Shopify B2B for coffee roasters: what runs without an app, and what still breaks

The short answer

If you sell to a handful of cafes by text and spreadsheet today, the native tools are enough to start. Read the "where it breaks" section before you promise a cafe anything.

What you get on which plan

A "catalog" is Shopify's word for a wholesale price list: which coffees a buyer can see and what each one costs them. Keep that word in mind; the rest of the table is plain.

Your wholesale, one reality at a time

Most roasters' wholesale terms fit on one page: tiers by pounds per week, 5 lb bags, a minimum, net terms, free samples, a standing order. Here is where each one lands in Shopify.

Tiers by pounds per week

Your tiers become catalogs. On Basic, Grow and Advanced you can have "up to 3 active catalogs across all your B2B markets" (Shopify Help Center, B2B plan features, read September 23, 2026). That is three tiers for the whole store, not three per market and not one per cafe.

Three is enough for the tier table in how to price wholesale coffee: Starter, Growing, Anchor. If you run a fourth "special" tier for one big account, it does not fit without Plus. Fold it into Anchor, or price the extra as service on the sheet.

Inside a catalog you can take a percentage off your retail prices, set a fixed price on any product or size, or both. A fixed price wins over the percentage (Shopify Help Center, catalogs page, read September 23, 2026). If a cafe somehow sits in two catalogs, Shopify shows the lower price (Shopify Help Center, creating catalogs, read September 23, 2026). Set your tiers so that never happens.

5 lb bags

Your 5 lb bag is a size (a "variant") of each coffee. Give it a fixed wholesale price inside each catalog. Your 12 oz retail bag can stay hidden from wholesale buyers or carry its own wholesale price; your call. The prices themselves come from the free price sheet calculator, which checks every cell against your margin floor.

Minimums

Quantity rules do the per-bag part. For each size you can set the fewest a buyer can order, the most, and the step between (say, 5 lb bags in twos). Rules are per size and do not add up across sizes (Shopify Help Center, quantity pricing, read September 23, 2026). So "at least two 5 lb bags of this coffee" works; "at least 10 lb across your whole order" does not, because Shopify counts each size on its own.

A dollar minimum across the whole order, like The Golden Hopper's $150 minimum (their wholesale page, read September 23, 2026), is a different thing. Shopify's setting for that lives in its free Checkout Blocks app, which can apply an order minimum "only to B2B companies" (Shopify Help Center, order value limits, read September 23, 2026). But on Basic, Grow and Advanced that app only adds content to the thank-you and order status pages; "all other features of Checkout Blocks are available only to Shopify Plus" (Shopify Help Center, Checkout Blocks, read September 23, 2026). So below Plus, put the dollar minimum on your price sheet and turn on order review (below), so a short order lands as a draft you can fix before it ships.

Volume price breaks

Price breaks are "buy more, pay less per bag" on one product. Shopify allows up to 10 breaks per product, and once a break kicks in, that price is fixed: the catalog's percentage no longer applies on top (Shopify Help Center, quantity pricing, read September 23, 2026). Use breaks for "4 bags or more" style deals. Use catalogs for the tier. Do not use both on the same product unless you have checked the maths.

Net terms

Payment terms are set per company location, per company, in bulk, or on a single draft order. The choices are none, Net 7, 15, 30, 45, 60 or 90, or due on fulfillment, and a single draft order can also take a fixed due date. Net terms count from the day the order is placed (Shopify Help Center, payment terms, read September 23, 2026). Shopify can send payment reminders, keep a card or a US bank account on file, and charge that saved card from your admin when the invoice comes due (Shopify Help Center, payment methods, read September 23, 2026).

Two roasters' public pages show the range. The Golden Hopper (Iowa) invoices Net 30; Maple Leaf Coffee Roasters (Illinois) offers 30-day terms and one invoice a month (both read September 23, 2026). The first is native. The second is not: Shopify's terms run per order, so "one invoice a month" means you send that invoice yourself or use an app.

If cafes already pay late, terms in the store will not fix it on their own. See what we build for wholesale accounts paying late. This is not legal advice; have an attorney read your terms before a cafe signs.

Samples

Shopify has no "sample" feature. Two plain ways, both ours, not Shopify's: a $0 draft order (an order you write up in your admin and send to the cafe), so the sample shows in their order history and yours; or a sample product at wholesale price, which the pricing post covers under minimums. The Golden Hopper gives samples free (their wholesale page, read September 23, 2026). Either way, count the cost in your floor.

The standing weekly order

This is the one that surprises people. Shopify's own Subscriptions app does not work with B2B: "Subscriptions" sits on Shopify's list of features that are incompatible with B2B, and Subscriptions also do not work with draft orders (Shopify Help Center, B2B considerations and Shopify Subscriptions considerations, both read September 23, 2026). So a cafe's "same 20 lb every Tuesday" cannot run as a subscription under a wholesale company account.

What works natively: the cafe reorders by duplicating a past order from its account (Shopify Help Center, customer login and accounts, read September 23, 2026), or you create a draft order each week and send it. The Golden Hopper runs standing orders with one week's notice to change or skip (their wholesale page, read September 23, 2026); that is a text-message rhythm, and it can stay one. If you want it to fire on its own, that is an app or a custom build. More in "where it breaks".

Tax-exempt cafes

A company location can carry a tax ID and a tax-exempt status (Shopify Help Center, creating companies, read September 23, 2026). Set it once per cafe. This is not tax advice; who qualifies for exemption is a question for your accountant and your state.

PO numbers and order review

Buyers can add a PO number at checkout on every paid plan (Shopify Help Center, B2B plan features, read September 23, 2026). And for any location you can tick "submit all orders as drafts for review", so every order from that cafe waits for your okay before it counts (Shopify Help Center, checkout settings, read September 23, 2026). Use that for new accounts and for anyone with a dollar minimum.

Setting it up, in plain steps

1. Check your plan and find B2B in your admin. Any paid plan qualifies (Shopify changelog, April 2, 2026, read September 23, 2026). Shopify's considerations page says some stores must turn B2B on through a "feature test drive" first (Shopify Help Center, B2B considerations, read September 23, 2026). If you do not see B2B under Settings, ask Shopify Support.
2. Switch to new customer accounts. B2B needs Shopify's newer customer accounts, where a buyer logs in with their email and a one-time code. Legacy accounts do not work for B2B (Shopify Help Center, customer login and accounts, read September 23, 2026). If your retail customers still use the old login, plan that change first.
3. Decide: one store or two. A blended store sells retail and wholesale from one Shopify store (Shopify Help Center, blended store checklist, read September 23, 2026). A dedicated store is a second, separate Shopify store on its own plan (Shopify Help Center, dedicated store checklist, read September 23, 2026). For a roaster with a dozen accounts, one store is simpler and cheaper.
4. Build your price lists. Create up to three catalogs, one per tier. In each, set the 5 lb bag's fixed price, add volume breaks if you use them, and set quantity rules for minimums (all Shopify Help Center, catalogs and quantity pricing pages, read September 23, 2026). Take the numbers from your price sheet, not from memory.
5. Create your B2B markets and attach a catalog to each. On Basic, Grow and Advanced, catalogs attach to B2B markets, not to individual cafes (Shopify Help Center, catalogs page, read September 23, 2026). Name the markets after the tiers so nobody mixes them up. When you create each market on the Markets page, choose "Company locations" under Includes, then assign your cafes' locations to it. A B2B market with no company locations gives nobody wholesale prices (Shopify Help Center, managing B2B with Markets, read September 23, 2026).
6. Add each cafe as a company. One company per cafe, with a location for each address. On the location set payment terms, tax ID and exemption, and whether orders wait for review. Add the people who order and give each a role: "ordering only" or "location admin", who can also change addresses (Shopify Help Center, creating companies, read September 23, 2026). Up to 50 people per location (same page).
7. Set shipping for wholesale. Give each B2B market a shipping zone: with none set up, a wholesale buyer sees no shipping options at checkout. Local delivery is not supported at B2B checkout, and in-store pickup is off by default until Shopify Support turns it on (Shopify Help Center, B2B shipping methods, read September 23, 2026). If you deliver by van, make a shipping zone for your delivery area with a flat or free-over-a-threshold rate, and call it "Roastery delivery". Also know that Shop Pay, Apple Pay and Google Pay do not appear at B2B checkout (Shopify Help Center, B2B considerations, read September 23, 2026).
8. Fix the storefront. Hide wholesale-only products from retail shoppers (Shopify Help Center, blended store checklist, read September 23, 2026). If you are on a free Shopify theme version 11 or later, add the quick order list to product pages, a table where a buyer types quantities for every size at once. Older or custom themes need that added by hand (Shopify Help Center, quick order list, read September 23, 2026). Custom themes also need a company picker added in theme code (Shopify developer docs, B2B theme page, read September 23, 2026).
9. Test as a fake cafe. Make a company called "Test Cafe", invite yourself, and place an order. Check the price, the minimum, the terms on the invoice, and the reorder button in the account. Then delete the test company.

Where it breaks, and what to do

What the apps cost

Five wholesale apps' prices, read off their Shopify App Store listings on September 23, 2026. We have not tested them. Check each listing for the exact feature you need before you install anything.

An entry-level app is roughly $25 to $49 a month, about $300 to $590 a year, on top of your plan. Native B2B is $0 extra and caps you at three tiers. Shopify Plus starts at $2,300 a month (Shopify pricing page, read September 23, 2026), which is a different business than most roasters are in.

Native or an app? Four questions

1. Do you have more than three real price tiers, or a promise of "your own price" to any cafe? No: native. Yes: an app with per-customer pricing, or rework the promise into tiers.
2. Do your cafes expect the order to place itself every week? No, a reorder button or your weekly draft is fine: native. Yes: an app or a custom build, and price it against the hours it saves.
3. Are you on a free Shopify theme, version 11 or later? Yes: the quick order table is included. No: budget for a developer to add it, or skip it and lean on reorders.
4. Do wholesale buyers need a different checkout (only invoice, only your delivery)? No: native. Yes: an App Store app, or Plus.

If every answer is the first one, start native today and keep the app money. If one is the second, run native for the rest and add the one piece that is missing. You can always add an app later; taking one out is harder.

Before the portal: the form

Not every roaster is ready to hand cafes a login on day one. For Barista Plus Coffee, a Dallas roaster, the Shopify store we built includes a wholesale inquiry form. It asks a cafe for its business details, monthly volume by product line, brew type and equipment needs. That gives the roaster what they need to place the cafe in a tier before anyone sees a price. The B2B setup above is the step after that, when the tier is agreed and the cafe should be able to order without a text.

If you want to see what "the cafe prices itself" looks like, the wholesale fit finder is a working demo with sample data. And if orders reach you by text, email and phone today, orders from everywhere into one list is the problem page for that.

Questions roasters ask

Do I need Shopify Plus to sell wholesale coffee on Shopify?

No. Since April 2, 2026, B2B is on Basic, Grow and Advanced at no extra cost (Shopify changelog and Shopify News, both dated April 2, 2026, read September 23, 2026). Plus adds unlimited price lists, one price list per cafe, deposits and partial payments (Shopify changelog, same post). Older guides that say "B2B needs Plus" were true before April 2026 and are out of date now.

How much does Shopify B2B cost?

Nothing beyond your plan. Shopify's pricing page lists "Shopify B2B" on Basic, Grow and Advanced with up to 3 catalogs, and unlimited on Plus (read September 23, 2026). Plan prices on the same page, billed yearly: Basic $29, Grow $79, Advanced $299 a month; billed monthly they are $39, $105 and $399. Plus starts at $2,300 a month.

Can I give each cafe its own price?

Not on Basic, Grow or Advanced. Those plans allow up to 3 active catalogs across all your B2B markets, and catalogs attach to markets, not to a single company (Shopify Help Center, B2B plan features and catalogs pages, read September 23, 2026). Direct assignment of a catalog to a company or location is Plus only (same source). The practical answer is three tiers by pounds per week, which is the better way to price anyway; see how to price wholesale coffee.

Can a cafe set up a weekly standing order?

Not with Shopify Subscriptions. Shopify lists Subscriptions among the features that do not work with B2B, and Subscriptions also do not work with draft orders (Shopify Help Center, B2B considerations and Shopify Subscriptions considerations, read September 23, 2026). The native answers are a reorder from a past order in the cafe's account, or a draft order you send each week. If the order must place itself, you need an app or a custom build.

Can cafes pay on Net 30?

Yes. Terms can be none, Net 7, 15, 30, 45, 60 or 90, or due on fulfillment, set per location, per company, in bulk, or on one draft order. A fixed due date is for a single draft order only (Shopify Help Center, payment terms, read September 23, 2026). Shopify can send reminders and charge a saved card or US bank account when the invoice is due (Shopify Help Center, payment methods, read September 23, 2026). This is not legal advice; have an attorney review your terms.

Can I set a minimum order?

Per size, yes: a minimum, a maximum and a step, on each variant (Shopify Help Center, quantity pricing, read September 23, 2026). The rules do not add up across sizes, so "at least two 5 lb bags of this coffee" works and "at least 10 lb in total" does not. A dollar minimum across the whole order needs Shopify Plus (it is a Checkout Blocks feature, and below Plus that app only adds content to the thank-you and order status pages; Shopify Help Center, Checkout Blocks, read September 23, 2026) or an app. Below Plus, state it on your sheet and turn on order review for that cafe.

Can cafes reorder in one click?

Close to it. In the new customer accounts a buyer can "place reorders by duplicating a past order" (Shopify Help Center, customer login and accounts, read September 23, 2026), and "easy reorders" is ticked on every plan (Shopify Help Center, B2B plan features, read September 23, 2026). This works no matter which theme you use. The quick order table on product pages is the theme-dependent part.

Will wholesale buyers see my retail store?

In a blended store, yes, they log in to the same store. You hide wholesale-only products from retail shoppers, and a custom theme can tell a wholesale buyer apart in its code (Shopify Help Center, blended store checklist, and Shopify developer docs, B2B theme page, both read September 23, 2026). Changing the look of the whole storefront by market in a free theme needs Advanced or Plus (Shopify Help Center, B2B plan features, read September 23, 2026). Locking the whole store behind a wholesale login points to third-party apps (Shopify Help Center, dedicated store checklist, read September 23, 2026).

Does Shopify B2B work at the counter, on Shopify POS?

We could not confirm it either way. As of September 23, 2026 we found no Shopify Help Center page saying company pricing works in POS, and community threads describe merchants who could not pick a company at the counter. Some wholesale apps advertise POS support. Ask Shopify Support with your exact plan before you promise a cafe counter pricing.

Should I skip native B2B and just use an app?

Start native if you have three or fewer tiers, your cafes can live with a reorder button, and one checkout works for everyone. Add an app only for the one thing native cannot do: per-cafe pricing, self-placing standing orders, a locked store, or a wholesale-only checkout. Entry app plans run about $25 to $49 a month on their Shopify App Store listings (read September 23, 2026). Every app is one more thing that can break at checkout, so add the fewest you can.