Top 7 Shopify Alternatives to Grow Your Online Business in 2024

As an entrepreneur or a small business owner, you might question the need for Shopify alternatives when leading industry giants like Sephora and PepsiCo swear by it. But the more important and interesting question is — is Shopify ideal for you?

No cloud-based multi-channel eCommerce platform is a one-size-fits-all solution. Whether you choose Shopify or its alternatives, your decision should hinge on crucial concerns like ease of use, cost, and customization requirements.

So, in this handy guide, we’ll take you through:

7 top Shopify alternatives and their features
Pros and cons
Pricing plans
User reviews
A sound framework for choosing Shopify alternatives

Let’s dive right in.

Table of Contents

Key Takeaways

BigCommerce, Magento (Adobe Commerce), and WooCommerce are robust, customizable, and scalable Shopify alternatives for established businesses looking for control over their website and wanting to scale up.
Wix and Squarespace are feasible Shopify alternatives for small and medium businesses focused on design and establishing a brand identity.
Ecwid is an excellent option for small to medium businesses wanting simple add-on stores, as the platform gives several widgets and plugins.
PrestaShop is a perfect Shopify alternative for a small to medium-sized tech-savvy team looking for a budget-friendly option, as it is open-source and fully customizable.
When choosing a Shopify alternative that best fits their needs, Small businesses must consider scalability, technical expertise, add-on costs, expected profit margins, and long-term goals.

Why Consider Alternatives to Shopify?

You’re probably looking for Shopify alternatives because of some potential limitations. Here’s why several small businesses search for alternatives to Shopify in 2024.

Limited scalability for stores with larger catalogs

A true nightmare for any small business is drowning in a sea of orders while needing more tools and capacity to fulfill them.

While Shopify Plus offers several added features to scale your business, a complex catalog will attract variable fees based on your revenue model. Shopify’s basic plans limit users to 100 SKU numbers, which can be small for small businesses keen on expanding their catalog.

Lack of a flexible payment model

Each Shopify plan comes with a native payment provider called Shopify Payments, which accepts all primary payment methods. However, choosing one of the 100 alternate payment methods as your primary gateway can cost you up to 2% of every transaction in total!

You’ll also be giving up some premium features, like being able to transact in multiple currencies without Shopify Payments. Extra costs for premium themes, add-ons, and apps can slowly escalate your monthly expenses as your business starts to scale up rapidly.

Limited options for customization and SEO

Shopify offers numerous customizable themes and templates for their eCommerce stores. Shopify also provides custom development for users who want a highly customized user experience, specialized functionality, or intricate design. What’s the catch?

It requires deep knowledge of Shopify’s Liquid programming language or hiring a Shopify specialist to get the job done. Shopify is too limiting in this scenario.

There are also several caps on your control over SEO elements like sitemaps, canonical tags, and advanced schema markup. If you rely heavily on organic traffic, then these limitations can hamper your growth in the long run.

Restrictions on some business models

Shopify may not work effectively with a subscription model or digital services. Even if you’re selling physical products, some niches like wellness and health are heavily regulated by Shopify’s Acceptable Use Policy.

It’s just not working out for your store!

Finally, you might feel frustrated with Shopify’s customer care responsiveness, lack of data portability, or international selling limitations. Perhaps others in the industry have warned you of further limitations and you wish to avoid that.

Whatever the reason, you have several options available to you, and we recommend carefully evaluating them before making a choice.

7 Top-Rated Shopify Alternatives for Small Businesses

Platform	Ideal For	Key Features	Pricing and Free Trial
BigCommerce	Businesses scaling up, requiring flexibility & minimum maintenance	Robust SEO features, no transaction fees, scalability	$29-$299 (15 Day Trial)
Wix	Newcomers and small businesses focused on design	User-friendly and intuitive, excellent templates	$17-$159 (14 Day Trial)
Squarespace	Creatives and businesses that prioritize aesthetics	Award-winning design templates, built-in content management	$16-$52 (14 Day Trial)
Magento (Adobe Commerce)	Established businesses looking for a robust and scalable solution	Highly customizable and scalable, large community support	Custom (30 Day Trial)
Ecwid	Small businesses looking for add-on stores	Easy integration with an existing website, free forever plan	Fee – $89 (14 Day Trial)
PrestaShop	Tech-savvy businesses looking for a budget-friendly option	Free, open-source, and very customizable	Free – custom (No Free Trial)
WooCommerce	WordPress users requiring full control over store	Large plugin ecosystem, easy integration with WordPress sites	Free with add-on costs for hosting, etc. (No free trial)

In 2024, these are the top 7 Shopify alternatives to consider, along with their pros and cons. Scroll on to the next segment for a detailed pricing plan breakdown.

1. BigCommerce

BigCommerce is one of the leading cloud eCommerce platforms that hosts over 60,000 SMBs and over 2000 large enterprises. It’s a top Shopify competitor for a good reason. It gives you enhanced control over your content and SEO and lets you create larger online stores more easily.

Although there are several gorgeous themes, you’ll have to pay for the majority of the extra themes. But the customization features are worth the premium price, especially if it’s within your budget.

Pros

No transaction fees on over 55 payment gateways
Easy-to-use, drag-and-drop visual editor for storefront design featuring a few free or premium (paid) templates
Fully customizable and rewritable URLs for all leading search engines
Robust SEO features like microdata, 301 redirects, and CDN
Access to several free apps and features like bulk pricing tools, product swatches, and advertising and analytics apps
Customization options for B2B stores

Cons

Initial setup may be slightly complicated for new users
There are only 7 free themes available. You’ll be charged for the premium templates
The standard plan doesn’t offer an abandoned cart feature
A yearly sales threshold applies to pricing plans. You’ll automatically be upgraded to the higher plan if you cross the threshold, which may end up costing more

Ideal for

small, medium, and large B2B & B2C stores planning substantial growth
B2B and B2C stores requiring flexibility and minimum maintenance
enterprises looking for connectivity with multiple apps

2. Wix

Wix is a popular website builder platform used by leading businesses worldwide. It offers an entire suite to build your website from scratch using Wix Editor and Wix ADI (Artificial Design Intelligence).

The key advantage of Wix is that users with limited technical and coding expertise can create responsive, attractive websites for their eCommerce stores.

Pros

Its user interface is simple and easy to use even if you lack technical expertise
Over 900 customizable templates catering to diverse industries
Smart suggestions and AI tools help with all stages of website creation
Personalized SEO tools give you greater control over your URLs and search indexing
Built-in email marketing suite

Cons

Some templates may lack full responsiveness
It offers over 500 applications, including WordPress plugins, but the number is limited compared to other players
While desktop website speeds are high, mobile website speeds are slower
The free plan doesn’t allow the use of your domain name
You can’t change your templates while your website is live
The premium plans are on the expensive side

Ideal for

Newcomers and small businesses focused on website design with limited technical know-how
Enterprises with a smaller inventory or content-driven website
Wix Studio Editor is suited for professional website designers to include intricate, versatile design features

3. Squarespace

Squarespace is an all-in-one website builder tool that caters to small businesses and solopreneurs. It comes with in-built eCommerce, content management, and marketing plug-ins and offers various stunning templates. This, coupled with reasonable pricing plans, makes it an excellent option for small businesses.

Pros

Its intuitive drag-and-drop editor requires minimal coding knowledge
Offers over 140 award-winning design templates
eCommerce features are fully integrated into all pricing plans
Blogging feature includes scheduling posts, AMP support, and hosting podcasts
Has a page limit of 1000, compared to 100 page limits in Wix

Cons

Fewer advanced eCommerce tools compared to Shopify
Limits on video storage in the basic plans might increase costs if you plan to host multiple videos
Offers only one sub-navigation menu, making it unsuitable for websites needing deep menu hierarchy
Only 47 external apps can be integrated, which is low compared to competitors

Ideal for

Creatives and eCommerce stores prioritizing aesthetics
eCommerce stores wanting to establish a strong online presence
Businesses integrating blogs into their website

4. Magento (Adobe Commerce)

Magento has a rather dramatic corporate history. While it’s been around since 2007, it was purchased by eBay in 2011. It’s owned by Adobe and renamed Adobe Commerce in 2021.

It’s a feature-packed open-source platform that remains highly popular with store owners and small businesses. It offers a built-in CMS system for eCommerce stores. Big players like Nike, Liverpool FC, and Land Rover have also seen immense success using this platform.

Pros

It is highly customizable and flexible, making it suited for complex catalogs
It offers advanced and built-in SEO features, including creating unique category paths for URLs and automatic Google roadmap generation.
Extensive omnichannel integration options, including mobile websites & apps, physical storefronts, and social media channels
Active community of over 300,000 developers worldwide who offer support and clarifications
Provides international scalability
Supports B2C and B2B hybrid business models

Cons

The technical barrier is relatively high, especially for beginners with less know-how
It requires a dedicated server to host it, making it challenging for emerging brands or brands looking to experiment
Hosting, maintenance, and plugin costs can add up to make it expensive relative to Shopify

Ideal for

Established businesses that need a flexible, robust, and scalable platform

5. Ecwid

Ecwid has been around since 2009 and was acquired by Lightspeed in 2021. It is a popular SaaS eCommerce platform that now hosts over 897,000 shops.

The name Ecwid is a portmanteau for eCommerce widgets. As the name gives it away, it’s best used as a widget for an existing site. However, the free plan, zero added transaction fees, and easy user interface make it a great alternative to Shopify.

Pros

Can quickly adapt to your site’s existing theme
Easy to install and use with just a few HTML or Javascript lines
It makes setting up your online store easier and faster
Features like a shipping calculator are available even on the free plan
Create responsive storefronts across devices
Its POS functionality allows users flexible payment methods, including payment at physical locations

Cons

Limited customization options and may not be suited for larger stores with complex catalogs
Limited SEO capabilities, like the inability to edit URLs
Only premium users get access to phone support
You cannot create a complete eCommerce website using Ecwid

Ideal for

Small businesses looking for add-on stores
New and upcoming businesses with a website

6. PrestaShop

PrestaShop is a free eCommerce platform suited to small businesses on a tight budget. This open-source platform is available in over 75 languages since 2007. Today, it powers over 250,000 stores worldwide.

With over 15 years of experience, PrestaShop is a veteran in the game, and the team behind it offers great value and features. However, you must spend on a hosting package and domain name.

Pros

Free of cost and open-source platform
Easy to download and install even if you have slow internet connectivity
Budget-friendly and minimal licensing requirements
Pre-installed stater modules make it extremely easy to use
Offers around 4000 plugins to get extra features ranging from admin tools to niche add-ons
Supports multiple languages and currencies

Cons

Design options may be limited for larger stores
Steep prices for tech support on premium plans
Investing in your own web hosting and domain name

Ideal for

Tech-savvy businesses looking for a budget-friendly option
Businesses looking to expand international distribution

7. WooCommerce

WooCommerce is one of the most popular, free, and open-source eCommerce plugins for WordPress. Users can create, manage, and launch online stores from their WordPress websites.

Launched in 2011, it has since emerged as a leader in the online marketplace and one of the top Shopify competitors. It gives users complete ownership over their content and is highly scalable, too.

Pros

No transaction or recurring fees
Seamless integration with WordPress
Over 50k plugins to boost store performance and enhance functionality
Large community of users offering extensive support
Offers extensive customization options, including developing new extensions
Includes plugins for SEO optimization
Easily upsell products post-purchase

Cons

Configuring and maintaining your store could be challenging without knowledge of HTML or CSS
You’ll have to pay for domain hosting yourself
You may not find a plugin with your requirements and may have to hire a developer
Can’t use it on any other CMS platform

Ideal for

WordPress users who require complete control and customization of their store

Plans and Pricing: An Overview of Shopify Competitors

Let’s explore the pricing tiers and plans of top Shopify alternatives so that you’re making a confident choice without breaking your marketing budget.