Shopify Vs WooCommerce – What’s Best For Your Business?

We work with two of the most popular and fastest growing e-commerce platforms on the market, Shopify and WooCommerce. Each solution offers many benefits and features but deciding which option to go with depends on your individual needs. Let’s compare the features of each platform and look at how to choose the best e-commerce solution for your business and online store.

What is Shopify?

Shopify is a web based e-commerce software which allows you to build an online store to sell your products. There is no need to worry about installing, upgrading or maintaining any software or web servers since Shopify hosts the software. Shopify prides itself on its fast and easy set-up, robust features, and beautiful design templates. They offer several pricing plans in order to accommodate the size and needs of your business.

Shopify Features

• A collection of over 100 premium and free design templates to choose from
• Content management system to control the navigation, content pages and design
• App Store with over 1500 plugins to extend the functionality of your store
• POS system and Retail package add-ons to sell in store or on the go
• Social media integration to help promote your website and products
• SEO friendly structure with built-in e-commerce analytics and reports
• Blogging platform with ability to moderate comments
• Accept payments directly with Shopify or over 70 supported payment gateways
• Automatic shipping rates from major carriers like UPS, USPS, and FedEx
• Support for fulfillment solutions such as Amazon, Rakuten, and Shipwire
• Sell products directly on your existing website or Facebook page
• Discount codes and coupons to runs sales and promotions
• Abandoned checkout recovery emails to remind visitors to complete their purchase
• 24/7 support via phone, live chat, email, tutorials and community forums
• Hosting and SSL certificate are included

What is WooCoomerce?

WooCommerce is a free e-commerce plugin for WordPress that allows you to sell products and services on your website. WordPress is a free open-source content management system, and combined with WooCommerce it offers endless flexibility and customization for your online store. Developers and store owner have complete control with this powerful e-commerce solution which powers more online stores than any other platform in the world.

WooCommerce Features

• Choose from over 30 official designs or integrate with 1000s of compatible WordPress themes
• Seamless integration with your existing WordPress website and blog
• Over 300 free and paid extensions to enhance your store plus access to 1000s of plugins made for WordPress
• Sell physical or digital products, and even affiliated products
• Runs on WordPress – recognized as one of the best platforms for SEO practices
• Geolocation support making shipping and tax calculations simpler
• 5 pre-installed payment gateways and the ability to add numerous others
• Flexible shipping options with multiple shipping methods and zones
• Multiple options for discount coupons and codes
• Built-in analytics and reporting capabilities
• Open source software makes it fully customizableand flexible
• Support via tickets, community forums, and documentation
• Self-hosted solution so you retain full ownership and control of your website and data

Conclusion: Shopify vs WooCommerce

Shopify and WooCommerce both offer attractive designs templates, numerous shipping and payment gateway options, and SEO and marketing features, along with extensions to further improve your online store. Each e-commerce platform has its own advantages but both can be great options for setting up an online store.

We recommend Shopify for your business if:

1. You are a start-up businesses, new to e-commerce, or do not currently have a website
2. You also want to sell products in a physical store, trade shows, or on-the-go
3. You don’t want to worry about hosting and software upgrades
4. You want something easy to manage with excellent resources and support

We recommend WooCommerce for your business if:

1. You already have a WordPress website or planned to use WordPress
2. You require custom features and functionalities for your online store
3. You want access to a larger variety of designs and extensions
4. You want full control over your store and you are a more tech savvy user

Once you have a clear idea of the kind of e-commerce website you want to build it will be easy to decide which platform is right for your business.

Interested in learning more about which e-commerce platform is best for your business? Get in touch today or tell us about your requirements online. We’ll be happy to help!