Deciding between Shopify vs. WordPress is a big decision.<\/p>\n
Both platforms are excellent for ecommerce sites. But making the right choice depends on your specific needs and goals.<\/p>\n
To make things easier, we\u2019re breaking down what you need to know to choose between Shopify and WordPress to build your next online shop.<\/p>\n
Let\u2019s dive in.<\/p>\n
Shopify is an ecommerce platform specifically for people who want an out-of-the-box solution for building an ecommerce site.<\/p>\n
It\u2019s a good option for people who have big ideas but don\u2019t have the skills to build an online shop from the ground up.<\/p>\n
Here\u2019s why:<\/p>\n
Now, let\u2019s take a look at why WordPress might be a good choice.<\/p>\n
WordPress is a popular website creation platform that many businesses use to create ecommerce sites.<\/p>\n
The driving reason people turn to WordPress vs. Shopify is that WordPress is an extremely flexible and robust platform that can handle more complex sites.<\/p>\n
And it can scale with your business. So, you don\u2019t need to worry about switching platforms down the road if your business takes off.<\/p>\n
Here are a few more reasons why you might consider WordPress vs. Shopify:<\/p>\n
Note<\/strong>: WordPress comes in two versions: WordPress.com and WordPress.org. In this article, we\u2019re discussing WordPress.org. Which is what most people mean when they refer to \u201cWordPress.\u201d<\/em><\/p>\n Now, let\u2019s take a detailed look at how these platforms differ.<\/p>\n Here are some specifics to consider:<\/p>\n Before you can build a website, you need a reliable\u00a0web hosting service<\/a>\u00a0to keep your site running.<\/p>\n Here\u2019s how it works:<\/p>\n To make your site\u2019s content available online, you need to store all your files and data\u2014like images and website code\u2014somewhere safe and stable.<\/p>\n Web hosts store your content on servers for a monthly fee. And ensure people can access your site.<\/p>\n Shopify is fully hosted, meaning they store all the files for your website.<\/p>\n That\u2019s great news for people who don\u2019t want to deal with the headache of finding and selecting a hosting service.<\/p>\n But this convenience comes with a trade-off.<\/p>\n You have less control over the server environment and configurations when you don\u2019t choose your host.<\/p>\n For example, you can\u2019t properly debug (meaning find and fix) issues yourself if you don\u2019t have access to server logs.<\/p>\n For some people, that\u2019s fine. Perhaps you don\u2019t want (or know how) to deal with bugs yourself. But others may want that level of control.<\/p>\n With WordPress, you\u2019re responsible for finding your own hosting platform. Which gives you more control over your server environment.<\/p>\n It also means you\u2019ll have to pay an additional fee.<\/p>\n Hosting plans range in price, depending on factors like the size of your site and how much traffic you receive.<\/p>\n For example, Siteground offers hosting that starts at $2.99 per month for the first year. Which covers up to 10,000 monthly visits.<\/p>\n Both Shopify and WordPress have clean and straightforward user interfaces to help you find what you need. And effectively manage your site.<\/p>\n Here\u2019s how a new site looks in Shopify\u2019s admin:<\/p>\n And here\u2019s the WordPress admin panel for a new website:<\/p>\n Let\u2019s take a closer look at the user experience (UX) of Shopify vs. WordPress.<\/p>\n First up, Shopify.<\/p>\n One thing that stands out with Shopify is the setup guide to help you create your shop:<\/p>\n The setup guide helps store owners choose a template, add products to their store, and configure everything to start selling products.<\/p>\n And adding products is simple. You can do it by adding products individually or bulk uploading products via a CSV file.<\/p>\n Uploading products individually is straightforward. Simply fill out the information (title, description, price, etc.), and Shopify will add products to your shop after you click \u201cSave<\/strong>.\u201d<\/p>\n Setting up an ecommerce store in WordPress isn\u2019t as straightforward as with Shopify. Because you need an ecommerce plugin to sell products on a WordPress site.<\/p>\n Some popular (and free) ecommerce plugins are\u00a0WooCommerce<\/a>,\u00a0WP EasyCart<\/a>, and\u00a0Easy Digital Downloads<\/a>.<\/p>\n With over 5 million installations, WooCommerce (shown below) is the most popular plugin for creating an ecommerce WordPress site.<\/p>\n WooCommerce guides you through seven steps to get you ready to sell your products:<\/p>\n And uploading products is similar to Shopify. You can add them individually or through a CSV file.<\/p>\n To upload products individually, fill out the information and click \u201cPublish<\/strong>\u201d to get your products added to your shop.<\/p>\n Still, Shopify\u2019s the clear winner when it comes to UX. The setup guide is comprehensive and takes users through every step.<\/p>\n But if you\u2019re confident building websites, you likely won\u2019t need this type of guidance.<\/p>\n Both Shopify and WordPress allow users to create a custom storefront or choose from a library of premade themes.<\/p>\n Let\u2019s talk about Shopify\u2019s themes first.<\/p>\n Shopify has more than 140 themes to choose from:<\/p>\n And each theme is almost ready to go right after installation. Just change the text and update the branding to reflect your business.<\/p>\n You could have your storefront ready in a few hours.<\/p>\n WordPress also has a theme library with thousands of free themes. And you can filter them by \u201cE-Commerce\u201d to see ones designed specifically for ecommerce stores:<\/p>\n And because WordPress is so flexible, you can customize just about everything in your site\u2019s design.<\/p>\n But it may take more elbow grease to create a shop on WordPress.<\/p>\n Most themes aren\u2019t ready out of the box and can take you weeks\u2014or months\u2014to finalize. Especially if you\u2019re new to web design.<\/p>\n Luckily, you can buy page-building plugins like\u00a0Divi<\/a>\u00a0that provide ready-made templates and drag-and-drop page builders to speed up the process.<\/p>\n Shopify and WordPress approach ecommerce functionality differently. And which one you choose depends on your needs.<\/p>\n Overall, both Shopify and WordPress let you:<\/p>\n Shopify specializes in ecommerce. So, it has everything you need to start and scale an ecommerce shop.<\/p>\n And in\u00a0Shopify\u2019s App Store<\/a>, you can search through different categories\u2014like \u201cFinding products\u201d and \u201cSelling products\u201d\u2014to find a free or paid app that suits your specific needs:<\/p>\n WordPress also offers free and paid plugins. And over 1,000 plugins are specifically for ecommerce functionality:<\/p>\n But Shopify\u2019s categories make it more intuitive to find apps. WordPress users need to sort through pages of plugins to find what they need.<\/p>\n Both Shopify and WordPress let you sell products beyond your ecommerce store. But it\u2019s easier with Shopify.<\/p>\n Selling beyond your ecommerce store is called \u201cmulti-channel commerce.\u201d<\/p>\n Some examples of multi-channel commerce include selling your products via:<\/p>\n With multi-channel commerce, everything syncs to your online shop so you can keep track of orders and inventory.<\/p>\n For example, your website will list your scarves as \u201cout of stock\u201d if you sell out of them at your weekend pop-up shop. So you don\u2019t need to do manual updates.<\/p>\n Let\u2019s look at Shopify\u2019s multi-channel commerce capabilities first.<\/p>\n Shopify connects your shop to Facebook, Instagram, and Handshake (a wholesale marketplace).<\/p>\n If you want to sell on other platforms, you\u2019ll need extra apps. These apps let you sell products on:<\/p>\n Shopify also connects to a POS system\u2014the tools that make it possible to sell and accept payments in person. So you can sell at locations like brick-and-mortar shops or markets.<\/p>\n WordPress can also connect to different channels like eBay, Amazon, and Google. But setting up multi-channel commerce on WordPress isn\u2019t as straightforward as it is with Shopify.<\/p>\n First, it depends on which ecommerce plugin you use. If you use WooCommerce, you need to download additional plugins before you can connect with any other channels.<\/p>\n For example, you need to download the free\u00a0Facebook for WooCommerce<\/a>\u00a0plugin if you want to sell products on Facebook.<\/p>\n And if you want a POS integration, you\u2019ll need another plugin.<\/p>\n The good thing about WordPress\u2019s vast plugin library is you can often find free options.<\/p>\n WordPress offers more control over search engine optimization (SEO)\u2014a set of processes designed to improve your visibility in search engine results\u2014compared to Shopify.<\/p>\n Why does this matter?<\/p>\n Because generating\u00a0organic traffic<\/a>\u00a0(unpaid visits to your website from search engine results) helps you reach more people and drive more sales.<\/p>\n Let\u2019s say you sell knitted cardigans.<\/p>\n If someone searches for \u201cknitted cardigans\u201d on Google, you want your shop to show up on the first page.<\/p>\n And you do that by ensuring your site is optimized for search engines.<\/p>\n SEO involves many tactics, like improving the technical aspect of your shop (through something called technical SEO) and optimizing individual pages (with something called on-page SEO).<\/p>\n WordPress users have more control over\u00a0technical SEO<\/a>. Technical SEO includes things like submitting your sitemap to Google, creating a logical website structure (shown below), and improving your site speed.<\/p>\n For example, users can choose their own hosting provider. To ensure their site runs fast.<\/p>\n They can also edit configuration files\u2014like the\u00a0.htaccess file<\/a>\u2014to write custom code that helps their shop load faster.<\/p>\n You can\u2019t complete these actions with Shopify.<\/p>\n But tools like\u00a0Yoast<\/a>\u00a0(available for Shopify and WordPress) help users manage aspects of their technical and on-page SEO.<\/p>\n Both WordPress and Shopify have great\u00a0on-page SEO<\/a>\u00a0capabilities that allow you to make sure your individual webpages are optimized.<\/p>\n Both WordPress and Shopify users can:<\/p>\n And whether you use Shopify or WordPress, you can perform\u00a0keyword research<\/a>\u00a0for your site using the\u00a0Keyword Manager<\/a>\u00a0tool.<\/p>\n Here\u2019s how.<\/p>\n Open the tool. To collect keywords automatically, click the green \u201cCreate list<\/strong>\u201d button. (You can also add keywords manually or from other Semrush tools.)<\/p>\n Enter your seed keywords (broad search terms related to your products), choose a country, and input your domain (optional). Click \u201cCreate list<\/strong>.\u201d<\/p>\n Then, you\u2019ll see a list of keyword clusters (groups of keywords relevant to a specific topic):<\/p>\n Choose which keyword clusters you want to include in your blog posts and other webpages. Once you\u2019re ready to create content, click \u201cWrite content<\/strong>.\u201d<\/p>\n Select which device you will write for (desktop or phone) and click \u201cSend keywords<\/strong>.\u201d<\/p>\n This launches Semrush\u2019s\u00a0SEO Writing Assistant<\/a>\u2014a tool to help you optimize your content for search engines.<\/p>\n Either copy and paste your content or type directly in the text editor:<\/p>\n The tool will then make recommendations for improving originality, tone of voice, readability, and SEO. That you can use to improve your content.<\/p>\n If you use WordPress, the\u00a0SEO Writing Assistant plugin<\/a>\u00a0can analyze content in the WordPress editor:<\/p>\n Get Writing Recommendations<\/p>\n with the SEO Writing Assistant<\/p>\n<\/div>\n Both Shopify and WordPress have tools to help users meet the requirements set by the\u00a0General Data Protection Regulation<\/a>\u00a0(GDPR).<\/p>\n GDPR is a set of laws enacted to protect the privacy rights and data of individuals in the EU.<\/p>\n Some activities you can do to comply with GDPR include:<\/p>\n Shopify users can download the\u00a0Privacy & Compliance app<\/a>\u00a0to:<\/p>\n WordPress also has various plugins users can add to their shops to make them GDPR-compliant:<\/p>\n Whichever platform you choose, it\u2019s a good idea to consult a lawyer to see what your shop needs to do to comply with privacy laws.<\/p>\n Both WordPress and Shopify offer multilingual capability, but WordPress lets you translate your shop into more languages\u2014with different currencies\u2014than Shopify.<\/p>\n This is important because having separate pages that use a particular region\u2019s language and currency offers a better user experience.<\/p>\n If you have a German version of your website, for example, anyone located in Germany who visits your site will see that version with prices listed in euros.<\/p>\n WordPress users can create multilingual sites with different currencies through plugins like\u00a0WooCommerce Multilingual & Multicurrency with WPML<\/a>.<\/p>\n There\u2019s no limit on how many languages you add to your shop if you\u2019re using WordPress.<\/p>\n But keep in mind that adding too many languages can cause your site to run slowly (which can affect your SEO performance).<\/p>\n Shopify also makes it easy to add multiple languages and currencies to your shop without needing to recreate each version from scratch.<\/p>\n With Shopify\u2019s Translate & Adapt app, you can add up to 20 different languages to your shop.<\/p>\n And you can add different currencies.<\/p>\n WordPress lets users create multiple shops within a single account\u2014something Shopify doesn\u2019t allow.<\/p>\n Let\u2019s say you start a shop selling dog leashes.<\/p>\n And then you start an entirely new shop selling abstract artwork.<\/p>\n The two niches are verydifferent. And you\u2019d want to separate them onto two different sites.<\/p>\n If you use Shopify, you\u2019ll need to open a new account. Which might be fine for some people.<\/p>\n But for those who run multiple ecommerce shops, logging into several different sites with unique usernames and passwords is a hassle.<\/p>\n With WordPress, you can enable the Multisite feature. Which lets users toggle back and forth between multiple sites in one account.<\/p>\n If you\u2019re comfortable with code, you can enable WordPress Multisite by adding this line of code in your wp-config.php file:<\/p>\n Then, configure your Multisite Network by logging into your WordPress site and going to \u201cTools<\/strong>\u201d > \u201cNetwork<\/strong>\u00a0Setup<\/strong>.\u201d<\/p>\n You can also use a tool like\u00a0InfiniteWP<\/a>\u00a0to manage multiple sites.<\/p>\n Shopify and WordPress both have apps that let users manage their shops on the go.<\/p>\n Say you\u2019re away from your computer and suddenly need to remove a product from your shop. Maybe there are issues with your manufacturer and you need to pull a product offline.<\/p>\n Shopify\u2019s free iOS and Android app<\/a>\u00a0lets users manage products, process orders, run marketing campaigns, and communicate with customers.<\/p>\n If you\u2019re using WordPress and WooCommerce, you can download the\u00a0WooCommerce Mobile App<\/a>\u00a0to create products, manage orders, print labels, and track stats.<\/p>\n WordPress and Shopify are both suited for mobile commerce. But Shopify requires less work to make your shop mobile-friendly.<\/p>\n And nearly half of ecommerce purchases will come from mobile devices by 2024,\u00a0according to Shopify<\/a>.<\/p>\n So, it\u2019s necessary to ensure customers can buy products from your shop straight from their phones.<\/p>\n For your store to be mobile commerce-friendly, it should:<\/p>\n Let\u2019s look at each point in more detail:<\/p>\n All Shopify themes are responsive and look great no matter which devices your visitors use.<\/p>\n Since there are more WordPress themes to choose from, it\u2019s difficult to guarantee each one will be responsive. So, you have to check each theme before using it.<\/p>\n Both Shopify and WordPress sites are generally fast.<\/p>\n Keep in mind that your site\u2019s speed also depends on the files you upload, the apps and plugins you add, and theme you use. So, if your site runs slow, it might be something you need to fix on your end.<\/p>\n Shopify payments gives users instant access to mobile payment options like Apple Pay, without any additional setup.<\/p>\n With WordPress, it depends on which ecommerce plugin you use. But popular plugins like WooCommerce connect with mobile payment options.<\/p>\n Shopify has more avenues for support compared to WordPress.<\/p>\n The fastest way to get answers to your questions (everything from how to connect your digital store to a physical location to how to run a test order) is to reach out to support.<\/p>\n Shopify gives you direct access to a support chat, the ability to leave a message (and you can request a callback in the message), and a discussion community to connect with other Shopify users.<\/p>\n With so many resources, you can get answers to just about anything.<\/p>\n WordPress is open source (meaning the code is publicly available and can be modified). So, it doesn\u2019t have the same level of support.<\/p>\n There\u2019s no support chat, but there\u2019s an active online forum where volunteers answer questions to help fellow community members.<\/p>\n Each plugin and theme will have its own support team and forums. So you can reach out there directly to get answers.<\/p>\n WordPress can be significantly more cost-effective than Shopify. But it depends on your choice of hosting provider, plugins, etc.<\/p>\n Here’s a look at the specifics:<\/p>\n Shopify starts at $39 per month for the basic plan on a month-to-month subscription.<\/p>\n Shopify notes that their Basic plan is suitable for individuals and small businesses. You can add unlimited products, connect to multiple sales channels, and sell internationally.<\/p>\n You also need to purchase a domain for $14.95 per year through Shopify.<\/p>\n WordPress is free to use.<\/p>\n But you still need to find\u2014and pay for\u2014reputable web hosting and a domain.<\/p>\n We mentioned earlier that hosting prices vary. As for domains, they run around $10 to $20 per year.<\/p>\n If you\u2019re still asking yourself, \u201cShould I use WordPress or Shopify?\u201d here\u2019s a quick way to tell:<\/p>\n You\u2019ll love WordPress if you:<\/p>\n And you\u2019ll love Shopify if you:<\/p>\n Whichever option you choose, it\u2019s a good idea to use\u00a0Site Audit<\/a>\u00a0after you launch your online shop to gauge your site\u2019s overall health.<\/p>\n Start by creating a project by clicking the \u201c+ Create project<\/strong>\u201d button.<\/p>\n Enter your domain and project name:<\/p>\n On the next screen, you\u2019ll configure your basic settings (pictured below). This\u00a0detailed setup guide<\/a>\u00a0will help you go through the settings.<\/p>\n When you\u2019re done, click the \u201cStart Site Audit<\/strong>\u201d button.<\/p>\n When the audit is complete, it gives you an overview of your site\u2019s health:<\/p>\n You can click into the different tabs and metrics for more detailed information. To understand what you need to do to improve your shop\u2019s SEO.<\/p>\nComparing Shopify vs. WordPress Side by Side<\/h2>\n
Web Hosting<\/h3>\n
Platform Design and UX<\/h3>\n
Storefront Design<\/h3>\n
Ecommerce Functionality<\/h3>\n
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Multi-Channel Commerce<\/h3>\n
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Search Engine Optimization Capabilities<\/h3>\n
Technical SEO<\/h4>\n
On-Page SEO<\/h4>\n
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GDPR Compliance<\/h3>\n
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Multilingual Sites<\/h3>\n
Multiple Sites<\/h3>\n
define('WP_ALLOW_MULTISITE',\u00a0true);<\/code><\/div>\nMobile Apps for Shop Owners<\/h3>\n
Mobile Shopping Experience for Customers<\/h3>\n
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Responsive Design<\/h4>\n
Load Time<\/h4>\n
Mobile Payment<\/h4>\n
Customer Support<\/h3>\n
Pricing Specifics<\/h3>\n
Shopify Costs<\/h4>\n
WordPress Costs<\/h4>\n
Final Verdict: Shopify or WordPress?<\/h2>\n
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