The digital revolution has reshaped the retail landscape, with Ecommerce at the forefront of this transformation. Online shopping has become an integral part of our lives, offering unprecedented convenience and accessibility.
If you are a business owner, establishing a strong online presence is more than essential. However, diving into the world of ecommerce can be tedious, especially when it comes to choosing the right platform for your online store.
That’s where this guide comes in. We’ll delineate a number of ecommerce platforms along with their benefits and pitfalls, helping you make informed decisions. Whether you’re a seasoned retailer looking to expand online or an entrepreneur starting from scratch, this article has got you covered.
Top Ecommerce Platforms in 2024
Leveraging the expertise of our Shopify developers, we have compiled a list of the top ecommerce platforms, highlighting their pros and cons to make life easier for you as an online business owner.
- BigEcommerce
- Shopify
- Commercetools
- Volusion
- Ecwid
- Wix
- Magento
- Salesforce Commerce Cloud
- WooCommerce
- PrestaShop
1. BigCommerce
In the bustling world of e-commerce, BigCommerce has emerged as an incredibly powerful platform. Since its inception, this software-as-a-service solution has been steadily climbing the ranks, now supporting thousands of online stores worldwide.
What sets BigCommerce apart? For starters, it’s earned the trust of some heavy hitters in the retail world. Even tech giants like Sony and telecommunications leader Vodafone have jumped on board.
But BigCommerce isn’t just for the big leagues. Its platform supports scalability, making it an ideal choice for businesses at any stage of growth. Whether you’re a budding entrepreneur or an established brand, BigCommerce offers the tools to help you thrive in the digital marketplace.
One of BigCommerce’s standout features is its extensive integration capabilities. Want to sell on Amazon, Google, or Walmart? BigCommerce has got you covered. Plus, it takes care of the nitty-gritty details like web hosting, security, and payment processing, allowing you to focus on what really matters – growing your business.
Price: From 15-day free trial to $299 per month
2. Shopify
Undoubtedly, Shopify is the one name that stands out in the universe of ecommerce for budding entrepreneurs and established businesses alike. This versatile Software-as-a-Service (SaaS) platform is renowned for offering a comprehensive toolkit for digital storefronts.
At its core, Shopify is not just about selling products – it’s about providing a complete ecosystem for online businesses. From processing payments to managing shipping and fulfillment, even dabbling in email marketing, Shopify wears many hats.
For small business owners and causal programmers dipping their toes into the e-commerce waters, Shopify’s appeal is clear. The platform takes care of the technical heavy lifting – think PCI compliance and security measures – allowing you to focus on your products and customers. Not to mention that with Shopify’s user-friendly interface, mobile-responsive designs, and customizable checkout process, getting your store up and running is remarkably simpler.
Price: From $39 per month to $2300 per month
3. Commercetools
Commercetools, a German-born SaaS powerhouse, has made waves in the ecommerce world with its headless, MACH-based approach. This means it offers unparalleled flexibility for tech-savvy businesses to build highly customized online stores.
While this freedom is a dream for developers, it can also be a double-edged sword. The platform’s API-first nature means businesses need a strong in-house tech team to handle integrations and customizations. This can be a game-changer for large enterprises with the resources to build out a bespoke ecommerce experience. However, smaller businesses or those without a dedicated tech team might find themselves overwhelmed.
The flexibility of Commercetools can also slow down development, making it challenging to introduce new features or fix issues. But that doesn’t mean Commercetools should not be utilized at any cost. If you’re a large enterprise with a deep bench of developers and a clear vision for your ecommerce platform, Commercetools could be your dream come true.
Price: Flexible Pricing Model
4. Volusion
Released in 1999, Volusion is a long-standing and revered ecommerce platform that prides itself on user-friendliness. It’s a good fit for businesses seeking a straightforward way to set up an online store without deep technical expertise. With a focus on ease of use, Volusion offers a suite of tools for managing products, inventory, and orders.
While this solution does not offer the same level of flexibility as some competitors, Volusion excels at providing a solid foundation for small to medium-sized businesses looking to establish an online presence. It is pertinent to state here that while Volusion filed for bankruptcy in mid-2020, the platform is still up and running.
Price: From $35 per month to $229 per month
5. Ecwid
Ecwid is a popular ecommerce platform that resembles the properties of Shopify with one key benefit: it’s free of cost. For the free version users, the only fees you have to pay while using this platform is when you are processing your credit card.
With this platform, integrating custom code has never been easier – forget about manually writing each line of code. So, this means that this tool works as a nifty alternative to Shopify while being simplistic to use for those with no coding experience.
Price: From free to $89 per month
6. Wix
Looking to build a user-friendly website for your brand without any technical expertise? Wix might be your go-to platform. While it is not primarily an ecommerce platform, an increasing number of startups, small business owners, and enterprises are using it as a means for building ecommerce websites from scratch.
It is pertinent to state here that Wix has gained immense mainstream adoption thanks to its capabilities like enabling simplistic website creation and building professional yet user-friendly websites.
Price: From $17 to $159 per month
7. Magento
Previously known as Magneto and now renamed to Adobe Commerce, this is a powerful ecommerce solution that interestingly can be hosted as a Platform as a Service Solution (PaaS). Importantly, this is an open-source tool which means that you have full access to the source code as a developer or just a casual user. Additionally, the freedom offered by Magento enables you to have full control over your site.
But this doesn’t mean Magento is the solution to all your problems. Its renowned flexibility comes with its own cost like dependency on third-party professionals like designers and developers to build and maintain an ecommerce site. Similarly, a lack of technical support can sometimes leave Magento users in the dark, leaving them without useful and valuable information.
Price: Flexible Pricing Model
8. Salesforce Commerce Cloud
To manage your business sales via digital channels in a unified manner, Sales Commerce Cloud is a powerful and reliable option. This platform is particularly useful for large-scale companies looking to gain access to a variety of tools and dealing with complex software.
It is pertinent to state here that this tool can be somewhat challenging for developers to use given its level of complexity, Also, it is a costly solution as compared to its competitors – this platform might not be suitable for you if you are an owner of a startup or medium-sized organization.
Price: Flexible Credits
9. WooCommerce
An open-source and free-of-cost WordPress plugin, WooCommerce enables users to convert their blogging sites (or other websites of different niches) into user-friendly online stores. From SEO support to multiple channel options, WooCommerce stands out as an ecommerce solution.
But there are some pitfalls associated with this plugin as well. After every update, customers themselves are solely responsible for installing security patches to thwart any cyberattack. This means additional resources and extra costs for maintaining your ecommerce store. Moreover, if you are not an experienced programmer, you will need to get the services of a development team – this will force you to spend a larger amount of money.
Price: Free to use (website hosting cost ranges from $3.95 to $5000)
10. PrestaShop
PrestaShop, an open-source platform based in Paris leverages the power of PHP alongside MySQL for database management. This dynamic combination creates a versatile synergy, don’t you think?
Given its open-source nature, PrestaShop is ideal for you if you are looking to build a highly customizable online store tailored to your needs. With its native support for multiple languages and multi-storefront, claiming that PrestaShop is exceptionally beneficial for startups and enterprises alike would not be an embellishment.
But this platform doesn’t come without its own challenges. As a business owner, you are the one responsible for installing security patches and installing the latest updates. Also, you must hire a developer to manage the technical aspects of your online store, causing you to spend more money than initially estimated.
Price: Free to use
Final Thoughts
When it comes to pinpointing an ecommerce platform, there is no black and white solution. As a business owner, what you need to do is analyze your online store’s requirements and choose a solution that best suits the demands of your project’s requirements.
