Best e-commerce platforms in 2024

Wix is a flexible e-commerce platform well-suited to several small online and onsite business pursuits. Indeed, if you’ve ever purchased a local service for yourself or a family member online, there’s a good chance you’ve used a Wix website. We’ve purchased services through Wix sites for childcare centers, gyms and coaches.

Along with booking and scheduling tools, Wix has unique features (and Zoom integration) for live streaming virtual workouts and selling video on demand. If you’ve wanted to offer private coaching sessions or meet remotely with a group, you can do it through Wix. And even better, you can collect payments and automate reminders — and get 24/7 support when needed, regardless of your plan.

For financials, Wix is best for businesses that prefer Wix Payments, Square or Stripe over third-party processors. Its payment integrations are more limited than rivals’. However, you can customize the design and navigation a bit more than you can with Squarespace (without using code or being technically savvy). Still, it’s not as developer friendly as the open-source solution OpenCart.

With 24/7 callback support and wide-ranging capabilities, Wix is the best e-commerce solution for managing your clients, appointments and e-commerce in one app. It scales from a solo operation to a multi-site business with up to 135 employees, all without switching platforms. Whether coaching virtually or holding summer camp, you can manage most of your business from Wix.

Value

Wix Core’s pricing is on par with competitors and stands out with its 24/7 live support, which is a value-add for anyone updating their site or resolving customer errors over the weekend. Yet, we’d rather Wix offer a free trial instead of a 14-day money-back guarantee.

Stepping up to the Business plan can seriously boost your site’s performance without significantly increasing your budget. There is a $84 difference when paid annually between packages. It doubles your computing power and is like adding another cashier or fitness instructor.

Functionality

Wix has an impressive feature set that covers e-commerce products, services and bookings. You can manage staff schedules and track performance while building detailed client profiles and interacting with site visitors through live chat. With over 500 pre-designed templates, Wix makes personalizing appointment tools or landing pages for pre-recorded online courses easy.

However, one important thing to note is that not all Wix templates have booking features. To avoid compatibility issues, consider scanning help guides about your must-have tools before building your site. These offer tips that can save time in the long run.

Support

Wix is available 24/7 for callback support for English speakers and from 4 a.m. to 8 p.m. EST for Spanish speakers. We love this option, especially when dealing with payment issues, because many e-commerce platforms don’t offer phone assistance or any weekend support hours.

You can also chat with an agent Monday through Friday from 2 a.m. to 6 p.m. (4 a.m. to 8 p.m. EST for Spanish speakers). However, you may need to navigate WixBot first to reach an agent. Fortunately, Wix has the best tutorials and guides. Every article includes tons of screenshots and links that take you directly to the in-app screen in your account.

Learn more: Read our full Wix review.

Our editorial team created our expert opinion scores. The expert score contributes to 10% of the data-focused methodology, which underpins our Blueprint rating for each company. The expert score combines first-person experience, subject matter expertise and extensive research to develop these metrics as another source of truth for readers during their decision-making process.

Shift4Shop could be the solution for cash-strapped business owners looking to add customer favorites like wish lists or product comparison tools to their e-commerce sites. It is free to use any month you process $500 or more through the built-in Shift4 processor. If you use PayPal or fall under the sales requirement, it costs $29 monthly.

Even if you’re on a budget now, you can plan for growth using Shift4Shop. It supports unlimited users and products, and you won’t face revenue caps like with BigCommerce. The e-commerce platform offers a seemingly endless feature list with countless settings and configurations — perfect for tech-savvy individuals who want to customize their sites.

However, you should expect to spend some time configuring your site. It helps to have web design experience and be comfortable navigating advanced settings. While the basic setup process isn’t overly complex, the user interface is less intuitive than Wix or Weebly.

Shift4Shop’s multi-type payment support, free software offer and enterprise functionality earned this e-commerce platform high marks. Even the smallest business can access advanced marketing and online store tools with customizable modules. Even better, you don’t need to download a third-party tool for functionality — it’s built-in. Shift4Shop backs all its services with 24/7 support, but you may have better luck using its vast knowledge base.

Value

In the realm of business software, free isn’t always the most comprehensive solution. Shift4Shop, however, breaks this stereotype by providing an end-to-end e-commerce solution with what feels like unlimited everything and an extensive list of features. As long as you process at least $500 monthly and use Shift4, it’s free.

Yet, the knowledge base is difficult to navigate. And, although you can reach support 24/7, the reps aren’t always Shift4Shop experts. If you run into a problem requiring email, many customers report long wait times or no resolution at all. In the end, your time isn’t free. It’s a good idea to dive into the documentation and ask questions before establishing an e-commerce site on Shift4Shop.

Functionality

Customizing your site is a crucial part of what makes Shift4Shop so versatile. With Shift4Shop, you install modules to enable bulk pricing discounts for business clients or offer a gift wrapping option during the holidays. Similar options from competitors are only available as plug-ins or add-ons or with higher-priced plans.

One of our favorite tools is the built-in CRM and customer ticketing functionality. In addition to keeping account and client data, the software lets site visitors request assistance from any departments you configure, from billing to customer service. It can also help you track order errors, defective items and related issues without using separate helpdesk tools.

Support

Shift4Shop offers 24/7 support year-round, including holidays and weekends. They provide an 800 number, and you can access live chat through your Online Store Manager platform. Like most providers, Shift4Shop has an email ticketing platform available through the online portal or website. The knowledge base is vast, and you could find the answer to most questions if the search function worked well, which it doesn’t.

However, user feedback suggests that support could be improved. Many business customers report long wait times for help ticket responses and agents who may not always have the necessary expertise to answer questions or point you to documentation instead of resolving the problem. When using the free version, you’re relying on Shift4Shop for payments, too, so it’s crucial to consider the potential impact of poor support on your revenue source.

Learn more: Read our full Shift4Shop review.

Our editorial team created our expert opinion scores. The expert score contributes to 10% of the data-focused methodology, which underpins our Blueprint rating for each company. The expert score combines first-person experience, subject matter expertise and extensive research to develop these metrics as another source of truth for readers during their decision-making process.

If you’re looking for an e-commerce platform with many bells and whistles, including international support, Shopify is an excellent solution. These capabilities are essentially plug-and-play, meaning you don’t need to mess around with code or customization to cater to global audiences. Instead, you can focus on the marketing aspects, and Shopify offers market segmentation tools to help you out.

With the ability to upload and showcase unlimited physical or digital items, you can sell a diverse product line. This feature also suits dropshippers and Shopify integrates with several third-party dropshipping companies.

However, Shopify limits staff accounts to two with the Basic plan and five with a Shopify subscription. This might feel restrictive if your company has several team members who update product descriptions or if you want to outsource certain aspects. Shopify is also more expensive than some competitors. Even though you get an impressive set of features, higher-priced tiers may be out of reach for some budgets.

Shopify stands out from competitors for its advanced international tools. We appreciate its in-depth knowledge base and the ability to (eventually) reach live support 24/7. Businesses can configure global settings to align with their marketing and pricing strategies without an over-the-top learning curve.

Value

Shopify packs a lot of valuable features into every plan, and while subscription prices increase at higher tiers, payment transaction costs decrease. When using Shopify Payments, the processing rate for Shopify and Advanced plans is less than what you’d pay through Square or Stripe for Visa or Mastercard payments.

Still, if you’re selling to other businesses (B2B), Shopify Payments’ higher fees for American Express and corporate cards could hurt your bottom line. While the three-day free trial falls short of what rivals offer, we appreciate its promotion of one additional trial month for $1. This gives you enough time to assess the platform and less hassle with a refund policy.

Functionality

Shopify’s vast e-commerce features distinguish it from competitors like Squarespace and Square. You can configure options from your dashboard and customize your site through various apps and extensions. But, you won’t need plug-ins for tax and shipping calculators or have to fiddle with integrating payment gateways or international payments.

By default, Shopify generates three markets and you can customize these to sell to specific regions. With these tools, you can have separate campaigns and pricing structures for North American and European audiences.

Once configured, Shopify shows local pricing and promotions to shoppers, giving them the personalized experience they expect from your brand. On the back end, you save time by viewing analytics for all markets from a single dashboard, allowing you to make adjustments and informed decisions.

Support

Like Shift4Shop, Shopify provides round-the-clock live chat support. If your site goes down over the weekend or you use Shopify Payments, 24/7 customer service can feel like a must-have. But only the Plus subscription (starting at $2,300 monthly with a three-year contract) has priority phone options.

We had no issues reaching support after interacting with the AI chat assistant. However, several users report less satisfactory experiences. With an all-in-one vendor, not being able to access support could mean losing access to your income source and funds. Still, the chatbot definitely helps you locate resources quicker than when using knowledge bases from rivals, and the articles are easy to follow.

Learn more: Read our full Shopify review.

Our editorial team created our expert opinion scores. The expert score contributes to 10% of the data-focused methodology, which underpins our Blueprint rating for each company. The expert score combines first-person experience, subject matter expertise and extensive research to develop these metrics as another source of truth for readers during their decision-making process.

Weebly by Square is our top pick for first-time site builders and e-commerce startups. Its free plan and low-priced subscriptions have been a favorite of solopreneurs, freelancers and small business owners for years. But cost is just one aspect; we also love how easy Weebly is to use, making the e-commerce platform excellent for beginners.

If this is your first time building a website, you can test the waters with Weebly. Most e-commerce services offer similar website builders with free themes and templates, but they typically cost more or don’t have a free plan.

However, Square acquired Weebly in 2018 and has committed to supporting the service until July 2025. Its future beyond that is uncertain. With this in mind, we don’t recommend investing much time and effort into building a Weebly store with long-term objectives. It’s perfect for testing an idea or collecting email addresses for a future project. Likewise, Weebly by Square can help you achieve short-term goals like gathering signups for a 2024 community event.

Weebly by Square’s user-friendly site builder and online store tools make it the best e-commerce platform. With its free plan and low price tag (the most expensive subscription is only $29 per month), entrepreneurs can sell online without a substantial upfront investment. While it doesn’t have 24/7 support, the straightforward interface and user documentation walk you through most aspects.

Value

Weebly by Square is economical yet supports unlimited products, including digital downloads and services. This flexibility allows you to test several income streams without upgrading to higher-priced subscriptions. However, the free plan is more limited than the customizable Shift4Shop or OpenCart solutions.

Whether you choose Weebly’s free plan or start with an affordable $13 or $16 monthly package, you’ll spend significantly less time building your site. For solopreneurs needing to kick off an event or get feedback quickly, getting your e-commerce site online fast is a huge benefit of using Weebly.

While you can take advantage of annual discounts to reduce the price, it’s concerning that Weebly by Square won’t commit to supporting the product after July 2025. If you need services beyond this point, it’s important to think ahead to potential site migration.

Functionality

Although features vary by subscription, we appreciate that Weebly offers a full-functioning online store, even with free and personal versions. With a free Weebly store, you can manage your inventory, capture leads and sell Square gift cards.

These tools aren’t overly complex. For instance, the inventory management features are a great way to categorize your products or create a spreadsheet to export to a third-party marketplace. You can add badges to encourage shoppers to “buy now” by showing a limited quantity.

This same user-friendly functionality extends to the drag-and-drop form builder. This tool is a time saver if you’re using Weebly to gather feedback or build a contact list. It doesn’t have the frills available through optional plug-ins, but it is convenient.

Support

You can reach Weebly by Square customer service over live chat during business hours, using a paid or free e-commerce plan. We appreciate the accessible live chat tool, but the limited availability is a drawback. Many entrepreneurs handle website tasks during off hours, and waiting for an email reply to an urgent request can put your project at a standstill.

Since the Weebly-Square merger, the community forum revolves around Square topics, so it’s less useful for Weebly users. However, the Professional and Performance subscriptions provide phone support during business hours, and the knowledge base has many helpful articles. Most tutorials have screenshots and step-by-step directions. It’s easy to follow along, and we had no issues setting up our e-commerce site, lead form or basic inventory groups.

Learn more: Read our full Weebly review.

Our editorial team created our expert opinion scores. The expert score contributes to 10% of the data-focused methodology, which underpins our Blueprint rating for each company. The expert score combines first-person experience, subject matter expertise and extensive research to develop these metrics as another source of truth for readers during their decision-making process.

Ecwid by Lightspeed is ideal for small businesses that want to add an online store without starting from scratch. Suppose you have already spent time or money developing a website for your brick-and-mortar location and are now ready to expand. Rivals may require you to use their payment processor, upgrade to a more expensive plan tier or not offer e-commerce capabilities at all. In these cases, Ecwid can help.

With Ecwid, you can add an online store for free to sell up to five products and get a feel for the services. If you’re a Squarespace user and want to open a second store without incurring substantial fees, you can do this through Ecwid. It’s also excellent for entrepreneurs who want to manage customer relationships without buying a CRM.

However, Ecwid is for more than just businesses with existing sites. Using mobile-responsive page templates and content blocks, you can create a new online store in under 30 minutes.

Ecwid by Lightspeed outshines rivals with its free forever plan, no transaction fees on third-party payment providers and a built-in CRM. It’s the best e-commerce platform for boosting the functionality of your current website without starting over. Although it falls behind on live support options, the vendor provides in-depth guides with step-by-step screenshots and GIFs.

Value

Ecwid’s free forever plan is an excellent alternative to a free trial. You can install it on an existing site and test the e-commerce functionality, from payment processing to shipping. We love this option for deciding if Ecwid is worth it for the long haul.

Venture and Business packages limit businesses to 100 to 2,500 products, which is much lower than with many rivals. Dropshipping companies and those with diverse product lines may hit this limit quickly, and the top-tier Unlimited subscription is quite pricey at $105 per month, especially if you’re already paying separate website hosting fees.

Functionality

Ecwid’s functionality can vary slightly depending on how you use it. It functions as a standalone website or as an add-on online store for Instapage, HubSpot, Squarespace and dozens more. One of our favorite tools for small business owners is the native CRM, as not every e-commerce platform has this feature. You can add notes to client profiles and see how much they’ve bought from your company.

The iOS and Android mobile apps let entrepreneurs manage their online stores from anywhere, which is a bonus if your current platform doesn’t offer mobile apps, or if you feel like they could be better. Most users give Ecwid’s apps high ratings for usability.

Support

Ecwid’s customer service falls behind rivals. Whereas Square Online offers free users full support options, Ecwid only provides live service for the first 30 days after signing up. Although everyone can reach Ecwid through email, user feedback suggests that replies aren’t always timely.

Paid plans do include 24-hour live chat access Monday through Friday, which is more support than Weebly offers during the week. Business and Unlimited users can request a callback, but feedback suggests promptness could be an issue. It’s concerning that Ecwid isn’t available on weekends.

Still, the knowledge base is well-organized and has extremely user-friendly articles. We loved the screenshots and GIFs because they were easier to follow than reading vast blocks of text.

Learn more: Read our full Ecwid review.

Our editorial team created our expert opinion scores. The expert score contributes to 10% of the data-focused methodology, which underpins our Blueprint rating for each company. The expert score combines first-person experience, subject matter expertise and extensive research to develop these metrics as another source of truth for readers during their decision-making process.

WooCommerce is a popular, free and open-source plug-in that adds e-commerce functionality to WordPress sites. But now, you can skip those extra steps with Woo Express, an all-in-one product. This solution is perfect for business owners who want more control over site customization and data than Shopify or Squarespace offer.

It’s also a top pick for anyone who prefers a single-vendor solution for payment processing, hosting and e-commerce. We love WooCommerce and Woo Express because the mobile apps let us update inventory, see sales statistics and view orders from anywhere. Busy entrepreneurs can save time with marketing workflow automations and artificial intelligence (AI) tools for generating product descriptions.

Unlike Ecwid and Wix, all plans allow unlimited products, making WooCommerce an excellent choice for dropshippers or companies with large inventories. With unlimited store manager accounts, you can expand your team without switching to a new e-commerce platform provider.

WooCommerce is backed by excellent web hosting services through WordPress.com and trusted payment processing through Stripe. Its comprehensive support documentation, intuitive mobile apps and customizable e-commerce tools give it a competitive edge. With time-saving AI features and native marketing automation, small businesses can save time while tracking sales from their smartphones.

Value

Woo Express offers competitive rates and an excellent promotional offer. We appreciate its 14-day free trial, which is available without providing payment details. This gives you enough time to test the services before committing. In addition, Woo Express has a deal for $1 for your first three months, but this comes with a caveat: if you take this promotion, you forego the free domain offer with Woo Express’s annual plans.

Still, buying a domain through Woo Express, which goes through WordPress.com, is cheap. Rivals may charge nearly $20 annually for a .com domain, whereas you’ll pay $12 through WordPress.com.

Functionality

Although several e-commerce platforms offer mobile apps, they can be glitchy or lack essential features. We appreciate the advanced capabilities of the Woo Mobile App. You can switch between multiple storefronts, see top-selling items and accept contactless payments in person. However, we had issues with the Jetpack extension on the mobile app and our website. It seems to slow both down.

Another key feature that we’re glad to see WooCommerce offering is AI-assisted product descriptions and AutomateWoo. The former is a relatively new feature and we expect some initial kinks, whereas the latter is a plug-in available on Performance plans. You can customize your marketing workflow triggers, actions and rules to create personalized offers and improve customer experiences.

Support

WooCommerce provides 24/7 live chat support, differentiating it from Ecwid and Weebly. However, none of its plans include phone support, which is a drawback for clients with urgent billing or payment processing matters. In addition, when you click on “Support” through the WooCommerce site, it takes you to the WordPress.com login page. By researching further, we discovered that WooCommerce only assists with specific services.

For instance, WooCommerce doesn’t handle general WordPress questions. Nor does it help with product customization or third-party options, like extensions or plug-ins. And although it offers live chat, you still may need to submit a help desk ticket. With this said, WooCommerce and WordPress provide extensive documentation and have active community forums.

Our editorial team created our expert opinion scores. The expert score contributes to 10% of the data-focused methodology, which underpins our Blueprint rating for each company. The expert score combines first-person experience, subject matter expertise and extensive research to develop these metrics as another source of truth for readers during their decision-making process.

If you sell on Instagram or other social media sites and want to extend your reach, Squarespace is worth checking out. You can build a visually appealing site that matches your brand (and coordinates with your Instagram) with little technical experience. If you’re looking for advanced customization or need sophisticated e-commerce features for cross-border sales, consider an alternative like Shopify, which also connects to Instagram.

In addition to Instagrammers, Squarespace is an excellent choice for creatives who love designing and showcasing their work but don’t necessarily want to dedicate the same amount of time to building and maintaining their e-commerce site.

We also love its seamless integration with Printful. This option is perfect for selling custom merchandise without the stress of managing inventory or fulfillment. However, Squarespace isn’t the best option for getting fast support services. It doesn’t have a phone option, and you’ll spend a lot of time talking to a bot.

When an Instagram follower clicks on the link in your bio, it should lead to a site that’s smooth and on brand. With Squarespace, you can make that happen. It provides stunning templates, immersive multimedia options and Instagram planning tools. Squarespace offers 24/7 support and a help center with tutorials and videos if you run into trouble.

Value

Ultimately, the value you get from Squarespace depends on how you use it. Personal and Business plans cost more than similar subscriptions from competitors. Unlike Weebly’s free plan, Squarespace Personal doesn’t support e-commerce. The Business package adds a 3% transaction fee on top of standard payment processing costs, meaning you’ll pay about 5.9% plus $0.30 cents per sale.

However, all plans include free invoices, and upgrading to Commerce Basic eliminates the extra transaction fees for about the same price as the entry-tier Shopify package. At this level, you can sync your e-commerce product catalog to Instagram — a huge time-saver when creating ads or posts.

Functionality

Audience management tools and the Instagram grid planner (via the Unfold app) help you solve challenges with omnichannel sales, specifically consistency. You can visualize your Instagram feed and use Squarespace’s gallery options to coordinate website or landing page content. Instagrammers will know they’re in the right spot when they land on your site, and you can encourage them to sign up for your mailing list to grow your audience.

Squarespace also helps you boost your social media following. By inserting Instagram blocks on web pages or blog posts, you can showcase your feed and encourage click-throughs. Since Squarespace syncs with your Instagram store, you can control quantities or availability for both spaces.

Support

Squarespace falls behind rivals that offer 24/7 live chat like Shopify. It provides chat support Monday through Friday from 4 a.m. to 8 p.m. EST, though it isn’t available over the weekend. But first, you must navigate a chatbot, which offers online resources, before directing you to an agent. The vendor also replies on X (formerly known as Twitter), Facebook Messenger and email.

Lately, Squarespace has experienced some issues with support times and responses partly due to acquiring Google’s domains. This could result in longer wait times or less helpful replies than you’d expect from this vendor.

We recommend turning to its in-depth knowledge base, as many videos demonstrate how a feature works. The on-demand webinars are also a good starting point. Squarespace has better user documentation than other e-commerce platforms, and our previous experience with the support team was excellent. Recently, not so much.

Learn more: Read our full Squarespace review.

Our editorial team created our expert opinion scores. The expert score contributes to 10% of the data-focused methodology, which underpins our Blueprint rating for each company. The expert score combines first-person experience, subject matter expertise and extensive research to develop these metrics as another source of truth for readers during their decision-making process.

If you know what an Apache web server is and what PHP stands for, then OpenCart may suit you. It’s an open-source e-commerce platform that gives you total control over most aspects of your site, from appearance to payment processing providers. Web developers and tech-savvy online merchants prefer this solution over out-of-the-box solutions because of its flexibility and customization options.

With over 15,000 themes and modules, OpenCart adapts to almost any business type, from service professionals with onsite locations to dropshippers selling items worldwide. The software is free, making OpenCart a budget-friendly alternative to pricier competitors.

Small business owners who want to choose their web host, domain provider, payment processor and SSL certificates will appreciate OpenCart. You aren’t putting all your eggs into one basket and risking everything if a vendor’s system goes down. OpenCart is also a good choice for any entrepreneur wanting a developer to work on their website in the future, as PHP is a commonly used scripting language.

Although OpenCart requires basic programming knowledge or a willingness to learn, it gives business owners more control over their data than other e-commerce systems. You decide which payment processor and web host to use and can switch anytime. Moreover, when it’s time to revamp your site, you can hire a professional, and they won’t balk at using OpenCart.

Value

Generally, OpenCart is a great value for individuals with the skill and time to design and maintain their site or hire someone to do it. It provides substantial documentation and has a robust developer community, allowing you to create an online store to suit your specific needs without adding all the extras that can slow down your site and degrade performance.

You still need to buy web hosting, a domain and an SSL certificate. While rivals often include hosting and SSLs, only some offer a free domain for the first year, and many overcharge upon renewal. Picking your own vendors lets you find the best prices, most reliable services and those that meet your security and performance requirements.

Functionality

Since you can configure OpenCart to fit your specifications, its functionality will differ depending on how you set it up. Moreover, you can use modules to build out your store and add features as your online business grows. OpenCart provides 26 free core modules for unique options like displaying eBay listings or best-selling products.

We love that the default storefront includes several customer favorites, like a product comparison tool, featured products on the home page and item reviews. Some online stores require plug-ins or higher-priced plans.

Plus, you can choose from 15,000 options for themes, payment providers and nearly anything else you can think of to personalize your site. With these tools, you can enable multiple languages as your shop expands worldwide or find themes to match your brand.

Support

Similar to other open-source platforms, OpenCart directs users to its free community forums for support. It has over 110,000 registered members who reply to questions and try to resolve issues. OpenCart also provides a general support email address and a phone number for its Hong Kong office. However, it is unclear how responsive these channels are to service requests.

Alternatively, you can buy dedicated technical support, including one-off occurrences, for instances like needing an administrator password reset. In most cases, web developers and programmers turn to its vast documentation and online resources when troubleshooting.

Our editorial team created our expert opinion scores. The expert score contributes to 10% of the data-focused methodology, which underpins our Blueprint rating for each company. The expert score combines first-person experience, subject matter expertise and extensive research to develop these metrics as another source of truth for readers during their decision-making process.

Square Online caters to small businesses and startups, from solopreneurs to teams of 10 or more. More importantly, it’s a solution that works well for companies with a physical presence, from food trucks and cafes to retail pop-ups and stores. You can highlight your in-store promotions online to existing clients and expand your customer base with social media and Google integrations.

With Square Online’s built-in inventory management tools, you can ditch the spreadsheet and not worry when juggling quantities between your online and physical store. Square Online syncs to any Square POS system (free and paid versions), so customers never pay for a product that’s out of stock.

Although Square Online is less scalable for fast-growing businesses than Big Commerce, the Plus and Premium plans provide features to personalize customer experiences, helping you maintain the small company feel and hands-on approach without a significant time investment. However, there are better choices than Square Online if you want to use a third-party payment processor or require 24/7 customer support.

By bringing onsite and e-commerce tools under one roof, Square Online streamlines small business tasks while delivering excellent customer experiences. It’s free to open an online store or sell on social channels. While customer service isn’t available over the weekend (except for Premium users), all Square Online subscriptions, even the free version, include live chat and phone support.

Value

Websites are essential when starting a business. Yet many startups rely on social media to promote their brand because they need more time and resources to build an e-commerce site. Square Online is one product within a suite of tools Square offers, many of which include free versions. Its quick setup and affordability take your store online so you can control your audience and marketing instead of hoping your followers see it on Facebook.

Square Online is an all-in-one system with a built-in website builder, payment processing, website hosting and a free domain for a year on paid plans. You don’t have to find separate vendors for each component. Paid plans and transaction rates are competitively priced for startups and small businesses. On the other hand, a rapidly expanding e-commerce startup may outgrow Square quickly. It lacks enterprise-level features found in Big Commerce and OpenCart plans.

Functionality

Square Online puts most of the tools a startup or small team needs at your fingertips. Without investing a dime, you can offer your customers free in-person pickup and accept Apple Pay and Google Pay. By upgrading to a paid plan, you can improve brand awareness with a custom domain and take advantage of tools to customize visitor experiences.

We love the option to show returning customers personalized recommendations. This space also lets you promote featured menu items and available coupons. If you subscribe to Square’s loyalty program, this area can remind customers to use their points. Unlike Wix, rewards tools aren’t included with Square Online plans.

Support

Like Weebly, Square Online offers live support to free plan members. However, Square kicks it up by assisting through phone and live chat, whereas Weebly doesn’t have a phone option on the free version. Yet, you can’t reach a live human on the weekends with a Free or Plus plan, only Monday through Friday from 6 a.m. to 6 p.m.

We like that Premium users ($79 monthly with annual billing) receive 24/7 priority support, but we wish the vendor had weekend hours for Plus users. Square Online has ample resources and documentation with clear step-by-step instructions. Most topics have some screenshots or videos. But, some people could find the text-heavy articles tedious.

Learn more: Read our full Square Online review.

Our editorial team created our expert opinion scores. The expert score contributes to 10% of the data-focused methodology, which underpins our Blueprint rating for each company. The expert score combines first-person experience, subject matter expertise and extensive research to develop these metrics as another source of truth for readers during their decision-making process.

BigCommerce is a scalable e-commerce platform designed for retailers planning to expand rapidly. It supports leaders whose growth strategy prioritizes smooth omnichannel experiences and high-converting checkout pages. Indeed, if you envision connecting your store to major marketplaces like Walmart, Amazon, Facebook and Google Shopping, BigCommerce is an excellent option.

With unlimited staff accounts, bandwidth and products, you can build substantial inventories and teams without restrictions. So, if you want to break into new customer segments, like opening a corporate product line or introducing an eco-conscious brand, you can do so without buying another complete subscription.

As a bonus, you can manage several brands, customer segments or stores through a single control panel. While you can view or switch between online shops with some competitor’s products, none provide the granular control BigCommerce offers. Most growth plans include international expansion, and BigCommerce has you covered there, too. Its pre-integrated payment solutions cover more than 230 countries and 140 currencies.

BigCommerce is the best e-commerce solution because it offers multiple payment gateways and doesn’t place limits on staff accounts, site storage or products. While there is a learning curve, it’s not as steep as with OpenCart, and you have 15 days to test the system. With international and multi-site support, your company can expand without migrating to another platform.

Value

BigCommerce subscriptions are reasonably priced, starting at $39 monthly. We appreciate its 15-day free trial and the 25% discount for annual billing. However, we recommend that small businesses proceed with caution. BigCommerce automatically upgrades your plan once your sales exceed the limit. Some users with brick-and-mortar stores report that BigCommerce includes these sales in its calculations, but we couldn’t confirm that.

In addition, the vendor only offers 12 free themes. Paid versions are hundreds of dollars without guarantees that the features will work. Like other e-commerce platforms, you can customize your site with apps. However, some users mentioned that many basic tasks required apps, meaning you’ll pay additional fees. In our view, the sales volume limitations and automatic plan upgrades reduce the value to small businesses.

Functionality

BigCommerce provides an expansive feature set with many ready-made, out-of-the-box solutions to personalize customer experiences and convert site visitors. For instance, you can choose from 70 discount options for brands, customers, orders and bulk pricing. These tools work well for companies with multiple stores and client segments, such as corporate and consumer groups.

Another critical feature differentiating BigCommerce from its rivals is its integration with payment gateways. Many e-commerce platforms require you to use their services; some charge fees if you select a third-party processor. BigCommerce offers special rates to eligible customers who want to use PayPal Braintree, but you can pick from many pre-integrated payment solutions without additional transaction fees.

Support

Although BigCommerce and Shopify have 24/7 customer service, only BigCommerce provides phone support with all subscriptions. Yet, the support agents are potentially less knowledgeable and responsive for small business users than compared to enterprise plans. Several users reported challenges getting issues resolved.

You can also email the company or ask the community. However, the forums aren’t as active as OpenCart or WooCommerce groups, and we didn’t see many topics marked as “Answered.” The knowledge base is in-depth, but screenshots, videos and GIFs would make the content more accessible and easier to understand.

Learn more: Read our full BigCommerce review.

Our editorial team created our expert opinion scores. The expert score contributes to 10% of the data-focused methodology, which underpins our Blueprint rating for each company. The expert score combines first-person experience, subject matter expertise and extensive research to develop these metrics as another source of truth for readers during their decision-making process.