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WooCommerce vs Shopify
WooCommerce vs Shopify: an honest 2026 comparison.
We migrate stores from Shopify to WooCommerce for a living, so we have a side in this. We will still tell you where Shopify wins, because a comparison that only flatters one platform is not worth reading.
Shopify is faster to start and fully managed, so it suits people who want to launch quickly and never touch hosting. WooCommerce is open-source software you run on your own hosting, so it wins on control, SEO, payment freedom, and category safety, at the cost of being more hands-on. If a policy change or a transaction surcharge is the reason you are here, WooCommerce is almost certainly the answer. If you want zero maintenance and will never sell in a restricted category, Shopify is a reasonable place to stay.
Head to head
The differences that actually change your business.
| Shopify | WooCommerce | |
|---|---|---|
| Ownership | Rented. Can be removed by policy | Yours, on hosting you control |
| Monthly platform fee | $39 / $105 / $399 by plan | Free software, pay only for hosting |
| Transaction surcharge | 2% / 1% / 0.5% unless on Shopify Payments | None |
| Card rates | 2.9% / 2.6% / 2.4% + 30c (Shopify Payments) | Standard Stripe or PayPal rates, your choice |
| SEO control | Fixed URL prefixes, app-layer schema | Every URL, redirect and tag is yours |
| Restricted categories | Removed with little notice | Your call, your compliance, your gateway |
| Setup effort | Fast, fully managed | More hands-on, or hand it to us |
| Maintenance | Handled by Shopify | You or a retainer keep it updated |
Shopify plan, surcharge and card-rate figures: help.shopify.com pricing and payments docs, 2026.
Honest about cost
Cheaper is the wrong reason to move.
WooCommerce removes the platform fee and the surcharge, but once you count managed hosting, a few premium extensions, and maintenance time, total cost of ownership at scale can land close to Shopify. The real, durable reasons to move are control, SEO, payment freedom, and not being one policy change away from losing your store.
If you sell unrestricted products, value zero maintenance over control, and are happy with Shopify’s SEO and fee structure, staying is a fair choice. We would rather tell you that than sell you a migration you do not need.
Common questions
WooCommerce vs Shopify, answered.
Is WooCommerce harder to run than Shopify?
Yes, it is more hands-on. You are responsible for hosting, updates, and backups. That is the trade for control. Many owners hand the maintenance to us on a retainer so they get the control without the upkeep.
Will I keep my SEO if I switch?
Yes, if the migration is done properly. Every old Shopify URL gets a 301 redirect, and the URL structure, meta, and schema carry across. On WordPress you then control all of it directly.
Can WooCommerce handle a large store?
Yes. On appropriate hosting WooCommerce runs stores with thousands of products and high order volumes. Performance is a hosting and build question, not a platform ceiling.
Decided WooCommerce is the move?
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