With eCommerce becoming so popular among people from all over the world, Shopify has established itself as the most popular of all the platforms available. The reason for it is pretty obvious, it has all of the necessary features and elements that can provide its users with the best possible results. Certainly, it was considered to be the best possible solution for so long.
However, we can see that many alternatives are equally as efficient. So, making a decision on which one of these you will use has become much harder than it was just a couple of years ago. Even though Shopify has been present in the market for more than a decade, many people are now uncertain about whether they should use it.
That doesn’t mean that the only competition it has is in the form of other platforms. In fact, we can see that there are other ways to build these sites. For example, there’s a chance for developers to build their site and add certain plugins that can adapt it for eCommerce.
If you would like to take a look at a company that can help you with it, be sure to take a look at Webx360. Now, we would like to discuss which approach is better, to have a Shopify-powered eCommerce site, or to have a custom one. Let’s take a look at what we’ve been able to gather up.
What is the Biggest Difference?
Before you are able to make a decision about which one of these approaches you should use, you certainly need to know what is the biggest difference. The key difference between these two concepts is the website’s main purpose. For those who are not aware, Shopify is a SaaS solution.
It means that its goal is to help the site owners to have an eCommerce store. When you take a look at some of the reports, you will see that there are more than a million different sites that are supported by it. At the same time, having a custom eCommerce website means that you can use it for much more than just selling your merchandise.
For example, you can use it for adding a wide array of different content, like blogs. When you know this main difference, you will certainly have a much easier task of making the right choice.
Shopify Alternatives
Naturally, Shopify is not the only platform you can choose. Thankfully, we have a wide array of different options to choose from. We are talking about platforms like WooCommerce, Selz, Squarespace, etc.
Sure, they are different from Shopify. But that doesn’t mean that they are not as effective as it is. The choice should be based on the website owner’s needs.
How Much Does Shopify Site Cost
Since that you now know that Shopify is a SaaS solution, you need to know that using it is not free. When you set up the account, you will have a couple of options in front of you. For example, the basic account will cost you around $30.
Plus, it needs to be said that there are fees for a wide array of different transactions. However, if you choose an upgraded package, you will not need to pay those fees. But it needs to be said that even the basic account will not impose any limitations when it comes to the number of products you can list.
When it comes to the themes you can choose, some of them will be completely free. However, it needs to be said that the best ones can cost you up to $200. Naturally, this decision needs to be based solely on your needs and preferences.
How Much Does a Custom Site Cost?
As you can presume, building a website from scratch will require much more investment on your behalf. Determining the exact price, you will need to pay is almost impossible. However, it wouldn’t be a mistake to say that it can go up to as far as $10k, which is pretty hefty. Of course, it depends on the features you would like to have in it.
But this is not something that should discourage you from choosing this approach. If you choose a WordPress-powered site, the price will be significantly lower. It means that it can go up to $1k. When you compare it to a completely new site, it looks like a much better option, right?
Thankfully, WordPress now has a plethora of different updates that can transform your site into basically anything you want. When it comes to eCommerce, you’ll be happy to know that it has its own platform called WooCommerce. While it is free, some of the features will require a certain fee.
What’s the Better Approach for You?
Once again, we would like to say that choosing between a custom eCommerce site and Shopify should rely only on the owner’s needs. Sure, it sounds like an easy decision to make, but believe us, it’s not. For example, if you would like to have a platform that supports your site, but you don’t want to have a WordPress-powered website, maybe you should opt for Shopify.
Still, if you don’t want to use any platform, you should build a site from scratch and use some plugins that can adapt it to your needs. Naturally, this is a decision you need to make during the early stages of your organization. Changing it later can be quite costly and it would certainly take too much of your time.
Therefore, you will need to get enough knowledge that will provide you with a good idea about what you can expect from each of these options. Also, if you would like to have a certain kind of content, not provided by any of the platforms available, you should opt for a custom-made website.
The Bottom Line
As you can see from this article of ours, there are so many factors that can help you to make the best possible decision. Be sure to know all of them before you are ready to make the decision. We are sure that you will find this article helpful.
