Merchant Terms

    Last updated: 2026-06-13

    Effective: 2026-06-27

    These Merchant Terms (the "Merchant Terms") govern your use of the commerce features of the Unshift platform, including online stores, product catalogs, carts, checkout, orders, and payment acceptance through Stripe (collectively, the "Commerce Features"). The Commerce Features let you sell physical goods, digital goods, gift cards, bundles, and subscriptions to your own customers through a website you build and publish with Unshift.

    These Merchant Terms supplement, and are incorporated by reference into, our Terms of Service. Capitalized terms not defined here have the meaning given in the Terms of Service. If there is a conflict between these Merchant Terms and the Terms of Service with respect to the Commerce Features, these Merchant Terms control. The Commerce Features are provided by Unshift LLC ("Unshift", "we", "us", "our").

    By enabling the Commerce Features, connecting a Stripe account, or listing a product for sale, you agree to these Merchant Terms.

    1. Definitions

    • Merchant (or "you") means the Unshift account holder who enables the Commerce Features to sell to their customers.
    • Buyer means an end customer who purchases, or attempts to purchase, a product through your Storefront.
    • Storefront means the online store, product pages, cart, and checkout that you publish through the Service.
    • Connected Account means the Stripe account created for your Unshift app through which payments are processed, as described in §3.
    • Platform Fee means the fee Unshift charges on transactions processed through your Storefront, as described in §5.

    2. Your role as Merchant; our role

    The Commerce Features are tools you use to run your own store. You are the seller and the merchant of record for every sale you make through your Storefront. The contract of sale for any product is between you and your Buyer. Unshift is not a party to that contract, is not the seller, reseller, merchant of record, or marketplace operator, and does not take title to, hold, ship, fulfill, or guarantee any product you sell.

    We provide the software that displays your catalog, calculates totals, creates checkout sessions, records orders, and initiates payment through Stripe. We do not handle cash, are not in the flow of funds, and do not hold Buyer payments. Payments are processed by Stripe directly into your Connected Account, as described in §3 and §4.

    You are solely responsible for everything about your store, including your products, prices, descriptions, images, inventory, fulfillment, delivery of digital goods, customer service, your own store policies, and compliance with all laws that apply to selling to your Buyers.

    3. Stripe Connect and onboarding

    The Commerce Features use Stripe Connect. To accept payments, you must create and onboard a Stripe Connected Account through the flow we provide in the Studio.

    1. Stripe agreements. Your Connected Account is governed by the Stripe Connected Account Agreement and the Stripe Services Agreement, including the Stripe restricted businesses list. By onboarding, you agree to those agreements directly with Stripe. They are between you and Stripe; Unshift is not a party to them.
    2. Identity verification (KYC). Stripe collects and verifies your identity and business information directly. Unshift does not perform this verification, does not control its outcome, and does not receive your full Stripe credentials. Stripe may request additional information, and may limit, hold, or disable your ability to accept payments or receive payouts based on its own review.
    3. Activation. You may not sell, and we will not enable checkout, until Stripe confirms your Connected Account is enabled for charges. If Stripe later disables your account, your Storefront's checkout will stop working until the issue is resolved with Stripe.
    4. Your dashboard. You receive access to a Stripe dashboard for your Connected Account, where you manage payouts, banking details, disputes, and Stripe-issued tax documents.

    4. Payments, payouts, and merchant-of-record responsibility

    1. Direct charges. Buyer payments are charged directly on your Connected Account. You are the merchant of record for those charges. Payouts, payout timing, reserves, and any holds are determined by Stripe under your agreement with Stripe, not by Unshift.
    2. Pricing authority and currency. Order totals are calculated by our server from the prices in your catalog at the time an item is added to the cart. You are responsible for setting correct prices, currencies, and any shipping and tax amounts your store collects.
    3. No payment liability for Unshift. Unshift does not guarantee, underwrite, or insure any payment, payout, or transaction. We are not responsible for losses arising from chargebacks, refunds, fraud, insufficient funds, reserves, payout delays, or the suspension or closure of your Connected Account. Liability for those events sits with you (and, where applicable, Stripe), not with Unshift.
    4. Disputes and chargebacks. Buyer disputes and chargebacks are processed against your Connected Account. You are responsible for responding to them through Stripe and for any related fees and losses. Any Platform Fee charged on a disputed transaction is handled as described in §5.

    5. Platform Fee

    Unshift charges a Platform Fee on transactions processed through your Storefront. The current Platform Fee rate is shown on our pricing page. The Platform Fee:

    1. Is calculated on the order total and collected automatically through Stripe at the time of the transaction, in addition to Stripe's own processing fees, which Stripe charges separately under your agreement with Stripe.
    2. Is refunded to you proportionally when you refund an order, so Unshift does not keep its fee on refunded sales.
    3. May change on a going-forward basis. We will give reasonable advance notice of any increase, and the new rate will apply to transactions occurring on or after its effective date. Negotiated or promotional rates, where offered, are set on your account.

    The Platform Fee is separate from, and in addition to, any subscription fee you pay for your Unshift plan under the Terms of Service.

    6. Your responsibilities as a seller

    You are responsible for operating your store lawfully and fairly. Without limiting §2, you agree that you will:

    1. Describe products accurately, including price, availability, materials, condition, and any limitations, and not engage in deceptive or misleading pricing or advertising.
    2. Fulfill orders and deliver purchased goods or digital content as described, within the timeframes you state, and maintain accurate inventory.
    3. Publish your own store policies to Buyers, including your returns, refunds, cancellation, shipping, and delivery policies, and honor them. Your store policies are between you and your Buyers; see §8.
    4. Provide customer service to your Buyers and handle their questions, complaints, returns, and refund requests.
    5. Comply with all applicable law, including consumer-protection, distance-selling and online-sales rules, advertising, product-safety, labeling, age-restriction, export, and sanctions laws in every jurisdiction where you sell or ship.
    6. Handle taxes. You are solely responsible for determining, collecting, reporting, and remitting all taxes (including sales tax, VAT, and GST) arising from your sales. Unshift is not the seller, marketplace facilitator, or merchant of record for your sales, and does not calculate, collect, file, or remit your sales taxes on your behalf. Any tax functionality we expose is a convenience tool; correctness remains your responsibility.
    7. Sell only permitted products. You may not sell anything prohibited by §7, by the Acceptable Use Policy, or by Stripe's restricted businesses list.

    7. Prohibited and restricted products

    You may not list, sell, or attempt to sell through your Storefront:

    1. Anything prohibited by the Acceptable Use Policy, which is incorporated into these Merchant Terms.
    2. Any product or service on Stripe's restricted businesses list, or that your Connected Account is not authorized to sell.
    3. Illegal goods or services, stolen goods, or counterfeit, replica, or otherwise intellectual-property-infringing items.
    4. Weapons, firearms, ammunition, explosives, and related components, except where you hold every license required in each jurisdiction you sell to and comply with all applicable law.
    5. Regulated goods sold without the licenses and verifications the law requires, including prescription medication and medical devices, controlled substances, cannabis, kratom, nicotine and tobacco products, alcohol, gambling, and financial or investment products.
    6. Recalled, unsafe, or age-restricted products sold without the controls the law requires.
    7. Products that facilitate fraud, that you do not have the right to sell, or that you cannot lawfully deliver to the Buyer's location.

    We may remove listings, disable checkout, or suspend the Commerce Features for your account if we reasonably believe you are selling prohibited or restricted products, in line with §10 and the Acceptable Use Policy.

    8. Your relationship with Buyers

    The sale, and any returns, refunds, warranties, guarantees, or disputes about a purchase, are strictly between you and your Buyer. Unshift's Refund Policy governs only the fees you pay Unshift for your Unshift plan; it does not govern refunds to your Buyers. You set and honor your own Buyer-facing refund and returns policy.

    You are responsible for presenting your own terms of sale and privacy notice to your Buyers. You may not represent that Unshift is the seller, that Unshift endorses your products, or that Unshift is responsible for fulfillment, customer service, or refunds to your Buyers.

    9. Buyer data and privacy

    When you use the Commerce Features, Unshift stores order, cart, and customer records for your store, which may include your Buyers' names, email addresses, shipping addresses, order contents, and order history. Payment card details are handled by Stripe and are not stored by Unshift.

    With respect to your Buyers' personal data, you are the controller and Unshift is your processor. Our processing of that data on your behalf is governed by the Data Processing Addendum, which forms part of these Merchant Terms. You are responsible for having a lawful basis to collect and process your Buyers' data, for posting a compliant privacy notice to your Buyers, and for responding to their data-subject and consumer-privacy requests. We will assist you as described in the DPA. Stripe acts as a processor or independent controller for the payment data it handles, under your agreement with Stripe and as reflected in our Subprocessor List.

    You are responsible for retaining your own copies of order and customer records you cannot afford to lose. We provide export tools where available; see the Terms of Service §11.5 on backups.

    10. Suspension of Commerce Features

    In addition to our rights under the Terms of Service and the Acceptable Use Policy, we may suspend or disable the Commerce Features, your checkout, or specific listings, with or without notice depending on severity, if (a) you breach these Merchant Terms, the Acceptable Use Policy, or the law, (b) Stripe limits, holds, or disables your Connected Account, (c) we detect fraud, excessive chargebacks, or risk to Unshift, Stripe, Buyers, or other users, or (d) we are required to do so by Stripe, a card network, or law. Suspending the Commerce Features does not by itself take your other site content offline, and does not relieve you of obligations to Buyers for orders already placed.

    11. Disclaimers and liability

    The Commerce Features are part of the Service and are provided subject to the warranty disclaimer in Terms of Service §12 and the limitation of liability in Terms of Service §13. Without limiting those sections, Unshift is not liable for lost sales, lost profits, chargebacks, refunds to Buyers, fraud losses, payout delays, tax liabilities, fulfillment failures, or disputes between you and your Buyers. Your indemnification obligations in Terms of Service §14 apply to your use of the Commerce Features, including any claim brought by a Buyer, a taxing authority, or a regulator arising from your sales.

    12. Changes to these Merchant Terms

    We may update these Merchant Terms from time to time. If we make material changes, we will notify you by email or through the Service at least 14 days before they take effect for existing Merchants. Your continued use of the Commerce Features after the effective date constitutes acceptance. If you do not agree, stop using the Commerce Features and cancel as described in the Terms of Service.

    13. Contact

    Your Stripe Connected Account, payouts, and payment disputes are managed in your Stripe dashboard and governed by your agreements with Stripe.