Shopify leads the market for small to mid-sized merchants seeking a comprehensive, beginner-friendly solution with excellent support. WooCommerce suits developers and those needing maximum customisation on a tight budget. BigCommerce appeals to growing merchants requiring advanced features and superior scalability without the complexity.
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1ShopifyPowers over 4 million businesses globally with integrated payment processing and inventory management.95.0NEW$29/month 2WooCommercePowers approximately 42% of all e-commerce sites globally, making it the most widely used platform by volume.92.7NEWFree (hosting and plugins extra) 3BigCommerceProvides unlimited bandwidth and product listings across all plans, supporting merchants scaling into enterprise.90.3NEW$29/month 4MagentoDominates the enterprise segment with support for millions of SKUs and complex business logic.88.0NEWFree (Magento Open Source) or custom enterprise pricing 5SquarespaceKnown for industry-leading design templates that require minimal customisation to look professional.85.7NEW$15/month 6WixServes over 200 million users globally with a focus on ease of use for non-technical creators.83.3NEW$16/month 7Salesforce Commerce CloudIntegrates directly with Salesforce CRM for unmatched customer intelligence and personalisation capabilities.81.0NEWCustom 8PrestaShopPowers over 300,000 online stores, particularly dominant in France and Europe.78.7NEWFree (hosting extra) 9Zendesk CommerceUniquely integrates commerce with world-class support tooling for customer-centric organisations.76.3NEWCustom 10ShopwareOffers true headless commerce architecture natively, enabling API-first development approaches.74.0NEWFree (Community Edition) or custom (Cloud) The ranking, in detail
01
Complete omnichannel retail platform with integrated inventory and payments
Shopify is a leading hosted e-commerce platform enabling merchants to build stores, manage inventory, process payments, and handle shipping with minimal technical knowledge. It offers hundreds of themes and apps with 24/7 support.
From $29/monthBest for Growing retailers and multi-channel sellers
95.0
02
The open-source WordPress e-commerce solution
WooCommerce is a free, open-source WordPress plugin that transforms WordPress sites into fully functional e-commerce stores. It offers complete control over your site with extensive customisation options and a large developer community.
From Free (hosting and plugins extra)Best for WordPress users, developers, and merchants needing maximum customisation and control
92.7
03
Enterprise-grade e-commerce platform
BigCommerce is a hosted platform designed for growing businesses requiring advanced features, superior uptime, and scalability. It includes built-in features for multi-channel selling, abandoned cart recovery, and sophisticated inventory management.
From $29/monthBest for Growing e-commerce businesses, multi-channel retailers
90.3
04
Powerful, scalable open-source commerce
Magento is an open-source platform purpose-built for mid-market to enterprise retailers needing powerful features, extensive customisation, and multi-store management. Adobe now owns and develops Magento as part of its Experience Cloud.
From Free (Magento Open Source) or custom enterprise pricingBest for Enterprise retailers, multi-store operations, and technically sophisticated merchants
88.0
05
Beautiful, all-in-one platform for any business
Squarespace combines website building with integrated e-commerce capabilities, offering beautiful templates and a drag-and-drop editor. It suits creative entrepreneurs wanting aesthetic design without technical complexity.
From $15/monthBest for Design-conscious brands, galleries, fashion retailers
85.7
06
Powerful website builder with endless possibilities
Wix is a cloud-based website builder offering drag-and-drop simplicity with integrated e-commerce features. It includes hosting, domain registration, and AI-powered design assistance for rapid store creation.
From $16/monthBest for Small businesses, portfolios, creative professionals
83.3
07
AI-powered B2C and B2B commerce platform
Salesforce Commerce Cloud is an enterprise cloud platform combining e-commerce with CRM and customer data, powered by Einstein AI. It excels at personalisation and omnichannel retail strategies.
From CustomBest for Large enterprises, multinational retailers, and B2B organisations requiring advanced personalisation
81.0
08
Open-source e-commerce for flexibility and control
PrestaShop is a free, open-source platform popular in Europe for building feature-rich online stores. It offers a modular architecture with thousands of community-built modules for customisation and extension.
From Free (hosting extra)Best for Small to mid-market retailers, European merchants, and those comfortable with self-hosting
78.7
09
Commerce integrated with customer service excellence
Zendesk Commerce (formerly Zendesk Sell) combines e-commerce functionality with integrated customer service and support tools, enabling seamless customer communication throughout the buying journey.
From CustomBest for Service-oriented merchants prioritising customer support, SaaS companies, and B2B sellers
76.3
10
Flexible, headless-ready commerce platform
Shopware is an open-source and cloud-native platform offering both traditional and headless commerce architectures. Popular in Germany and Europe, it emphasises flexibility for omnichannel selling.
From Free (Community Edition) or custom (Cloud)Best for European retailers, omnichannel merchants, and those needing headless architecture flexibility
74.0
Frequently asked questions
What is the difference between hosted and self-hosted e-commerce platforms?
Hosted platforms (Shopify, BigCommerce, Squarespace) handle infrastructure, security, and updates for you via monthly subscription. Self-hosted platforms (WooCommerce, Magento, Shopware) run on your own server, offering control but requiring technical knowledge and ongoing maintenance responsibility.
Which platform is best for a complete beginner with no technical knowledge?
Wix and Squarespace offer the lowest technical barrier with drag-and-drop interfaces, beautiful templates, and all-in-one hosting. Shopify is slightly more specialised for commerce but remains very beginner-friendly with excellent support and no hosting knowledge required.
How much does it actually cost to run an e-commerce store?
Platform fees start from GBP 11-29 monthly, but add domain (GBP 10-15/year), payment processing fees (1.5-3.5%), shipping integration, and optional apps. A realistic budget for a small store ranges from GBP 50-200 monthly; enterprise solutions cost significantly more with custom pricing.