TOP-5 best e-commerce platforms

BigCommerce is one of the most popular e-commerce platforms. It is a SaaS solution: the vendor provides customers with software-as-a-service that helps in creating online stores, managing business processes, processing payments, and converting currencies. As of June 2020, the platform served 60 thousand online stores in 120 countries.

BigCommerce is beneficial for:

The e-commerce platform has undeniable competitive advantages, including no transaction fees and unlimited products. However, not everything is so smooth: there are no one-click sales and up-sales features, which reduces the chances of success. The most valuable functions are paid, and the tariff is tied to the turnover of the online store.

There are three tariff plans with monthly bills ranging from $29 to $299. Small shops, which do not plan to sell for more than $50 thousand a year, manage to save money here. After reaching $150 thousand in a year, it becomes necessary to switch to a professional plan. And for those who receive $450,000 or more, the costs go up: $150 for every additional $200,000 in sales.

Shopify is also a SaaS solution that allows you to launch an online store from scratch and provide support for it for a monthly fee. The platform gives users access to all tools they need to create and manage an online business.

The Shopify platform is beneficial for:

Building your own Shopify store is easy enough. This does not require deep technical knowledge: all software elements, web hosting, and SSL certificate are already provided by the platform. She is also responsible for updates, and therefore you do not have to worry about problems in the technical area. The download speed is also great, in contrast to the previous platform. The only problem may arise with choosing a theme since most of them are paid.

In addition, Shopify allows one-click selling and multi-channel experience across multiple social media platforms. But even such opportunities are overshadowed by the difficulties in optimizing for local markets. For example, the platform lacks localization of the Russian language, templates require manual translation, and valuable services for the local market are not supported.

In terms of pricing, Shopify isn't a winner. Estimated to be billed from $29 to $299 per month, and this price does not include advanced features. For example, you have to pay extra for the recurring billing option. Experts recommend choosing a tariff not according to the price but according to the possibilities that it offers.

Wix is a robust cloud-based online store design and development platform. It is convenient to build sites and their mobile versions on it using drag-and-drop tools and expand their functionality through applications - both from Wix and from third-party companies.

The Wix platform is beneficial for:

The platform is beginner-friendly: it is easy to set up and use. Unlike the previous two, Wix offers many more free design themes. But it loses slightly to competitors in terms of the number of integrations.

The platform has a freemium model, so it provides basic functionality for free, charging only for additional improvements. So it compares favorably with competitors - access to all functions is opened for only $50. Moreover, each tariff plan includes round-the-clock technical support.

WooCommerce is an open-source e-commerce platform. However, this is not a standalone website builder but a WordPress plugin installed from a directory. About 28% of online stores use its opportunities.

The WooCommerce platform is beneficial for:

Managing a store does not require an impressive budget and IT skills if you have experience using WordPress. After installing the extension, the CMS control panel does not change. You can see a new section offering a set of tools for working with the store. Here, you can manage the product catalog, orders, and customers, delivery, and payment and change the appearance parameters. However, it will be difficult for those unfamiliar with CMS to understand the technical details, including buying hosting, installing WordPress, and setting up themes and plugins.

Experts call WooCommerce one of the most effective SEO platforms. It has many features for search engine promotion, marketing tools, and integrations. In terms of design customization, it also outperforms the competition.

The essential plugin is available for free, but paid add-ons may be required to expand functionality and increase the platform's flexibility. For example, you need to pay for the ability to sell in one click and connect additional payment methods. On the plus side, you can only choose the features you need - some manage to spend as little as $100-200 per year.

Magento is a reliable and feature-rich platform trusted by well-known brands such as Nike, Cisco, Nordstrom, Procter&Gamble. It is designed exclusively for online sales, making it stand out among the CMS for creating different sites.

The Magento platform is beneficial for:

To create a store based on Magento, you will need programming skills. In other cases, you will have to use the services of developers. Since the platform has a vast IT community, it will not be challenging to find a worthy specialist to implement a project or consultation.

The platform's reliability, scalability, and functionality do not raise questions and its capabilities for search engine promotion and integrations. Here you can sell in one click, attracting additional income. However, there are also weaknesses. First of all, it is a difficult-to-learn admin panel and the system's structure, which can be understood only by PHP-programmer. As a rule, the platform is used for free, but there is also a paid plan. It is quite expensive and therefore suitable for a large profitable business.


As you can see, each platform is a good base for starting your own online business. However, if it is easy and quick to create a showcase based on such a solution, you will have to work hard on the product catalog.

In addition to the high-quality product descriptions, you will need additional business process automation, especially if you have more than 1000 SKUs.

Integration with Scallium products (Scallium PIM, Scallium Marketplace) allows you to close all issues related to product information management. PIM synchronizes product data between the internal catalog and the online store catalog. This combination enables the store to pursue an omnichannel strategy by posting up-to-date product data across different sales channels. As a result, this eliminates 90% of the routine actions of working with content, which frees up time for priority business tasks.

This is two-way integration. You can transfer a complete description of goods, media content, and offers to the storefront. Also, Scallium PIM can automatically receive information about the orders from the online store.