Setting prices & sales
How to set product prices, create sale prices with compare-at pricing, and run discounts in your Shopify store.
Pricing your products correctly is essential. Shopify gives you flexible tools to set regular prices, show sale prices, and create discount codes — all without touching any code.
Quick summary
Set the regular price in the Price field on any product. Add a higher amount to the Compare-at price field to show a crossed-out original price (creating a visible sale). For sitewide or code-based discounts, use the Discounts section in your admin.
How to set a product price
Open the product you want to price. Go to Products and click the product name.
Scroll to the Pricing section.
Enter your price in the Price field. This is what customers pay at checkout.
Click Save.
If your product has variants, each variant has its own price. You set these in the Variants table. For example, a larger size might cost more than a smaller one.
Showing a sale price (compare-at pricing)
Shopify's "compare-at price" is the original full price shown with a strikethrough next to the sale price. It is the most common way to indicate a discount.
Open the product and scroll to the Pricing section.
Enter the sale price in the Price field (the amount customers will actually pay).
Enter the original higher price in the Compare-at price field. Shopify will display this with a strikethrough on the product page.
Click Save. The product now shows as on sale.
To end the sale, delete the value from the Compare-at price field and save again.
Be accurate with compare-at prices
Only use compare-at prices for genuine reductions from a price you have actually sold at. Inflated compare-at prices are misleading to customers and may violate consumer protection rules in some countries.
The Cost per item field
There is also a Cost per item field in the Pricing section. This is for your own records — Shopify uses it to calculate your profit margin in the Analytics section. Customers never see this number.
Creating discount codes
Discount codes let customers enter a code at checkout to get a percentage off, a fixed dollar amount off, or free shipping.
Go to Discounts in the left menu of your Shopify admin.
Click Create discount.
Choose the discount type: Amount off products, Amount off order, Buy X get Y, or Free shipping.
Give the discount a code (e.g. SUMMER20) or click Generate to get a random one.
Set the value — for example, 20% off or $10 off.
Set any conditions — minimum order amount, specific products or collections, or a usage limit.
Set active dates if you want the discount to start and end automatically.
Click Save discount.
Automatic discounts
Automatic discounts apply at checkout without the customer needing to enter a code. For example, "spend $100, get 15% off." The setup process is the same as discount codes — just choose Automatic discount instead of Discount code when you create it.
Bulk price changes
Shopify does not have a built-in bulk price editor in the standard admin. If you need to update prices for many products at once, look for a "bulk editor" app in the Shopify App Store, or ask us — we can often do bulk updates quickly.
Common questions
Related guides
- How to add a product
- Product variants (size, color, options)
- Managing stock & inventory
- Shopify plans & billing
Need a hand?
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