WooCommerce is a plugin that you can use within WordPress to make any site a functioning store. This makes it relatively easy to set up a store with an existing website if you already use WordPress.
However, there are other platforms in the market that might work better for you, especially if you don’t have an existing WordPress site. This guide tells you about some WooCommerce competitors and what they do differently.
Shopify
If you’re looking to build an online store then chances are you’ve come across Shopify. It comes with website-building tools, SEO and analytics, payment processing, inventory management and AI features. Shopify also helps you make sales and market using social media.
Pros
The biggest player in e-commerce platforms
No tech costs because it's included in the price
User friendly for you and the customers
Access to the Shop Pay ecosystem which can increase sales
Cons
You're limited by Shopify's templates
Monthly fees can increase quickly if you add lots of Shopify's paid apps
Using other payment methods can incur extra charges
Credit card fees aren't returned when you process a refund
"I signed up to Shopify to see how difficult it was to get started for a beginner and was pleasantly surprised. After accepting a £1 trial, I went into the dashboard and was ready to start building my store in under 5 minutes. No demos, no sales calls, and no complicated software installation.I had a look around the dashboard and was impressed with the analytics setup. Having run my own websites before, I know you can gain a lot of knowledge from data and reporting, so it was nice to see this already built out for me without any extra work.I liked the new AI feature called Sidekick. I started up a quick conversation and had a bit of back and forth, and it seemed capable of directing me to the right place. I can imagine this is a big win for people who don't have the resources to hire their own developers or designers. "
Matt Boyle
Publisher at Finder
Shopify: Complete platform breakdown
Feature
Shopify Data
Target audience
UK side hustlers to enterprise
Setup type
SaaS hosted
Google Play rating
4.2
iOS app rating
4.7
Mobile app utility
Full store management & order fulfilling
Base monthly price (GBP)
£25/mo + VAT
Turnover caps / hidden limits
None on basic tiers
Gateway transaction fee (native)
1.5% to 2.0% + 25p
3rd party transaction fee
2.0% penalty if not on Shopify payments
UK VAT & invoice ready
Yes (automated tax zones)
GDPR/Cookie compliance
Built-in basic setup (requires app for deep compliance)
Royal Mail integration
Excellent (native & app options)
Evri/DPD/UK carrier options
Excellent via ShipStation/Packlink
Inventory sync (POS)
Strong (native Shopify POS integration)
Editor style
Section-based block theme editor
Free templates count
12
UK timezone availability
24/7 global live chat & email
Contact channels
Chat / email / community forums
App store size
Massive (8000+ apps)
UK entrepreneur rating (1-5)
4.5
Ease of use (1-5)
4.5
Learning curve level
Moderate
Best suited for
Rapid scaling & app-heavy businesses
BigCommerce
With advanced tools and zero platform transaction fees, BigCommerce can give you clarity on cost. It offers flexible tools and integrations, expert support and the ability to sell products across multiple domains.
Pros
Advanced features included in monthly price
Doesn't charge transaction fees
Third-party real time shipping calculations are available on any plan
Unlimited number of staff accounts
Cons
Monthly price is based on revenue, so if you earn more you'll be forced to upgrade
Can be more complex than competitors
No email marketing tools
You need to use third-party apps to set up subscriptions
Squarespace
You can easily create a website that looks like it has been designed by a professional with Squarespace. Web hosting, software updates and security are included in the price, so you can focus on making your site perfect. Expect a sleek user experience if you choose this.
Pros
Designed so that anyone can create a good-looking website
All-in-one solution to build a website
Built-in marketing tools
Easy for beginners to use
Cons
Fees can add up if you need more features
Not as good for e-commerce as other platforms
Limited flexibility for complex or massive product inventories
Website editor can be difficult to use
Wix
You can build a website from scratch without needing any coding skills. It has lots of templates to choose from and its AI website builder can help you get started. Hosting is included in the price, so Wix handles tasks like software updates and security for you, which means you can focus on other things.
Pros
Has lots of templates
AI website builder is a useful tool so you don't need any coding skills
Hosting is included in the price
Automatically backs up your website so you can restore it if you need to
Cons
Advanced features will cost you extra
Navigation can be an issue if you have a larger product catalogue
Can sometimes have slower site speeds compared to competitors
Limited flexibility with the design
Bottom line
You can use an e-commerce platform to help you launch a digital storefront quickly, but every platform is different. WooCommerce has lots of competitors, so you need to decide what you want your website to be before you choose the platform that best fits your needs.
You should think about what tools are available, how quick it is to set up and how much you’re going to need to spend to make your website perfect. If you take advantage of free trials, you can see which platforms you like best.
If you’re not sure about using WooCommerce then consider some of the other platforms on this list.
We show offers we can track - that's not every product on the market...yet. Unless we've said otherwise, products are in no particular order. The terms "best", "top", "cheap" (and variations of these) aren't ratings, though we always explain what's great about a product when we highlight it. This is subject to our terms of use. When you make major financial decisions, consider getting independent financial advice. Always consider your own circumstances when you compare products so you get what's right for you. Most of the data in Finder's comparison tables is provided by Defaqto. In other cases, Finder has sourced data directly from providers.
Jason is a writer and editor. He worked as a senior subeditor for Finder for 5 years and in that time became familiar with a wide range of financial products and services. Before that, he worked for Australian Associated Press. He has a BA from Macquarie University in Australia. Jason loves to help other people find new ways to save money.
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I had a look around the dashboard and was impressed with the analytics setup. Having run my own websites before, I know you can gain a lot of knowledge from data and reporting, so it was nice to see this already built out for me without any extra work.
I liked the new AI feature called Sidekick. I started up a quick conversation and had a bit of back and forth, and it seemed capable of directing me to the right place. I can imagine this is a big win for people who don't have the resources to hire their own developers or designers. "
