Tagada
Payments · Skincare4 min readUpdated October 26, 2026

Can You Sell Skincare Products on Shopify?

Shopify allows skincare stores, but Shopify Payments excludes unverified health claims. What beauty merchants report, fees, and what to do.

Nick Bonnassies, CMO at Tagada · checked against 10 sources

Article summary

Yes, with conditions

TL;DR

Yes. Shopify's platform rules don't restrict skincare, and many beauty brands run on Shopify. The limits are in Shopify Payments, which excludes products "that make health claims that are not verified by a local or national regulatory body". Beauty merchants report reserves, holds and cutoffs when claims or visuals look medical. If that happens, you can connect one third-party card processor, for an extra 0.2% to 2% per order.

  • Shopify's Acceptable Use Policy doesn't mention skincare or health claims.
  • Shopify Payments excludes "pseudo pharmaceuticals", meaning products with unverified health claims.
  • A beauty merchant reports Shopify reserving "20% of our funds for 120 days".
  • Beauty Independent reported a beauty marketplace cut off from Shopify Payments with immediate effect.
  • Shopify allows one card processor at a time; a third-party one costs 2% (Basic) to 0.2% (Plus) per order.
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On this page

This guide is part of our hub on skincare payment processing. The general guide, for any business: high-risk payment processing on Shopify.

The store vs. the payments

LayerRule for skincareSource
Shopify platformNot mentioned in the Acceptable Use PolicyShopify AUP1Shopify, Acceptable Use Policy, read October 26, 2026
Shopify PaymentsExcludes products with unverified health claimsShopify Help Center2Shopify Help Center, Shopify Payments eligibility, read October 26, 2026
Processors behind itTheir prohibited lists applyShopify Payments terms3Shopify Payments Terms of Service (US), read October 9, 2026
Third-party processorAllowedOne at a time, with a feeShopify4Shopify Help Center, Configuring third-party payment providers, read October 26, 20265Shopify pricing, third-party payment provider fees, read October 26, 2026

What beauty merchants report

ReportSource
"Shopify would reserve 20% of our funds for 120 days" on a store "selling regular beauty products"Shopify Community, July 17, 20248Shopify Community, merchant threads, 2022 to 2026 (merchant reports)
Worry about skin care products "classified as 'pseudo pharmaceutical'"Shopify Community, November 29, 20228Shopify Community, merchant threads, 2022 to 2026 (merchant reports)
Shopify Payments cut for "suspected merchant misrepresentation", blamed on before-and-after visualsShopify Community, August 20268Shopify Community, merchant threads, 2022 to 2026 (merchant reports)
A beauty marketplace dropped with immediate effectBeauty Independent7Beauty Independent, Beauty e-commerce websites dropped from Shopify Payments processing service, read October 26, 2026

Merchant reports, not Shopify statements.

Shopify would reserve 20% of our funds for 120 days

Shopify Community, merchant report, July 17, 2024

Shopify's own list of hold reasons includes "product eligibility" issues10Shopify Help Center, Shopify Payments account holds, read October 26, 2026. Timing and holds: payout timing for skincare brands.

What triggers the pseudo pharmaceutical label

  1. Drug claims

    "Intended to treat acne", "regenerate cells"9FDA, Is It a Cosmetic, a Drug, or Both? (Or Is It Soap?), September 11, 2024.

  2. Anti-aging promises

    Framed as changing the skin itself.

  3. Before-and-after visuals

    That promise medical results.

  4. Product names, URLs and tags

    Naming conditions (acne, eczema, rosacea).

Rewriting claims: cosmetic or drug claims.

If Shopify Payments refuses or closes you

StepWhat happensSource
FundsThe processor "may elect to continue to hold any funds deemed necessary"Shopify Payments terms3Shopify Payments Terms of Service (US), read October 9, 2026
New card processorOne third-party provider at a timeShopify4Shopify Help Center, Configuring third-party payment providers, read October 26, 2026
Extra fee2% Basic, 1% Grow, 0.6% Advanced, 0.2% PlusShopify pricing5Shopify pricing, third-party payment provider fees, read October 26, 2026
SubscriptionsCheck the new processor works with your app6Shopify Help Center, Shopify Subscriptions considerations, read October 9, 2026Shopify6Shopify Help Center, Shopify Subscriptions considerations, read October 9, 2026

Fig. 1What Shopify adds on each order paid through another processor

  1. Basic2%
  2. Grow1%
  3. Advanced0.6%
  4. Plus0.2%

Source: Shopify pricing, read October 26, 2026

On top of the processor's own rate.

No cascade inside Shopify's checkout: a backup needs a layer outside it: payment routing for skincare brands. Checkout limits: Shopify checkout for skincare brands and Shopify or a sales funnel.

Subscriptions and bundles on Shopify

Fig. 2Where Shopify Subscriptions can charge a refill

Shopify SubscriptionsRefills and bundles on subscription
  1. Shopify PaymentsSupported
  2. PayPal ExpressSupported
  3. Authorize.netSupported, no Apple Pay or Google Pay
  4. AdyenSupported
  5. StripeAvailable only to select merchants
Shopify Help Center, Shopify Subscriptions considerations, read October 9, 2026.

Keep your Shopify Payments account

  1. Cosmetic claims only on pages, ads, emails and reviews you feature9FDA, Is It a Cosmetic, a Drug, or Both? (Or Is It Soap?), September 11, 2024.
  2. No condition words in product names, URLs and tags.
  3. Realistic visuals, without medical-looking before-and-after.
  4. Clear subscription terms before the card field.
  5. Reply to verification emails fast10Shopify Help Center, Shopify Payments account holds, read October 26, 2026.

They lower the risk of a hold or a cutoff; Shopify still decides.

Tagada follows Visa and Mastercard rules and the laws that apply to payments.

How Tagada helps

A payments layer on Shopify for skincare brands

  • On Shopify or standalone: a checkout and payments layer on Shopify, WooCommerce or headless
  • TagadaPay underwrites each file, with enhanced review on regulated verticals
  • Routing across Stripe, Adyen and TagadaPay, cascade on decline
  • Subscriptions with trials, billing cycles, retries and automatic recovery

Plans are on the pricing page.

Apply for processing
A payments layer on Shopify for skincare brands

Updated on October 26, 2026

Nick Bonnassies

CMO at Tagada

CMO at Tagada. Before Tagada, Nick built direct-to-consumer brands that generated over $115M in sales, raised over $25M in crowdfunding and sold two of them. He also works as a fractional CMO on marketing operations and AI systems.

Frequently asked questions

Does Shopify allow skincare products?

Yes. Shopify's Acceptable Use Policy doesn't mention skincare. The limits come from Shopify Payments, which excludes products with unverified health claims, and its processors' lists.

Why is Shopify holding my beauty store's money?

Shopify lists missing information, bank details and product eligibility among hold reasons; beauty merchants also report reserves, such as 20% held for 120 days. Fix claims and reply to requests quickly.

Can I use another payment processor for skincare on Shopify?

Yes, one third-party card processor at a time, with Shopify's fee of 0.2% to 2% per order. Check it supports your subscription app.

Are before-and-after photos allowed on a Shopify skincare store?

Shopify's rules don't ban them, but a merchant blamed a Shopify Payments cutoff on before-and-after visuals. Keep them realistic and typical, and avoid medical-looking results.

Sources

Checked October 26, 2026
  1. Shopify, Acceptable Use Policy, read October 26, 2026
  2. Shopify Help Center, Shopify Payments eligibility, read October 26, 2026
  3. Shopify Payments Terms of Service (US), read October 9, 2026
  4. Shopify Help Center, Configuring third-party payment providers, read October 26, 2026
  5. Shopify pricing, third-party payment provider fees, read October 26, 2026
  6. Shopify Help Center, Shopify Subscriptions considerations, read October 9, 2026
  7. Beauty Independent, Beauty e-commerce websites dropped from Shopify Payments processing service, read October 26, 2026
  8. Shopify Community, merchant threads, 2022 to 2026 (merchant reports)
  9. FDA, Is It a Cosmetic, a Drug, or Both? (Or Is It Soap?), September 11, 2024
  10. Shopify Help Center, Shopify Payments account holds, read October 26, 2026

TagadaPay

Keep selling skincare if Shopify Payments says no

Tell us what you sell and how you sell it. Each application is underwritten, and approval is not guaranteed.

Apply for processingSee pricing
  1. 01Tell us what you sell and how
  2. 02Underwriting reviews your business
  3. 03Process through TagadaPay alongside your other processors