Shopify B2B in 2026: A Practical Guide to Wholesale on Shopify

For years, wholesale on Shopify meant either upgrading to Plus or stitching together apps, discount codes and hidden pages. That changed in 2026. This guide is for DTC brands adding a wholesale channel, and for B2B sellers deciding whether Shopify's native tools are enough.

Key takeaways

Since April 2026, Basic, Grow and Advanced include company profiles, payment terms, volume pricing, ACH (US), vaulted cards and up to three B2B catalogs at no extra cost.
Plus is still needed for unlimited catalogs, direct catalog assignment to specific companies and locations, deposits, partial payments and payment requests per fulfillment.
B2B buyers must use the new customer accounts, with passwordless sign-in. Legacy customer accounts don't work with B2B.
You can run B2B in the same store as DTC (a blended store) or in a separate wholesale store.
Plan your price structure before you build. The three-catalog limit on non-Plus plans is the constraint that most often forces the decision.

How Shopify B2B is structured

Shopify's native B2B is built around a few objects. Once you understand them, the setup makes sense.

Companies are your wholesale customers' businesses. Every B2B buyer must be set up under a company.
Company locations are the stores, warehouses or offices that buy from you. Each can have its own tax ID and exemptions, shipping and billing addresses, catalogs, payment terms and contacts (help center).
Customers are the people who place orders, with permissions at each location (for example, location admin or ordering only).
Catalogs control which products and prices a company location sees. If a location has several catalogs and a product appears in more than one, the lowest price wins.
Quantity rules and price breaks set minimums, maximums and order increments per variant, plus volume discounts at set quantities.
Payment terms let approved buyers pay on net terms, with payment reminders.

What each plan includes

Here is a condensed version of Shopify's B2B features by plan. B2B isn't available on Starter or Retail.

Feature	Basic / Grow	Advanced	Plus
Companies, locations, location permissions	Yes	Yes	Yes
B2B catalogs	Up to 3 (via Markets)	Up to 3 (via Markets)	Unlimited
Direct catalog assignment to companies or locations	No	No	Yes
Quantity rules and price breaks	Yes	Yes	Yes
Net payment terms and reminders	Yes	Yes	Yes
ACH (US) and vaulted credit cards	Yes	Yes	Yes
Deposits, partial payments, payment requests per fulfillment	No	No	Yes
Draft order to invoice, checkout to draft, PO numbers, easy reorders	Yes	Yes	Yes
Quick order list and Trade theme	Yes	Yes	Yes
Contextual storefront and checkout (Markets)	No	Yes	Yes
Shopify Flow with B2B objects	Yes	Yes	Yes

Two notes from Shopify's page: on Basic, Grow and Advanced, the three-catalog limit is shared across all B2B markets, and B2B catalog features require the new Shopify Markets.

The three-catalog question

On non-Plus plans, catalogs are assigned through B2B markets, not directly to each company. In practice, that means you can run about three price tiers, for example "Retailer," "Distributor" and "Key accounts."

That works well if your wholesale pricing is tiered. It breaks if every account negotiates its own price list. If you have, or expect, company-specific pricing, that's a strong signal for Plus. The Shopify vs Shopify Plus guide covers the rest of that decision.

Pro tip: Before choosing a plan, export your current wholesale price lists and count the distinct price structures. If the number is three or fewer and stable, native non-Plus B2B probably covers you.

Blended store or separate wholesale store?

	Blended store	Separate B2B store
Setup	One store, B2B buyers sign in to see their pricing	A dedicated store for wholesale
Inventory	Shared automatically	Needs syncing or shared locations
Content	Same theme, with B2B-specific content via Markets on eligible plans	Fully separate theme and content
Best for	Brands with the same catalog for both channels	Different catalogs, branding or wholesale-only sites
Watch out for	DTC customers seeing B2B content, discount conflicts	Running two stores, two app stacks

Shopify provides checklists for both: blended store and dedicated store. On Plus, expansion stores make a separate wholesale store cheaper to run.

Note that Shopify's help center says restricting store access hides it from non-B2B customers but doesn't redirect every visitor to a login page. If you need a full login wall on a wholesale-only store, you may need an app or custom theme work.

What's new for B2B in 2026

Beyond opening B2B to more plans, Shopify's Spring '26 Edition added:

Automated vaulted payments charged through Shopify Flow.
Native B2B support in QuickBooks and Mailchimp, syncing B2B orders, PO numbers and company details, and using B2B segments for email.
Custom pricing on draft orders, so sales reps can override line item prices and add custom discounts.
Billing address and PO number in Shopify Functions, so checkout validation can enforce B2B rules. More on that in the Shopify Functions guide.

Step-by-step: launching B2B on Shopify

Define your wholesale rules. Who qualifies, minimum order values, price tiers, payment terms and which products are wholesale-only.
Switch on new customer accounts. B2B requires them. Test the passwordless sign-in flow, which uses a one-time code sent by email.
Build catalogs. Map each price tier to a catalog. Set quantity rules (minimums and case-pack increments) and price breaks.
Create companies and locations. Import existing wholesale accounts with their addresses, tax IDs, exemptions and payment terms. Each customer email can belong to only one customer record.
Set up payment terms and methods. Net terms for approved accounts, vaulted cards or ACH where available.
Adjust the storefront. Add a quick order list, show B2B pricing and minimums clearly, and decide what DTC visitors see. The Trade theme is a good starting point for wholesale-only stores.
Connect operations. Accounting, ERP or 3PL integrations need to understand B2B orders, PO numbers and terms.
Test as a buyer. Place orders as each type of company location, on mobile and desktop, with terms, cards and drafts.
Invite buyers gradually. Send B2B access emails to a small group first, gather feedback, then roll out.

Common mistakes

Using discount codes as wholesale pricing. They leak, stack badly and don't respect quantity rules. Use catalogs.
Skipping company locations. Multi-location buyers need separate addresses, tax settings and permissions.
Ignoring tax exemptions. Collect resale certificates and set exemptions per location before the first order.
Forgetting the sales team. Give reps the right permissions and a draft order process, or they'll keep emailing spreadsheets.

FAQ

Do I need Shopify Plus for B2B?

No. Since April 2026, Basic, Grow and Advanced include native B2B with up to three catalogs. Plus adds unlimited catalogs, company-specific catalog assignment, deposits and partial payments.

Can I sell B2B and DTC from the same Shopify store?

Yes. A blended store shows B2B pricing and terms to signed-in company customers while DTC shoppers see retail pricing.

How do B2B customers log in?

Through new customer accounts, using their email and a one-time code. Legacy customer accounts aren't supported for B2B.

Can wholesale customers pay on net terms?

Yes. Net payment terms and payment reminders are available on Basic, Grow, Advanced and Plus.

Should I still use a wholesale app?

Native B2B covers most needs now. Apps still make sense for workflows Shopify doesn't cover natively, but check what's built in before adding one. Review your stack with the app audit guide.

Next steps

Count your distinct wholesale price structures, decide between a blended or separate store, and list the operational systems that need to understand B2B orders. That tells you which plan you need and how much setup work is ahead. If you want help designing your B2B setup, book a Shopify consultation.