Start an online store: complete guide to opening your own store

You can start a webshop in Denmark in less than an hour. You create an account with a webshop platform, choose a theme, add products and set up payment and shipping. Realistically, it costs from around DKK 1,500 for start-up and DKK 1,500 to 3,000 per month if you do most things yourself. You don't need a VAT number to set up the shop, but you do need to register for VAT if your turnover exceeds DKK 50,000 in 12 months. At Shoporama you can create a free trial shop without a credit card.

Written by Morten Blinksbjerg Nielsen, founder of Shoporama. Working professionally with Danish e-commerce since 2013 and has helped 400+ Danish webshops get started. This guide is practical guidance, not legal or tax advice. Please consult virk.dk and your accountant for legal requirements.

What does it take to start a webshop in Denmark? Requirements for CVR, VAT, domain and platform

Starting a webshop is technically straightforward. The practical and legal aspects require a little more planning. To open an online store in Denmark, you need at least the following:

• A webshop platform. The software your store runs on. Choose a platform that provides hosting, security, design and features all in one so you don't have to build everything from scratch.
• A domain name. Your own web address, for example dinbutik.dk. If you use shoporama's subdomain dinbutik.shoporama.dk, it damages your impression and your SEO in the long run.
• A payment solution. You need to be able to receive money. This requires either a gateway such as Stripe, Quickpay or ePay and typically an acquiring agreement if you choose the gateway yourself.
• A shipping agreement. You need to send parcels. PostNord, GLS and DAO are the most used in Denmark.
• Products, images and texts. The most important content on the shop. Expect to spend the most time here.
• Terms and conditions, right of withdrawal, privacy policy and cookie consent. Legal requirements in Denmark and the EU.

Do you need a CVR number to start a webshop?

You don't need a VAT number to set up a webshop. You can test your idea and build your store without registering anything. When you start selling commercially, the picture changes:

• If you sell for less than DKK 50,000 within 12 months, you don't need to register your business for VAT, but you still need to declare tax on the profit.
• If your turnover exceeds DKK 50,000 in 12 months, you must register for VAT at virk.dk and charge VAT on all future sales.
• Most people register as a sole proprietorship in the beginning. It's free to set up on virk.dk and can always be converted to an ApS later.

We provide practical guidance, not legal advice. Ask your accountant if you are unsure about the form of business, accounting or VAT. There is also free guidance from the Danish Business Authority at virk.dk.

What about GDPR and personal data?

Every time a customer adds an item to the basket, you collect personal data. This triggers the requirement for a privacy policy, a cookie consent banner and a data processing agreement with your webshop platform. At Shoporama, cookie consent with Consent Mode v2 is built-in, data is hosted in the EU, and you can download a standard data processing agreement directly in the admin. This removes the most time-consuming parts of GDPR work.

Step-by-step guide: How to start an online store in 7 steps

Here's the process we've seen work for hundreds of new store owners. You can typically complete steps 1 to 5 within one business day, while steps 6 and 7 are ongoing.

Step 1: Find your idea and target audience

Before you create anything, you need to be clear about two things: what are you selling and who are you selling to? Write a short 2-3 sentence description that explains why your store exists. This will be the foundation for everything from product copy to Google Ads campaigns later on.

Check the competition by Googling the products you want to sell. How many competitors are there? What is their price level? What is missing in their stores that you can do better? Write it down in a document and come back to it along the way.

Step 2: Choose an online shop platform

The platform is the foundation. Take your time here because it's the most expensive thing to change later. Check out our comparison of Danish e-commerce platforms, where we go through eight popular choices on price, speed and features.

If you want to compare specifically against the biggest, we also have in-depth guides on Shoporama vs Shopify, Shoporama vs DanDomain and Shoporama vs WooCommerce. Most platforms offer free trials, so try two or three before you decide.

Step 3: Create your online store and choose a theme

Once you've chosen your platform, create an account. With Shoporama, it takes less than 60 seconds and you'll have a working demo shop with sample products right away. We automatically create a shop at name.shoporama.dk so you can get started without having purchased a domain yet.

Then choose a theme. It determines the look, layout and user experience. Shoporama has five official free themes: Montana, Delaware, California, Alaska 2, and Washington. All themes are mobile-optimized, built with Tailwind CSS and can be customized without technical knowledge. Check out our themes and choose the one that best matches your industry.

Step 4: Buy domain and point DNS

A good domain is short, easy to remember and preferably contains a keyword that signals what you sell. You can buy a domain from us for as little as 45 kr or from external providers such as Gratisdns, Simply or Domæneshop.

Once the domain is purchased, it must point to Shoporama. You do this by updating two DNS records with your domain provider. We have a concrete guide for your own domain and domain DNS setup that takes you through step by step. Expect to wait from a few minutes to 24 hours for the change to take effect on the web.

Step 5: Set up payment and shipping

Without payment and shipping, you can't sell. Sign an agreement with a gateway and at least one shipping provider. Enter API keys in the admin and make a test order through the entire flow to make sure that cards, order confirmation, invoicing and shipping label all work.

Our Stripe payment gateway guide shows you how to set up Stripe and the shipping checkout flow goes into depth on how to set up shipping options.

Step 6: Add products and content

Now the shop needs to have real products. You can add them manually, import from a spreadsheet or migrate from an existing store. Don't forget good product images. One good product photo sells more than five bad ones.

Also, write the texts customers expect to find: a front page, an about page, delivery terms, return terms, terms of trade, privacy policy and a contact page. Use Shoporama's AI assistant to draft product texts and SEO texts, which you then correct.

Step 7: Promote and get the first sales

An online store without traffic sells nothing. Start with the basics: set up SEO to get you on Google. Read our guide to SEO in Shoporama for concrete tips. Connect Google Analytics 4, Google Ads and Meta Pixel so you can measure what works.

Send a newsletter to your network and ask for feedback. Share the shop on the social media channels you use. The first 10 sales typically come from your own network and witnesses. The next 100 come from ads, SEO and word of mouth.

What does it realistically cost to start an online store? A budget for small, medium and ambitious stores

The cost of starting an online store depends on how much you do yourself and how big you want to start. Here are three realistic budgets for the first three months. The figures are ex VAT.

The numbers show one important point: the platform itself is a small part of the budget. Your inventory, marketing and time are the biggest items. If you want to dig deeper into the pricing question, we have a dedicated guide to what does a webshop cost and a comparison if you're looking for a cheap webshop solution.

Tip from experience: Set aside 20 percent of the total initial budget as a buffer. Unforeseen things always come up, and it's better to be able to afford to get it right than to save in the wrong place.

Pro vs Flex: Which Shoporama plan is right for your shop?

With Shoporama, you can choose between two plans. They have the same features, but the pricing structure is different. What matters is how big your revenue is and how stable it is.

The break-even point is around 28,000 kr in monthly revenue. If you sell less, you typically pay less on Flex. If you sell more, you save money on Pro. You can switch plans in admin without commitment or notice, so it's smart to start on Flex and move to Pro as your revenue grows.

Both plans include unlimited revenue, AI assistant, page designer, built-in newsletter, POS, loyalty program, cookie consent, SEO tools, blog system, multi-language and Danish support. The differences are small: Pro includes unlimited users and 10,000 API calls per month, Flex includes 1 user and 1,000 API calls. See full details on Shoporama's pricing plans.

Choosing the right ecommerce platform: Shoporama compared to Shopify, DanDomain and WooCommerce

Choosing a platform is the single most important decision when starting an online store. Switching later is possible, but costly in time and money. Here are the four most common platforms in Denmark compared on the parameters that typically make the difference.

The differences boil down to three considerations:

1. Do you want everything in Danish? Choose Shoporama or DanDomain. Both offer Danish support, Danish integrations and Danish documentation.
2. Want the largest possible app ecosystem and global reach? Choose Shopify if you're willing to accept transaction fees and English support.
3. Want maximum control and are willing to host, secure and update yourself? Choose WooCommerce. It requires technical experience but offers complete flexibility.

Payment: How to receive money in your online shop

To get money from your customers, you need a payment gateway. The gateway is the link between your online shop and the acquirer that transfers the money to your account. You can choose between several Danish and international providers.

The most used gateways at Shoporama

• Stripe. Modern and easy to get started with. Covers cards, MobilePay, Apple Pay and Google Pay. No subscription, only transaction price from around 1.4 percent + 1.80 kr per transaction. Add 0.5 percent through Shoporama. Read our Stripe guide.
• Quickpay. Danish gateway with Dankort, MobilePay, Klarna, ViaBill and Apple Pay. Monthly subscription plus acquiring agreement.
• ePay. Another Danish classic. Same palette as Quickpay and a wide selection of card acquirers.
• OnPay and PensoPay. Danish providers that often win on price in smaller transaction volumes.
• Nets Easy. All-in-one solution from Nets with Visa, Mastercard, Dankort, MobilePay, Vipps, Swish, Apple Pay and Klarna combined.
• Mollie. Popular in the Nordics and Europe. Good if you want to sell in the Netherlands, Belgium or Germany.
• PayPal and Payson. Complements if you sell abroad or in Sweden.

Which one should you choose? If you have less than DKK 100,000 in monthly revenue, Stripe is the easiest to set up. If you sell mostly in Denmark and want everything collected with Dankort, Quickpay or ePay is a solid choice. If you want to pay with MobilePay directly at checkout, it happens automatically when you have Stripe, Quickpay, ePay or Nets Easy. The same goes for Klarna and Apple Pay, which are activated through your primary gateway.

Remember: At Shoporama, there are no additional transaction fees beyond the 0.5% Stripe surcharge. We don't take a percentage of your sales, either on Pro or on the payments themselves.

Shipping and delivery: How to get your packages on their way

Shipping is one of the three most important factors when customers decide whether to buy from you. The other two are price and delivery time. So choose at least one and preferably two shipping providers.

Shoporama integrates directly with PostNord, GLS and DAO. You can create waybills, choose a parcel shop, home delivery or delivery point and print parcel labels directly from the admin. For other providers like Bring, Burd or Special Freight, you can use external integrations or manual entries.

What should you consider when choosing shipping?

• Free shipping. Offer free shipping above a certain amount, for example 499 kr. This increases the average order value significantly.
• Parcel shop versus home delivery. 70-80% of Danish customers prefer parcel shop. It's also cheaper for you to ship.
• Return agreement. If you have a return agreement with your shipping provider, customers can print a return label themselves. This increases conversion and reduces support.
• International shipping agreements. Want to sell to Sweden, Germany or Norway? Add international shipping options from the start so you don't have to reject orders later.

Our checkout flow and shipping guide shows you how to set up the different delivery options and how the customer sees them at checkout.

Marketing: How to get the first customers to your new online shop

Once the shop is ready, you need customers. This is where many new store owners are surprised. Even the best product won't sell if no one knows it exists. So make a plan for how you will drive traffic from day one.

SEO: Traffic that keeps coming

SEO is the long-term investment. You work with titles, meta descriptions, product texts, category texts, internal linking and sitemap. It takes 3-6 months to see results, but the traffic builds up and continues as long as the pages rank. Check out our complete guide to SEO in Shoporama for an in-depth look at what works and what you can do yourself.

Google Ads and Shopping

Google Ads gives fast results but costs money per click. Start with a small budget of $50-100 per day and test which products convert. Shoporama automatically sends product data to Google Shopping via a built-in feed, so you can get on the Shopping tab without doing everything manually.

Meta Ads and social media

Facebook and Instagram are still among the most effective channels for new Danish webshops. Use Meta Pixel and the Conversion API in Shoporama to track conversions accurately, even with iOS restrictions. Create a regular post rhythm with product images, customer quotes and behind-the-scenes content.

Newsletter and loyalty program

Shoporama has a built-in newsletter system with segmentation and A/B testing. You can also integrate with Klaviyo, Brevo or Mailchimp if you want to use an external tool. Send welcome emails, abandoned cart emails and monthly newsletters. Add a loyalty program to increase customer lifetime value and get repeat purchases from your best customers.

Tracking and analytics

What you don't measure, you can't improve. Connect Google Analytics 4, Google Ads, Meta Pixel and Conversion API even before launch. It's much easier to have data from day one than to introduce tracking afterwards. If you want accurate server-side tracking across devices and browsers, you can purchase it for $89 per month.

How long does it take to launch an online store? Realistic time estimates

The short answer: from less than an hour to several weeks, depending on how ready you are before you launch. Here is a realistic timeline for the three typical scenarios:

• Test shop, demo or hobby project. Under an hour. You create an account, choose a theme, play with sample products and see the flow.
• Small shop ready to sell. 1-3 days. You add 5-30 products, set up payment, shipping and domain, write the most important texts and place a test order.
• Full store with everything in place. 1-4 weeks. You have 50-500+ products, professional images, accounting integration, newsletter, tracking, GDPR texts, shipping to multiple countries and a marketing plan ready.

The actual time depends mostly on how many products you need to add and how good quality you want the images and texts to be. The technical side of things can be done in under two hours with Shoporama.

If you're an entrepreneur with a brand new idea, our guide to webshop for startups may be relevant. It covers how to get started quickly without burning through your budget on day one.

10 common beginner mistakes to avoid when starting a webshop

We see the same mistakes repeated by new store owners. Here are the ten most important ones to avoid.

1. Too many products from the start. Many people think a large assortment means more sales. The opposite is often true. Start with 10-30 products and expand based on what sells.
2. Poor product images. The most important sales tool. A uniform, bright image on a white background converts better than a high-end artistic photo. Use mobile and a simple box if budget is tight.
3. No clear delivery terms. Customers abandon the cart if they can't see what shipping costs and when the package will arrive. Always show it up front.
4. Forgot to show prices incl. VAT. In Denmark, consumers must see prices including VAT. This is the default in Shoporama, but check your setup. Our article on displaying prices incl. VAT goes into depth.
5. Too few payment methods. Offer at least card, MobilePay and preferably Klarna or ViaBill. Lack of payment methods is one of the most common reasons for abandoned purchases.
6. No tracking from the start. Without Google Analytics and Meta Pixel, you don't know what works. It costs nothing to set up.
7. Wrong or no domain. A domain of name.shoporama.dk is fine for testing, but not for a real store. Buy your own domain from day one. Get your own email on the domain too, so you look professional.
8. No return policy. 14 days right of withdrawal is a legal requirement in Denmark. Write a clear return policy and make it easy to find.
9. Forgot cookie consent and privacy policy. GDPR is not optional. Luckily, it's built into Shoporama, so you just need to enable it.
10. Too little budget for marketing. Many people spend all the money on the shop itself and forget that the traffic has to come from somewhere. Set aside at least a third of your initial budget for marketing in the first three months.

How to move from Shopify, DanDomain or WooCommerce

Already have an online store you want to move? It's easier than most people think. At Shoporama, we can import products, categories, customers and order history from the most popular platforms.

• Shopify. We have a dedicated import tool. Read the Shopify import guide that takes you through step by step.
• DanDomain. We import products, categories and images. Orders and customers can also be migrated.
• WooCommerce. We read from the WooCommerce REST API or from export files.
• Other platforms. CSV import covers almost everything. The onboarding package of 10,000 DKK ex VAT includes migration and setup.

Check out our guide to moving your shop to Shoporama, where we go through the entire migration process and typical pitfalls. We also have named customers who have switched platforms and are happy to share their experience on our cases.

Frequently asked questions about starting a webshop

What does it cost to start an online store with Shoporama?

You can start for free for 30 days without a credit card. After that, Pro costs £1,400 ex VAT per month with no commitment, or Flex £0 fixed plus 5 percent of revenue. On top of that, you'll typically pay for a domain from around €75 per year, an email account for €9-15 per month and any fees at your payment gateway.

How long does it take to get a webshop up and running?

The setup itself takes less than 60 seconds. You'll have a demo shop with products right away. Realistically, you should expect a few days to two weeks to add the right products, set up payment and shipping, choose a theme and point your domain. Most are ready to sell within one business day if the assortment is small.

Which payment gateway should I choose?

Stripe is the easiest to get started with and covers cards, MobilePay and Apple Pay. Quickpay and ePay are classic Danish choices with Dankort, Klarna and ViaBill. Nets Easy is a good fit if you want all Nordic methods together. At Shoporama, there are no additional transaction fees beyond a 0.5% surcharge if you use Stripe through us.

Can I move my existing online store from Shopify or DanDomain?

Yes, you can. We can import products, categories, customers and orders from Shopify, DanDomain, WooCommerce and most other platforms. The onboarding package of DKK 10,000 ex VAT includes migration, where we help you move data, set up payment and shipping and train you in the system.

What is the difference between Pro and Flex?

Pro costs DKK 1,400 ex VAT fixed per month regardless of turnover and is typically cheapest if you sell for more than approximately DKK 28,000 per month. Flex costs €0 fixed plus 5% of turnover and is suitable for associations, seasonal stores and brand new stores where turnover fluctuates. Both plans contain the same core features.

Is there a commitment or termination?

No, there isn't. You pay monthly and can cancel from month to month. We also don't automatically lock in upgrades. If you want to leave, you can export all your products, categories, customers and orders and take the data with you.

Which accounting systems can be integrated?

Shoporama has ready-made integrations for e-conomic, Dinero and Billy. You can automatically send invoices, orders and customers to your accounts and avoid manual data entry. Setup is done via OAuth and it typically takes less than five minutes to connect the systems.

Can I sell in multiple languages or countries?

Yes, you can. Shoporama supports Danish, English, German, Norwegian and Swedish. You can also create multiple online stores on the same account with different domains, currencies and languages if you want to split your sales by country or brand.

Ready to start your own online store?

Starting your own online store in 2026 is neither complicated nor expensive if you do it in the right order. Choose a platform that meets your needs from day one, choose a theme, set up payment and shipping, and then spend your time on what really moves sales: good products, good images and good texts.

At Shoporama, we've helped more than 3,000 Danish webshops get started since 2013. We offer you a free 30-day trial without credit card, Danish support weekdays 9-17, no commitment and no transaction fees on Pro. You can set up your shop in less than 60 seconds and be ready for your first sale the same day.

Take the first step. Browse our themes and find the design that fits your store or check all integrations to see if your existing tools are supported. When you're ready, you can set up your online store for free and be up and running within five minutes.

If you want to dive deeper into the practical topics, we have an overview of all our guides where you can read about everything from GDPR to marketing to accounting.