Choose around the work you want to own
Shopify is a sensible starting point if you want to run a store without taking on server maintenance. WooCommerce deserves a closer look if you already run WordPress and have someone who can manage the technical side. Both can support an independent store. The more useful question is who will keep yours working after launch.
With Shopify, you subscribe to a hosted commerce platform. With WooCommerce, you add commerce to WordPress and choose the hosting, extensions, and maintenance arrangement. That difference affects your budget and your weekly workload, even when the finished stores look similar.
We checked the official pricing and documentation on October 4, 2026. Shopify prices below are for the United States, in USD. For a marketplace comparison, see Shopify vs Etsy.
Try a new Shopify store free for 3 days
Compare a normal working week, not just the launch
Picture adding a product, changing a shipping rule, handling an order, and updating an extension. Decide who handles each job and what happens if a change affects checkout.
Shopify includes web hosting and an SSL certificate in its plans. You still manage your products, policies, payment setup, and chosen apps. A hosted platform reduces infrastructure work; it doesn't remove the need to understand what you've installed. Shopify pricing
For WooCommerce, the maintenance arrangement depends on your host and any support provider you hire. WooCommerce's update guidance covers backups, testing, and checks after an update. If you outsource maintenance, ask whether the quote includes testing a purchase after changes, rather than simply applying updates. WooCommerce update guidance
A solo maker who also packs orders may value fewer technical responsibilities. A business with an established WordPress team may prefer to build on that setup. Neither answer requires choosing the platform with the longest feature list.
Put both options in the same annual budget
| Consideration | Shopify | WooCommerce |
|---|---|---|
| Store infrastructure | Subscribe to a hosted commerce platform | Combine WordPress with a hosting arrangement |
| Total budget | Plan, required apps and payment-related costs | Hosting, extensions, maintenance and payment-related costs |
| Maintenance | Manage store settings and chosen apps | Assign responsibility for updates, backups and testing |
| Fair comparison | Test the same product, shipping and payment requirements | Quote those requirements with the required maintenance |
Shopify Basic is $39 per month when paid monthly, or $29 per month when billed annually at the US list price checked above. Annual billing is a payment commitment, not a month-to-month rate. New stores have a three-day free trial; an introductory paid offer after it is a separate part of the signup terms. Our Shopify pricing guide explains plan selection in more detail.
WooCommerce's core platform is free. Running the store still involves choices such as hosting, a domain, paid extensions, payment processing, and maintenance. Get quotes for the setup you actually need rather than treating “free software” as a complete store budget. WooCommerce pricing
Use three lines in your comparison: recurring fixed costs, transaction-related costs, and paid work. Include app renewals and maintenance in the first line, payment costs in the second, and setup or custom development in the third. Separate introductory discounts from normal renewal prices.
Make the requirements identical. Comparing a bare Shopify plan with a WooCommerce store that includes subscriptions, booking, and custom shipping won't tell you which costs less for your business. Send the same requirements to anyone preparing a quote.
Test a buying journey before buying extensions
Write down a customer's route through your store: choose a size, enter a delivery address, apply an eligible discount, and pay. Check the whole route rather than assuming that several working features will necessarily work together.
Shopify combines built-in features with apps. WooCommerce lets you choose themes and extensions. A theme controls the presentation of the store, but the design you like also needs to handle your product options and work well on a phone.
For a useful trial, pick a straightforward product, one with variants, and one with a different shipping requirement. This is a suggested testing set, not a product limit. It gives you enough variety to spot a practical problem without building your entire catalog twice.
If your business needs a highly specific checkout process, describe the exact change before choosing a platform. Ask which plan or implementation would support it, who would build it, and who would maintain it. Broad claims about customization aren't a substitute for that conversation.
Treat migration as a separate piece of work
An existing WordPress site changes the decision. You might want to keep its publishing workflow, consolidate order management, or rebuild the whole site. Start by separating products, editorial content, customer records, and order history.
Shopify's WooCommerce migration guide covers importing and checking data, configuring the new store, and handling domains and redirects. A redirect sends a visitor from an old address to the relevant new page. Themes and extension behavior need their own plan rather than being treated as ordinary product data. Official migration guide
List the old pages customers actually use and match them to their new destinations. Follow links from those pages into a product and through the buying journey before switching over. A working new homepage isn't enough if the links shoppers arrive through lead nowhere.
For a brand-new store, migration isn't an immediate cost. Still, learning how to export your product and order information is a useful part of evaluating the platform.
Questions worth settling before you commit
Why pay for Shopify if WooCommerce is free? You're comparing more than software licenses. Put hosting, maintenance, and your own time beside the subscription price. The right choice depends on the work your team can reliably handle.
Does Shopify mean I can forget about app maintenance? Keep track of what each app does, what it costs, and which parts of checkout it affects. Someone should still check the store after meaningful changes.
Which platform is better for SEO? A platform alone won't decide your search performance. Choose a setup that lets your team maintain useful product descriptions, clear categories, and helpful supporting content.
What if I need to launch soon? Separate essentials from later improvements. Product information, payment, shipping, and order handling need to work before launch. A custom feature that isn't essential to the first orders can have its own timetable.
Try Shopify with one representative order journey
If you want to keep infrastructure management off your to-do list, start a new Shopify store trial and add a representative product. Work through the payment and shipping settings and decide whether the daily workflow suits you.
Then compare that experience with a WooCommerce quote using the same requirements, including maintenance. You'll be comparing the work and cost of running your store, not two headline prices. Our Shopify setup guide walks through the opening steps.
