Magento vs Shopify: The Complete Comparison guide
Magento vs Shopify: The Complete Comparison Guide
Magento vs. Shopify: Finding the proper platform from a vast number of them is very difficult; however, this move is the key to the site’s development.
When writing this article, 742,629 eCommerce websites are Magento customers. At the same time, 5,483,209 eCommerce websites are Shopify customers. The significant differences among these platforms are:
- Magento is a free and open-source platform.
- And to leverage the benefits of the Shopify platform, pay at least $29 every month.
- Shopify provides users with a complete solution with site hosting as well.
- Magento users must purchase hosting for the website themselves and complete the settings before starting the online store.
- These settings usually require minimal coding skills. For this reason, users often turn to a Magento development company to carry out the initial settings of the online store.
This was the fundamental difference between the platforms. But let’s dig deeper and examine each platform’s pros and cons.
Pros and Cons of Magento And Shopify eCommerce Platforms
Shopify Pros and Cons
Let’s start by comparing this with the Shopify platform. These days, this hosting solution is one of the industry leaders. It means that the company is responsible for the operation of the code. Also, users can migrate to HTML and CSS websites.
In addition, Shopify regularly updates its features. One of the latest was the Shopify and Amazon integration. With this advancement, users can sell goods on Amazon right from the Shopify admin panel. Want to know more about its advantages and disadvantages? We’ll tell you more next!
- Ease of use
Shopify is known for its simple and clean interface. It is equipped with simple tools, a drag-and-drop interface, and the ability to edit themes. If this is your first experience creating an online store independently, you will be clear of complex technical documentation. At the same time, an online store on the Shopify platform will give your customers a simple checkout experience.
- Costing
When comparing the Shopify and Magento platforms, it is worth considering that Shopify gives users a 14-day trial period to monitor the store’s functionality. When satisfied, you must pay $29 monthly (essential Plan). Also, it charges 2.9% + 30 cents for funds transfer with third-party payment modules.
You can also use the standard withdrawal method through the platform. This method is free. However, you will have to pay at least 2% for third-party payment systems. If you plan to expand your business, the cost of transferring funds may increase.
- [email protected] Design and Templates
Of course, I have been using Shopify templates and theme integration. After all, Shopify brings a perfect blend of ease of use and versatility in style. This is what I noticed in the process:
- Template Options
Free Themes: By the way, Shopify already includes 10 free themes, which I’ve discovered are optimal for newbies in this field.
Paid Themes: In contrast, paid themes are much more popular and cost about $100. My long-term investigation led me to conclude that these are richer in features and customizable by the user.
- Customization Capabilities
Shall we say that Shopify has a chance of doing this despite it being a self-hosted solution? Yes, that’s right. I made changes to themes that I required without learning a lot of coding.
User Support: Shopify’s Customer Service
From my long years of being their user, it is clear to me that their customer support department is the one that excels the most:
24/7 Availability: Customers have access to support services around the clock, which is the only way to quickly fix various issues at any time.
Multiple Contact Methods:
Depending on my inquiries, I have reached out through chat, email, and phone support, all of which have been effective.
Technical Expertise: They have consistently provided great assistance in repairing software issues. This means that they excel every time they solve really technical problems.
In my experience, this support can be the best way to solve technical difficulties and ask for help with the platform’s functions.
Moreover, Shopify cares about its users. It offers many tutorials and guides to help users keep their eCommerce sites in top shape.
Pros and cons of Magento
This online store solution is open source and quite flexible. However, to enjoy all the benefits of Magento, you must have some technical knowledge and programming skills. You can also contact a Magento development company so that the developers can make all the necessary changes.
This open-source online trading solution has an advanced plugin architecture. With enough skills, you can add any custom feature to your online store.
- Ease of use
Compared to Shopify, Magento is a more complex platform. It is only suitable for users with technical knowledge who want a simple online store with basic features. To get started, you must study the technical documentation about the platform or hire a company that develops online stores so that specialists can perform all the modifications and settings.
- Costing
Users can choose from Magento’s different pricing plans. The first one is the Community Edition. It is a free platform with no monthly subscription, ideal for small and medium businesses.
If you plan to create a large online store, your option is Magento Enterprise Edition. You can use Magento for free. But if you need personal features, you can buy them in the extension store or pay to create a plugin or extension from scratch.
Remember that users pay the cost of hosting separately. Since the Magento platform requires a lot of resources, it will be quite expensive.
- Design and templates
Magento has many online store templates, which can be found in the Magento store repository. Most of the themes are responsive, customizable, and easy to use.
There are 56+ free themes in the store, and paid ones with extra extensions start at $20. But if you need a custom design and want to surprise customers with unique features, you should contact a Magento development company.
- User support
If you will use Magento Community, please note that you need access to official technical support. Magento provides a support service for Magento Enterprise users only.
Regarding the pros and cons of this platform, open-source can be either one or the other, depending on your programming skills. The platform also provides paid and free courses to help you better understand how the platform works.
Magento vs Shopify
Both platforms have enough features to create and use an online store. Let’s compare them!
- Product catalogue management
Adding too many items to your Magento store can slow down your website’s loading speed and cause problems. At the same time, Shopify’s online stores do not have such issues.
- Shipping cost calculation
Magento and Shopify provide powerful and flexible options for calculating shipping costs. Shipping fees are essential for online stores that sell physical goods, especially if you plan to sell to other countries. Shopify online store owners receive discounts from major US logistics companies.
- Discounts and sales
When deciding whether to use Shopify or Magento, please note that this feature is not only included in the Shopify starter plan; it is also available in more expensive plans. As for Magento, the platform includes functionality such as the creation of promotional codes and other related functions.
- Payment systems
When you ask yourself which is better for an online store, Magento or Shopify, consider online payments essential. Shopify provides over 70 payment processing gateways for online payment options. At the same time, Magento does not have the same variety and supports the mandated options. However, you can always use third-party extensions for your online store.
A Comparison of Magento and Shopify: Templates, Themes, and Customization
Magento and Shopify have been partners for my business solutions for a long time. I have gained relevant experience with both. This Text will represent my understanding of the differences in their templates, themes, and customizations.
Templates and Themes
Both Magento and Shopify can help you select the perfect solutions from a great variety of templates. They can be used to make your online store more attractive and specific. However, they are not like this:
Magento allows free access to more themes through its community.
- Shopify, in contrast, offers only a few free themes but also displays a range of premium templates, starting at $79, from which to choose.
- They are both capable of being navigated through tablets, which is truly indispensable in the contemporary bustling mobile transactions.
Applications and Extensions
When we speak about how to extend the functionality, we must note that both Magento and Shopify provide such options:
- Shopify gives you several valuable applications.
- Magento, in particular, presents much more variety through extensions and applications. Nearly everywhere.
Personalization of Content
What the future part of a storeowner is like is that he wants to shop for a certain rarefied material that Magento and Shopify inspire.
- Both enable others to make changes in the HTM and CSS coding.
- If you want the e-commerce platform, you can do so on Magento or Shopify.
Magento is more flexible in customization, especially for developers who like coding. Sadly, this leads to the situation where Magento is awarded the most flexible terms for coding. At the same time, Shopify lures users purely by providing a user-friendly interface that exceeds graphic customization with mere clicks.
As we said before, Shopify is more user-friendly. The admin panel allows you to customize colors, themes, and other parts of the design.
Magento vs Shopify: Price Comparison
You can install both platforms for free. Shopify gives users 14 trial days to evaluate the features. Magento is an open-source platform, so you can use it for free.
Features Magento Pricing Shopify Pricing
Monthly Basis Lite Plan: $ 9
Basic Plan: $29
Shopify:$79
Advanced Plan: $299
Shopify Plus: $2000 onwards
Hosting: It depends on the chosen hosting provider. The cost is included in each monthly Plan; no additional expenses exist.
Themes Free to $499 Free to $180
Applications Free to $15000 From $15 per month
Domain $10 to $15 per year It’s free. To buy a domain, you have to pay $14 per year.
Developer As per your requirements
Transactions Stripe
2.9%+30¢ Shopify Lite: 2.4%
Basic Plan: 2%
Shopify: 1%
Advanced Plan: 0.5%
Shopify Plus: 0.15%
Shopify Payment: Does not charge transaction fee
Magento vs Shopify Comparison: Conclusion
The Magento platform is free, but users need to purchase hosting and set up and install the system themselves, which is quite difficult for users who do not have technical knowledge.
