What is a realistic gross margin, net margin, return rate, and AOV for your Shopify niche? Compare your store against industry medians across 8 DTC verticals.
Your Shopify dashboard shows $8,000 profit this month, but your bank account only grew by $5,200. Where did the $2,800 go?
Most sellers only track top-line revenue. They don't know if their business is truly profitable — or which products are actually losing money. This report gives you the industry benchmarks to answer that question.
Median values across 8 major Shopify verticals. Full PDF includes methodology, breakdowns, and profit-gap diagnosis.
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| Niche | Median Gross Margin | Median Net Margin | Return Rate | Median AOV |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Beauty & Personal Care | 68–72% | 12–18% | 5–10% | $52–85 |
| Apparel / Fashion | 55–65% | 8–14% | 15–24% | $48–70 |
| Home & Kitchen | 45–52% | 10–16% | 8–12% | $60–110 |
| Pet Supplies | 50–58% | 11–17% | 7–13% | $55–78 |
| Health / Supplements | 62–68% | 10–15% | 4–8% | $60–95 |
| Jewelry & Accessories | 65–74% | 16–24% | 10–15% | $38–62 |
| Consumer Electronics | 32–42% | 6–12% | 12–18% | $75–140 |
| Sporting Goods | 58–64% | 12–19% | 9–14% | $54–85 |
Even when you know your benchmark, hidden costs can silently eat your margin.
Your supplier invoice is not your true cost. Factory shipping, packaging, tariffs, and customs can add 15–30% to unit cost. Filling only the supplier invoice in Shopify is the #1 margin error.
A return is not just a refund. Return shipping, restocking fees, and unsellable inventory can erase 15–25% of the original sale value — especially in apparel.
Platform ROAS doesn't subtract product cost. A 3x ROAS on low-margin electronics may actually lose money. You need to see true contribution margin after COGS.
Shopify apps, plugins, and tools accumulate month-over-month. A $29/month app for 12 months = $348 of fixed cost that many sellers never track.
Store-level profit tells you the total business. But which SKU is carrying the business — and which one is losing money on every ad click? Most templates can't answer this.
A quoted $3.50/order fulfillment can become $5.20 after storage fees, pick-and-pack surcharges, and return processing. You need to reconcile these monthly.
Download the complete PDF with full methodology, business-model breakdowns (dropship vs private label vs POD), and the profit-gap self-audit checklist. No spam, unsubscribe anytime.
The report gives you industry averages. But do you know your actual per-SKU profit? Our ready-built Excel template automatically calculates true margin, ROAS, and monthly P&L — no formulas required.
Get the Shopify Profit Tracker →Excel + Google Sheets · Pre-built formulas · Free quick-start guide