Shopify Banned Industries

Shopify banned industries are verticals that aren’t allowed to operate using the Shopify platform. Moreover, when it comes to obtaining a merchant account, Shopify requires you to use third-party providers instead of their payment platform. Let’s break down the difference between the famous shopping cart’s store and Shopify Pay to better learn about what you can do if you’re in need of solutions.

Shopify Restricted Industries

Shopify restricted industries on the storefront include illicit shops, or illegal services. This may seem obvious, but some businesses are allowed in certain states while others may be illegal altogether. Shopify makes a point to list the specific restricted industries vs completely banned ones.

Understanding Shopify's Banned Items

Shopify’s banned items are pretty clearly spelled out when it comes to what you can do using their web store. Overall, they don’t want to risk anyone building out shops that sell something that can jeopardize their reputation. As a result, certain industries are subject to restrictions or outright bans due to various reasons, including legal compliance, ethical considerations, or risk management. Here are a few major examples of industries that are on the banned list:

• Adult Content and Services: Your new adult shop, whether it’s a streaming platform or risque toy store is likely to be banned. Moreover, if you are selling something that is adult-oriented you’ll need age-verification software and other compliance features.
• Illegal Goods and Services: Although, legalities change state-by-state, the sale of illegal products or services, such as drugs, counterfeit items, weapons, or stolen goods, is strictly prohibited on Shopify. They cover most items you’d be certain are not allowed, and a few others that seem safe, but aren’t. For example, knock-off purses or fake Nike’s would be a no-go. 
• Gambling and Betting: Gambling and betting online is legal in about six states. However, this isn’t enough for Shopify to give it the green light. Therefore, rolling the dice on your online craps game is something you’ll have to save for the real tables in states that allow it.
• Regulated Substances: This is where there’s some wiggle room. Vape, CBD, tobacco, alcohol, these are items that have their own specific regulations, and many of them can be used in different ways through Shopify’s platform as long as they follow their industry-specific criteria. By the way Zen Payments is here to help you get a merchant account when you’re all set up with your store.
• Financial and Investment Services: Investing, stock exchanges, crypto purchasing, if you’re thinking about starting a business in any one of these categories, you should probably move over to WordPress or build a custom site. Shopify isn’t your best investment if you’re playing the market.

Exploring Alternatives To Shopify Pay

Shopify Pay is different from Shopify’s website creator, in that it’s a tool they provide that gives you the ability to accept payments. That’s where a different level of regulations come in.

Merchants operating in restricted industries shouldn’t be too concerned though because there are alternative platforms available that cater to their specific needs. For example, here at Zen Payments, we offer versatile e-commerce solutions for many high risk industries.

More than that, we help you get approved, and up and running with many other tools like fraud protection, and chargeback reduction. Merchants in restricted industries can explore platforms like Zen Payments to leverage their expertise in managing high risk businesses and work with our sales and customer support team to ask any questions you have about restrictions in the payment space.

By partnering with a specialized payment processor like Zen Payments, merchants in restricted industries gain access to tailored solutions that address their unique challenges. These alternative platforms often provide robust risk management tools, dedicated customer support, and compliance expertise, allowing merchants to operate within their industry’s regulatory framework while ensuring a seamless payment experience for their customers.