Why Shoptet?
Shoptet powers over 40,000 e-shops in the Czech Republic and Slovakia. For most local entrepreneurs, it's the logical choice — Czech support, native integration with local carriers and payment gateways, Heureka feed out of the box. No need to deal with hosting, security patches, or technical infrastructure.
But "simple" doesn't mean "effortless." Let's walk through what you're really in for.
Step 1: Choosing a Plan
Shoptet offers several plans based on product count and features. For most new e-shops, the Shoptet Basic or Business plan is sufficient — expect monthly costs from 620 to 2,500 CZK (€25–100).
Watch out for:
- Cheaper plans limit the number of products and administrators
- Some features (B2B module, multilingual support) are only in higher plans
- You can upgrade anytime, so don't overpay at the start
Step 2: Design — Template or Custom?
This is the first big decision. Shoptet offers dozens of free templates that look solid and work well. If you're just starting and want to go live ASAP, a template is perfectly fine. More on this decision in our article Shoptet template vs. custom design.
If you want your e-shop to stand out from the 500 other stores using the same layout, consider custom design. This means complete template recoding — custom colors, typography, page layouts, product cards, and checkout flow.
Real costs:
| Option | Price | Timeline |
|---|---|---|
| Ready-made template | 0–8,000 CZK | 1–3 days |
| Template modifications (CSS/HTML) | 5,000–20,000 CZK | 1–2 weeks |
| Custom design from scratch | 40,000–90,000 CZK | 3–6 weeks |
Step 3: Uploading Products
This is the part most people underestimate. If you have 50 products, you can do it manually in a day or two. If you have 500, you need bulk import via XML/CSV.
What you need for each product:
- Product name (with a keyword, not an internal code)
- Unique description — not copy-pasted from the supplier, Google penalizes that
- Quality photos (at least 3 per product, ideally on white background)
- Price, availability, variants (size, color)
- Categorization and tags
Tip: If you copy descriptions from your supplier, you're doing the same thing as 90% of your competitors. Investing in original descriptions pays off in SEO. More on why this matters in 5 SEO Mistakes That Cost E-shops Thousands Daily.
Step 4: Shipping and Payments
Shoptet handles this elegantly — it has direct integration with most Czech carriers and payment gateways.
Most common setup:
- Shipping: Zásilkovna, PPL, DPD, Czech Post, in-store pickup
- Payments: GoPay or Comgate (payment gateway), cash on delivery, bank transfer
Setup takes about 2–4 hours, but keep in mind that payment gateway registration can take 1–2 weeks (identity verification, contracts).
Step 5: SEO Basics
Most new e-shops skip this completely and then wonder why nobody finds them. On Shoptet you can set up:
- Title and meta description for every page and product
- URLs — short, readable, with keywords
- Alt texts for images
- Structured headings (H1, H2, H3)
- Heureka XML feed for price comparison sites
Of course, this is just the foundation. If you want to realistically compete on Google, expect ongoing work on content and link building. More in our SEO guide for e-shops.
Step 6: Testing and Launch
Before you release your e-shop to the world:
- Go through the entire purchase process as a customer
- Test on mobile — over 70% of visitors come from phones
- Check email notifications (order confirmation, shipping)
- Verify the payment gateway works (test transaction)
- Set up Google Analytics 4 and Google Search Console
Total Costs — Realistic Estimate
| Item | Range |
|---|---|
| Shoptet plan (annual) | 7,400–30,000 CZK |
| Design (template/custom) | 0–90,000 CZK |
| Product photos | 5,000–30,000 CZK |
| Product copywriting | 5,000–25,000 CZK |
| Payment gateway (setup) | 0–2,000 CZK |
| SEO setup | 5,000–15,000 CZK |
| Total | 22,400–192,000 CZK |
The range is huge because it depends on whether you do everything yourself or get help. You can have an e-shop for 25,000 CZK, but it'll be a template with basic setup. If you want a professional e-shop that actually sells, expect 60,000–120,000 CZK.
When to Get Help
If you don't have e-commerce experience, you'll save significant time (and frustration) by having an agency build your e-shop. You don't have to deal with technical details, and most importantly, you avoid mistakes that cost you customers. If you're also considering other platforms, read our Shoptet vs. Shopify vs. custom e-shop comparison.
At LE Artist, we build Shoptet e-shops from 40,000 CZK — from account setup through custom design to product upload and SEO. We always start with a free consultation where we discuss your specific needs.