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Alternatives to Shopify
3 online selling platforms for all types of businesses.
Shopify lets you create your own online store for a monthly fee. But its platform doesn’t offer many search engine optimization tools and it isn’t fully customizable. These three Shopify competitors give it a run for its money.
3 alternatives to Shopify
Shopify’s robust platform and a rich library of integrations make it an industry leader. But there are other contenders chomping at the bit. These are our top e-commerce platform alternatives to Shopify.
BigCommerce
- Best for businesses that rely on content marketing and SEO
- Pricing: From $29.95 monthly
- Free trial: 15 days
Like Shopify, BigCommerce also offers free themes to get your website up and running quickly. But BigCommerce has better options for SEO performance, making it a better choice if you want web traffic.
Pros
- SEO advantages. BigCommerce has more capabilities than Shopify to optimize search engine optimization, including a WordPress plugin that unlocks additional SEO tools like Yoast.
- No transaction fees. BigCommerce doesn’t charge for each sale like Shopify, unless you use Shopify Payments.
- Staff accounts. Each service tier offers unlimited staff accounts that you can customize for each employee’s role and permissions.
Cons
- Sales threshold. Price tiers are determined by annual sales. The more you make, the more you’ll pay for BigCommerce.
- Limited integrations. While BigCommerce offers useful app integrations, it doesn’t stack up against Shopify’s 3,200 plugins.
- Abandoned cart saver. This feature doesn’t come standard on all its plans.
Wix
- Best for small businesses that have recently started selling online and lack tech experience
- Pricing: From $13 monthly
- Free trial: 14 days
Like Shopify, Wix has a store manager, product pages, discount codes and shipping tools. But Wix makes e-commerce less intimidating with its premium designs and intuitive customization options, making it more suitable for a small business that’s just getting off the ground.
Pros
- Drag-and-drop editor. Choose from over 500 designer-made templates and make it yours by adding images and fine-tuning colors and fonts.
- Compatible with various payment gateways. Wix won’t charge a transaction fee if you connect a different payment provider, like Stripe or PayPal.
- Competitive pricing. Its top business tier costs $49 a month — one of the best values for a hosted e-commerce platform.
Cons
- Limited customer support. Unless you have a VIP plan, you’ll have to submit a help request or schedule a call to talk with customer service.
- Storage caps. Wix service tiers have storage limits — up to 50 GB on its Business VIP plan. This may not be enough space for larger businesses with websites packed with images, videos and audio files.
- Third-party point-of-sale (POS) system. If you have a brick-and-mortar store, you’ll need to download both the Wix mobile app and the Square app to accept credit card payments. This clunky process is not as seamless as Shopify’s unified POS system.
WooCommerce
- Best for businesses that have an existing WordPress website and want total creative freedom.
- Pricing: Free
- Free trial: None
Like Shopify, WooCommerce offers all the features you’d expect from an e-commerce provider, including accepting secure payments, managing orders and viewing sales reports. And while Shopify boasts the ability to sell on multiple sales channels, WooCommerce covers that too with its extensions. It edges out the competition with its ability to customize a website.
Pros
- Free. WooCommerce’s primary features are free with WordPress. Most of its extensions cost between $29 and $299.
- Easy to get started. Add the plugin to your WordPress website to get immediate access to payment processing, inventory management and reporting features.
- Developer tools. This open-source plugin leaves customization at your fingertips with developer documentation, webhooks, and custom AJAX endpoints. Or mix and match over 400 extensions already built by developers.
Cons
- Must use WordPress. WooCommerce is a WordPress plugin, so you’ll need an existing WordPress account.
- Limited tech support. You’ll need to open a support ticket to get customer support.
- Find your own host. WooCommerce doesn’t host your online store, so you’ll need to set up your own website hosting.
Compare other sites like Shopify
Bottom line
These Shopify alternatives help you set up your online store and accept digital payments. But if you’re in the market for something else, compare a few other e-commerce platforms.
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