Ready to take your business online? Setting up an online store can be challenging, especially for beginners. With countless eCommerce platforms available online, choosing the right one can be daunting.
But don’t you worry! I’m here to simplify things for you. In this article, we’ll begin by understanding what eCommerce platforms are and what they do. We’ll also discuss the key factors to consider when selecting an eCommerce solution.
Finally, we’ll explore the 6 Best eCommerce Platforms for Beginners. So whether you sell online courses, physical products, or handmade artifacts, this guide will help you launch your online store with ease.
With no more delay, let’s dive right in!
What is an eCommerce Platform?
An eCommerce platform is an online solution that helps you create and manage your online store and sell your products online. It lets customers browse through your inventory, select products, and purchase them with the click of a button.
eCommerce platforms come with a range of features, including order management, inventory management, payment processing, customer management, marketing tools, and many more. Examples of popular eCommerce platforms include Wix, Shopify, WooCommerce, etc.
6 Best eCommerce Platforms for Beginners (Table)
| Platform Name | Unique Features | Free Plan | Pricing | Transaction Fee | Best For |
| Shopify | Shopify POS, App Store | N.A. | Starts from $29/month | 2% fee on Starter plan | Beginners, entrepreneurs, and small businesses. |
| WooCommerce | Open-source, highly scalable | Yes | N.A. | 2.9% fee + $0.30 per transaction (on US cards) | WordPress users, tech-savvy businesses. |
| Wix | Extensive Template Collection | Yes | Starts from $17/month | 2.9% + $0.30 per transaction (on credit cards) | Beginners, budget-conscious users |
| Hostinger Website Builder | AI integration | N.A. | Starts from $2.49/mo | N.A. | Beginners who need quick store setup |
| Sellfy | Easy to use | N.A. | Starts from $19/month | N.A. | Small to medium-sized businesses |
| Ecwid | Sell on Multiple Platforms | Yes (sell 5 products) | Starts from $21/month | N.A. | Small businesses and entrepreneurs |
| Square | Square POS | Yes (Basis features) | Starts from $29/month | Depends on payment mode | Small businesses focused on in-person sales |
| Big Cartel | Discount coupons | Yes (sell 5 products) | Starts from $15/month | N.A. | Designers, artists, individual sellers |
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6 Best eCommerce Platforms for Beginners (2025)
1) Shopify – Best All-Rounder eCommerce Platform
Shopify is one of the most popular eCommerce platforms that lets you sell your products both online and offline. Founded in 2006, it is currently used by millions of merchants to sell their products, process payments, and expand their businesses across the globe.
| Pricing | Starts from $29/month |
| Payment Gateways | 100+ including PayPal, RazorPay, Stripe, Shopify Payments, etc. |
| Commission Charged | 2.9% + $0.30 per transaction (on Starter plan) |
| Shipping Methods | Shopify Shipping + third party methods available |
| Marketing Integrations | 16 apps available |
| AI Builder | N.A. |
| Themes | 13 free themes, 215 paid themes |
| Free Domain/Custom Domain | Free Subdomain assigned. Can add a custom domain. |
Standout Features of Shopify
- Easy Product Management
To set up your store, you can either add products manually or import them. While adding products, you can add the name, description, image, category, pricing details, inventory and shipping details, product variants, etc. You can also preview the search engine listing of your product.
Additionally, Shopify also lets you create collections, manage inventory and purchase orders, move your inventory between locations, sell gift cards, and more.
2) Lots of Integrations
Shopify offers the Shopify App Store, which has hundreds of app integrations to expand your store’s functionality. For instance, it lets you connect your store with marketing apps, like TikTok, Facebook and Instagram, Google and YouTube, Pinterest, Snapchat Ads, and more.
3) Multiple Discount Types
You can also offer discounts to your customers when they purchase your products. Shopify comes with 4 different coupon options, like discount on specific products, free shipping, discount on total order amount, and buy X get Y.
These discounts can be offered via discount codes or automatically deducted at checkout. You can also set conditions on your discounts for minimum order value, percentage or fixed amount discounts, etc.
4) Good Theme Library
The theme library of Shopify comprises 13 free themes and 215+ paid themes belonging to various categories like Clothing, Electronics, Food and Drinks, etc. While picking your theme, you can filter the library by price, industry, product catalog size, and features.
All themes on Shopify are mobile responsive. You can even customize them with custom HTML and CSS scripts.
5) Customize your Store
Shopify comes with a variety of sections you can use to build your online store. These include image banners, slide shows, videos, blogs, email signup forms, and more. You can also customize theme settings like logo, typography, colors, animations, buttons, and more.
6) Plenty of Payment Methods
Shopify features 100+ third-party payment gateways, including PayPal, RazorPay, Stripe, Shopify Payments, etc, which support credit cards and wallets like Google Pay and Apple Pay.
7) Shopify Shipping on Select Locations
You get Shopify Shipping on eligible locations, including the US, UK, Canada, Australia, France, Italy, and Spain. Some features of Shopify Shipping include bulk label printing, automated order shipping, and personalized packing slips. You can also integrate third-party services to ship your products.
Cons
- Expensive Pricing
- Limited free themes
- 2% transaction fee on Starter plan
Pricing
Shopify is slightly on the expensive end of the eCommerce platforms’ spectrum. It features 4 unique plans, catering to different users. The following table features their monthly and annual pricing.
| Monthly | Yearly | |
| Basic | $39/month | $29/month |
| Shopify | $105/month | $79/month |
| Advanced | $399/month | $299/month |
| Plus | $2300/month | $2300/month |
Shopify’s plans start from an expensive rate of $29/month, where you get 10 inventory locations, localized global selling in 3 markets, and a 2% transaction fee. If you are a beginner or a solo entrepreneur, this is a good plan to get started!
Shopify also features a 3-day free trial requiring no credit card details. After your trial ends, you can enjoy your first month of access for merely ₹20!
Conclusion
Shopify is one of the most popular and easy-to-use options to build your online store. It has an intuitive and friendly UI, making it easy to navigate for beginners. It also features an extensive range of integrations, payment methods, and good store customization options.
However, the dozens of features may be overwhelming for beginners. It also features limited free themes and imposes a 2% fee on every transaction. Overall, if you are a beginner or a professional marketer who needs all the features to design and manage your store, Shopify is one of the best eCommerce platforms for you.
2) WooCommerce – Best for WordPress Users
WooCommerce is an open-source eCommerce solution for small businesses and developers. It is available as a WordPress plugin that is easy to set up, use, and customize. Launched in 2011, WooCommerce has helped build over 3.6 million stores!
| Pricing | Starts from $0/month |
| Payment Gateways | 100+ including Square, Klarna, PayPal, Stripe, Amazon Pay, Razorpay |
| Commission Charged | WooPayments charges 2.9% fee + $0.30 for every transaction with a US-issued credit or debit card. |
| Shipping Methods | 3rd-party shipping services, WooCommerce Shipping available (US) |
| Marketing Integrations | Google integration, SEO plugins, social media marketing, email marketing |
| AI Builder | No |
| Themes | Yes, paid themes available |
| Free Domain | No free subdomain provided. Custom domain required. |
Standout Features of WooCommerce
1) Free WordPress Plugin
WooCommerce is a free WordPress plugin you can install and start building your store instantly. The setup is pretty easy once you activate the plugin. You simply need to answer a few questions about your store and create a WooCommerce account.
2) Easy Store Design
Designing and customizing your store with WooCommerce is super easy! You can either choose to design a new theme or choose from pre-designed theme options.
If you plan to design your own store, you get a drag-and-drop builder along with the ability to change the style and layout of your store. These include the logo, color palette, font, header, footer, etc. You also get multiple templates to design your home page.
3) Multiple Product Types
WooCommerce allows you to sell physical as well as digital products, like downloadable books, music files, videos, etc. You can also sell a collection of products, link products to an external site, and sell print-on-demand products or variable products with size and color options.
4) Advanced Product Options
Besides basic options like adding a product name and description, WooCommerce lets you enter inventory details, product dimensions, stock details, upsells and cross-sells, attributes, purchase notes, etc. To create product pop-ups, you can install the OptinMonster plugin.
5) Hundreds of Extensions
WooCommerce offers the WooCommerce Marketplace where you can get 220+ extensions for all your store requirements. These include extensions for marketing, social media, customer service, shipping, payments, SEO, etc.
6) Easy Coupon Creation
Want to offer rewards and discounts to your customers? WooCommerce also lets you create coupons. You can offer fixed cart or product discounts, along with percentage discounts depending on your requirements.
7) Various Payment Methods Supported
The WooCommerce Marketplace features 70+ payment providers, including RazorPay, Stripe, PayU for WooCommerce, PayPal, etc. It also supports offline payment methods, like direct bank transfers and cash on delivery.
Cons
- Setup can be quite complex and technical.
- The user needs to maintain the website.
- Many extensions are paid.
- Need to buy web hosting and domain separately.
Pricing
You’ll be happy to note that WooCommerce is a completely free-to-use plugin. All you need to do is install and activate it on your WordPress website. Even though WooCommerce is a free plugin, you still need to bear the cost of purchasing a web hosting service and a domain name.
Conclusion
WooCommerce looks like a powerful solution for beginners and small business owners looking for a flexible solution to build their stores. It’s free, it integrates with WordPress, and it comes with a range of features to simplify your store management.
It does come with a steep learning curve. If you are a complete beginner, you may find it slightly complex at first. Thus, I would recommend it to WordPress users and tech-savvy individuals.
3) Wix – Easy to Use Platform
Wix allows you to sell a range of physical and digital eCommerce products. Launched in 2006, Wix has over 250 million users around the globe, and 85k+ websites are built on it every single day!
| Pricing | Starts from $17month |
| Payment Gateways | Wix Payments along with 8+ providers including Stripe, PayPal, PayU, Airpay, etc. |
| Commission Charged | Only on credit card payments (2.9% + $0.30 per transaction) |
| Shipping Methods | Third-party services, WooCommerce Shipping (for US Stores) |
| Marketing Integrations | 300+ apps on Wix App Market |
| AI Builder | Yes |
| Themes | 850+ |
| Free Domain / Custom Domain | Free subdomain provided. |
Standout Features of Wix
1) Extensive Template Collection
Wix offers an enormous library of 850+ templates covering all possible niches from online stores to portfolios to blogs and more. They are arranged in a variety of categories like Travel and Tourism, Fashion and Style, Health and Wellness, etc.
2) Drag-and-Drop Website Design
The website design experience offered by Wix is friendly and convenient. It comes with a drag-and-drop editor along with dozens of elements you can include on your site. This includes buttons, galleries, boxes, text, lists, blogs, online stores, etc.
You also get beautifully designed templates for sections like about, contact, team, services, testimonials, etc.
3) Powerful Marketing Integrations
Wix integrates with a range of marketing apps to expand your store’s functionality. Popular names include Google Analytics, Facebook Pixel, Google Tag Manager, Google Ads, Facebook Catalog, Google Merchant, etc. Wix’s App Market features 300+ apps catering to all your store needs.
4) AI Integration
Recently, Wix has also integrated artificial intelligence for designing websites. All you need to do is provide your brand name along with a brief description. It will generate a fully functional and customizable website for you within minutes.
It also features more AI tools like Text Creator, Section Generator, and Theme Assistant to help you build an impressive website.
5) Functional eCommerce Store
Wix allows you to set up your online store and sell physical or digital products through it. You get multiple options like adding your products. You can add product images and videos, profit, inventory details, product size and color options, offer discount coupons, and more.
6) Blogging and SEO Tools
You can also set up a blog to share informative content with your users. Wix features a modern blog editor with generic elements like images, videos, HTML Code, Tables, GIFs, etc.
It also features a helpful list of SEO features for optimizing your site. You get suggestions for meta title and description tags, SEO basics, custom URLs, etc.
7) Multiple Payment and Shipping Options
Wix integrates with 8+ payment gateways, including Wix Payments, Stripe, PayPal, PayU, and more. It also offers various shipping options like Free Shipping, Flat Rate, and Rate by Weight/Price/Product.
Cons
- eCommerce features not on the free plan.
- No custom domain on the free plan.
- Lots of options make the UI cluttered.
- Separate mobile layout design.
Pricing
Wix offers a decent free plan along with affordable paid plans for professional users. The following table depicts the different plans offered by Wix.
| Monthly | |
| Light | $17/month |
| Core | $29/month |
| Business | $36/month |
| Business Elite | $159/month |
The Light plan is its Starter plan, starting at $17/month, where you get 2 GB of storage, the Light marketing suite, and one free domain for a year. You also get to add 2 collaborators to your dashboard. However, the eCommerce features start from the Core plan onwards.
Conclusion
Overall, Wix looks like an easy-to-use platform for beginners as well as professionals. It comes with hundreds of ready-made templates, along with AI integration, to create attractive websites at affordable rates.
If you are just starting out with your online store, Wix is one of the easiest platforms to get going. It’s the best budget-friendly option for quickly designing websites.
4) Hostinger Website Builder
Hostinger Website Builder is an AI-powered website builder offered by Hostinger. It was formerly known as Zyro and relaunched in 2023 as Hostinger Website Builder. You’ll find hundreds of customizable templates, a drag-and-drop interface, and quick AI features to design your store.
| Pricing | Starts from $2.49/mo (for 4 years) |
| Payment Gateways | 20+ gateways (Stripe, PayPal, dLocal Go, etc) |
| Commission Charged | 0% |
| Shipping Methods | N.A. |
| Marketing Integrations | 100+ (SEO tools, email marketing, social media integration, blogs, affiliate marketing, discounts, third-party integrations.) |
| AI Builder | Yes |
| Themes | 150+ templates |
| Free Domain / Custom Domain | Custom domain free for 1 year |
Standout Features of Hostinger Website Builder
1) Free Hosting and Domain
When you purchase the Hostinger website builder or the eCommerce website builder plans, you get a free hosting and custom domain along with it. The domain name is free for the first year.
2) Drag and Drop Website Builder
Hostinger website builder supports drag and drop, which makes website design highly convenient. As you drag an element across the editor, grid lines help you drop it in the right place.
It is fully customizable, meaning you can infinitely edit the colors, and typography, and experiment with elements, sections, page layouts, etc.
3) AI Integration
You’ll find heavy integration of AI in Hostinger’s website builder. It can design your complete website within seconds if you provide your brand name, website name, and a description. It also features tools like AI Logo Maker, AI Heatmap Generator, and AI Writer to simplify your design process.
4) Blogging and eCommerce Functions
Hostinger website builder offers tools for both blogging and eCommerce. While designing your website, you can easily insert a blog, online store, portfolio, or appointment depending on your use case. These are added as separate pages you can customize.
5) Multiple Product Types
You can sell physical products, digital products, multiple physical products, donations, appointments, and services depending on your business. For each type, you can add product details like its weight, pricing, discounted price, size and color options, categories, etc.
6) AI Product Descriptions
With Hostinger’s AI, you can generate apt descriptions when you upload your product image. All you need to do is provide your product’s name, subtitle, and ribbon text. It generates a comprehensive description of your product.
7) Multiple Payment Methods and Shipping Options
Hostinger website builder offers 20+ payment gateways, including RazorPay, Stripe, PayPal, dLocal Go, and more. It also doesn’t charge any transaction fee from the customer.
Similarly, for shipping methods, you can create shipping zones and add countries. Then you can define a shipping rate and set conditions on it by order price or order weight.
8) Versatile Coupon Codes
You can offer discounts to your customers with Hostinger website builder’s coupon codes. It offers two types of discounts – by fixed amount or by percentage. You can set the active dates for your discounts and choose if it applies to all products or specific categories.
Additionally, you can also apply conditions to your discount. For example, limiting its total number of uses or setting a minimum cart amount to activate the coupon.
9) Powerful SEO Features
Hostinger website builder also takes care of your rankings on SERP. It offers a checklist of SEO improvements to rank higher. These include SEO titles, meta descriptions, keywords, heading tags for different pages, etc.
Cons
- Limited elements
- No free plan
- No own shipping methods and payment gateways
Pricing
| Monthly | Yearly | Two-Year | Four Years | |
| Premium Website Builder | $12.19/month (+$4.99 setup fee) | $2.99/month | $2.99/month | $2.49/month (+3 months free) |
| Business Website Builder | $13.99/month (+$4.99 setup fee) | $3.99/month | $3.99/month | $3.49/month (+3 months free) |
The pricing plans of Hostinger website builder start from ₹599/month, where you get a free domain, and free email, with no transaction fee! You also get a 30-day refund policy with it. If you use the coupon code KRIPESH, you can get 10% off on your purchase.
Conclusion
Hostinger looks like the perfect option for small to medium-sized businesses that need a quick website design solution at affordable rates. Its AI features and range of e-commerce options make it ideal for building your online store.
5) Sellfy
Sellfy is an easy-to-use eCommerce platform designed to sell digital products from your own website or social media platform. Founded in 2011, Sellfy currently has over 60k+ creators who have earned over $150 million in revenue!
| Pricing | Starts from $19/month (2 year subscription) |
| Payment Gateways | Stripe and PayPal |
| Commission Charged | 0% |
| Shipping Methods | Can set up shipping zones |
| Marketing Integrations | Facebook Pixel, Google Analytics, Twitter Ads, Google Merchant Center, Patreon, and Zapier |
| AI Builder | No |
| Themes | 11 |
| Free Domain / Custom Domain | Free Subdomain provided. |
Standout Features of Sellfy
1) Easy Store Design
Sellfy’s store editor is pretty modern and easy to use. It features 11 themes along with various modules you can add to your store pages, like newsletter form, product grid, social links, contact form, etc. You can also edit the content, background, page layout, and more. However, it doesn’t have any AI options.
2) Sell Multiple Types of Products
Sellfy lets you sell physical products, digital products, subscriptions, freebies, and even print-on-demand products. This is great if you are planning to sell a variety of product types on your website.
For adding any product, you can enter product details, category, image, SEO details, price settings, stock, weight, variants, and more.
3) Embed Your Store
If you wish to display your products on a different platform or website, Sellfy gives you the option to embed your store as well. You can choose to embed your entire store or specific categories of products.
4) Good Promotion Options
If you wish to run promotional offers for your customers, Sellfy allows you to create coupons and run sales. For both options, you can specify a discount percentage or amount, expiry date, usage limit, and products eligible for the discount.
5) Good Shipping Options
Sellfy allows you to set up your shipping methods. For local pickups, you can enter your location details. Whereas, for global products, you can create shipping zones and specify shipping flat rates or based on weight.
6) Email Marketing Features
Sellfy lets you create marketing newsletters and product update emails to your customers or subscribers. These require email credits, which are assigned according to your subscription plan.
7) 6 App Integrations
You can connect Sellfy with 6 popular apps, namely Facebook Pixel, Google Analytics, Twitter Ads, Google Merchant Center, Patreon, and Zapier. These are pretty good for tracking user activity in your store and automating manual tasks. You can also create webhooks if you want.
Cons
- No free plan. 14-day free trial available.
- Limited payment methods. (Stripe and PayPal)
- Expensive pricing plans.
- Limited app integrations.
Pricing
Sellfy offers 3 types of pricing plans catering to different users. The following table features their monthly, annual, and two-year pricing. It doesn’t come with a free plan, though.
| Monthly | Yearly | Two-Year | |
| Starter | $29/month | $22/month | $19/month |
| Business | $79/month | $59/month | $49/month |
| Premium | $159/month | $119/month | $99/month |
The Starter plan costs $29/month, where you can sell unlimited products and earn up to $10k in sales every year. It also lets you sell digital and subscription products, run email marketing campaigns, and connect your domain.
Conclusion
Sellfy looks like a versatile platform for selling a variety of products. Features like flexible shipping, robust promotion options, and basic email marketing tools make it stand out. However, the lack of a free plan, limited payment gateway, and high pricing may deter some users.
Overall, it’s quite expensive for beginners. However, if you need a comprehensive eCommerce solution that focuses on selling digital products and subscriptions and have no budget restrictions, you can check it out!
6) Ecwid
Ecwid is an all-in-one eCommerce platform launched back in 2009. It lets you sell multiple types of products, including physical products, digital products, and services.
| Pricing | Starts from $21/month |
| Payment Gateways | 20+ payment methods, including Stripe, PayPal, PayU, RazorPay, and cash payments. |
| Commission Charged | 0% |
| Shipping Methods | Local delivery, self-pickup, or pick from delivery providers |
| Marketing Integrations | 60+ free and premium apps available. |
| AI Builder | No |
| Themes | 40+ templates |
| Free Domain / Custom Domain | Offers free subdomain. Custom domain can be connected as well. |
Standout Features of Ecwid
1) Dozens of Templates
It features a list of 40+ attractive website templates. You can choose from categories like health and beauty, home, art, jewelry, food, and more. You can preview a template before applying it.
2) Easy Store Design
With Ecwid, you get an intuitive dashboard for editing your website. You get beautiful section templates for sections like videos, announcements, products, customer reviews, product sliders, etc.
You can also edit the content and design for any section before publishing your website. It doesn’t have any AI features, though.
3) Multiple Shipping Options
If you wish to add a shipping or delivery method to your site, Ecwid provides you with multiple options. You can set up local delivery, self-pickup, or pick from delivery providers like Delhivery, India Post, or other carriers.
4) Good Payment Options
Ecwid offers standard payment methods, including Stripe, PayPal, PayU, RazorPay, and cash payments. Besides these, it also features 15 other payment methods. Indian users will be happy with Indian payment methods like Paytm, PhonePe, Instamojo, etc.
5) Sell on Multiple Platforms
Want to offer your products on multiple platforms? Ecwid lets you turn your store into a mobile app and offers apps for Android and iOS devices. You can sell on Facebook, online marketplaces like (Amazon, eBay, and TikTok), and on a variety of CMS platforms and website builders.
6) Ecwid App Market
The Ecwid App Market has a library of 60+ free and premium apps to enhance the functionality of your store. They are sorted into categories like shipping, accounting, marketing, dropshipping, store design, etc.
Cons:
- Average SEO Options
- Limited integrations and apps
- No product variant options on free or starter plans.
Pricing
Ecwid features 3 paid plans and a free plan. The following table depicts the monthly and annual pricing of these plans.
| Plan Name | Monthly Pricing | Annual Pricing |
| Free | $0/month | $0/month |
| Venture | $25/month | $21/month |
| Business | $45/month | $39/month |
| Unlimited | $105/month | $89/month |
On the free plan, you can sell up to 5 products. If you want to sell more products, you can upgrade to its Venture plan for $25/month. It allows you to sell up to 100 products and digital goods with sizes up to 25 GB per file.
Conclusion
Ecwid comes with a friendly UI, customizable templates, and seamless integration with social media platforms and marketplaces. However, its SEO capabilities and app integrations are limited, and some advanced features are restricted to paid plans.
Overall, Ecwid is suitable for small businesses, entrepreneurs, and anyone who needs a simple and affordable e-commerce solution focused on selling across various channels.
7) Square
Square Online is a popular eCommerce platform that allows you to design your online store and sell your products. Its USP is the integration between Square Online and Square POS, to manage your online and offline sales effortlessly.
| Pricing | Starts from $29/month |
| Payment Gateways | Credit & Debit Cards, Online Wallets, etc. |
| Commission Charged | Depends on the mode of payment |
| Shipping Methods | Through Square Online |
| Marketing Integrations | 300+ integrations |
| AI Builder | No |
| Themes | 27 themes (free and free trial) |
| Free Domain / Custom Domain | Free Square subdomain provided. |
Standout Features of Square
1) Sell Multiple Types of Products
Square allows you to sell 5 different types of products in your eCommerce store. These include physical goods, prepared food and beverages, events, digital products, and donations.
2) Square App Marketplace
Square features an extensive list of 300+ apps and integrations, including popular apps like Wix, WooCommerce, Bookkeep, and more. These apps are paid or on free trials.
3) Good Discount Options
You can offer discounts by percentage, amount, variable percentage, or variable amount. It also lets you add different rules while offering discounts.
For instance, you can choose to only apply it to specific items or categories, to specific customer groups, or when a specific amount is reached. You can also schedule your discount, and add a minimum spend amount, and a maximum discount value.
4) Square Online for Pickup and Delivery
To enable pickup and delivery through your eCommerce store, you can set up Square Online. It offers an app-like experience to your customers. You can customize it according to your brand and promote your sales events in advance to boost sales.
5) Square POS
The USP of Square is its POS System, through which you can connect your online and offline sales. It lets you set up a point of sale by adding a nickname and selecting the device type from Square Kiosk or Standard POS. It will then generate a code that you can enter into your Square app to complete the setup process.
Cons
- Higher transaction fees.
- Limited free marketing apps
- Limited free plan.
- Limited customization options
- Site setup via Weebly is not accessible.
Pricing
Square Online features two plans – a free plan and a paid plan. The free plan gives you access to basic features. For advanced features to support restaurants, appointment-based businesses, and retailers, you can upgrade to its Plus plan for $29/month.
Both the free and paid plans charge a processing fee depending on your mode of payment. The following table shows the processing fee charged for different modes.
| Mode of Payment | Transaction Fee |
| In Person | 2.6% + 10¢ per transaction |
| Online | 2.9% + 30¢ per transaction |
| Manually Entered | 3.5% + 15¢ per transaction |
| Invoices | 3.3% + 30¢ per transaction |
Conclusion
Square is a versatile eCommerce platform with features like multi-product selling, a vast app marketplace, and flexible discount options. However, you will notice limitations such as higher transaction fees, limited free marketing apps, and a restricted free plan.
Square is best suited for small businesses, especially those with a limited budget and a strong focus on in-person sales, who prioritize ease of use and integration with their POS system.
8) Big Cartel
Big Cartel is an eCommerce platform for designers, independent sellers, artists, and small businesses. It stands out with its easy-to-use dashboard and minimal features to make it accessible to non-tech-savvy users.
| Pricing | Starts from |
| Payment Gateways | PayPal and Stripe |
| Commission Charged | 0% |
| Shipping Methods | Can create shipping profiles by country |
| Marketing Integrations | 35+ apps available |
| AI Builder | Offers free subdomain under Bigartel.com. To add a custom domain, you need to upgrade. |
| Themes | 15+ free templates available |
| Free Domain / Custom Domain | Free subdomain under BigCartel.com |
Standout Features of Big Cartel
1) Decent Payment Methods
Big Cartel supports PayPal and Stripe payment gateways. Thus, customers can use credit and debit cards, digital wallets, bank transfers, etc to purchase products from your store.
2) Good Discounts
You can easily offer multiple types of discounts to your customers through Big Cartel. It lets you create discount coupons and specify your preferences from its dropdown conditions. You can choose when to offer the discount, the type of discount and range, the starting and expiry date, and more.
3) Specify Tax Percentage
If you are selling products in your store, Big Cartel also lets you specify a tax percentage. All you need to do is specify the country, select the tax percentage, and specify whether the tax applies to products and shipping or only products.
4) Decent App Collection
Big Cartel offers 35+ apps and integrations to extend your store’s functionality. These include categories like sales, product sourcing, marketing and promotion, customer service, analytics, etc.
5) Advertise Your Products
On the paid plans of Big Cartel, you can advertise your store on social platforms like Facebook, Instagram, TikTok, etc. However, this functionality is missing on the free plan.
Cons
- Poor product and shipping settings.
- No option to design a website or edit it.
- Discount coupons are not on the free plan.
Pricing
Big Cartel features two paid plans along with a forever free plan. The below table depicts the monthly and annual pricing of its plans.
| Plan Name | Monthly Price | Annual Price |
| Free Plan | $0/month | $0/month |
| Platinum Plan | $15/month | $12/month |
| Diamond Plan | $30/month | $24/month |
The free plan lets you list 5 products along with 1 image per product. If you need to sell more products, you can upgrade to its Platinum plan for $15/month. It gives you 50 product listings with 5 images per product.
Conclusion
Big Cartel offers decent payment processing, good discount options, and decent integrations. This makes it suitable for small businesses and individual sellers who need a simple and affordable platform to sell a limited number of products online.
However, it offers limited product and shipping settings, no website design flexibility, and no discount coupons on the free plan. Overall, Big Cartel is best suited for those who prioritize affordability and ease of use over extensive customization and advanced features.
Factors to Consider When Choosing an eCommerce Platform
Choosing an eCommerce platform can be quite hectic, especially when you are a beginner. To help you, I have prepared a list of the factors you should consider when choosing a platform to build your store. Let’s get into the details below.
1) Define your Requirements
The first factor to consider before opting for an eCommerce platform is your requirements. Analyze your business and note down your goals, target audience, budget, etc, and then look for plans accordingly.
2) Ease of Use
Ease of use plays a vital role in selecting an eCommerce platform. Check if its UI is well organized and all the features are easily accessible. You should also make sure the platform has sufficient themes and templates to speed up your store design process.
3) Number of Products
Different eCommerce platforms offer features depending on the number of products you sell. So before you opt for a platform, analyze the number of products you are going to offer. If you are starting out with just a few products, many e-commerce platforms offer free plans too!
4) Customer Support
As a beginner, the availability of multiple support options is important. So, before finalizing your eCommerce platform, check if it offers support via knowledge base, email, live chat, phone, forums, etc.
5) User Reviews
With new platforms, it is always best to look for customer reviews, ratings, and testimonials before signing up. You can also check out their community and forums to get a better idea of the support.
6) Pricing Plans
Beginners should always check for the free versions of eCommerce platforms when starting out. Even though the free plans have limited features and limits, they help you get a test run of the platform.
When going for the paid plans, also factor in costs for domain, hosting, integrations, transaction fees, etc. Then choose plans and services that fit your budget and needs.
7) Features and Customization Options
Check if your eCommerce platform offers you essential features like inventory management, shopping cart, multiple payment and shipping options, etc. Additionally, also check if it comes with options for customizing your themes and layouts.
8) Hosting and Platform Type
There are two types of eCommerce platforms in general. In a SaaS or cloud-based platform, the provider takes care of all the technical aspects like hosting, backups, security, and management. Popular examples are Shopify and Wix.
Whereas, in a self-hosted platform, you need to take care of all the technical aspects by yourself. Popular examples include WooCommerce and Magento.
9) Apps and Integrations
Integrations are important for expanding the functionality of your eCommerce store. Always check if it offers integrations with social media platforms, email marketing apps, payment gateways, marketing tools, shipping services, etc.
10) Scalability
As a beginner, you may not have enough traction in your store. But as your business grows, you will need to accommodate incoming traffic and offer a seamless experience.
To achieve this, you need a platform that can scale its resources whenever you need. So, always check if your eCommerce provider features scalable pricing plans.
Conclusion
In this article, we looked at the 10 Best eCommerce Platforms for Beginners in 2025. Shopify and WooCommerce are my personal favorites, and I’ve used them extensively in the last few years.
I hope this in-depth article helped you finalize the right eCommerce platform for your business. Do you have any other eCommerce platform suggestions? Do share them in the comments below. I’ll try to test it and include it in my list.
Recently, there has been a boom in AI tools. If you wish to integrate AI into your workflow, check out these Best AI Tools for Small Businesses! Anyway, this is Kripesh signing off. For more interesting AI stuff, do subscribe to my weekly newsletter. Cheers, and keep learning!
FAQs
What is the easiest eCommerce site to use?
Hostinger website builder and Wix are the easiest eCommerce platforms for beginners. Both of them come with an intuitive editor and attractive templates to design a great store.
What is the fastest eCommerce platform?
When it comes to speed and performance, Shopify is one of the most trusted platforms you can go with.
Can I start eCommerce with no money?
You can check out BigCartel and WooCommerce completely free of cost! However, WooCommerce may be too technical for a beginner and BigCartel’s free plan comes with limited features.
Which eCommerce platforms are suitable for beginners with no coding skills?
Platforms like Wix and Shopify would be a suitable choice for beginners who don’t possess any coding skills. They come with a modern interface and features that are easy to understand.
What are the top eCommerce platforms for beginners with small businesses?
If you run a small business, you can try out Big Cartel or Square Online. Big Cartel is tailored for artists and freelancers. Whereas, Square comes with the Square POS system to integrate your online and offline payments with ease.
Which eCommerce software provides the best features for dropshipping businesses?
Shopify and WooCommerce are good choices for running a dropshipping business. Where Shopify offers seamless integration with dropshipping platforms like Oberlo and Spocket, WooCommerce features free dropshipping plugins like AliDropship.
How do eCommerce platforms handle security and data protection?
Reputed eCommerce platforms protect their website with SSL certificates, provide secure payment gateways, and 2FA (Two-Factor Authentication) support, and comply with data protection regulations like GDPR, CCPA, HIPAA, etc.
