Shopify, WooCommerce or custom? Choosing an e-commerce platform
The right platform depends on your products, budget and how much control you need. Here's how the main options compare.
Choosing where your online store lives is one of the most important early decisions you'll make. Switching later is possible, but it's disruptive. Here's how the three most common approaches compare.
Shopify: the all-in-one option
Shopify is a hosted platform: you pay a monthly subscription and Shopify handles hosting, security and updates.
- Good for: businesses that want to launch quickly and focus on selling rather than technology.
- Strengths: reliable checkout, large app ecosystem, easy for non-technical owners to manage.
- Watch for: monthly app fees can add up, and some customisation is limited by the platform. Check current transaction fees and payment options for Canada.
WooCommerce: flexible and self-hosted
WooCommerce is a free plugin that turns a WordPress site into a store. You pay for hosting, and possibly for premium extensions.
- Good for: businesses that already use WordPress, or want content and store closely combined.
- Strengths: full ownership of your site and data, huge flexibility.
- Watch for: you (or your developer) are responsible for updates, security, backups and performance.
Custom-built: for unusual needs
A custom store is built specifically for your business, often on a modern framework with a payment provider such as Stripe.
- Good for: marketplaces, subscriptions with unusual rules, complex product configurators, or stores deeply tied to other software.
- Strengths: it does exactly what you need, with no platform limits.
- Watch for: higher upfront cost and ongoing development to maintain it.
Questions that point to the right answer
- How many products do you have, and how often do they change?
- Do you sell physical goods, digital products, services or subscriptions?
- Who will manage the store day to day?
- Do you need to connect to inventory, accounting or shipping software?
- What's your budget for launch — and for the next two years?
Don't forget the basics: clear shipping and return policies, correct sales tax setup for where you sell, and fast mobile checkout matter more than any platform choice.