Payments · Guide11 min readUpdated November 3, 2026

What You Cannot Sell on Shopify: Prohibited and Restricted Products

Shopify has four lists, not one: the platform, Shopify Payments, its processors and the Shop app. What each bans, and what breaking it costs.

Nick Bonnassies, CMO at Tagada · checked against 15 sources

Article summary

TL;DR

Shopify has four lists, not one. The platform bans what's illegal where you do business and a few activities. Shopify Payments excludes six categories, from regulated products to "pseudo pharmaceuticals", and applies its processors' lists on top. The Shop app and Managed Markets add their own. A product Shopify Payments refuses can often still sell with another card provider.

Shopify's Acceptable Use Policy is a set of principles, not a product list: "You can't use Shopify to do anything that's illegal where you do business."
Shopify Payments names six prohibited categories, and its list "isn't exhaustive and it varies depending on your region".
Its terms say the prohibited and restricted categories "are provided by each Payment Processor" in your country; in the US, Stripe and PayPal.
The Shop app bans more, including "Medication, medical devices and accessories".
"If you aren't eligible for Shopify Payments, then you can add a third-party payment provider."

Want to go further? Ask

On this page

This page sorts the lists by who applies them. For an overview of how Shopify treats high-risk stores, see the Shopify high-risk guide. For a processor that accepts your category, see high-risk payment processing for Shopify stores.

Four lists, four consequences

Which list a product hits decides what you lose: the product, the payments, a channel, or the store.

List	Who applies it	What it covers	If a product breaks it
Acceptable Use Policy and Terms of Service	Shopify, the platform1 2	Everything on your store	Product removed, store locked or terminated8
Shopify Payments eligibility	Shopify Payments3	Card payments through Shopify	Application declined or account on hold9
Payment processor lists	Stripe, PayPal and others, by country4 5	Card payments through Shopify Payments	Same as above
Shop app and Managed Markets	Shopify channels6 7	Listing on Shop, cross-border selling	Product kept off that channel

Fig. 1Where a product can be blocked

The store
Illegal where you do business, or against the platform's principles.
Shopify Payments
Six categories, plus the processors' lists.
A sales channel
The Shop app and Managed Markets add their own exclusions.

most high-risk products stop at the second line

Shopify Acceptable Use Policy, Shopify Payments eligibility, Prohibited products on Shop, read November 3, 2026.

The platform: what the Acceptable Use Policy bans

Shopify's Acceptable Use Policy no longer lists products. It sets principles. Lists of "Shopify banned items" that cite the policy usually quote an older version.

What it says you can't do1:

Break the law where you trade: "You can't use Shopify to do anything that's illegal where you do business."
Upload health records: "certain business activities are not supported by our platform, such as uploading Protected Health Information subject to HIPAA."
Threaten people: "you can't call for, or threaten, violence against specific people or groups."
Sell self-harm products: "you can't sell products that facilitate intentional self-harm."
Defraud or spam: Shopify won't tolerate "anyone defrauding Shopify, other merchants, or buyers, using Shopify as a platform to send spam".
Game the rules: "We don't like to see people try to “game” systems to avoid constraints they don't agree with."

The Terms of Service keep the final word. It is "in Shopify's sole discretion to refuse or remove any Materials", including goods it finds in breach of the policy2. The policy also points to the other lists: "Payment Terms (and terms from other add-on products) can also apply"1.

Shopify Payments: the six prohibited categories

This is the list most high-risk stores run into. Shopify's help center gives it as "high-level categories for prohibited products and services"3.

Category	What Shopify includes, word for word3
Regulated or illegal products and services	"Products or services that require regulatory approval or compliance, such as cannabis and related products, prescription drugs, medical devices, tobacco and related products, firearms, holsters, ammunition, or weapons."
Financial products and services	"Products or services related to money transfers, virtual currencies and cryptocurrencies, check cashing, or credit repair services."
Adult products	"Products or services that contain sexually explicit content, such as adult videos, pay-per-view adult content, or adult magazines."
Pseudo pharmaceuticals	"Pharmaceuticals and other products that make health claims that are not verified by a local or national regulatory body."
Gambling products and services	"Products or services related to gambling, such as sports forecasting, lotteries, bidding, contests, or sweepstakes."
Counterfeit products	"Products or services that infringe on intellectual property rights, such as access to counterfeit music, use of the Shopify trademarks, or other licensed materials."

Two sentences around the list matter as much as the list. "There are certain business models that, while legal, Shopify Payments can't support." And: "The list of prohibited products and services isn't exhaustive and it varies depending on your region."3 Each country has its own list in the Shopify Payments terms.

The processors' lists behind Shopify Payments

Shopify Payments runs on outside processors, and their rules come with them.

The types of business categories and business practices that are considered Prohibited Businesses or Restricted Businesses are provided by each Payment Processor in your Designated Country

Shopify Payments Terms of Service, Part I, Prohibited and Restricted Businesses, read November 3, 2026

In the US, the processor list names Stripe and PayPal, each with its own prohibited list5. The terms add that these lists "are meant to be representative but not exhaustive" and can change "at any time without notice to you"4.

That's how a product absent from Shopify's six categories can still be refused. Two lines from the processors that often matter for ecommerce:

Stripe prohibits "Pseudo-pharmaceuticals or nutraceuticals that are not safe or make harmful claims" and "Negative option marketing, negative option membership clubs, and reduced price trials with unclear or hidden pricing"13. The full list: Stripe prohibited and restricted businesses.
PayPal excludes "products that present a risk to consumer safety"14.

Shop app and Managed Markets: the channel lists

Some products can sell on your store but not through a Shopify channel. The Shop app lists extra "prohibited product types", which "include, but aren't limited to"6:

Prohibited on Shop	Note
"Age-restricted products such as alcohol, tobacco, or gambling"
"Drugs and drug-related products"
"Medication, medical devices and accessories"	Wider than Shopify Payments' list
"Weapons, ammunition, explosives, or related accessories and combat equipment"
"Hazardous and non-shippable materials"
"Mature and adult content or services, or products that have nudity"
"Digital currencies, securities and other investment related products"
"Products promoting hateful content, violence, gore, profanity or offensive content"

The list also names human body parts or fluids, and endangered species or animal abuse6.

Managed Markets, Shopify's cross-border service, follows destination rules: "Every country has their own restrictions for what kinds of goods can be shipped into that country." Its page adds: "Items that are ingestible are restricted."7 Supplement and food brands selling abroad should check it before they turn the service on.

Restricted, not prohibited: what needs review

Shopify Payments has a middle category. Restricted businesses "require additional review and approval by us to use the Payments Services"4. The review isn't a refusal, but it can stop payouts until you answer.

High-value goods: Shopify's banking partners "might require more information" from stores selling "loose diamonds, gold bullion and coins, gemstones, precious metals, jewelry, art, designer goods, and watches". You either complete the review or remove the products9.
Regulated products: Shopify may lock your admin if it needs information you haven't sent, for example "proof that you're authorized to sell a regulated product"8.
Your business model: Shopify reviews the "Accuracy of product descriptions and claims", subscription terms, and "Claims about certifications, awards, or media coverage"10.

The lines that catch ecommerce brands

Most refusals in ecommerce don't come from obviously banned products. They come from how a legal product is sold.

Line	Why it catches brands	What to check
"Pseudo pharmaceuticals"3	It's about claims, not ingredients	Every health claim on pages, ads, emails and reviews you feature
"medical devices"3	Some wellness gadgets are regulated devices	Whether the product needs regulatory clearance where you sell
"contests, or sweepstakes"3	Named under gambling	Giveaways that take payment to enter
"use of the Shopify trademarks"3	Named under counterfeit	Logos and brand names you don't own
Processor lines on trials13	Applied through Shopify Payments in the US	Trial price, renewal price and cancellation shown before payment

Watch out

A product can be legal and still fall outside Shopify Payments. The help center says so: some business models, "while legal, Shopify Payments can't support"3. Check before you launch, not after the first payout.

What happens if you sell a prohibited product

It depends on the list and on the case. Shopify says its terms "are carefully calibrated to differentiate between honest mistakes and deliberate violations"8.

Fig. 2What Shopify can do, from mildest to most serious

Email asking for information or removalPlatform or PaymentsAnswer by the deadline, remove or document
Product removed from your storePlatformRead the notice, fix or appeal
Shopify Payments on hold for product eligibilityPaymentsRemove the product or move to another provider
Admin locked or store restrictedPlatformAppeal from the admin with documents

the email tells you which step you're at

Shopify Help Center, Resolving terms violations and Shopify Payments account holds, read November 3, 2026.

The full list of actions in Shopify's help center includes removing content, blocking payments, shipping labels, refunds or fund transfers, and temporarily locking your store or admin8.

On the payments side, "issues with product eligibility" and an unsupported "business type or model" are named reasons for an account hold9. If the store itself is closed: Shopify closed or terminated your store.

If Shopify Payments can't support your products

You can usually keep the store. The change is who processes the cards.

Read the notice. It says whether the issue is a product, a practice or the whole category9.
Apply to a card provider that accepts your category before you change anything: merchant account approval.
Activate it in Settings, Payments. "Only the store owner can add a payment provider", and only one card provider can be active at a time11.
Budget Shopify's fee. A third-party provider adds 2% per order on Basic, 1% on Grow, 0.6% on Advanced and 0.2% on Plus12. Detail: Shopify Payments fees.
Check your channels. Shop and Managed Markets apply their own lists6 7.

Sources: Shopify Help Center and Shopify pricing, read November 3, 2026.

By industry

Industry	The line that applies	Guide
Supplements	"Pseudo pharmaceuticals": health claims not verified by a regulator	Can you sell supplements on Shopify?
Skincare	Same line, for drug-like claims on cosmetics	Can you sell skincare on Shopify?
Fitness	Equipment isn't named; sports nutrition follows the claims line	Can you sell fitness products on Shopify?
Info products	Not named in the six categories	Can you sell online courses on Shopify?
Online pharmacy	"prescription drugs" under regulated products; "Medication" barred from Shop	Can you sell prescription drugs on Shopify?
Telehealth	Not named; the platform doesn't accept health records	Can you sell telehealth services on Shopify?

How Tagada helps

Payments for products Shopify Payments won't take

Works with your store: "Already on Shopify, WooCommerce, ClickFunnels or BigCommerce? Drop TagadaPay in."15
Acceptance: "If you sell something real, we will get you paid." "Enhanced review for regulated verticals" and "100+ verticals live"15.
Onboarding: "One KYC. One signed package. We distribute it across our processor network and follow up so you don't have to."15
Routing: "Every transaction is scored against your live MID network in real time."15
Portability: "Your PCI-tokenized cards, your customer profiles, your subscription data, all portable."15

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Payments for products Shopify Payments won't take

Updated on November 3, 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

What can you not sell on Shopify?

Anything illegal where you do business, products that facilitate self-harm, and content that threatens violence. Shopify Payments also excludes six categories: regulated products, financial services, adult products, pseudo pharmaceuticals, gambling and counterfeit goods. Its processors and the Shop app add their own lists.

Is the Shopify Payments list the same as Shopify's?

No. The platform's Acceptable Use Policy covers your whole store. The Shopify Payments list covers card payments through Shopify only, and it includes the lists of processors such as Stripe and PayPal. A product can be allowed on your store and refused by Shopify Payments.

What happens if I sell prohibited items on Shopify?

Shopify can ask for information, remove the product, block payments, or lock your store or admin, depending on the case. On Shopify Payments, product eligibility is a named reason for an account hold. Repeated or deliberate violations can end in store termination.

Can I still sell on Shopify if Shopify Payments rejects my products?

Often yes. Shopify's own answer: "If you aren't eligible for Shopify Payments, then you can add a third-party payment provider." Only one card provider can be active at a time, and Shopify charges 0.2% to 2% per order on top, depending on your plan.

Does Shopify allow supplements?

Shopify doesn't name supplements in its six categories. The line is "pseudo pharmaceuticals": products "that make health claims that are not verified by a local or national regulatory body". Stripe, behind Shopify Payments in the US, has its own nutraceuticals line. Detail: can you sell supplements on Shopify.