That said, the paid plan is among the most expensive we’ve seen at a hefty $59 per month, and there doesn’t seem to be any kind of savings for annual plans. Big Cartel provides e-commerce shop essentials, including SEO optimization and real-time sales dashboards, at a lower-than-average price. If you’re looking for a cheaper alternative to selling services than Web.com, Big Cartel is also an option. The provider accommodates service-based businesses by allowing you to sell appointment times, bookings or sessions. This can be useful for various professionals, from photographers to coaches. You can then embed a Google calendar in a custom booking page to allow people to see upcoming availability.
Shift4Shop
Scope out what people have to say on tech review platforms such as G2, Capterra and Trustpilot. If the e-commerce platform has an app, you can also check app store reviews. If your e-commerce platform is down or experiencing tech glitches, you are at risk of losing out on sales. You want to know there’s a reliable customer support team you can reach easily when needed. Look for diverse support options, such as email and chat, and check availability hours.
Best E-Commerce Platform for Beginners
BigCommerce is at the higher end of the pricing spectrum, with no freebie option available and a monthly plan starting at $39 per month. As is often the case with e-commerce platforms, you can save some money if you opt for a long-term plan, paying $29 per month, billed annually. The good news is that even the lowest-tier plan comes with unlimited products. Given the higher prices, it’s a disappointment that hosting isn’t included. Our top ecommerce platforms are based on objective performance data, feature set and, value. Compare the best ecommerce website builders to find one that fits your needs.
- In portal development since 2005, we advocate savvy use of technologies to disrupt the way ecommerce business is done.
- Magento (now Adobe Commerce) is the second most-used with 250,000 merchants and BigCommerce comes in third place with 60,000 active users.
- People who aren’t familiar with WordPress will struggle with the technical details.
- Our experience shows that investments of $70,000-$250,000 is the average for ecommerce portal launch for the middle market (platform license and content cost are not included).
- Where’s WooCommerce scored 5, they got 2.5 and the median is 3.7.
- We also considered platforms that enable multiple currency and store, allows integration with Google services, and 3PLs.
Hosting
The Premium Plan is $79/month and includes all that plus real-time shipping rates. If you’re a solopreneur, you are your e-commerce business’s marketing manager, web manager and customer support team, among other things. Wix makes it easy to juggle all those balls with a multifaceted approach covering not only site creation and hosting but also inventory management and customer refunds. The Core plan includes basic e-commerce features, such as site analytics, marketing tools and the ability to accept payments.
It offers customizable templates, secure payment processing, and integrations with popular apps. Plus, it has a user-friendly interface and excellent customer support. Those looking to start an ecommerce business don’t necessarily need an ecommerce website. Online marketplaces and social selling platforms are alternatives to standalone websites. These may be ideal options for first-time founders looking to attract customers to a new business online.
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A headless e-commerce platform is one that decouples the front-end of the website (the “head”) from the back-end (the “body”), which provides the e-commerce functionality. This allows for greater flexibility and customization, but can be more difficult to set up and manage. Although there is a Zoho Commerce-specific review page on G2, it has less than 100 reviews, averaging a little over 4.0 out of 5 stars. Similarly, Capterra has a Zoho Commerce review page but with fewer than 100 reviews averaging a little over 4.0 out of 5 stars. All in all, we wouldn’t trust the online feedback, since it’s either limited or not specific to Zoho’s e-commerce platform.
Adobe Commerce’s mostly used for free, but there’s a paid level for enterprise solutions for large ecommerce businesses. It is expensive; the annual licensing fee costs tens of thousands of dollars. That’s huge, but it’s on the cloud, reconciliation definition faster, and comes with additional features, including automatic trigger-based email campaigns and automatic cross /upsell. Squarespace pricing starts at $23/month ($16/month when paid annually) for the personal plan.
Many D2C ecommerce businesses handle everything from creating a product to delivering it to your doorstep. For example, an online footwear brand might design, sell, and ship sneakers directly to customers. It’s a very easy website builder that has a great inventory system, powerful analytics tools, and great integrations to all the various social media channels. It has a more limited collection of website templates but it is cheaper than all the other paid platforms, with prices starting at $18/mo. If you’re considering Adobe Commerce, X-Cart is worth a look. It’s one of the best free ecommerce platforms if you have dev resources.