If you’re planning to start your online store to enjoy the lifestyle of online entrepreneurs, having no bosses, and doing things on your own terms, you can find tons of articles online that show you how easy it is to start. But let us tell you a secret: it’s not easy. That’s why we have compiled a list of the 7 best ecommerce platforms.
To make your journey easier you need:
- The right tools;
- Solutions – not problems;
- Professional support.
That’s why we have laid it all our for you. Why is this list different? Because there is no fluff, only actionable advice, and some extra help along the way to address all the difficulties you’ll come across to build a successful online business.
What is the Best Ecommerce Platform?
We wanted to tell you one more secret, but this is not the case: Shopify is the best ecommerce platform. So, why do you need to read the features of the other six ecommerce sites? Because you’re different. Not all (aspiring) entrepreneurs are equal: you have different goals, different needs, different ways to approach things, and different passions.
The first step is always having a plan, or your passion might become a burden if it turns out to be unprofitable. Therefore, choose a plan that allows you to sleep soundly despite challenges, something that allows you to say, “Fine, I did what I had to do.”
Choosing the right ecommerce platform allows you to get all this while taking care of practical matters: is that platform useful to my market? Does it allow for a high level of personalization? Is it intuitive? Is it expensive? Does it include tools that can help me with digital marketing? Does it give me access to data?
This last point is pivotal. When you start selling online, and especially if you plan to act globally, you don’t only need to know your business, but also the different markets you deal with. For instance, you might prefer places where people have certain salaries to better set your pricing strategies, or you might need more information to choose a specific market instead of another.
You can discover all the things you need to improve, as well as all the things you’re doing right thanks to data. It can seem overwhelming, but don’t worry: we’ve studied tailor-made solutions to make you successful with your business.
To get back to our list, we’ll tackle all the points above to help you make informed choices about ecommerce. This is a market that should reach $7.4 trillion sales by 2025 according to Statista – a good reason to join the party, isn’t it?
The 7 Best Ecommerce Platforms for Your Online Business in 2022
- Shopify
- WooCommerce
- BigCommerce
- Ecwid
- Vendasta
- Adobe Commerce
- Zoho Commerce
#1 Best Ecommerce Platform – Shopify
Overview
Chosen by millions of aspiring and established online entrepreneurs, Shopify is the one-stop solution to build data-driven online businesses from scratch in almost 200 countries.
You can easily create a business and manage it even from mobile: Shopify allows you to create, store, sell, ship, accept payments and use marketing tools while giving you full access to data, knowledge, support and marketing tools.
Benefits
- Intuitive platform that supports hundreds of customizable themes for your shop;
- Integrated application store you can use to add extensions to your online business platform;
- Shopify’s online courses if you need more help to plan and manage your business and marketing activities;
- Free logo maker, brand name generator, service to buy the domain for your online store and unlimited hosting;
- If you’re more interested in investments and management than in creating your business from scratch, you can buy an established shop on the integrated marketplace;
- You can get support from both Shopify’s theme and communities;
- Inventory management, sell in person, logistics and shipment tools;
- You have access to data on performance, sales, payments to improve your online business according to objective parameters.
Pricing
- Basic: $29/month;
- Shopify: $79/month;
- Advanced: $299/month.
50% discount available for yearly plans.
Takeaways
The reason why Shopify is considered the best ecommerce platform is straightforward: it has everything for everyone. But don’t take our word for it: you can enjoy their 14-day free trial.
#2 Best Ecommerce Platform – WooCommerce
Overview
WooCommerce is the plugin you can use to turn your WordPress website into an ecommerce platform.
Compatible with the most widely used content management system, WooCommerce allows you to sell and integrate payment options with your WordPress website all over the world.
Benefits
- You can further customize your online store thanks to WooCommerce extensions;
- You can manage your store from your mobile device;
- Both the platform you create and the marketing channels are fully customizable;
- High level of automation;
- Inventory management available;
- Suitable for both digital and physical products;
- Possibility to integrate local payment gateways and accounting software;
- Open-source platform;
- 30-day money back guarantee.
Pricing
There are some costs to consider when using WooCommerce: hosting costs – if you don’t already own a website, domain, paid integrations for advanced features, and WordPress eCommerce – that starts from $59/month – if you want to make the most out of your online shop.
Takeaways
Even if you have the opportunity to hire a WooCommerce expert, and add the basic version of the plugin to your premium WordPress website for free, this ecommerce platform is mainly suitable for developers and for those who want to have full control over their online businesses.
#3 Best Ecommerce Platform – BigCommerce
Overview
With a strong focus on its customers and marketing strategies, BigCommerce is among the best ecommerce platforms for beginners and experienced online entrepreneurs.
Its university, partners and strong support will make it easier for you to build your store and plan a strong marketing strategy across the most popular channels.
With BigCommerce, you can use inventory management tools, create personalized experiences for your customers, and benefit from different payment and shipping providers.
Benefits
- Integrated blog that allows you to easily integrate search engine optimization with your digital marketing efforts;
- Integrations for widely used marketplaces like Amazon;
- Intuitive social media channels integrations – like Facebook and Instagram;
- Support from professionals;
- High level of personalization: BigCommerce offers pre-designed themes, but also tools for developers and SEO experts;
- Suitable for both B2B and B2C commerce;
- Conversion-driven tools that allow you to turn visitors into buyers;
- Full access to data to manage your store and inventory, evaluate your marketing strategies and never miss a sale;
- BigCommerce is available worldwide, supports over 100 currencies and any language.
Pricing
Here’s the Essential pricing plan of BigCommerce:
- Standard: $29.95;
- Plus: $79.95;
- Pro: $299.95.
Takeaways
BigCommerce is the choice of those who want intuitive solutions without giving up on full customization. You can try it by yourself thanks to their 15-day free trial.
#4 Ecwid
Overview
Ecwid has a major advantage: you can use it for free and forever.
All educational tools are included: you can learn from their blog, community, podcast, guides, tutorials, and you can even create a demo version of your online store to make sure it works correctly before the official launch.
Ecwid also helps you with marketing – thanks to social media, marketplaces and SEO tools integrations. You can create your e-commerce and choose to manage it from different devices.
Benefits
- Free-forever plan;
- Demo version to test your store;
- Integration with Google Shopping and eBay (US);
- Live chat with the support team;
- Availability of inventory management tools;
- Social media integrations;
- Opportunity to use Ecwid’s integrated SEO tools to further optimize your marketing strategies;
- Different points of sale;
- Application to manage your store from your mobile device;
- POS integration.
Pricing
Ecwid’s pricing plan gives you many options:
- Free: $0;
- Venture: $15;
- Business: $35;
- Unlimited: $99.
Takeaways
Ecwid’s free plan is the right choice for those who have no budget to start and plan to scale up their stores over time. Start from scratch and reach the Unlimited!
#5 Vendasta
Overview
Vendasta secured its place in our list of the best ecommerce platforms, even if it’s not the easier to use, nor the less expensive of our proposals.
But if you want to find an all-in-one platform and focus on local businesses to stay ahead of competitors, Vendasta is for you.
From white-labeling, to data snapshots, to advanced sales tools, the platform offers you everything you need to succeed.
You can also choose to use Vendasta for different purposes:
- An ecommerce platform,
- A marketplace where you can find products to sell,
- A market where you can sell your software to other business owners.
Benefits
- Different solutions for different types of businesses and roles;
- You can use all the features of the platform, but under your brand;
- You can benefit from the marketing experience of Vendasta’s professionals;
- You can manage payments, integrations and task from the same platform;
- You can use the marketplace if you don’t have your own products to sell.
Pricing
Vendasta has different pricing plans depending on the option you choose, but if you plan to use the platform to create your ecommerce site, this is the monthly plan:
- Individual: $119;
- Team: $579;
- Advance: $1,159.
- Custom.
Takeaways
Think globally, buy locally: that’s the motto of those who choose Vendasta. You can use the free trial to test Vendasta and discover a platform you can use for both B2C and B2B sales.
#6 Adobe Commerce
Overview
The former Magento is suitable for any type of company.
Adobe Commerce is a part of the Adobe Experience Cloud that benefits from the Magento technology. Actually, you can choose two options to use this ecommerce:
- Adobe Commerce offers you a fully customizable and easy-to-use platform under a license,
- You can use Magento Open Source for free, but you need to know about coding.
This freedom of choice makes Adobe’s solution for ecommerce one of the most flexible available, which is chosen also by top brands like HP.
Benefits
- Full customization;
- Designing your store couldn’t be easier;
- You can customize the experience of your clients for specific segments;
- You can centralize all the data related to your business, and even choose to define specific metrics and get business insights;
- You can easily manage your product recommendations;
- You can add countless integrations, currencies and languages to your ecommerce;
- You have full control over your inventory and can decide to sell both online and in physical stores.
Pricing
Adobe Commerce prices are based on businesses’ Gross Merchandise Value (GMV) and Average Order Value (AOV).
Magento Open Source is free.
Takeaways
Coding skills or not, the only limit to Adobe Commerce is imagitation. Contact the sales team and discover what Adobe can do for your business.
#7 Zoho Commerce
Overview
Zoho Commerce allows you to get everything you need thanks to the different features developed by Zoho: each of them can be easily integrated with your online business.
You can build a website, use the email service that also offers you a branded address, choose one of the ecommerce templates available or build your store from scratch, manage the store and analyze data.
Moreover, learning tools make it possible to learn everything you need to know to use all Zoho’s services.
Benefits
- Email and search engine optimization marketing available;
- You can manage catalogs and orders, and use shipping integrations to deliver your products;
- Availability of automation tools;
- Affordable plans;
- Availability of different payment gateways to meet your customers’ needs;
- Opportunity to easily migrate from other ecommerce platforms if you change your mind.
Pricing
Zoho Commerce’s monthly plans are suitable for beginners and advanced online entrepreneurs:
- Starter: £22;
- Professional: £60;
- Advanced: £140.
Takeaways
Zoho developed a set of services that make it possible to manage every aspect of your business. You can start your 30-day free trial – no credit card required!
What Are Ecommerce Platforms?
When you’re looking for the best ecommerce platform, you’re looking for software that makes it possible to buy and sell products and services online.
It enables you to create a fully functional online business that is compliant with the regulations of the areas where you want to run your ecommerce site. It also provides you with all of the functionalities that serve to handle the back-end and front-end operations that are necessary for each segment of your store.
Conclusion
If the first step of any business is having a plan, then you need the right tools to reach your goals. The best ecommerce platform we proposed is Shopify, but we also included six other platforms that can suit any online entrepreneur’s needs.
Each ecommerce platform gives you tools that range from marketing, to intuitive design, to shipping and tax integration. But the most critical point is always data: use it, and you’ll be ahead of emotion-driven decisions and most of your competitors!
