12 Best Ecommerce Platforms for Small Businesses: A Comprehensive Guide
The ecommerce landscape is evolving rapidly, and small businesses need a robust platform to succeed in the competitive online market.
With so many options available, it can be overwhelming to choose the right one.
In this article, we’ve compiled a list of the 11 best ecommerce platforms for small businesses, considering factors like ease of use, pricing, and scalability.
Read on to find the perfect ecommerce solution for your small business.
Table of Contents
- Introduction
- Shopify: A Popular Choice
- BigCommerce: Flexible and Scalable
- Wix: User-friendly and Creative
- Squarespace: Sleek and Stylish
- WooCommerce: The WordPress Ecommerce Solution
- PrestaShop: A Powerful Open-source Option
- Magento: Feature-rich and Customizable
- Weebly: Simple and Affordable
- Ecwid: Integrating Ecommerce Everywhere
- 3dcart: A Comprehensive Ecommerce Solution
- Volusion: A Beginner-friendly Platform
- Conclusion
1. Introduction
In today’s digital age, having an online presence is crucial for small businesses.
Ecommerce platforms enable businesses to sell products or services online, manage inventory, and process transactions.
To help you make an informed decision, we’ve analyzed the 11 best ecommerce platforms for small businesses, focusing on their features, ease of use, and pricing.
2. Shopify: A Popular Choice
Overview
Shopify is a widely popular ecommerce platform designed for businesses of all sizes. It offers a variety of features, including a wide range of payment gateways, easy inventory management, and marketing tools.
Shopify is known for its user-friendly interface, making it a great choice for beginners.
Pricing
Shopify offers three pricing plans:
- Basic Shopify ($29/month)
- Shopify ($79/month)
- Advanced Shopify ($299/month)
Each plan includes different features, and businesses can choose the one that suits their needs best.
3. BigCommerce: Flexible and Scalable
Overview
BigCommerce is a robust ecommerce platform suitable for small to large businesses. It provides an extensive range of features, such as customizable templates, advanced SEO tools, and a comprehensive app store. BigCommerce is known for its flexibility and scalability, making it an ideal choice for businesses looking to grow.
Pricing
BigCommerce offers four pricing plans:
- Standard ($29.95/month)
- Plus ($79.95/month)
- Pro ($299.95/month)
- Enterprise (custom pricing)
Each plan comes with different features, and businesses can upgrade as their needs expand.
4. Wix: User-friendly and Creative
H3: Overview
Wix is a popular website builder with ecommerce capabilities. It offers a wide selection of templates and an intuitive drag-and-drop editor, making it an excellent choice for businesses that want a visually appealing online store.
Pricing
Wix offers three ecommerce pricing plans:
- Business Basic ($23/month)
- Business Unlimited ($27/month)
- Business VIP ($49/month)
Each plan includes different features and storage options, allowing businesses to choose the plan that best meets their needs.
5. Squarespace: Sleek and Stylish
Overview
Squarespace is a website builder known for its sleek and stylish templates, making it a popular choice for creative businesses. The platform offers ecommerce functionality, including inventory management, payment processing, and marketing tools. Squarespace is user-friendly and requires no coding skills to set up an online store.
Pricing
Squarespace has two ecommerce pricing plans:
- Basic Commerce ($26/month)
- Advanced Commerce ($40/month)
Both plans include a range of features, with the Advanced Commerce plan offering additional tools such as abandoned cart recovery and subscription selling.
6. WooCommerce: The WordPress Ecommerce Solution
Overview
WooCommerce is a free, open-source ecommerce plugin for WordPress.
It’s an ideal choice for businesses that already have a WordPress website and want to add ecommerce functionality.
WooCommerce offers a wide range of features, including product management, payment gateways, and shipping options.
It’s also highly customizable, with a vast library of plugins and themes available.
Pricing
WooCommerce itself is free, but there are costs associated with hosting, domain registration, and premium plugins and themes.
Businesses can expect to spend anywhere from $20 to $100 per month, depending on their specific requirements.
7. PrestaShop: A Powerful Open-source Option
Overview
PrestaShop is another free, open-source ecommerce platform that offers a wide range of features and customization options.
With over 300 built-in features, PrestaShop is suitable for businesses looking for a scalable and flexible ecommerce solution.
It also has a vast library of modules and themes to choose from, making it easy to create a unique online store.
Pricing
PrestaShop itself is free, but businesses will need to cover the costs of hosting, domain registration, and any premium modules or themes they choose to use.
Costs can vary depending on the specific needs of the business.
8. Magento: Feature-rich and Customizable
Overview
Magento is a powerful, open-source ecommerce platform that’s best suited for medium to large businesses with a high level of technical expertise.
It offers an extensive range of features and customization options, making it a popular choice for businesses looking for a scalable and feature-rich ecommerce solution.
Magento requires more technical knowledge to set up and maintain compared to other platforms on this list.
Pricing
Magento Open Source is free to use, but businesses will need to cover the costs of hosting, domain registration, and any premium extensions or themes.
Magento Commerce, the premium version, starts at $22,000 per year and is designed for larger businesses with more complex requirements.
9. Weebly: Simple and Affordable
Overview
Weebly is a user-friendly website builder that offers ecommerce functionality for small businesses.
It features a drag-and-drop editor, making it easy to create a professional-looking online store without any coding skills.
Weebly’s ecommerce features include inventory management, payment processing, and marketing tools.
Pricing
Weebly offers three ecommerce pricing plans:
- Pro ($12/month)
- Business ($25/month)
- Business Plus ($38/month)
Each plan includes different features and tools, allowing small businesses to choose the one that best meets their needs and budget.
10. Ecwid: Integrating Ecommerce Everywhere
Overview
Ecwid is a unique ecommerce platform that allows businesses to add an online store to their existing website, blog, or social media pages. It’s an ideal choice for small businesses that want to start selling online without building a new website from scratch. Ecwid offers a range of features, including inventory management, payment processing, and marketing tools.
Pricing
Ecwid offers four pricing plans:
- Free (with limited features)
- Venture ($15/month)
- Business ($35/month)
- Unlimited ($99/month)
Each plan includes different features, making it easy for small businesses to find the right solution for their needs.
11. 3dcart: A Comprehensive Ecommerce Solution
Overview
3dcart is an all-in-one ecommerce platform that offers a wide range of features and tools for small to large businesses. It includes customizable templates, advanced SEO tools, and a comprehensive app store. 3dcart is known for its scalability, making it a great option for businesses looking to grow.
Pricing
3dcart offers five pricing plans:
- Startup Store ($19/month)
- Basic Store ($29/month)
- Plus Store ($79/month)
- Power Store ($129/month)
- Pro Store ($229/month)
Each plan includes different features and tools, allowing businesses to choose the plan that best suits their needs.
12. Volusion: A Beginner-friendly Platform
Overview
Volusion is a beginner-friendly ecommerce platform that offers a range of features and tools for small businesses. It includes a drag-and-drop website builder, inventory management, and payment processing. Volusion is known for its ease of use and excellent customer support, making it a great choice for businesses new to ecommerce.
Pricing
Volusion offers four pricing plans:
- Personal ($29/month)
- Professional ($79/month)
- Business ($299/month)
- Custom (custom pricing)
Each plan includes different features, allowing businesses to choose the one that best meets their needs and budget.
Conclusion
Choosing the right ecommerce platform for your small business is crucial for your online success.
The 11 platforms discussed in this article offer a range of features, pricing, and scalability to suit businesses of various sizes and needs.
Take the time to evaluate each platform and consider factors such as ease of use, available features, and pricing before making your decision.
With the right platform in place, you’ll be well on your way to establishing a strong online presence and growing your small business.
