Charlie Blomkvist
Business Central has its own connector to Shopify, built and maintained by Microsoft and preinstalled in the product. It is called the Shopify Connector and syncs products, prices, inventory, customers, B2B companies, orders, fulfillments, returns and transactions between the store and the ERP. This article describes what the connector does, in Microsoft's own words, what happens after the order comes in, and where a Swedish online store has to build or reconcile itself. At the end we compare it with how we set up the same flow in Visma Net with Click to Cash.
Short answer: does Business Central work with Shopify?
- products and prices sync both ways, with B2B catalogs
- stock is sent to Shopify on a schedule through the job queue
- orders from web, POS and B2B are imported and can become sales orders automatically
- fulfillments, returns and transactions follow
- several stores can be connected
- reconcile the payouts against an interim account, because the connector does not post them
- handle Klarna, which is outside the connector
- set up the Swedish parts through apps
- and give every person who works in the system a license
- the order, the stock, the payout and the books should run by themselves in one flow, with Klarna matched order by order, Swedish localization out of the box and unlimited users, and you want to try it in a real store before you say yes
The connector brings the order in. The question is what happens to the money, the stock and the reseller afterwards.
What the Shopify Connector does
Microsoft describes the connector as a way to "manage insights from your business and your Shopify online store as one unit". What it does, according to the overview on Microsoft Learn:
Synced both ways, with images, variants, barcodes, tags and metafields. Prices from customer price groups and discounts, and catalogs for B2B companies and markets.
Sends available stock from selected Business Central locations to one or more Shopify locations. Business Central is the source of truth for stock.
Customers are matched by email and phone, B2B companies by registration or VAT number. Payment terms follow the company.
Imported from the online store, Shopify POS and B2B, with shipping, gift cards, tips, payment method, terms, risk of fraud and return and refund information.
Posted shipments sync as fulfillments. Posted invoices can be exported so the buyer sees them in Shopify.
Payments are imported as transactions. Payouts from Shopify Payments are imported as information.
All of this runs on a schedule in the job queue, and Microsoft recommends 15 to 30 minutes between inventory syncs. The connector is included in Business Central, supports several stores and has logs for troubleshooting. It is a real connector: no partner owns it, and it ships with the updates twice a year.
Inventory: available stock, on a schedule
The inventory sync does not send the stock level as it is, but a calculated available quantity: "Projected Available Balance" or "Free Inventory". Microsoft's example: ten on the shelf and two open orders gives nine or seven in Shopify depending on when the sync runs. That is sensible, because it accounts for what is already sold. What is worth knowing is that stock goes out when the job queue runs, not when something happens. Between two runs the store can sell something the warehouse just ran out of.
In our setup of Visma Net, stock is sent per warehouse and Shopify location every five minutes, and right after every shipment and return. It is not a big difference on a quiet Tuesday. On Black Friday it is the difference between selling what you have and sending an apology email.
B2B: companies, catalogs and the credit limit
Shopify has two concepts, customer and company, and Business Central has one. The connector solves this by importing the Shopify company with its locations, payment terms and VAT number and turning it into a customer in Business Central, or by exporting a customer as a company with its own catalog and price list. Microsoft recommends that Business Central is the "system of record" for customers, payment terms and credit limits. So the credit limit lives in Business Central. Having it stop the next order already in the store, before it is picked, is not something the connector describes; it is something the partner builds or a routine in the finance team.
In Click to Cash the reseller's order is booked on their own customer in Visma Net, with price list, terms and credit limit from there. The credit hold stops the next order before it is picked, the invoice goes out with an OCR reference and as an e-invoice through AutoInvoice, and the payment is matched on the OCR reference through AutoPay. The reseller sees their invoices and balance in the store.
Shopify POS: the order is already fulfilled
Orders from Shopify POS are imported like other orders, but Microsoft points out two things. The orders are often already fulfilled when imported, so they become sales invoices instead of orders, and the invoice should be posted quickly because it does not reduce inventory by itself. And a POS customer often has no address, in which case the connector cannot create the customer; the solution is a separate Shopify store in Business Central for POS orders with a default customer, or code. Microsoft also notes that some POS setups may require a Device license.
In Visma Net an order at the register becomes a sales order just like a web order, and the register's location in Shopify is a warehouse in Visma Net, so the store and the web count on the same stock.
Payouts: what the connector imports and what you reconcile
This is the section most people need to read twice. The connector imports both the transactions and the payouts from Shopify Payments. The transactions are posted: the "Suggest Shopify Payments" action puts them in a journal and applies them to the invoices, even when the customer paid part with a gift card and the rest by card. The payouts, however, are imported as supporting information. Microsoft writes, in documentation updated June 2, 2026, that they "are for information purposes only and don't affect the General Ledger or Bank Ledger, though they can be helpful when you process your bank account statement".
Microsoft then describes how the reconciliation works: an interim account per payment provider that payments are posted against, the payout against the bank in the bank reconciliation, and whatever remains on the interim account written off as fees. It works, and many Business Central customers do it this way, often with the partner's help or an app. Klarna is outside the connector entirely; it fetches Shopify Payments.
- Transactions imported
- Suggest Shopify Payments
- Applied to the invoices
- The payout in the bank reconciliation
- Interim account
- Fee written off
The routine sits with the finance team or the partner. Klarna is handled outside the connector.
- Payment as prepayment
- Klarna or Shopify Payments pays out
- Every line matched to its order
- Fee and VAT separately
- You release
The journal entry is created on hold. The clearing account is at zero once it is posted.
The difference is who does the work, and how often. With a thousand orders a month it is a couple of hours a week for someone in finance, or nothing.
The Swedish parts: apps around the connector
The connector is global, and so is Business Central. Swedish bank formats, OCR on the customer invoice, the VAT return to the Swedish Tax Agency and e-invoicing through Peppol come from partner apps and operators, not from Microsoft. Microsoft has announced that no new bank and payment formats are developed in the product, and refers to partners' apps. AppSource, Microsoft's marketplace, is a strength at the same time: there is an app for most things, and for companies that want to build their solution from apps it is an argument for Business Central. It works, but every app is another vendor, another contract, and one more thing that has to be compatible after every update. In Visma Net these are Visma's own services: AutoPay for banking, AutoInvoice for e-invoicing, AutoReport for VAT, and the OCR reference is calculated out of the box. Visma Net also has a marketplace with connectors from partners. The difference is that the Swedish parts do not require an app. The full comparison is in Visma Net vs Business Central.
Business Central and Shopify versus Visma Net with Click to Cash
Imported through the job queue and can become a sales order automatically.
A paid order becomes a sales order within seconds. The sales order mirrors the state of the order, so edits, partial shipments and returns come out right without manual work.
Calculated available stock to Shopify, on a schedule, 15 to 30 minutes recommended.
Stock every five minutes and right after every shipment and return, per warehouse and Shopify location.
Companies and catalogs sync to customers, with payment terms. Credit limit in Business Central.
Own customer with price list, terms and credit limit; the credit hold stops the next order before it is picked; OCR and e-invoicing out of the box.
Imported, often as an invoice; the customer needs an address or a separate POS store in Business Central.
An order at the register becomes a sales order, and the register's location is a warehouse in Visma Net.
Transactions applied to the invoices; the payout reconciled against an interim account in the bank reconciliation. Klarna outside the connector.
Klarna and Shopify Payments matched order by order, fee separately, you release.
Banking, OCR, VAT and e-invoicing through partner apps.
Visma's own services out of the box.
A license per user; Team Members for anyone who only approves.
Unlimited users and approvers.
Demo according to the partner's approach.
Place an order in our demo store. After a free pre-study we build your store and your Visma Net, connected, in 3 to 5 days. Fixed price.
What Business Central does well
Microsoft's own connector is a strong argument for anyone already working in Microsoft's world: no partner owns it, it covers B2B, POS and several stores, and Copilot and the agents are in the product. If you have a partner who knows the apps and see the reconciliation as a job for the finance team, Business Central with the Shopify Connector is a reasonable choice. For a growing Swedish online retailer or wholesaler who wants inventory, finance and follow-up to run by themselves, Click to Cash is the shorter step: Visma Net with Swedish localization out of the box, the integration and the reconciliation included, a fixed price, and you try it before you say yes.
Why Straviont
We built the integration between Shopify and Visma Net ourselves, run it every day in our demo store Vardag and maintain it after go-live. The pre-study is free and starts from your workflows. After it we build your own store connected to your own Visma Net in 3 to 5 days, so you see your flow work before you decide. The price is set before you say yes and does not change afterwards.
Frequently asked questions
Does Business Central work with Shopify?
Yes. Microsoft's own Shopify Connector is preinstalled in Business Central and syncs products, prices, inventory, customers, B2B companies, orders, fulfillments, returns, Shopify POS and transactions, on a schedule in the job queue.
What does the Business Central Shopify Connector cost?
Nothing beyond Business Central. The connector is included in the product. What costs is the licenses per user, the apps for Swedish localization and the partner's work setting up and reconciling.
How often does inventory sync between Business Central and Shopify?
As often as the job queue runs. Microsoft recommends 15 to 30 minutes. The connector sends calculated available stock, that is, inventory minus what is already sold. In our setup of Visma Net, stock goes out every five minutes and right after every shipment and return.
Does Business Central work with Shopify B2B?
Yes. Shopify companies are imported with locations, payment terms and VAT numbers and become customers in Business Central, and customers can be exported as companies with their own catalog. The credit limit is managed in Business Central. In Click to Cash the credit hold stops the next order already in the store, before it is picked.
Does Business Central work with Shopify POS?
Yes. POS orders are imported like other orders, but are often already fulfilled and then become invoices, and POS customers without an address require a separate POS store in Business Central with a default customer. Some setups may require a Device license, according to Microsoft.
Does Business Central post the payouts from Shopify Payments?
The transactions are applied to the invoices with "Suggest Shopify Payments". The payout is not posted by the connector; according to Microsoft it is information that helps the bank reconciliation. It is reconciled against an interim account per payment provider, where the fee is written off, often with the partner's help or an app.
Does the Business Central Shopify Connector handle Klarna?
No. The connector imports transactions and payouts from Shopify Payments. Klarna is reconciled outside the connector, with the partner's help or an app. In Click to Cash, Klarna's settlement is matched order by order, with the fee and VAT separately.
Can Business Central have several Shopify stores?
Yes. Each store has its own setup with products, locations and price lists. Visma Net with Click to Cash also handles several stores and markets, with a collective customer and a VAT zone per market.
What is the alternative to Business Central and Shopify for a Swedish online store?
Visma Net with Click to Cash: Visma's ERP with Swedish localization out of the box and unlimited users, and our integration that turns the order into a sales order in eight seconds, mirrors stock every five minutes and reconciles Klarna and Shopify Payments order by order. Try it in our demo store.
How do you switch from Business Central to Visma Net?
The chart of accounts, customers, vendors and items are converted with our own conversion and included in the price. The web shop is reconnected to Visma Net and tested with real orders before go-live. How history and stock balances come along is decided in the pre-study.
Next steps
Place an order in Vardag, or book a free pre-study. Also read Visma Net or Business Central for e-commerce?, Booking Klarna and Shopify payouts and Connect Shopify to Visma Net. For the full picture of ERP systems for online stores, read ERP for e-commerce 2026: how to choose. And ERP for Shopify: how to choose if the choice is between accounting per day and ERP per order.
Sources
Everything about the Shopify Connector comes from Microsoft Learn, read 13 October 2026.