WooCommerce or ecwid? How to Pick the Right eCommerce
This guide will compare WooCommerce vs Ecwid to help you pick the best platform based on your needs and experience.
By the end of this, you'll have a clear winner and be ready to start selling products online. We'll look at things like pricing, features, ease of use and scalability so you can make an informed decision. Whether you're a tech newbie looking for an easy solution or a developer wanting full customization, one of these ecommerce platforms will be perfect for your new online store.
Let's dive in and explore WooCommerce and Ecwid in depth!
What is WooCommerce?
WooCommerce is an open source ecommerce platform built on WordPress. It allows you to easily add shopping cart functionality to your WordPress website. With WooCommerce, you have full control over your store with thousands of free and paid extensions and themes to choose from.
Some of the main benefits of WooCommerce are:
- Free and open source. You get a full-featured ecommerce platform at no cost.
- Huge selection of themes and extensions. You can customize your store to suit your needs.
- Easy to use. The platform is simple to set up and manage. You don’t need any coding experience.
- Sell anything. WooCommerce supports both physical and digital goods. You can sell services, music, videos, and more.
- Integrates with WordPress. If you already have a WordPress site, adding WooCommerce is seamless. You can manage your store alongside your blog or website.
- Secure and PCI compliant. WooCommerce follows best practices to keep customer data and transactions safe.
- Great community support. With a large community of users and developers, help is easy to find.
WooCommerce is ideal for small to mid-size businesses, entrepreneurs, and anyone looking to sell goods or services online. The platform is versatile enough to power stores of any size but simple enough for beginners. If you want an easy to use, fully customizable ecommerce solution, WooCommerce is a great choice.
What is ecwid?
In short, it's an easy-to-use ecommerce platform that lets you create an online store and start selling quickly. Some of the major benefits of ecwid are:
- You can create an online store in minutes without any coding. Just sign up, pick a template, add products and you're ready to start selling.
- Ecwid allows you to sell on Facebook, Instagram, and other platforms. So your customers can shop and buy directly within those networks.
- Ecwid stores are fully responsive, so your customers will have a great experience whether they shop on their phone, tablet, or desktop.
- You have the freedom to customize your store to match your brand. Choose from many free and paid themes, pick your preferred domain, and add custom CSS or HTML if you want.
- With ecwid, you can sell on your own website, on social media, in person, and through multiple other channels like Amazon, Google Shopping, and Instagram Shopping. Reach your customers wherever they are.
- Ecwid offers a free plan for up to 10 products and paid plans start at just $15/month. They don't charge any commissions on sales, just a low monthly fee.
- Ecwid powers over 1 million stores worldwide. They have the experience and infrastructure to keep your store running smoothly and securely 24/7.
If ease of use, omnichannel selling and affordability are priorities for your ecommerce business, ecwid is an excellent platform to consider.
Key Features Comparison - WooCommerce Vs ecwid
How do you decide which is right for your online store? Here are some of the key features to compare:
Pricing WooCommerce is free to download and use, while Ecwid has free and paid plans from $15/month. WooCommerce may require more technical skill to set up and maintain. Ecwid is very easy to get started with if you want to avoid dealing with the technical aspects. Design and Customization WooCommerce offers lots of free and paid themes to choose from. You have full control over the design and layout. Ecwid has basic free themes and paid premium themes for $99. Less customization options compared to WooCommerce. Product Catalog Both platforms allow you to add unlimited products to your store. WooCommerce lets you further categorize products, add attributes like color/size, and has more advanced inventory management. Ecwid has a simpler product catalog and inventory tracking. Payment Options WooCommerce integrates with many payment gateways like PayPal, Stripe and Authorize.net. Ecwid also has PayPal and Stripe along with other options. Transaction fees may apply with some gateways. Marketing and SEO WooCommerce works with many email marketing and SEO plugins. Ecwid has built-in features like abandoned cart recovery emails, product reviews, and SEO tools. But less flexibility compared to WooCommerce.
My Verdict: Overall, WooCommerce is better if you want maximum control and customization for your store, and don't mind some technical work. Ecwid is easier to setup and use, with an intuitive interface, but less advanced features. For a new store owner, Ecwid can be a great place to start before migrating to WooCommerce as your business grows.
WooCommerce Vs ecwid: Pros and Cons
So you’ve decided to start an online store—congratulations! Now comes the tricky part: choosing an ecommerce platform. Two of the most popular options are WooCommerce and Ecwid. Each has its pros and cons, so let’s break them down to help determine the best fit for your business.
WooCommerce WooCommerce is a free, open-source ecommerce plugin for WordPress. If you already have a WordPress site, it’s simple to set up and start selling right away. The huge collection of themes and extensions gives you lots of flexibility and room for growth. However, WooCommerce can require more technical skill to customize and optimize. It also may lack some built-in features of paid platforms.
**Ecwid Ecwid is a standalone ecommerce platform with a simple drag-and-drop interface, making it very easy to use even for beginners. It connects to your existing website and social media, with everything managed in one place. Ecwid offers useful tools for marketing, SEO, and analytics at an affordable price. The downside is less design flexibility and dependence on Ecwid for updates and support. There are also additional transaction fees for some payment methods.
Both platforms are excellent choices and used by millions of stores worldwide. Think about your technical skills, needs for customization, available time to manage the store, and budget. WooCommerce may be better if you want maximum control and flexibility for free. Ecwid is ideal if you prefer an easy, all-in-one solution with great support. Why not take advantage of the free trials offered by both to see which one feels right for your new online business?
WooCommerce Vs ecwid: Pricing Comparison
When it comes to pricing, WooCommerce and Ecwid offer very different models. As an open-source ecommerce platform, WooCommerce is free to download and use. You only pay for the hosting, domain, and any premium extensions you want to use. Ecwid has a freemium model with paid subscription plans that provide more features.
WooCommerce is free to install and use, but you’ll need to pay for web hosting, which typically starts around $5 to $20 per month. You’ll also need a domain name, which is usually around $10 to $15 per year. If you want premium features like payment gateways, shipping, or subscriptions, you’ll have to purchase extensions which range from free to a few hundred dollars. The total cost will depend on your needs and how many extensions you use.
Ecwid has a free plan to get you started, along with three paid subscription plans. The free plan allows up to 10 products and some basic features. Paid plans start at $15 per month and provide more products, storage, and features like shipping and discounts. The top Enterprise plan is $99 per month. A major benefit of Ecwid is that you can use it with your existing website - you don’t need separate hosting or a domain. However, transaction fees for payments and subscriptions are higher with Ecwid compared to WooCommerce.
My Verdict: Overall, WooCommerce will likely be more affordable in the long run, especially if you already have hosting and a domain. However, Ecwid is very budget-friendly to get started with, and the paid plans are still reasonably priced for small businesses. It comes down to whether you want an open-source DIY approach or an easier all-in-one solution. Both platforms offer good value, so you can’t go wrong either way. The choice is yours!
WooCommerce Vs ecwid: Which Ecommerce Platform Is Best for You?
So which platform is right for your online store? It ultimately comes down to your specific needs and priorities.
WooCommerce If customization and control are most important, WooCommerce is probably your best choice. You'll have full access to edit code and integrate various features. The open-source nature means thousands of plugins and themes to choose from. However, this flexibility comes with a learning curve, and you'll need to handle updates, security, and troubleshooting yourself. WooCommerce also requires an existing WordPress site, so you'll have to factor in those costs.
Ecwid On the other hand, if ease of use and simplicity are top concerns, Ecwid is likely the better option. You can get an online store up and running in just a few clicks using their intuitive interface. Ecwid handles security, updates, and technical issues for you. It's also very affordable, with plans starting at $15/month. However, Ecwid offers limited design customization and fewer integrations compared to WooCommerce. You're stuck with their selection of themes and add-ons.
Conclusion
You now have a better idea of what each platform offers and which one is the right fit for your needs. WooCommerce and Ecwid are both great solutions, but very different. As you start building your online store, think about how much control you want over the design and features. Consider your technical skills and how much time you want to spend on setup and maintenance. And of course, factor in your budget. My advice - do some testing on both WooCommerce and Ecwid to see how they feel. Then take a deep breath and dive in. You've got this!