WooCommerce to Shopify Migration
Move a UAE store from WooCommerce to Shopify with products, customers, orders and reviews intact, every old URL redirected, and Tabby, Tamara and VAT-inclusive AED pricing set up properly.
Why stores move from WooCommerce to Shopify
Stores rarely leave WooCommerce over one problem. It's the plugin stack: every feature is another plugin to update, patch and pay for, and Patchstack's 2026 report found 91% of WordPress-ecosystem vulnerabilities in plugins. Shopify trades that for a hosted platform where the core, the checkout and the security patches are someone else's job.
Most migration guides online were written before 2026, and a lot has changed. Shopify lists its old Store Importer app as not currently available. Customer accounts changed in February. Shopify Scripts ended in June. Shopify Payments in the UAE opened up to the Advanced plan in August. This page is the current version, for a UAE store.
What moves, and how
No single export carries a whole WooCommerce store into Shopify. Each kind of data takes its own route, in a set order:
- Products. Shopify's Store Migration app (products only, in early access, desktop only) or a CSV import. Products with more than three options don't bring their extra options across, so we restructure those variants first.
- Customers. CSV only, with no field mapping, so we reshape your WooCommerce export to match Shopify's template exactly.
- Orders. A third-party app such as Matrixify, LitExtension or Ablestar, imported after products and customers so each order links to the right records. Staff order notifications are switched off first.
- Reviews. These can't be exported through Shopify's migration route, so we re-import them through a reviews app such as Judge.me, Loox or Yotpo.
Moving customer records to a platform hosted outside the UAE is a cross-border transfer under the UAE's data protection law (PDPL). We check the data-processing terms with you and move only the customer data you still need.
Passwords and customer accounts
Customer passwords don't transfer from WooCommerce to Shopify. Until this year, that meant asking every customer to reset their password. Since 26 February 2026, new Shopify stores use new customer accounts, where customers sign in with a one-time code sent to their email. Your customers sign in with the address they already use, and there's no password to reset.
URLs and redirects
Shopify's URL structure is fixed, so every product and category URL on your store changes:
/product/<slug>/becomes/products/<handle>/product-category/<slug>/becomes/collections/<handle>
Shopify's redirects only fire when the old URL is broken, so the redirect map has to be complete on launch day, not patched afterwards. Shopify allows up to 100,000 redirects, or 20 million on Plus. The bare /products and /collections paths can't be redirected at all. We build the map from your sitemap, analytics and backlinks, and test it on staging before the switch.
Setting Shopify up for the UAE
The plan you choose decides how you take payment, so we settle it before the build:
- Shopify Payments. In the UAE it's available on the Advanced and Plus plans only, for online sales, and needs an AED bank account.
- Third-party gateway fees. Shopify's UAE pricing adds a fee to every order paid through another provider: 2% on Basic, 1% on Grow, 0.6% on Advanced and 0.2% on Plus. If much of your revenue goes through BNPL, that fee can decide the plan.
- BNPL and local gateways. Tabby, Tamara, Telr, Network International, PayTabs and Amazon Payment Services all have Shopify apps. If you take cards through Checkout.com today, we confirm how it fits your Shopify setup per project.
- VAT-inclusive AED prices. UAE law expects consumer prices to include 5% VAT (VAT Decree-Law, Article 38). The UAE isn't on Shopify's list of countries where tax-inclusive pricing is automatic, so we configure it manually once your TRN is entered.
- Arabic and RTL. Horizon-family themes support right-to-left layouts. Shopify's checkout text isn't pre-translated into Arabic, so we supply the Arabic strings and check every checkout step in both languages.
Plugins become apps
We list every active WooCommerce plugin and decide what replaces it: a built-in Shopify feature, an app, a small piece of custom code, or nothing. Most stores carry plugins nobody would choose again. Custom checkout and pricing logic needs the most care. Shopify Scripts ended on 30 June 2026, and custom Functions apps are Plus-only.
Subscriptions need their own plan. If your subscriptions take payment through Stripe, Braintree, PayPal Express or Authorize.net, the saved payment methods can be imported, so subscribers don't have to enter their card again. With other gateways, we plan how subscribers confirm their details.
What happens to the WordPress blog
WooCommerce runs on WordPress, so most stores also have a blog and content pages. You have three options:
- Keep it on WordPress, if it works and your team likes it.
- Move it into Shopify's blog, so the store and the content share one admin.
- Move it to a headless CMS. Our WordPress to Sanity migration covers that route.
Whichever you pick, the content URLs go into the same redirect map as the products. If your site is mostly content rather than a store, start with our WordPress migration options instead.
Cutover
We build and test on a staging store with a full import. Close to launch, a short freeze window stops catalogue changes, and a delta sync brings across the orders and customers created since the full import. DNS switches only when the redirect map checks out, and we watch orders and Search Console closely after launch.
If a theme can't give you the storefront you need, Shopify Hydrogen is the headless option, and our ecommerce development team builds it.
We move WooCommerce stores to Shopify the 2026 way: each kind of data by the route that works for it, a redirect map that's complete before launch, and a store set up for the UAE from day one. That means the right plan for Shopify Payments, BNPL apps, VAT-inclusive AED prices and an Arabic checkout.
What we do
Store audit and plugin mapping
Every plugin, integration and custom field listed, with a decision on what replaces it.
Catalogue, customer and order migration
Each data type moved by the route that works for it, in the right order, then reconciled.
Redirect map and SEO
Every old product, category and content URL mapped and tested before launch, because Shopify only redirects broken URLs.
UAE payments setup
The right plan for Shopify Payments, with Tabby, Tamara and local gateways connected and tested.
VAT, AED and Arabic checkout
VAT-inclusive AED pricing configured, an RTL theme, and Arabic checkout text supplied.
Cutover and delta sync
Staging, a short freeze window and a final sync, so no order falls between the two stores.
How it runs
The same transparent shape every engagement follows — you always know where you are and what it costs.
Discover
A short, fixed-price sprint: audit, stakeholder interviews and the questions that decide the shape of the work.
Define
Scope, architecture and a fixed estimate — you know what's being built, why, and what it costs before we start.
Deliver
Tight design-build loops with weekly preview releases. You watch it become real on a URL, not in a deck.
Grow
Launch is the midpoint. Measurement, iteration and support keep the work earning after day one.
Fair questions
How long does a WooCommerce to Shopify migration take?
It depends on the store more than the page count. Catalogue size and variant structure, the number of plugins to replace, how much order history you keep, custom checkout logic and whether Arabic is in scope all move it. We audit the store first, then give you a fixed scope and timeline.
Will we lose our rankings?
Not if the redirects are right. Every WooCommerce product and category URL changes on Shopify, and Shopify only redirects URLs that are broken. So we build a complete redirect map, test it on staging and have it live on launch day.
Do customers need new passwords?
No. Passwords don't transfer, but since 26 February 2026 new Shopify stores use new customer accounts, where customers sign in with a one-time code sent to their email. Nobody has to reset anything.
Can orders and reviews move?
Yes. Orders move through a third-party app such as Matrixify, LitExtension or Ablestar, after products and customers are in. Reviews can't be exported through Shopify's migration route, so we re-import them through a reviews app such as Judge.me, Loox or Yotpo.
Do we need Shopify Plus?
Usually not. In the UAE, Shopify Payments is available from the Advanced plan, and Advanced also carries a lower fee on third-party gateways than Basic or Grow. Plus earns its place when you need custom checkout or pricing logic, because custom Functions apps are Plus-only, or more than 100,000 redirects. We recommend a plan after the audit.
Can we keep Tabby and Tamara?
Yes. Both have Shopify apps, as do Telr, Network International, PayTabs and Amazon Payment Services. Shopify adds a fee to orders paid through a third-party gateway, from 2% on Basic down to 0.2% on Plus, so your BNPL share is part of choosing the plan.