If you’re ready to move on from Shopify, it’s time to learn how to migrate Shopify to WordPress and WooCommerce.
A lot of stores start on Shopify and learn it’s not the right fit for long-term growth. In this post, we explain why Shopify might not be the best choice for your store and review the options for how to move your Shopify store to WordPress and WooCommerce.
If you’re still on the fence about moving away from Shopify, that’s understandable. After all, your website is the lifeline of your business. But migration is simple and allows you to take advantage of the benefits of using WooCommerce for your online store. Let’s look at the main reasons online stores switch from Shopify to WordPress.
Many people select Shopify for ease of use. It’s an all-in-one solution that includes hosting. There’s no software to install. You can get a store up and running without any technical skills.
The same is true with WooCommerce. The platform is beginner-friendly. You can set up your store without writing any code. Also, if you select one of Pressable’s managed WordPress hosting plans, we’ll take care of installing and updating WordPress and WooCommerce.
WooCommerce is a free, open-source eCommerce platform. All you need to pay for is your web hosting and domain registration. Shopify’s plans start at $29 per month. But the cheapest plan limits you to only two staff accounts, limited reporting, and only four inventory locations. You’ll need to spend $79 or $299 per month for a higher-tier plan to increase those limits.
WooCommerce doesn’t have limits. You can configure your accounts, locations, and reporting without paying more. While Shopify has apps you can install to extend functionality, WooCommerce has extensions, also known as plugins.
Both WooCommerce and Shopify have paid and free options in their official app and plugin directories, so you can consider that cost a wash when comparing the two platforms in most cases. If you do any paid Shopify apps, start by looking at if you even need the plugin with WooCommerce. The feature might be included for free. If not, you can look through the options in the official WooCommerce extensions directory.
Customizing a WooCommerce store is easier than customizing a Shopify store. WooCommerce has more options for themes and plugins, so it’s easier to find a solution for the design or feature you need for your store.
If you don’t use Shopify’s built-in payment gateway, they charge you a transaction fee of .5% to 2%. If flexibility with payment gateways is important to you, Shopify isn’t a good choice. WooCommerce supports a variety of payment gateways without charging any additional fees. You’ll just pay the fees the processor charges.
WooCommerce is a popular eCommerce platform with robust support from the WordPress community. You’ll have access to support forums, events, and a large collection of theme and plugin developers. WooCommerce has the people and tools you need to run an eCommerce site of any size.
One of the main reasons people stay with an eCommerce platform like Shopify is they’re worried about the difficulty of the migration. Don’t let that keep you from making the switch.
You’ll need to start by setting up a WooCommerce store. Use these resources to help with setting up your store:
You can’t import your store’s design and layout from Shopify. But you won’t have to worry about inputting all your product information. There are three options for migrating your store that will pull over the product data.
You can easily import products into WooCommerce from a CSV file. To do so:
For this process to work, you need to run it while your Shopify site is still active. Otherwise, WooCommerce won’t be able to import your product images.
This process will only import product data. If you also want to migrate your customer and order data from Shopify, you’ll need to use a plugin. WooCommerce recommends the Migrate & Import Shopify to WooCommerce or Customer/Order/Coupon CSV Import Suite.
The Cart2Cart extension automates moving your store from Shopify to WooCommerce in three steps:
Like all other approaches, the extension will not transfer your site’s design and layout. But this option does include options for migrating more types of data, including:
Pricing for using the Cart2Cart option varies based on the number of products, orders, and customers you’re trying to import. For a starting point, 1,000 products, 500 orders, and 500 customers would cost $69. The extension has a free demo, so you can test out how it works before paying.
Depending on the size of your store, this option could be cheaper than paying for the plugins to manually import your customer and order data we mentioned in Option 1.
If the first two DIY options don’t appeal to you, don’t worry. Expert help is available. WooCommerce maintains a list of certified WooExperts. Each developer is vetted for quality and WooCommerce experience. You can search the directory to find a developer in your area and budget.
One area where a developer can help that the first two options can’t is in configuring your design and layout. Developers can help you select and implement a totally new design for your store or try to match the layout of your existing Shopify store as closely as possible.
Migrating your Shopify store to WordPress and WooCommerce begins with selecting a host for your new site.
Sign up today and make the switch to WooCommerce.
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