28 Feb How to choose between WooCommerce and Shopify for your eCommerce Store
A guide to choosing WooCommerce or Shopify, and what they cost.
What’s right for your eCommerce startup or growing online store?
You might do a lot of reading across the web to see if there is advice on whether to choose Shopify vs WooCommerce. Most of the articles are about rating which is best and why. We think they are both amazing tools for running ecommerce stores, each with their unique benefits for startups or even larger online stores. Here is how we quide our clients, and insight into pricing & costs.
A simplistic overview:
Shopify is powerful, reliable, and easy to use, offering lovely templates and brilliant customer support. With Shopify, you’re paying a monthly premium for a solid platform and is most start-ups favoured choice.
WooCommerce is the ecommerce plugin that turns any WordPress site into a powerful online store. It’s an open-source platform, and therefore free to install, making it ideal for cost-conscious users, but you’ll need to pay for things like hosting, security & software updates.
6 Questions we ask, to help you choose which is best for your ecommerce store
When choosing an ecommerce platform, we ask our clients these six questions. We found the answer to these questions allowed us to make a best choice for a client, specially when they’re at the beginning phase of a ecommerce store.
Q1. Will you need Point of Sale & Multiple Location Stock Control?
Shopify comes with Point of Sale software. Built in. Which means that if you ever have multiple stores with limited stock or variants of each item, then Shopify is a better choice. A client of ours, Funky Pants, who sell at events, from their warehouse, have wholesale orders and then added online sales, manages their stock and sales through Shopify.
WooCommerce does have plugins to do this, but it’s not built with POS in mind. So if you’re looking for stock management, multiple stock locations, sales (retail, online & wholesale) management and basic accounting in one, then Shopify is the obvious choice.
Shopify’s point of sale software that runs best on a tablet (or desktop/laptop). This means that your stock numbers are always up to date. So if you have limited stock of each item or limited stock of a specific SKU, somebody couldn’t buy it online, if the warehouse has just sold to a walk-in.
So as an example. Let’s imagine you’re selling at the market or in a store. You person wants to buy an item. You go into the system and it shows that it’s sold (ie it’s the last item of that SKU in any of the stock locations). So you’d put it aside and let the client know it’s sold (and if there is anything else that they would like instead obviously). The system will help to never sell (or take money for) a product twice.
So if you’ve got limited stock numbers of items (SKUs), or stock is in multiple locations, then Shopify is a better out-the-box choice.
It’s not to say that WooCommerce hasn’t got good point of sale plugins, or stock management plugins, that will do the same (and much more customisation). But because of the built-in integration ecommerce, POS & stock of Shopify, it’s, it’s a quicker for start-ups.
Q2. Do you want to own the platform that runs your eCommerce store?
Quite a simple concept:
WooCommerce you own.
Shopify they own.
Although you own your store on Shopify, it’s never yours to take away and host somewhere else. It’s usually not an issue, and most people are getting comfortable with Cloud based software (or SaaS platforms). Even the most popular accounting systems like Quickbooks or Xero are on platforms that aren’t yours. The data is yours. You can download the data, but without the platform’s software, it’s not very useful. You can’t republish it on your own server or locally (ie on your computer). You can rebuild a website from the data, but it’s not an easy migration process. Basically, if you stop paying your monthly license fee, you loose access to your data.
This is not the same with WordPress & WooCommerce. There is no monthly license fee. You can “package” your website and change hosting companies or providers. However, there is a monthly hosting fee (explained later in the “What they cost” section). And if you stop paying your hosting fee, you loose access to your data.
You will have a domain & email hosting monthly fee to pay anyway (even if you have Shopify hosting your website and domain). Shopify does not host your email, they only do email forwarding.
So if you don’t like cloud or SaaS services (or it’s a company principle), you don’t want to be bound to their fees, or have intense security protocols, then Shopify isn’t for you.
Q3. Do you need more than just an eCommerce store?
WooCommerce is completely extendable to whatever you want to be, because it’s built on the WordPress platform. Therefore the benefits of WordPress and the plethora of plugins come with your WooCommerce store.
So, for instance, if your blog is important for you, then WooCommerce is a better option. WordPress is the best blogging platform in the world and has better blog & SEO features built in.
Another example, is if you want to integrate a monthly emailing system. You can link a separate software platform like MailChimp with Shopify. But, if you want your emailing system integrated into your website, then emailing plugins like ACY Mailer for WordPress, are really good at bulk emails and larger databases (and cost way less than MailChimp). MailChimp is a SaaS service so if you don’t pay your monthly fee, you loose access to your data. However with ACY Mailer, it doesn’t cost extra to host, as you have one hosting fee for WordPress (regardless of the number of Plugins you add).
So if you have non-ecommerce store features or software needed (marketing tools like a blog, emailings or forms), or you want a catalogue of product but not to purchase online, then WooCommerce is the better choice.
Q4. Can you afford the Percentage of Transaction Fee?
On top of the software package fee, Shopify now charge 2% of online sales (on a basic package), 1% on the normal and 0.5% on the advanced package. So why are you going to pay a % to Shopify on top of your package fee (see below pricing)? They look after the software, and there is no doubt, the software is unbelievable. If you have WooCommerce, you (or your developer) will need to keep the software up-to-date to run smoothly and avoid hacks or intrusions.
In other countries of the world (not South Africa), you can use the Shopify payment processing system, and then the % charge is waivered.
If you host your own WordPress with WooCommerce you don’t have have a % of sales, however you do have hosting fees. Usually around R99.00 per month for a basic package with a database. This includes your own email hosting, email boxes and aliases are bundled in that fee.
With WooCommerce, you need to look after your software and do regular updates. Sometimes you can do it on your own, but a lot of the times, people that own WordPress and WooCommerce sites will outsource the maintenance of the software to update it, and if anything breaks, that they can fix it at the same time. At some stage you need a bit of code knowledge, or certainly deep knowledge on hosting when things go wrong or there is a hosting platform code upgrade (like a PHP upgrade).
Whereas, with Shopify things tend not to go wrong. You don’t need to run updates and nothing usually breaks (unless you customised the code).
With both platforms, plugins might come to the end of its life. Less likely on Shopify, as most of paid plugins will have updates. So it’s not to say that you don’t do any sort of updates or maintenance on a Shopify site, but in general, you don’t necessarily need a developer to help you with Shopify. For that service, they’re gonna charge you a % of turnover.
Some stores with low margins on products that they sell, where 2% is lot of their margin, then Shopify is not ideal. Some people have very little knowledge of software or SaaS services, then WooCommerce is not idea.
Q5. Will you outgrow Shopify or need customisation in the future?
At some stage, larger ecommerce stores grow out of Shopify. As much as it’s a a brilliant platform, the extendability or SEO capabilities are not as good or customisable as WordPress & WooCommerce. Plus, the % turnover can’t be avoided, and when turnover increases, and that % percentage could become a significant cost.
TNNG run intensive SEO programmes, and because we know that sometimes a structure of the way that files are made inside Shopify like the strings to your images doesn’t give you a link back to your, your URL, but actually gives you a link back to Shopify where the images, you lose out on a lot of backlinks. If you have images published outside of your site. So there’s some tech elements to Shopify that you might grow out of.
WooCommerce is completely scalable & customisable because it’s open-source PHP. However, because its open-source, the “out the box” features (or stable) are not as good as Shopify.
It also means that if you ever want to change something in the Shopify code or the way that it works, you are limited to what you can do with Shopify. Custom coding is available, but it’s not built on PHP like WooCommerce which has unlimited development opportunities and community around the world who are developing in PHP.
Shopify had great plugins that will extend the functionality of Shopify to most probably do anything you might need, or you can have a plugin made. But WooCommerce has more plugins available, usually for free, and the code is yours to change and develop into anything you require.
Q6. How quickly to you want to start your online store?
Shopify beats WooCommerce hands down in this area because the platform’s sole purpose is selling online. WooCommerce is also fairly easy to get started, but to configure and get to work exactly like you want, takes a bit longer than Shopify.
Developers will argue that WooCommerce is better, because they’ve got control over the code, and is the more extensible and customizable platform. However, most startups, just want a paint-by-numbers approach and start trading as quickly as possible.
With Shopify, the time it takes to get the store up and running, integrate payment gateways, shipping modules and even Facebook & Google Merchant Centres, is undoubtedly quicker and simpler.
The templates and framework of a Shopify sites are fairly rigid in structure, and for a good reason. Shopify have mastered the product focused user interface and ecommerce user experience. Shopify store templates do end up looking more or less the same as they stick to the same functionality and framework.
If you want a site to be different, and not work the same same as all the other online stores, then WooCommerce is usually a better route to go. For instance, some clients just want to sell tickets or a really good catalogue, maybe even a wishlist or shopping cart, then the user submits an enquiry (ie there is no need for delivery, payment or final pricing to be captured).
In Summary
Shopify is the best eCommerce software, for out-the-box, easier setup and to start online trading quickly. If the above questions have swayed, or forced, your options away from Shopify, then WooCommerce is the best alternative.
If you’re thinking, “but what about Magento or PrestaShop or any of the other cloud based stores like Wix or BigCommerce?”. We’ve worked with most of them, but our most successful case studies and stores have been built on Shopify or WooCommerce.
Shopify vs WooCommerce: Pros and Cons
Shopify Pros |
Shopify Cons |
| Hosted software – Shopify includes hosting and security, plus you don’t need to use any code to build a brilliant online store | Transaction fees – Shopify is the only platform to enforce its own transaction fee, unless you use its own gateway, Shopify Payments (which is not available in South Africa) |
| 24/7 support – have your issues resolved around the clock to keep your customers and sales figures happy | Costly apps – it’s easy to rack up an expensive yearly bill for your apps |
| Multichannel integration – sell on other channels like Google, Facebook and Pinterest as a built-in feature | Information architecture & URL structures don’t translate to the best possible SEO ranking performance |
WooCommerce Pros |
WooCommerce Cons |
| Limitless customization – as an open-source platform, you can use code to customise your store to however you want | Not beginner-friendly – unless you have some coding knowledge, you’ll struggle to build the online store you want on WooCommerce |
| Scalable – WordPress & WooCommerce with their fantastic flexibility allow you to add software and features for almost any online marketing or business process | Hosting – is not included. You still need to have a hosting provider for your WordPress and WooCommerce install |
| Excellent value for money – it’s free to install, plus the extensions are mostly reasonably priced, helping you add greater functionality to your store at a low cost | Not every plugin is works well, or approved by WooCommerce. Specially the free ones. So you have to rely on user reviews and ratings. |
Shopify vs WooCommerce: Pricing & What they Cost
Shopify |
WooCommerce |
| Shopify Basic ($29/month) + 2% transaction fee |
Basic (R99/month) |
| Shopify ($79/month) + 1% transaction fee |
Basic (R99/month) |
| Advanced Shopify ($299/month) + 0.5% transaction fee |
Basic (R99/month) |
| Payment Gateway: (Same)
PayGate: PayGate Fees: PayFast Fees: |
Payment Gateway: (Same)
PayGate: PayGate Fees: PayFast Fees: |
| Software Maintenance (Free) | Software Maintenance (R650/month) |
| SSL Certificate (Free) | SSL Certificate (Free) |
| Top Level Domain: (Same) .co.za (R125/year) .com (R225/year) |
Top Level Domain: (Same) .co.za (R125/year) .com (R225/year) |
| Email Hosting: 1Gb Storage/5Gb Bandwidth = R19/month 2Gb Storage/10Gb Bandwidth = R19/month 5Gb Storage/20Gb Bandwidth = R99/month |
Email Hosting: Included in R99 hosting package |
Shopify vs WooCommerce: Themes, UI/UX Design & Development Prices
Shopify |
WooCommerce |
| Premium Themes: $48 to $99 |
Premium Themes: $29 to $59 |
| UI & UX Design: Time: 16 hours R10,400.00 |
UI & UX Design: Time: 16 hours R10,400.00 |
| Setup & Configuration: Shopify Settings (difficulty – medium) Time: 8 hours R5,200.00 |
Installation, Setup & Basic Configuration: WordPress & WooCommerce (difficulty – hard) Time: 16 hours R10,400.00 |
| Product Catalogue, Categories, Detail Pages & Configuration Time: 8 hours R5,200.00 |
Product Catalogue, Categories, Detail Pages & Configuration Time: 8 hours R5,200.00 |
| Shipping or Courier Configuration: Time: 4 hours R2,600.00 |
Shipping or Courier Configuration: Time: 4 hours R2,600.00 |
| Payment Gateway Configuration: Time: 4 hours R2,600.00 |
Payment Gateway Configuration: Time: 4 hours R2,600.00 |
| Product Base Population: Initial Population of Product & Categories to match UI & UX design: Time: 4 hours R2,600.00 |
Product Base Population: Initial Population of Product & Categories to match UI & UX design: Time: 4 hours R2,600.00 |
| Non Product Pages Base Population: Initial Population of About Us, Contact, Home to match UI & UX design: Time: 4 hours R2,600.00 |
Non Product Pages Base Population: Initial Population of About Us, Contact, Home to match UI & UX design: Time: 4 hours R2,600.00 |
| Testing, Go Live, Google Analytics, List on Search Engines: Time: 4 hours R2,600.00 |
Testing, Go Live, Google Analytics, List on Search Engines: Time: 4 hours R2,600.00 |
| Overall Build Time: Time: 52 hours R33,800.00 |
Overall Build Time: Time: 60 hours R39,000.00 |
| Design, Photography & Copywriting: The above excludes the imagery & graphic design outside of the UI & UX, photography & retouching, plus copywriting & editing: Budget for at least an extra 16 hours: R10,400.00 |
Design, Photography & Copywriting: The above excludes the imagery & graphic design outside of the UI & UX, photography & retouching, plus copywriting & editing: Budget for at least an extra 16 hours: R10,400.00 |
| Customer Support: Free |
Customer Support: None. You’ll need to find your own answers from the manual, forums or ask your developer for help. |
Some good reading for Pros and Cons and other overviews:
Website Builder Expert: WooCommerce vs Shopify: Who Comes Out On Top?
eCommerce Platforms: WooCommerce vs Shopify (Feb 2021): Which One Is the Absolute Best?
Shopify Prices Review – Just How Much Does Shopify Cost?
Choosing the right eCommerce Platform