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Shopify alternatives

Compare WooCommerce, Squarespace, Wix, and BigCommerce as Shopify alternatives by monthly cost, transaction fees, hosting, and how much control you need.

What do you need to change?

Merchants usually look beyond Shopify for one of three reasons: the total monthly cost once a plan, apps, and fees are added up; the extra transaction fee when Shopify Payments is unavailable or not wanted; or wanting to own the code and hosting. WooCommerce answers the ownership question. Squarespace and Wix suit a shop that is one part of a broader website, and BigCommerce stays hosted but builds more in and adds no fee for its listed payment providers.

A focused editorial selection based on the linked official documentation. Fit notes are our judgment, rather than firsthand benchmark results or a universal ranking. How we select and verify information.

Shopify alternatives at a glance

Shopify and its alternatives: main focus and free option
ToolBest forFree option
Shopify (current)Merchants selling physical or digital products online, on social channels and marketplaces, and in person, without managing hosting.3-day free trial
WooCommerceStores that want control over their code, data, and hosting, or that already run on WordPress.Free plugin; hosting extra
SquarespaceSmall brands and creatives whose shop sits inside a design-led website, alongside bookings, content, or memberships.14-day free trial
WixSmall businesses that want a flexible visual site builder and a shop on the same platform.Free plan; payments need Premium
BigCommerceGrowing stores that want more built in rather than added through apps, including B2B and multi-storefront selling.15-day free trial

Four alternatives to consider

E-commerce platforms

WooCommerce

Consider WooCommerce when you want a free, open-source store on WordPress with no platform fee, and someone can look after the hosting and updates.

A free, open-source e-commerce plugin for WordPress, extended with free and paid extensions and run on hosting you choose.

Pricing model
The core plugin is free under the GPL-2.0 licence, with no monthly subscription, platform fee, or revenue share. You pay for WordPress hosting, any paid extensions, and your payment provider's processing fees.
Before choosing
You choose and pay for hosting, so decide who will keep WordPress, WooCommerce, and your extensions updated, backed up, and secure before comparing costs with a hosted platform.
E-commerce platforms

Squarespace

Consider Squarespace when the shop sits inside a design-led website with a portfolio, services, or courses, and you would move to Core to avoid the 2% fee.

A hosted website builder with designer templates and built-in commerce for physical products, digital downloads, services, subscriptions, and courses.

Pricing model
There is no free plan; every site starts with a 14-day free trial with no card required. Basic, Core, and Advanced plans are billed monthly or annually. Basic adds a 2% transaction fee on online store sales, which Core and Advanced remove; digital content and memberships carry separate fees by plan.
Before choosing
On Basic, 2% of online store sales goes to Squarespace on top of payment processing; work out the monthly revenue at which Core becomes cheaper.
E-commerce platforms

Wix

Consider Wix when you want a flexible drag-and-drop or AI-built site with a modest shop, bookings, and point of sale on the same platform.

A drag-and-drop and AI website builder with online stores, bookings, payments, and point of sale, on hosting managed by Wix.

Pricing model
Building a site is free on a Wix address with Wix branding. Accepting payments needs a Premium plan that supports it, Core or above; the first upgrade to Premium has a 14-day money-back guarantee.
Before choosing
Neither the free plan nor the Light plan can take payments; compare the ecommerce features in Core and Business before choosing.
E-commerce platforms

BigCommerce

Consider BigCommerce when you want a hosted platform with promotions, multi-currency, and B2B features built in, and your payment provider is on its embedded list.

A hosted commerce platform with built-in promotions, multi-currency, B2B, and headless options, and plans tiered by annual online sales.

Pricing model
A 15-day free trial with no card required. Core, Growth, and Scale plans are tied to your trailing 12-month online sales and move up automatically past each threshold; Scale charges 0.9% on sales above its monthly cap. Self-serve plans add a fee on orders through payment providers outside BigCommerce's embedded list.
Before choosing
Your plan depends on sales volume, not only features; project a year of sales and confirm your payment provider is on the embedded list, which includes Stripe and PayPal.

When Shopify may still fit

Keep Shopify on the shortlist when you sell across your own store, social channels, marketplaces, and in person, and Shopify Payments is available where you trade. Digital products can be sold with no extra fee.

Shopify Payments is available only in some countries; if you cannot or will not use it, add your plan's third-party transaction fee to your payment provider's own fees.

Before you switch

  1. Add up a full month at your expected sales for each candidate: plan, apps or extensions, payment processing, and any platform or transaction fee.
  2. Import a sample of your products with variants and images into each candidate, and plan redirects from your current product URLs.
  3. Place test orders in test mode, including a discount code, a partial refund, and an international address.

Frequently asked questions

Is there a free alternative to Shopify?

WooCommerce is free to download and use with no platform fee, but you pay for WordPress hosting, any paid extensions, and payment processing. Wix lets you build a site for free, but taking payments needs a Premium plan. Squarespace and BigCommerce offer free trials rather than free plans.

Which Shopify alternative has no transaction fees?

WooCommerce charges no platform fee or revenue share. Squarespace removes its 2% online store fee from the Core plan upwards, and BigCommerce adds no fee for orders through its embedded payment providers, although its Scale plan charges 0.9% on sales above a monthly cap. Payment processing fees apply everywhere.

Which Shopify alternative can I self-host?

WooCommerce, which runs on your own WordPress site and is open source under GPL-2.0. Squarespace, Wix, and BigCommerce are hosted services.

Is Squarespace or Wix better than Shopify for a small shop?

In our judgment, they suit shops where the store is one part of a content-led website, such as a portfolio, bookings, or a blog, with a modest catalogue. Shopify is built around commerce first, with more sales channels and point-of-sale options.

Shopify vs Squarespace

Shopify vs Squarespace: compare a commerce-first platform with a design-led website builder by trial, transaction fees, and where you can sell.

Read the guide

Shopify vs WooCommerce

Shopify vs WooCommerce: compare a hosted commerce platform with a free, open-source WordPress plugin by total cost, control, and upkeep.

Read the guide

Sources and check dates

Provider documentation supports the product and billing descriptions. Confirm current limits and terms before choosing a plan.

Shopify

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WooCommerce

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Squarespace

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Wix

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BigCommerce

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ShowMeYourSaaS also offers commercial product coverage. These guides follow our editorial selection criteria; placement is not a purchased ranking. Send a correction with the page and a supporting source.