The 11 Best eCommerce Platforms for a Small Business

The 11 Best eCommerce Platforms for a Small Business

These days, it feels like every business has an eCommerce component – and for good reason. Online shopping is ever present, and the industry is predicted to continue dominating in the coming years. The eCommerce landscape offers countless opportunities for prospective entrepreneurs, and choosing the right eCommerce platform can play a considerable role in determining the success of a given venture.

Given the plethora of eCommerce platforms out there, picking one that aligns with your unique needs can be a daunting task. Making the decision as a small business is typically accompanied by common pain points, such as a fear of making the wrong choice, the uncertainty of scalability, the complexities of customization and the desire to find a balance between functionality and affordability. 

In order to select the most suitable eCommerce platform, it’s incumbent upon business owners to have a solid understanding of the options out there. To help ease the burden, we’ve put together a guide with the 11 best eCommerce platforms for a small business. 

Shopify 

Shopify has emerged as the leading eCommerce platform. It has a stellar reputation, which makes its 4.8/5 rating a surprise to no one. Shopify is the ideal platform for small businesses, as it offers a user-friendly interface and empowers entrepreneurs to set up and manage online stores with ease. Key features include customizable templates, seamless payment processing and a user-centric dashboard for tracking sales and inventory. 

It’s also worth mentioning that Shopify uniquely accommodates scalability and growth. With a straightforward and competitive pricing structure at $29 a month, Shopify provides affordability without compromising on essential tools. The platform’s emphasis on simplicity, combined with powerful tools, makes it a go-to choice for many small businesses. 

Wix eCommerce 

Wix is another leader in the eCommerce platform realm, and boasts a 4.6/5 rating. The versatile website builder is beloved by small business owners, and is especially appreciated for its intuitive drag-and-drop interface. With Wix, website creation is so simple, allowing entrepreneurs to showcase products and build their brands with ease. Noteworthy features include customizable templates, mobile optimization and great SEO tools. Plus, Wiix’s budget-friendly pricing is a boon for business owners, starting at $23 per month. Not to mention, Wix also has stellar customer support, so those with limited technical expertise can feel confident any website issues will be swiftly resolved.

GoDaddy eCommerce 

GoDaddy eCommerce has a lot to offer, and has a solid 4.5/5 rating. It’s celebrated for its seamless integration with GoDaddy’s website builder, and streamlines the process of creating and managing an eCommerce site. GoDaddy eCommerce offers a number of awesome features, including customizable templates, secure payment processing and inventory management tools. It has a competitive pricing structure – starting at $19.99 per month – and 24/7 customer support. GoDaddy eCommerce is an affordable, accessible choice for entrepreneurs venturing into the digital marketplace.

Weebly eCommerce 

Weebly eCommerce is another excellent platform with a 4.3/5 rating. Weebly boasts a super simple user interface that allows for effortless website creation and management. In addition to offering customizable templates, Weebly also has inventory tracking features and secure payment processing. From an affordability standpoint, Weebly is wondrous. For only $6 per month, Weebly offers a cheap entrypoint for small businesses seeking to dip into eCommerce. Despite Weebly’s affordable offerings, it does not skimp out on essential features.

BigCommerce

BigCommerce is a powerful eCommerce solution for small businesses, and has an impressive 4.7/5 rating. BigCommerce is especially celebrated for its scalability features, as it specifically caters to growing enterprises. Other key features include customizable templates, advanced SEO tools and secure payment processing. BigCommerce starts at $29.95 per month, and it offers a suite of advanced functionalities to members. It is committed to user-friendly design and around-the-clock customer support.

Square Online Store

Square Online Store is a great platform for small businesses, and has a 4.6/5 rating. Square Online Store has a robust payment system, which significantly simplifies transactions and inventory management. Other important features include customizable templates, comprehensive order management tools and secure payment processing. What truly sets Square Online Store apart is its transparent pricing; starting at $0 per month (not including transaction fees), Square Online Store has a user-friendly interface and is highly reliable. 

Squarespace Commerce 

Squarespace is another well-known eCommerce platform, and is a highly versatile solution tailored specifically for small businesses entering the eCommerce arena. With its 4.5/5 rating, Squarespace is known for its visually appealing and customizable templates, as well as its intuitive drag-and-drop website builder, secure payment processing and robust SEO tools. Squarespace pricing starts at $12/month, which is a very affordable price for small businesses. The platform puts an emphasis on design and functionality, allowing eCommerce business owners to grow their ventures with style and efficiency. 

WooCommerce 

WooCommerce is a WordPress plugin that is adored for its flexible eCommerce capabilities. As an open-source solution, it seamlessly integrated with WordPress websites, offering extensive customization options for small businesses. It also offers a suite of versatile product management tools, as well as a number of extensions and SEO capabilities. With a free base plugin, WooCommerce is of course budget-friendly, and entrepreneurs can pay reasonable fees for more advanced options. WooCommerce’s compatibility with WordPress is a big deal for many businesses that already use the platform.

Magento 

Magento is a robust eCommerce platform that has pretty powerful features. It caters to businesses of all sizes, and offers an extensive range of customization, product management and salability tools. It also has a large community support system. Magento Open Source edition is free, and the Commerce version – which has more advanced features – is designed for larger enterprises. 

Ecwid 

Ecwid is a user-friendly eCommerce platform, which favors both versatility and simplicity. Ecwid seamlessly integrates with existing websites and social media profiles, and is therefore ideal for small businesses and big businesses alike. It also offers a mobile-responsive design, easy product management and secure payment options. Ecwid has a free plan, as well as affordable pricing starting at $15 a month, and is a hassle-free entry point into eCommerce.

Volusion 

Volusion is an eCommerce platform that caters to small businesses. Unique features include a built-in CRM system and marketing tools that boost online visibility – important assets for a business that’s just starting out. Starting at $29 a month, Volusion offers a fair balance between features and cost. The platform’s easy drag-and-drop builder makes it highly accessible to entrepreneurs without much technical skills.

Conclusion 

As you now know, there is no shortage of viable eCommerce platforms out there. It’s useful to understand what each platform offers, and determine whether it meets all your needs. It’s never a bad idea to start with a free option and see if it suffices. That said, you should also be mindful of features that encourage growth and scalability. User-friendliness should be a top priority for any business owner, too – the easier a platform is to navigate, the better.