Shopify Alternatives: 15 Top Ecommerce Platforms to Consider in 2023
Shopify Alternatives: 15 Top E-commerce Platforms to Consider in 2025
It feels so good to announce the most common Shopify alternatives for 2024 for the first time. Leveraging my full-cycle e-commerce platform and e-commerce business infrastructure, my team has gathered many tools and platforms to help businesses decide which is best suited to their needs.
While Shopify can undoubtedly deliver a powerful and friendly-to-user e-commerce system, it makes much sense to look into other possibilities so that you can select the most appropriate one that best fits your particular prerequisites. When looking at the competitors of Shopify, the best thing to look at is the apps they offer, such as:
- Customizable design tools
- Stock control functionality
- Multi-channel selling options
- Customer acquisition tools
- Data analysis functionalities
- Aggressive yet smooth growth
BigCommerce, Wix and Squarespace are eminent alternatives when the need is fresh and specific. For the people who are most interested in controlling their web stores and the freedom of open-source software, WooCommerce might be the most appropriate tool. I strongly suggest using the free trial versions of the different choices to experiment and learn about the platforms you like. The detailed guide that explains most of the top Shopify alternatives will give a clear idea of the expected outcomes and let you be a hands-on creator in your business.
Why Consider Shopify Alternatives?
But first, we should ask: why else might you look for other e-commerce platforms?
Cost
Shopify’s basic plan prices start from $29 a month for their basic Shopify Lite plan, while the standard Shopify plan is $79 per month. The top-tier Shopify plans can become expensive for small firms with higher sales volumes. Other service providers may have a better offer price-wise.
Features
Although Shopify covers almost all the features, you might still find some functionality missing, such as a dropshipping automated system. Other platforms stand in the gap for these types of features.
Scalability
As your business develops, you might discover that Shopify’s platform can’t handle high traffic or order volumes as expected. Other platforms may propose improved scalability options to cope with your needs as a business.
Ownership
With Shopify, you do not own your store’s data or codebase, as the platform is hosted and maintained by Shopify itself. Some alternatives allow a certain degree of control by self-hosting or permitting modifications to your e-commerce infrastructure.
Sell Everywhere
Shopify mainly specializes in selling your products on your website through your website. Online platforms that are not Shopify alternatives will more likely open you to multiple channels for selling, including online marketplaces, social selling, and brick-and-mortar shop locations.
To remain mindful of these factors, we will consider the best alternate shopping platforms for Shopify. Marketing agencies are one of the businesses that provide various services, including the development of customized Shopify stores.
Top 15 Shopify Alternatives
1. BigCommerce
Some key features include:
- Intuitive storefront builder and theme editor
- Built-in blog and CMS
- Multi-channel sales integration on Facebook, Instagram, Amazon, eBay
- Abandoned cart recovery
- Product filters and facets
- Coupons and discounts
- Shipping rate calculation
- Cross-border, multi-language support
Key Strengths – Enterprise-level features, thousands of app integrations, great support options
Best For – Higher volume merchants needing advanced functionality
2. Wix
Wix is a famous website builder that also provides robust e-commerce functionality. Features include:
- 500+ customizable templates
- Drag and drop store builder
- Multi-lingual capabilities
- Built-in SEO tools
- Email marketing integration
- Detailed analytics dashboard
Pricing ranges from $14-$49 per month based on features needed.
Key Strengths – Great design flexibility, easy-to-use builder, excellent free plan option
Best For – Smaller online stores with a focus on beautiful design
3. Squarespace
Squarespace is another popular platform for building websites with built-in ecommerce capabilities. Features include:
- Award-winning templates
- Integrated payment processing
- Automated shipping rate configuration
- Inventory management
- Coupon creation
- Detailed analytics and reporting
Pricing starts at $12 per month for online stores. Squarespace offers a free trial.
Key Strengths – Exquisite templates, easy to make a beautiful online store
Best For – Anyone wanting an easy-to-use option for low volumes
4. WooCommerce
Features include:
- Completely customize site design and functionality
- Access to thousands of themes and plugins
- Numerous payment gateways and shipping options
- Coupons and promotions
- Reports on sales, orders, and stock levels
- SEO capabilities
Key Strengths – Total design flexibility, scalability, owned codebase
Best For – Merchants who want complete control over their online store
5. Shopify Lite
For just $9 per month, features include:
- Sell on Facebook and Instagram
- Shopify POS for in-person sales
- Accept payments via debit, credit cards, Apple Pay, and Google Pay
- Shopify Payments fee of 2.9% + 30¢ per transaction
- Basic reporting
Key Strengths – Lowest cost way to access Shopify’s ecosystem
Best For – Entrepreneurs and small businesses selling on social media and in-person
6. Ecwid
Features include:
- Global multi-channel sales support
- List products for free on Instagram and Facebook
- Unlimited SKUs and bandwidth
- Abandoned cart recovery
- Subscriptions and digital goods
- Mobile POS for markets and pop-up shops
Pricing starts at $15 per month for up to 10 products. They offer a free plan for up to 10 products as well.
Key Strengths – Omnichannel sales, free global plan
Best For – Smaller merchants active on multiple sales channels
7. Volusion
Features include:
- Easily customizable store designs
- Abandoned cart recovery
- Built-in blog and content management
- Printful, Amazon, and eBay integration
- Automatic tax calculations
- POS for in-person sales
Key Strengths – Deep integration with shipping, tax, and accounting
Best For – Growing brands that need a single unified platform
8. Shopify Plus
Features include:
- Custom storefront design and development
- Dedicated Shopify Plus account representative
- Scales to support extensive catalogues and order volumes
- Advanced reporting and real-time order tracking
- International pricing rules and tax engine
- Integrates with ERP, 3PL, and procurement systems
- Fraud analysis and inventory clustering
Shopify Plus pricing starts at $2000/month and scales up based on requirements.
Key Strengths – Robust and scalable for large brands
Best For – Enterprise merchants doing over $1M in annual sales
9. Magento Commerce
Features include:
- Open-source PHP-based framework
- Support for unlimited products and categories
- Powerful SEO and marketing tools
- Advanced order management and reporting
- Out-of-the-box B2B functionality
- 3rd party integrations and marketplace
- Scales to support huge catalogues and traffic
Key Strengths – Fully scalable and customizable, robust B2B features
Best For – Mid-market and enterprise-level merchants
10. Big Cartel
Enormous Cartel provides a more straightforward, low-cost e-commerce solution for smaller inventories. Features include:
- Sell up to 300 products
- Easy-to-use store manager
- Built-in blog and custom themes
- Integrates with PayPal, Stripe, and Square
- Sell on Facebook and Instagram
- Abandoned cart emails
- Basic shipping and tax tools
Plans start at $9.99/month with no transaction fees.
Key Strengths – Very easy to use, great for first online store
11. 3dcart
Features include:
- Hundreds of professional templates
- Built-in CRM and email marketing
- Integrated UPS® and FedEx® Shipping
- Advanced SEO and SEM tools
- POS for retail stores
- Automated order routing, tracking, and fulfilment
- Support for subscriptions and digital goods
Key Strengths – Very robust out of the box, great support network
Best For – Established merchants needing integrated tools
14. BigCommerce Enterprise
BigCommerce Enterprise provides large and enterprise brands with a SaaS ecommerce platform designed to support and accelerate growth. Features include:
- Dedicated enterprise support team
- Customizable single-page checkouts
- Advanced promotions, pricing, and merchandising
- Built-in B2B functionality
- Headless readiness and PWA support
- Multi-store management with centralized control
- Enterprise search, navigation, and SEO
- Multi-location inventory management
- Scales to any size catalogue, traffic volume, or order peak
Pricing is customized based on specific needs. Designed for mid-market and enterprise.
Key Strengths – Specifically built for large growing brands
Best For – High-growth mid-market & enterprise merchants
15. Shift4Shop
Shift4Shop (formerly 3dcart) offers an advanced, fully customizable ecommerce solution. Features include:
- Drag-and-drop site builder with themes/templates
- Integrated payment processing
- Automated order processing and fulfillment
- CRM, email marketing, and SEO tools
- Advanced shipping and tax engine
- POS and inventory management
- Subscriptions and digital goods
- Mobile-ready with dedicated apps
Plans start at $79/month for up to 2,500 products. Offers free trial.
Key Strengths – Great balance of robust features and ease of use
Best For – Growing SMBs needing enterprise-level tools
16. Shopware
Features include:
- Modular system to customize via plugins
- Headless and omnichannel capabilities
- Layered navigation and faceted search
- Customizable checkout process
- Built-in blog and CMS
- Visual merchandising tools
- Modern, responsive themes
- Scales from small to enterprise sites
As an open-source platform, Shopware itself is free. They offer cloud hosting starting at $30/month.
Key Strengths – Open source community model, European solid presence
Best For – Developers wanting an open-source solution
17. YoKart
YoKart is a Shopify alternative that provides a customizable e-commerce marketplace solution. Features include:
- Multi-vendor marketplace functionality
- Multiple payment gateways and shipping options
- SEO-friendly architecture
- Listing management system
- Vendor commission management
- Responsive themes and templates
- Customer portal and loyalty program
- Escrow payments and dispute management
YoKart starts at $99/month for a cloud-hosted marketplace with support.
Key Strengths – Explicitly built as a marketplace platform
Best For – Anyone wanting to start an e-commerce marketplace
This covers 15 Shopify alternatives across various features, pricing, and models. The best platform depends on your specific business requirements. These Shopify competitors provide great e-commerce solutions to power your online store.
Key Features to Look for in a Shopify Alternative
When researching Shopify alternatives, keep these key checklist features in mind as you compare options:
- Design and Customization – Look for attractive themes and the ability to customize design.
- Product & Inventory Management – Options to manage product catalogue, inventory, and shipping rates.
- Omnichannel Sales – Support for your sales channels – online store, POS, mobile, marketplaces.
- Promotions & Discounts – Coupon codes, automated promotions, pricing rules.
- Payment Processing – Flexible payment gateway options to accept payments.
- Security – SSL certification, data protection, uptime guarantee.
- Customer Service – Look for responsive support options and documentation.
- SEO & Marketing – SEO optimization and built-in tools to attract customers.
- Analytics & Reporting – Sales data and traffic analytics monitor performance.
- Scalability – Ability to handle growth in orders, customers, and traffic.
Remember your specific business needs and priorities as you evaluate platforms against these criteria. Selecting the best Shopify alternative for your needs will enable you to create a high-converting, user-friendly online store to sell your products and grow your e-commerce business.
FAQ About Shopify Alternatives
What is the best free alternative to Shopify?
From my research, I have found that web stores such as WooCommerce, Ecwid, and Shopify Lite are among others. I had an experience where:
- WooCommerce is an excellent open-source WordPress plugin. It is free; however, you should pay for hosting and a theme.
- Ecwid has a free plan where you can list up to 10 products, and, as I have observed, start-ups lend a hand.
- On the other hand, Shopify Lite is not free; it costs only $9 a month and has no transaction fees.
What is the cheapest alternative to Shopify?
Based on my research and experiences, I can mention a few alternative options which are the most pocket-friendly ones, i.e.:
- Shopify Lite ($9/month)
- Ecwid (Free plan available)
- Squarespace ($12/month)
- Enormous Cartel ($9.99/month)
- WooCommerce (Free, just pay for hosting)
These platforms have been particularly beneficial to my new customers who have just started with e-commerce, as they can begin with the basic features and cost.
Can you easily switch from Shopify to another platform?
You might be able to move to a different e-commerce platform after a certain amount of effort, but this is a non-automatic process. There are no direct Shopify exports, meaning you usually have to:
- Restyle your page manually.
- Integrate the product catalogue.
- And perform customer migration and other essential data operations.
One of my observations is that BigCommerce provides tools that enable a more organized migration process, which turns out to be very practical. For some, the process will require the services of a specialized developer.
Does Shopify offer a free trial?
After I checked with Shopify, I was informed that they do not have any free trial for their main e-commerce plans. Nevertheless, you can opt for some free options instead:
- Shopify Lite app – Free to install, $9/month subscription
- Shopify POS app – Free app for in-person payments (requires Shopify plan)
- Shopify Buy Button – Free embeddable buy button (transaction fees apply)
- Shopify Markets – Free temporary online pop-up shop builder
Can you use Shopify for free?
In my real-life case, I can testify that there is no free plan for making a full-blown online store using Shopify. Although Shopify has some free ones:
- Shopify Lite app for social selling
- Shopify POS app for in-person sales
- Shopify Buy Button to add a buy button to your site
- Temporary store building with Shopify Markets
Findings and experience have shown that although one cannot create a fully functional online store on Shopify without paying, it is possible to access their ecosystem without being charged using the above-mentioned tools. For the whole Shopify store, the lowest-paid plan costs $29/month.
Conclusion
Shopify is a robust and easy-to-use e-commerce system, but it still pays to discover options to locate the best fit. When investigating Shopify competitors, focus on devices for personalizing layout, handling supply, marketing throughout channels, bringing in customers, assessing data, and perfectly scaling up. Systems like BigCommerce, Wix, and Squarespace provide excellent Shopify alternatives relying on your particular demands. For maximum control and ownership, WooCommerce is a superb open-source option. Evaluate free test options to get hands-on with various remedies. With this overview of the top Shopify options, you can make an enlightened option to power a successful online shop tailored to your service.
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