You want to open an online store, but don’t know how to proceed. There are many different ecommerce platforms available that offer great features and allow you to build a branded website, but choosing the right platform to launch your online store can be a daunting process. Don’t worry — we’ve put together this guide on what the best ecommerce platforms for online stores are so you can get started straight away.
Choosing an ecommerce platform can be a challenge. You have to consider a lot of factors and make sure the platform is completely customized to your needs. Much like everything else in this industry, there are many eCommerce options available to you. But we’re going to take a look at the best online platforms out there and even give you some suggestions on what to look for when choosing an eCommerce system.
There are a lot of ecommerce platforms out there, but only some of them are suitable to become your online store. This article will walk you through the best ecommerce platform for building an online store depending on your needs.
If you are looking to start an online store, the first thing that might pop in your head is what platform you should use. And no doubt, you will be overwhelmed by all the options out there. But we have stumbled upon a simple solution to simplify your search. Whether you are looking to create a pure-play store or a multi-vendor marketplace, the websites below can help you build it from scratch.
2022 Recommended Platforms
There’s no perfect ecommerce platform, but I’ve narrowed down the top choices.
Choosing the best ecommerce site builder is really based on your needs. We do want to recommend that you consider a few as front-runners – BigCommerce was by far the best overall platform for any business model and performs excellently for SEO.
WooCommerce is catching up with market leaders like Shopify in terms of features and apps. Perfect for private/white label ecommerce sites. Awesome for affiliate marketing. And the strongest option if you want to run a private label & affiliate marketing combo site.
Shopify is the best platform for dropshipping, including print on demand.
Wix works for simple stores. If I were running a local bakery that takes few online orders, I’d choose Wix over Squarespace or Weebly. Wix has come a long way in a few years and its perfectly priced for soloprenuers or small stores.Advertisement
If you’re considering Magento, X-Cart is worth a look. It’s one of the best free ecommerce platforms if you have dev resources. Plus it has made a lot of investment in expanding the product and brand in recent years.
Most ecommerce platforms do a decent job. There is a handful we’d warn you to think twice before committing to, including Magento, Open Cart, Jigoshop, ePages (1&1), WP Ecommerce, CoreCommerce, and Big Cartel. There are much better options available at similar price points. Still, many people use and love these platforms.
Weebly
Founded in 2006 and with about 40 million customers, Weebly is a great option for someone looking for a simple store with marketing automation built in. That will cost you $38 per month vs. using Shopify and Active Campaign ($29 + $17). But if you plan to do any type of marketing, you’ll quickly outgrow Weebly. Don’t use Weebly if SEO is important to you.
Until recently, there hasn’t been a solid focus on ecommerce, and as such, you wouldn’t find some of the sophistication that other top platforms have. Nevertheless, it remains an excellent choice for startup entrepreneurs or those who do not wish to hire a developer. Product Summary Ratings 
Weebly Try For FreeReviewExcellent Value For Basic StoreStunning Template DesignsPowerful Email ToolsTransaction Fees On Lower PlansWeak SEONo Amazon IntegrationValue 2.5Features 2.8Performance 2.6Ease of Use 3.6Design & Themes 4.3Integrations 2.33.0Overall Score User Rating 3.0 3 reviews
Prestashop
Founded in 2007, Prestashop is an open-source and cloud-hosted ecommerce platform that gives the best overall value.
While the word “free” automatically makes most of us salivate, the other costs you will accrue with the free version might make the PrestaShop Ready look like a better option especially if you don’t have the technical skills.
With the free downloadable version, you’ll have to pay for web hosting, SSL certificate, and other modules to complete your store. Also, if you don’t have the heavy technical skills in HTML, CSS, and/or PHP, you’ll have to pay a developer. Nevertheless, that open-code allows extensive integration with couriers, payment gateways, accounting, warehouses, ERP, and more.
You have access to the 16 days trial or pay straight away. It comes with the SSL certificate.
There are ten themes (all free) available in the admin. You might need little knowledge of HTML and CSS as the theme customizer doesn’t have a drag and drop functionality.
The dashboard is straightforward and simple. There’s an onboarding video, but it’s not as comprehensive as Shopify. However, you can achieve most needs through modules that you enable with one click. Those allow better SEO working, Ads, Cross-selling, and social analytics.Advertisement
Pros
- Tons of apps/integrations available
- Strong SEO
- Open source very flexible
- Large and ready-to-help community
Cons
- Slower than the other builders
- Add-ons can add up
- Limited third-party marketing integrations
- Developer skill needed to tweak
- No multichannel functionalities on the hosted version
Product Summary Ratings 
Prestashop Try For FreeReviewTons Of Apps AvailableStrong SEOFlexible and FreeSlower Load TimesApps Can Become CostlyLimited 3rd Party Automation IntegrationValue 4Features 2.6Performance 2.9Ease of Use 2.9Design & Themes 3.2Integrations 2.93.1Overall Score User Rating 4.1 11 reviews
Nexcess StoreBuilder
If you’re considering using WooCommerce, but want a little help making it easier, then Nexcess StoreBuilder can help. It’s not an ecommerce platform, but a service built on WooCommerce. It combines managed hosting, the WooCommerce WordPress plugin, and additional plugins and tools to make it easier for new ecommerce business owners to build and maintain a store.
Pros
- Built on WooCommerce
- Strong SEO
- Managed web hosting included
Cons
- Email accounts aren’t included
- Templates require customization
- No demo available
- No multichannel functionalities on the hosted version
Product Summary Ratings 
Shopify
Shopify is the best platform at selling. If you plan to dropship, rely on Facebook Ads or Instagram marketing – this is the best choice. I wouldn’t use Shopify if I was going to rely on SEO. I also wouldn’t use Shopify if I were creating a large store with many products. I’d use BigCommerce instead.
Shopify is slightly better in several areas over BigCommerce such as post-purchase 1-click upsells – but far behind in terms of performance. I’ve used Shopify on my site before and have worked with many Shopify sites in the past, but I like WordPress better because I have an affiliate revenue model in addition to products. Product Summary Ratings 
Shopify Try For FreeReviewFast Loading & Easy To UseExcellent For Dropshipping1-Click Selling Apps AvailableWeak at SEO/Content MarketingCheckout Not CustomizableApps Are ExpensiveValue 4Features 3.8Performance 3.9Ease of Use 4.9Design & Themes 4.0Integrations 4.64.2Overall Score User Rating 4.2 47 reviews
It’s easy to set up the online store with Shopify’s drag and drop interface. Most beginners to website development can get the hang of it in a few minutes.Advertisement
Their apps are far too many to list.
They also have the Shopify POS for simple brick and mortar stores looking to take payments via the mobile app. Complex stores can use it as well.
Like everything else, they have downsides. The not-too-bad one is that they have just 10 free themes right now. The paid themes hover around $100 to $180.
The big disadvantage they have is SEO. Weak ranking performance highlights one of my concerns with their SEO.
Also, they have a rigid URL structure; you cannot change sections of it. I’ve seen many strange unstructured URLs in Shopify sites well beyond the /products/, /pages/, and /collections/ slug restrictions. I also noticed during our research that websites using Shopify have weak ranking. In terms of SEO, Shopify is very middle of the pack at best.
Finally, they charge transaction fees if you are not using Shopify Payments. And no one likes those. Then again, Shopify Payments is a solid option.
Pros
- Lighting fast load time
- Super easy to set up
- Lots of certified partners to help you
- 1-Click selling
- Allows multiple channel and social selling
- Great themes with varied designs
Cons
- Rated poorly in SEO in consecutive studies.
- Unable to customize the checkout process
- Apps can add up and become costly
- Need a developer for advanced features
Product Summary Ratings Shopify Try For FreeReviewFast Loading & Easy To UseExcellent For Dropshipping1-Click Selling Apps AvailableWeak at SEO/Content MarketingCheckout Not CustomizableApps Are ExpensiveValue 4Features 3.8Performance 3.9Ease of Use 4.9Design & Themes 4.0Integrations 4.64.2Overall Score User Rating 4.2 47 reviews
Wix
Wix ecommerce has come a long way in a few years. When I first started writing ecommerce platform reviews in 2017, Wix wasn’t even on my list. Once they got added to my list, I gave them a really poor rating and would not recommend them.
Now, Wix is a major force in the ecommerce space and they deliver amazing value for solorprenuers and small ecommerce businesses. Wix’s ecommerce features have evolved drastically in a few years, they now offer multi channel integration, abandoned cart recovery, dropship and print on demand capabilities.Advertisement
In previous years, they’ve had significant issues with SEO. Few were resolved; some, like the short extra string to the URLs of blog posts and product pages still remain. That’s not ideal for SEO, especially for large ecommerce businesses.
As you grow, you might need to switch because aside from the limited features, the storage space is 20GB and if you are dealing with lots of heavy digital products or other materials, that space might not do.
It’s beginner friendly. Of all the top website builders that I’ve dealt with, Wix topped most for on-page customer support while creating the store.
You can drag and drop elements to add cool videos, functionality, and create the website you want. They have over 500 themes of which 72 are free. Unfortunately, you’re stuck with whatever theme you chose at the time of publishing your site except if you used their ADI.
Pros
- Tons of free amazing themes.
- Really simple to use and set up
- On-page support for numerous needs
- 72 free themes
Cons
- Trying hard to fight a bad SEO reputation. Made improvements, but tested very poorly.
- Many sites were not secured
- Lacks upselling features and advanced automation
- Difficult to fully customize template
Product Summary Ratings 
Wix Try For FreeReviewTons of Free, Amazing ThemesSimple to Use and Set UpIncludes Marketing AutomationPoor SEO PerformanceWeak Upselling CapabilitiesWeak Integration with AmazonValue 5Features 3.7Performance 3.9Ease of Use 4.2Design & Themes 4.7Integrations 3.54.1Overall Score User Rating 3.0 2 reviews
Shift4Shop
Since its release to the public in 2001, 3dcart (now Shift4Shop) has served over 22,000 online businesses with clientele including PCMag. They have some practical features like unlimited storage and no transaction fees. You can also use their POS, and they support multi-channel selling. In 2021, the company rebranded as Shift4Shop.
Shift4Shop doesn’t do as well as BigCommerce and Shopify despite being older than they are and the reason is clear. It’s not for beginners. Although there is a nice onboarding video when you log into your dashboard, the whole operation is hard to figure out; the builder is not very visually appealing.
The templates they have are more industrial, but they feel outdated. Also, customizing the store takes a lot of time to understand and get used to except for experienced users because there’s no drag-and-drop functionality. Fortunately, there’s a community of developers willing to assist with theme development and other modifications.
I think one of their strongest points is in shipping; they provide advanced shipping solutions with no API required.Advertisement
Similar to BigCommerce, Shift4Shop restricts the volume of sales you bring in on each plan. The lowest which costs $19 per month allows up to 50k.
The value overall is great. I still think it’s missing out by not offering abandoned cart saver as a core feature. Shopify made a move to make it included – really undercutting the competition. Nevertheless, it still has more features out of the box than Shopify.
Pros
- Better blog feature than other SaaS ecommerce
- Supports all the integrations you would need
- Great business user management tools (email, QuickBooks, inventory, etc.)
Cons
- Templates are inline with trends, but never at the cutting edge
- Negative feedback on customer support
- Potential issues upgrading
- Not for beginners
Product Summary Ratings 
Shift4Shop Try For FreeReviewBetter Blog Feature Than ShopifyTons Of IntegrationsGreat Business Management ToolsTemplates Feel DatedNegative Reviews On SupportPotential Issues UpgradingValue 4Features 3.8Performance 3.0Ease of Use 4.3Design & Themes 4.3Integrations 4.13.9Overall Score User Rating 4.5 1 reviews
Zyro
Zyro is an affordably priced SaaS platform targeted at small businesses. Though it’s a relative newcomer to the market, it’s a product from web hosting company Hostinger. In addition to a website builder, they offer a variety of AI tools to help business owners:
- Make logos and favicons
- Resize, upscale, and remove backgrounds from images
- Create a business name and slogan
- Come up with blog post titles and write content
In addition to a drag-and-drop builder to customize your site, there are a variety of free themes to use as a basis for your design. It allows for you to sell both digital and physical products.
Pricing wise, you must use either the Business, Online Store or Advanced Store, plans to take advantage of the online store features. Pricing starts at $4.90/month for the Business plan.
Pros
- Unlimited storage and bandwidth on all plans
- AI tools to handle many tasks
- Marketing integrations included all plans
Cons
- No subscription or recurring billing available
- Room for improvement on SEO
Product Summary Ratings 
Zyro Try For FreeReviewAffordableNo Transaction FeesAI ToolsNo recurring billing optionSlow mobile speedsProduct limitsValue 4.5Features 3.2Performance 3.3Ease of Use 3.7Design & Themes 5Integrations 3.93.9Overall Score
WooCommerce
WooCommerce is the best single platform to run ecommerce and affiliate site under one roof. But the true ecommerce platforms like BigCommerce and Shopify sell better, but not by much.Advertisement
It works with WordPress to turn any website into a functional ecommerce store. Also, there are extensions available for integrating payment gateways, social media, email marketing, 1-click selling, and shipping.
The biggest problem though is not the setup; that can be solved with YouTube tutorials. The problem is scalability. Most users have reported it slowing down as they get more products and customers.
For cost, it is free. Few extensions have prices attached to them, and some WordPress themes are expensive. However, you might not need those extensions, and there are good free themes.
If you are familiar with the WordPress platform, then WooCommerce is a breeze for you. You only have to install it, add your own products and fix your settings.
People who aren’t familiar with WordPress will struggle with the technical details. That includes buying hosting, installing WordPress, setting up your theme and plugins.
Pros
- WordPress is the best platform for SEO
- 1 Click selling app available
- Lots of WordPress experts available
- Highly customizable
- Many marketing options and plenty of other integrations
Cons
- Good hosting can be pricey
- Have to deal with blame game for troubleshooting.
- Virtually zero support
- You need extensions for simple stuff
If you want to use WooCommerce, but need a bit of help on the hosting side, Nexcess StoreBuilder is an option. We cover it in more detail in our section on other builders to consider. Product Summary Ratings 
WoocommerceTry For FreeReviewBest Platform For SEO1-Click Selling Apps AvailableLots of Service ProvidersHosting Can Be Expensive Difficult To TroubleshootNeeds Lots of ExtentionsValue 4.5Features 3.9Performance 3.1Ease of Use 3.3Design & Themes 4.3Integrations 4.14.0Overall Score User Rating 4.8 3 reviews
Volusion
Volusion was founded in 1999 but launched in 2002 as an ecommerce solution provider. It’s a great option for those selling physical products because for now automatic digital downloads after payment is not allowed.Advertisement
Volusion provides an easy to use website builder with drag and drop and in-page editing. There are 11 free themes and a good number of premium themes. Those cost about $180, and you’ll also have to purchase an SSL certificate. That is a hefty extra cost that some other platforms provide for free.
It also doesn’t come with blogging capabilities which is a huge downer mostly in this day where building SEO with blogs is king. To get that, you’ll need to use a third party like WordPress and a plugin or other means to connect the blog to your store.
The dashboard is nicely structured with all of the main action areas in the top navigation menu. You can also manage inventory and work marketing from there. The marketing options include SEO, sell on Google, eBay, Amazon, social selling, rewards, and coupons.
Their prices have a limitation to the number of products you can sell. The first two plans that cost $29 and $79 per month have restrictions of 100 and 5000 products respectively. That may change at some point because they used to have a limitation on bandwidth, but that is no more. The constant improvements give us hope.
Beginner support is a big thing; from the dashboard, you’ll immediately see tons of learning materials available on how to build your store step by step with Volusion, starting and growing your online business.
All in all, it’s a solid platform for subscription ecommerce business. Dropshipping is also good but not print on demand. I would rate it higher if the Amazon integration were better, but that might not matter to you at all.
Pros
- Great onboarding and help center
- Great flexibility with Sitemaps
- Built-in subscription/recurring payments
- SMB friendly
- Well laid out dashboard
- Clear inventory and marketing system
Cons
- Lacks up/cross selling features
- Many sites had poor URL structure
- One of the slower SaaS platforms
- Many of the sites I studied looked VERY dated
- No built-in blogging functionality
Product Summary Ratings 
Volusion Try For FreeReviewGreat On-boarding / Help CenterSubscription/Recurring Payments IncludedSMB FriendlyLacks Up/Cross SellingSlower Load TimesMany Sites Look DatedValue 3Features 3.5Performance 2.9Ease of Use 4.1Design & Themes 3.7Integrations 3.53.4Overall Score User Rating 1.3 2 reviews
Sellfy
Sellfy was founded in 2011 as an ecommerce platform exclusively for digital products. Over the years, they’ve expanded the platform so that no matter what business model you use, you can build your own online store in a matter of minutes. It’s an easy to use website builder that requires no technical knowledge to start using.Advertisement
If you want to start selling online with Sellfy, you have three options:
- Connect your Sellfy store to your existing website
- Attach your store to a custom domain
- Use “Buy Now “and other embed options to make sales from other platforms.
The free plan allows users to sell up to 10 physical products, but doesn’t include a custom domain.
Premium starts at $29/month, with the highest tier plan coming in at $159/month before annual discounts. Compared to other ecommerce platforms, Sellfy is one of the most affordable options. Considering the features and ecommerce functionality you get standard, you can save a lot of money compared to Shopify. You’ll have to invest in some expensive third-party apps to take advantage of things like recurring subscription billing.
Sellfy’s claim to fame is that you can get your store up and running within five minutes. While there are limits on the number of and types of products you can sell on the Free plan, upgrading to a paid plan means you can sell unlimited products, digital products, and subscription products, too.
Sellfy includes its own print-on-demand platform, so you can sell a variety of POD products without relying on a service like Printful or Printify.
Pros
- Free forever plan – All plans come with a 4-day free trial, no credit card required
- Has a Wix integration
- Multiple options for online selling
- No transaction fees
- Email marketing included in all paid plans
Cons
- Poor ratings for SEO traffic
- Limited options for payment gateways
- Must use Zapier to facilitate most third-party integrations
- Missing key marketing tools like 1-click upsells
Product Summary Ratings 
Sellfy Try For FreeReviewFree forever planDigital product sales Built in print on demandLimited integrationsLimited SEO CapabilityPoor Google PageSpeed ScoresValue 4.0Features 2.8Performance 3.1Ease of Use 3.5Design & Themes 5.0Integrations 2.03.3Overall Score
Squarespace
Squarespace is another one of those platforms that offers drag-and-drop. Founded in 2003, they have sleek templates and design capabilities.
If you don’t need a lot of features, try them out. It’s also great for print on demand ecommerce business.Advertisement
The prices are quite low. To start selling, you need to at least be on the Business website plan that’s $18/month when billed annually. Note that you’ll have to pay 3% on transaction fees.
You can escape that with any one of the ecommerce plans at $26 and $40. The top plan allows you to get abandoned cart auto recovery, sell subscriptions and gift cards, and give flexible discounts.
The package comes with all the basic features you’d expect from an ecommerce platform all arranged on the side menu.
The website design part is not that easy though. Their drag and drop editor is not as great as Weebly’s. You might have to try your hands on it a few times before you get the hang of it. When you have gotten past the website design phase, you’ll enjoy the access to marketing, inventory, social selling, SEO, and analytics features.
Squarespace integrates ShipStation and allows you to install Printul and ShipBob from the app section. Real-time calculation of shipping rates from major providers (UPS, FedEx, USPS) is also available.
The biggest downsides are payment processors and third-party applications. They only support Stripe and Paypal. As for the apps, they only integrate with very few third-party tools.
Pros
- Easy To Set Up
- Great For Simple Stores
- Stunning Designs
- Solid SEO tools
- Integrates with ShipStation and ShipBob
Cons
- No dropshipping
- No marketing automation integration
- No Amazon integration
- Could be faster for the price
- No app store for more features and functionalities
Product Summary Ratings 
SquareSpace Try For FreeReviewEasy To Set UpGreat For Simple StoresStunning Template DesignsLimited Ecommerce IntegrationsLimited Payment GatewaysNo Phone SupportValue 3Features 3.0Performance 3.5Ease of Use 3.8Design & Themes 4.3Integrations 2.53.4Overall Score User Rating 3.3 7 reviews
Magento
The large brands like Nike, Procter & Gamble, and Cisco trust Magento. Coding is an integral part of the package. So, if you have a developer or the budget for one – and want something truly customizable and powerful – Magento is a solid choice. You can do and undo till you get the feature-rich online store you want.Advertisement
A big part of Magento is the community. It’s large with developers willing to work on your store for a fee or answer some of your questions free. There’s also a marketplace where you can get extensions and themes to increase the functionality of your platform.
Magento’s most used free, but there’s a paid level for enterprise solutions for large ecommerce businesses. It is expensive; the annual licensing fee runs in tens of thousands of dollars. That’s huge, but it’s on the cloud, faster, and comes with additional features including automatic trigger-based email campaigns and automatic cross /upsell.
Whichever you pick, you’ll enjoy the long list of features that you can extend. Things like discounts, recurring payments, ability to grind SEO, adjust content per user, membership subscriptions, unlimited products, and more.
Pros
- Robust and feature rich
- Strong SEO
- 1-Click selling
- Lots of users and community
- Scalable and highly customizable
- Flexible to choose where you want to host the software
Cons
- Pricey themes.
- Easily Slowed Down
- Requires Development Skills
- Virtually no support.
- Requires ample space and memory to perform well
Product Summary Ratings 
Magento Try For FreeReviewRobust and Feature RichStrong SEO1-Click Selling Apps AvailablePricey ThemesEasily Slowed DownRequires Development SkillsValue 3.5Features 4.4Performance 2.8Ease of Use 2.2Design & Themes 3.7Integrations 3.63.4Overall Score User Rating 3.8 10 reviews
Self-hosted ecommerce platforms
Self-hosted ecommerce platforms require ecommerce store owners to find hosting, deal with installations and oftentimes perform updates to the software manually.
Running an ecommerce website using self-hosted ecommerce software requires developers to maintain and update the website, which can get quite costly and time-consuming.
An example of a self-hosted ecommerce solution is Magento Open Source, which is free to download but will require hosting somewhere. You can choose to host it on-premise or pay a hosting provider. In fact, most open source ecommerce platforms can be deployed on-premise or through a third-party hosting provider.
WooCommerce, a WordPress plugin for WordPress, is also an ecommerce solution that is often hosted through a third-party hosting provider, although it can also be hosted on-premise on your own servers with some technical know-how.
The benefits of this option include more control over your online retail platform, greater visibility of your own data, and a better understanding of data security.
While this route makes sense for some extremely complex businesses, it usually results in higher expenses and lower revenues.
Conclusion
Ecommerce has always been a golden business opportunity. The online store will now be a very profitable and inspiring business. Thousands of online stores come and go each year and still there are companies that are making millions. If you are serious about starting an online shop, then it’s essential to choose the right platform or ecommerce platforms.
Ecommerce is dominating online industry. With increase in the demand for ecommerce and online shopping is increasing day by day. Every business owner, who wants to enter or already present in the market requires to understand what are the strategies required for developing an ideal ecommerce website and how can you utilize the existing possibilities to improve your business. The marketplace competition is becoming tougher day by day which means you need to take your ecommerce website’s conversion rate optimization and user experience performance to a new level. Business is booming with each passing year as far as e-shopping industry is concerned. Since every second person on this planet have access to internet it’s easy for people to do online shopping instead of going out for shopping. Moreover, it has become a trend now so everybody wants to do their shopping through the comfort of their home or office desk table or even while traveling.