Everything You Need to Know About Switching from Amazon to Shopify

If you sell on Amazon but want to build your own brand, gain more control or offer a better customer experience, switching to Shopify is just right for you. In this guide, we explain step by step how to move your Amazon shop to Shopify.

1. Decide Which Data to Move to Shopify

The first step is simple: decide which Amazon data you want to move to Shopify. This is a good opportunity to get rid of old, unusable content.

The main types of data you can transfer are:

• Products (most importantly)

• Reviews (via third‑party apps)

Which Method Should You Choose?

Shopify offers you several different migration methods:

For small‑ and medium‑sized businesses, the “CSV import” method is the most practical and free solution.

2. Export Your Products from Amazon

If you choose the CSV method, you first need to download your products from Amazon.

1. Go to your Amazon account ⇒ Inventory > Inventory Reports.

2. Select the report type Active Listings Report.

3. Click Request Report.

4. When the report is ready, click Download.

5. Save the file as AmazonProductDownload.csv.

3. Convert Your CSV File to Shopify Format

The file you download from Amazon will not match Shopify’s product format, so you’ll need to organise your products to import them into Shopify.

Important: https://help.shopify.com/csv/product_template.csv and arrange your Amazon data according to this template. You can use Google Sheets or Excel.

Column Matching

Match the columns in Amazon to Shopify as follows:

Delete any other Amazon columns not listed in the table. You don’t need to add fields that don’t exist in Shopify.

4. Upload Products to Shopify

Once your file is ready, you can now import it into Shopify:

1. In your Shopify admin, go to the Products section.

2. Click Import.

3. Select your file using Add file and choose your AmazonProductDownload.csv file.

4. Deselect the Publish new products to all sales channels option if you want to check first.

5. Click Upload and preview.

6. If everything looks good, click Import products.

7. You will be notified by e‑mail when the process is complete.

5. Check and Edit Your Products in Shopify

After you import into Shopify, make sure to check:

• Prices: Are the prices correct?

• Inventory: Were the stock quantities transferred?

• Product descriptions: Are the descriptions complete?

• Images: Were the images uploaded?

• Variants: Are the variants (sizes, colours, etc.) correct?

Common Errors and Solutions

Tip: Organise your products into collections. This makes management easier and offers a better shopping experience on Shopify.

6. Transfer Reviews with Shopify Apps (Optional)

Bad news: you cannot import your Amazon reviews directly into Shopify.

Good news: you can manually import them with third‑party apps:

• Judge.me

• Loox

• Yotpo

These Shopify apps typically support importing reviews in CSV format.

7. Give Your Shopify Store a Visual Identity

Shopify provides you with a default theme, but you need a Shopify expert’s help to customise it so that it reflects your brand.

Shopify Theme Options

Free Shopify Themes

• Developed by Shopify

• Support comes from Shopify

• You can find them in the admin under Online Store > Themes

Paid Shopify Themes

• Created by third‑party designers

• Include more advanced features

• You can try them before buying (up to 19 times)

• No refunds, so choose carefully!

Tip: Don’t buy a paid theme while your free trial period is active. Start with the free Shopify themes.

8. Set Up Shipping Settings on Shopify

Charging the wrong shipping fee equals unhappy customers and lost revenue. That’s why it’s important to set your shipping settings correctly.

What you need to do

1. Enter your Shopify store address correctly (tax and shipping calculations are based on this).

2. Create shipping zones (which countries or cities will you ship to?).

3. Set your package dimensions (your shipping company uses this to calculate rates).

4. Set your shipping rates (free shipping, flat rate or calculated shipping?).

5. Choose your shipping strategy (are you sending the products yourself or dropshipping?).

Note: If you sell digital products on Shopify, turn off the shipping option.

9. Configure Taxes on Shopify

You should not skip your tax settings on Shopify. Shopify calculates most taxes automatically, but you should still check the following:

• Are the correct tax rates being applied according to your shipping destinations?

• Do you have products with special tax rules? If so, override them manually.

• If you sell to Europe, there are extra regulations for digital products.

Tip: Use accounting apps (you can find them in the Shopify App Store) to track your taxes throughout the year.

10. Set Up a Payment Provider

How will your customers pay you in your Shopify store? You cannot skip this important step.

Shopify Payments (Recommended)

Advantages:

• No additional transaction fee

• You see your payouts directly in Shopify admin

• Easy setup

Disadvantage:

• Not available in all countries (check its availability in Turkey)

Third‑party providers

If you can’t use Shopify Payments, there are hundreds of alternatives. In Turkey, popular ones are:

• iyzico

• PayTR

• Stripe

11. Place Test Orders

Test your Shopify store thoroughly before going live! What you need to test:

• Successful order flow

• Failed payment scenario

• Refund and cancellation procedures

• Partial shipment

• Order archiving

With each test order you will see the e‑mails the customer receives. If you don’t like them, edit your e‑mail templates from the Notifications page.

12. Add Your Team to the Shopify Admin

If you have helpers, add them to Shopify as a collaborator.

For each staff member:

• Their own login credentials

• Customisable permissions (you decide which information they can access)

This way, everyone can do their job in Shopify, but can’t access areas they don’t need.

13. Connect Your Domain Name to Shopify

Final step: give your Shopify store a professional domain name.

Buying a new domain on Shopify

You can buy a domain directly from Shopify and link it to your store:

1. Purchase a domain through Shopify.

2. Set it as your primary domain.

3. Set up e‑mail forwarding (for example, info@yourbrand.com).

Transferring an existing domain

If you already have a domain:

1. Important: Disconnect the domain from the old platform (Amazon etc.) or you will get an SSL error.

2. Point the domain to Shopify.

3. Create URL redirects so that old links go to new pages.

Why is URL redirection important?

Your Amazon product page might be: example.com/policie s/shipping-policy

Your new Shopify page is: example.com/pages/shipping-policy

If you don’t redirect, customers clicking the old link will see an error page. If you do redirect, they will automatically go to the new page.

It’s Time to Move Your E‑Commerce Store to Shopify

Switching from Amazon to Shopify may seem complicated at first, but if you proceed step by step, it’s actually quite easy. Switching to Shopify is a great opportunity to grow your brand and gain more control. At Byte, we can help you reduce your risk of mistakes when switching to Shopify. For more information, contact us.