{"id":577362,"date":"2026-05-28T14:52:03","date_gmt":"2026-05-28T13:52:03","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.finder.com\/uk\/?p=577362"},"modified":"2026-05-28T15:05:01","modified_gmt":"2026-05-28T14:05:01","slug":"cheap-e-commerce-software","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.finder.com\/uk\/business\/business-software\/cheap-e-commerce-software","title":{"rendered":"Cheap e-commerce software: Shopify & more"},"content":{"rendered":"

It\u2019s easier than ever to start an online business. But that doesn\u2019t mean it\u2019s easy to decide which platforms to use to make that a reality. This guide will look at 3 of the biggest cheap e-commerce software players to help you decide the best option for you.<\/p>

Shopify<\/h3>

Shopify is an all-in-one solution for setting up an online shop. While many other website-building platforms help you set up an online store, Shopify is designed specifically for that. So when you use it, you don\u2019t need to worry about all the different components required to get started. It comes with tools to build a website, SEO and analytics, payment processing, inventory management and AI features. You can also use Shopify for sales and marketing through social media.<\/p>

It\u2019s available in 4 different plan tiers, so you can start small and scale up as you need. You can take advantage of a 3-day trial and only pay \u00a31 a month for the first 3 months. If you pay annually instead of monthly you can get a 25% discount.<\/p>

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\"Matt\n <\/figure>\n\n <\/div>\n\n
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\"I signed up to Shopify to see how difficult it was to get started for a beginner and was pleasantly surprised. After accepting a \u00a31 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.\"ShopifyI 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.\"ShopifyI 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. \"\"Shopify<\/p>\n\n <\/div>\n <\/div>\n\n

\n Matt Boyle\n <\/div>\n
Publisher at Finder<\/div>\n <\/div>\n <\/div>\n<\/div>\n

Wix<\/h3>

With Wix, you can build a website quickly using templates and AI tools. You can set up an online store and use its design tools, SEO features, app marketplace, analytics dashboard, email marketing and ad tools on offer. It comes with a free domain for a year on all of its plans as well.<\/p>

Wix has 4 different tiers. It\u2019s free to create a website with Wix, but to connect it to your own domain and remove Wix branding, you need to pay for a premium tier. You can get a 14-day money-back guarantee when you do this to make sure it works for you before fully committing.<\/p>

Squarespace<\/h3>

Squarespace lets you use AI tools to create product descriptions, build mobile-optimised websites, has SEO features and offers a free domain for a year. It\u2019s also got security included to keep your store safe. If you\u2019re looking to set up an online store then it\u2019s a good option.<\/p>

There are 4 different tiers and each comes with a 14-day free trial. You can change your plan tier as you need to if your business grows. If you pay annually there\u2019s a 25% discount compared to paying monthly.<\/p>

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\"We have used Squarespace for our coaching site and shop<\/a> for several years now and have loved the experience overall. The platform is really user-friendly, even if you're not super tech-savvy, and it makes creating and maintaining a professional-looking website feel simple and stress-free.One of the biggest things we love is how clean and modern the templates look, everything feels polished and easy to customise to suit our brand. Updating pages, adding content, embedding videos, and making general changes on the go has been really straightforward, which is ideal when running a busy business.We've also found the mobile version works brilliantly, which is important as so many people browse on their phones now. We haven't explored the email marketing side too much yet, but the online scheduling tool has been a really great feature for us and makes booking client calls and meetings feel very seamless and professional.That said, we do find blog post editing a little clunky at times, and adding or embedding images isn't always the easiest process compared to some other platforms. We've also found it a little limiting that when adding a subscription payment, you can't easily include a product or downloadable PDF alongside it, which feels like a bit of a flaw for onboarding new sign-ups.Overall, Squarespace has been a great option for creating a professional, easy-to-manage website without needing a web developer for every little change. We'd definitely recommend it to anyone looking for a sleek, modern website platform that's simple to use and visually impressive.\"<\/p>\n\n <\/div>\n <\/div>\n\n

\n Lucy\n <\/div>\n
Fit Sisters Coaching<\/div>\n <\/div>\n <\/div>\n<\/div>\n

Other costs<\/h3>

While these platforms offer a solution that includes most of what you need, there are still other costs to factor in. They all come with base prices, but you might find that you need to pay more for extra features, so make sure you are across that.<\/p>

While some of them include the domain free for the first year, after that you\u2019ll be required to pay that cost on top of your other monthly fees.<\/p>

You also need to factor in what each platform and the specific tiers will charge you in transaction costs, because this can become quite expensive as you scale up. Some platforms make it easier to switch tiers than others. <\/p>

Pros and cons of cheap software<\/h3>
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Pros<\/h4>\n