. Here's the process with current Australian prices and fees (as at September 2026).
Step 1: Decide what you'll sell and how you'll source it
Every other decision depends on this one. Three broad models:
- Make it yourself — candles, ceramics, prints, clothing. Highest margins, lowest volume; your time is the constraint.
- Buy wholesale and hold stock — from Australian or overseas suppliers, stored at home or in a 3PL warehouse. Better margins than dropshipping, but cash is tied up in inventory.
- Dropship — a supplier ships direct to your customer. Little upfront cost, but thin margins, slow delivery from overseas, and you still carry every legal obligation to the customer as the seller.
Whatever the model, work out your landed cost per unit before you commit: product, freight to you, import GST and duty, packaging, plus the payment and postage cost of getting it to the customer. Price from that number, not from a competitor's shelf price. And check product safety: toys, children's products, cosmetics and anything with a button battery have mandatory standards under the ACCC's Product Safety Australia rules, and the importer is the responsible supplier.
Step 2: Registrations — ABN, business name, domain, GST
The paperwork is cheap (as at September 2026):
| Item | Cost | Notes |
|---|---|---|
| ABN | Free | Australian Business Register; usually issued instantly |
| Business name (ASIC) | $47 for 1 year, $108 for 3 years | Not needed if you trade under your own name |
| .com.au domain | About $20–$30 a year | You need an ABN, ACN or Australian trade mark to hold one |
| GST registration | Free | Compulsory once turnover hits $75,000 |
Most first-time owners start as a sole trader; our startup costs guide covers company setup if you'd rather incorporate.
GST for an online store
You must register when your GST turnover reaches $75,000 in a rolling 12 months, or looks likely to. Below that it's optional: registering early lets you claim GST back on stock and equipment, but it means adding 10% to prices your consumer customers can't claim. Our guide to registering for GST walks through the trade-off.
Two online-store specifics catch people out:
- Displayed prices must be GST-inclusive. Consumers must see a single total price; "$49 + GST" is for trade-only wholesale sites.
- Imported stock has its own rules. Goods with a customs value of A$1,000 or less shipped from overseas attract GST at the point of sale, charged by the overseas seller or marketplace. If you're GST-registered and buying for your business, give the supplier your ABN and tell them you're registered; they shouldn't charge GST and you account for it on your BAS instead. Consignments over A$1,000 have GST and any duty collected at the border, and a registered business claims the GST back as a credit.
Step 3: Choose your platform
Prices in AUD (as at September 2026):
| Shopify | WooCommerce | Squarespace | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Monthly cost | Basic $56, or $42 paid annually; Grow $149/$114; Advanced $575/$431 | Software is free; Australian WordPress hosting from roughly $9–$19 a month, plus theme and plugins | Basic $24 ($17 annually) with a 2% fee on product sales; Core $39 ($28 annually) with 0% |
| Built-in payments | Shopify Payments: 1.75% + 30c domestic on Basic (1.6% Grow, 1.4% Advanced); 2.9% AMEX; 3.5% international | WooPayments: 1.75% + 30c domestic, +1.5% on international cards; or Stripe/PayPal plugins | Stripe or PayPal at their standard rates |
| Extra fee for another gateway | 2% Basic, 1% Grow, 0.6% Advanced | None | None on Core and above |
| Hosting, security, updates | Shopify | You (or your host) | Squarespace |
| Best for | Stores that need to just work, and to grow | WordPress-comfortable owners on tight budgets | Small, design-led catalogues |
Shopify is the default for a reason: the fastest path to a working store, an app for every Australian need, and it scales. The catches are the 2% penalty on Basic if you don't use Shopify Payments, and app subscriptions that quietly add $50–$150 a month. WooCommerce is cheapest and most flexible because it's just WordPress, but you own the plugin updates, backups and hosting — good if you already maintain a WordPress site, a time sink if you don't. Squarespace builds beautiful stores quickly with no transaction fee on Core, but its commerce features and Australian shipping integrations are thinner.
Step 4: Set up payments
Australians expect card, PayPal and a buy-now-pay-later option. What each costs on a domestic sale (as at September 2026):
| Method | Typical fee |
|---|---|
| Stripe (direct) | 1.7% + A$0.30, with lower domestic pricing flagged from 1 October 2026; international cards 3.5% + A$0.30 |
| Shopify Payments (Basic) | 1.75% + 30c; AMEX 2.9% + 30c |
| WooPayments | 1.75% + $0.30; GST applies to the fee |
| Afterpay | Set per merchant, typically around 4–6% plus 30c; WooPayments' published Afterpay rate is 6% + $0.30 |
Afterpay and Zip cost two to three times a card payment, so decide deliberately: they lift conversion on discretionary products in the $50–$300 range but are a waste on a $15 consumable. Build the fee into your pricing and connect your accounting software from day one.
Step 5: Shipping — Australia Post, and what replaced Sendle
Open a MyPost Business account. It's free and integrates with Shopify, eBay and shipping apps like Shippit and ShipStation. Discounts start once you spend $50 or more a week, rising through five savings bands to up to 40% off domestic parcels and 35% off international. Check the current figures in Australia Post's MyPost Business rates and savings guide, because the bands are re-priced each July. For comparison, retail Parcel Post prepaid satchels start at $10.55 after the 1 July 2026 rise of about 4.95% (as at September 2026).
Sendle is gone. It stopped taking bookings on 11 January 2026 and was wound up soon after, so ignore older guides recommending it. For cheaper-than-retail couriers, use an aggregator such as Shippit, Interparcel, Couriers & Freight or Easyship, which rate-shops across Australia Post, Aramex, TNT and others from one dashboard.
Decide your shipping offer. Flat rate, free shipping over a threshold set a little above your average order value, or live rates. Whatever you choose, know your true average cost per parcel and bake it into prices — "free shipping" is a marketing cost you've chosen to carry.
Step 6: Returns and your Australian Consumer Law obligations
Every consumer sale under $100,000 comes with automatic consumer guarantees, and they apply to online, imported and dropshipped goods exactly as to a physical shop. You, the seller, are responsible — not the manufacturer or an overseas supplier.
- If a product is faulty, unsafe, not as described or doesn't do what you claimed, you must provide a remedy: for a major failure the customer chooses refund or replacement; for a minor one you choose repair, replacement or refund.
- You don't have to accept change-of-mind returns. Most stores do because it lifts conversion; if you do, honour the policy you publish.
- Goods damaged in transit or badly late are yours to fix with the customer; you chase the carrier separately.
- "No refunds", "no returns on sale items", "no refunds after 14 days" or "restocking fee on all returns" misrepresent rights customers can't sign away. The ACCC's February 2025 sweep of more than 2,000 Australian retail sites targeted exactly these statements; false or misleading representations about consumer rights carry maximum penalties of up to $100 million for companies and $2.5 million for individuals (as at September 2026).
Our guide to refunds and consumer guarantees covers the edge cases. You also need proper website terms and conditions and a privacy policy — your payment and advertising platforms require one whether or not the Privacy Act currently applies to you.
Step 7: Launch marketing that actually sells
Plan the first 90 days before going live:
- Start the email list before launch. A waiting list with a launch discount gives you buyers on day one. Our email marketing guide covers the Spam Act rules and the welcome sequence.
- Google Merchant Center. Free product listings in Google Shopping are the highest-intent traffic you'll get without paying; set up the feed before launch.
- One social channel and early reviews. Pick the platform your customers actually use and post consistently on it, and ask every early customer for a review with a photo.
- Paid ads last, and small. Don't spend on Meta or Google Ads until product pages, shipping offer and checkout convert organic visitors. Ads amplify what works; they don't fix what doesn't.
What it really costs, and what you'll make
A lean launch, added up (as at September 2026):
| Cost | Lean estimate |
|---|---|
| ABN, business name, domain | $67–$77 in year one |
| Platform (first 3 months) | $30–$60 (WooCommerce hosting) to $170 (Shopify Basic) |
| Theme, apps, product photography | $0–$500 with a free theme, your phone and a $100 light |
| First stock | Usually the biggest line — often $1,000–$3,000 |
| Packaging and shipping supplies | $100–$300 |
| Launch marketing | $300–$1,000 |
| Working-capital buffer | 2–3 months of fixed costs |
Now the margin. Say you sell a product for $60 including GST with free shipping:
| Per order | |
|---|---|
| Sale price inc GST | $60.00 |
| Less GST remitted | −$5.45 |
| Revenue ex GST | $54.55 |
| Landed product cost | −$18.00 |
| Payment fee (1.75% + 30c) | −$1.35 |
| Postage and packaging | −$9.50 |
| Platform fee ($56 across 100 orders) | −$0.56 |
| Marketing cost per order | −$8.00 |
| Contribution per order | $17.14 (about 31% of ex-GST revenue) |
"Buy for $18, sell for $60" isn't the 70% margin it looks like, and a $25 product in the same structure loses money on every sale. Run this for each product before you list it.
Key takeaways
- Registrations are cheap: free ABN, $47 business name, $20–$30 .com.au domain. Register for GST at $75,000 turnover (as at September 2026).
- Shopify Basic ($56 a month, $42 annually) is the safest first choice; WooCommerce is cheapest if you can maintain WordPress; Squarespace suits small, design-led catalogues.
- Open a free MyPost Business account for discounted Australia Post rates. Sendle collapsed in January 2026 — ignore older advice recommending it.
- Consumer guarantees apply to every online sale: fix faulty products, never publish "no refunds", and honour whatever returns policy you advertise.
- Price from landed cost plus postage and payment fees (cards about 1.7–1.75% + 30c, Afterpay typically 4–6% + 30c), not a competitor's price — a 70% gross margin becomes a 30% contribution margin fast.
Where to get help
- Australian Business Register (abr.gov.au) — free ABN application and GST registration; ASIC Connect (asic.gov.au) for business names.
- ATO (ato.gov.au) — GST thresholds, GST on imported goods, BAS lodgement.
- ACCC (accc.gov.au) — consumer guarantees, refunds, pricing rules and Product Safety Australia.
- Australia Post (auspost.com.au/business) — MyPost Business account and current parcel rates.
- Your accountant or BAS agent — GST registration timing, import GST and cash flow.
- A commercial lawyer — website terms, returns policy and supplier contracts.
Frequently asked questions
How much does it cost to start an online store in Australia?
A lean online store can be trading for roughly $2,000–$6,000 including first stock (as at September 2026). The ABN is free, a business name is $47 a year, a .com.au domain is about $20–$30 a year, and the platform is $17–$56 a month depending on whether you pick Squarespace, WooCommerce hosting or Shopify. Stock, packaging and a launch marketing budget make up most of the rest.
Do I need an ABN to sell online in Australia?
Yes, if you're running a business rather than selling the odd personal item. An ABN is free, and you need it to register a .com.au domain, to register for GST, to open most wholesale accounts and to stop other businesses withholding tax from your invoices. Register it before you build the store.
Do I have to charge GST on my online store?
Only once your GST turnover reaches $75,000 a year, or you register voluntarily before then. Once registered you add 10% to taxable sales, show GST-inclusive prices to consumers, lodge a BAS and claim back the GST on stock, platform fees and postage. Below the threshold you can't charge GST and can't claim credits.
Is Shopify or WooCommerce better for a small Australian store?
Shopify is the easier, more predictable choice: $56 a month for Basic (or $42 a month paid annually) with hosting, security and payments handled for you (as at September 2026). WooCommerce is free software on your own WordPress hosting, so it's cheaper to run and more flexible, but you own the updates, backups and plugin conflicts. If you've never run a website, start on Shopify.
Do I have to accept returns on my online store?
You must provide a repair, replacement or refund when a product fails a consumer guarantee — it's faulty, not as described, or doesn't do what you said. You don't have to accept change-of-mind returns, but if you advertise a returns policy you must honour it, and a blanket 'no refunds' statement is unlawful under the Australian Consumer Law.
General information only. This guide doesn't take your personal or business circumstances into account and isn't financial, legal or tax advice. Rates and thresholds change — check the official sources linked in this guide and get qualified advice where your circumstances require it.