The 7 Best Shopify Alternatives in 2025 (Honest Comparison)

Shopify dominates the conversation around e-commerce platforms — and for good reason. It's polished, powerful, and has a massive ecosystem. But it's not the right fit for everyone. Whether you're frustrated by transaction fees, looking for better AI tools, or simply want more control over your store, there are excellent Shopify alternatives worth considering.

We tested and compared seven platforms across pricing, ease of use, AI features, design flexibility, and scalability. Here's what we found.

Why Look for a Shopify Alternative?

Before diving into the list, it's worth understanding why merchants switch away from Shopify in the first place. The most common reasons:

• Transaction fees — Shopify charges 0.5–2% on every sale unless you use Shopify Payments, which isn't available in all countries
• App costs stack up fast — the base plan is reasonable, but most merchants end up spending $200–500/month on essential apps
• Limited design flexibility — unless you pay for a premium theme or hire a developer, stores tend to look similar
• AI features feel bolted on — Shopify Magic exists, but AI isn't core to how the platform is built
• Complex pricing tiers — features you need are often locked behind higher plans

1. fromcart — Best for AI-Native Commerce

fromcart is built from the ground up with AI as a core primitive — not an add-on. Instead of managing your store through menus and settings, you describe what you want in plain language and it gets done.

Want to add a new product section with a specific layout? Describe it to the AI builder. Need to rewrite all your product descriptions in a new tone? Done in seconds. The AI understands your store's context, your theme, and your brand voice — and acts accordingly.

Best for: Founders who want to move fast without hiring developers or designers

Pricing: Waitlist open now — launching 2026

Standout features: AI store builder, theme system, intuitive pricing

2. WooCommerce — Best for WordPress Users

WooCommerce is the most widely used e-commerce platform in the world by install count — but it's a plugin for WordPress, not a standalone platform. You need hosting, a domain, and some technical comfort to get started.

The upside: total control. You own your data, your code, and your store. No transaction fees and thousands of plugins available. The downside: it requires ongoing maintenance. Security updates, plugin conflicts, and performance tuning are your responsibility.

Best for: Developers, agencies, and WordPress-native businesses

Pricing: Free plugin + hosting $10–50/month

3. BigCommerce — Best for Large Catalogs

BigCommerce is a robust enterprise-grade platform that handles complexity well. If you have thousands of SKUs, complex variants, or need B2B features out of the box, BigCommerce is worth a serious look. Unlike Shopify, it charges zero transaction fees on all plans.

The tradeoff is a steeper learning curve and a less intuitive interface for beginners. It's built for merchants who know what they're doing.

Best for: High-volume sellers and merchants with complex catalogs

Pricing: $39–$399/month

4. Squarespace Commerce — Best for Design-First Brands

Squarespace has always prioritized aesthetics, and its commerce offering reflects that. If your brand relies heavily on visual identity — photographers, artists, fashion brands, food producers — Squarespace delivers templates that are genuinely beautiful out of the box.

The commerce features have improved significantly. You can sell physical and digital products, manage subscriptions, and integrate with major payment providers without third-party apps. Where it falls short is scalability beyond hundreds of products.

Best for: Creative brands and lifestyle products

Pricing: $23–$65/month

5. Wix eCommerce — Best for Ease of Use

Wix is the most beginner-friendly option on this list. The drag-and-drop editor makes it genuinely easy to build a store without any design or coding experience. In recent years, Wix has invested heavily in commerce features — abandoned cart recovery, multi-channel selling, and a solid app market.

The limitation: performance and scalability. Wix sites tend to be slower than purpose-built commerce platforms, and the editor becomes limiting as needs grow more complex.

Best for: First-time store owners and service businesses adding commerce

Pricing: $17–$35/month

6. Webflow + Foxy — Best for Developers

Webflow is a no-code web builder with exceptional design capabilities. Many developers pair it with Foxy (a headless commerce solution) for complete design freedom and clean code output. This approach requires significant technical effort to set up and maintain, but gives you capabilities no other platform can match.

Best for: Developers and agencies building custom storefronts

Pricing: Webflow $23–$39/month + Foxy from $20/month

7. Ecwid — Best for Adding Commerce to an Existing Site

Ecwid takes a different approach: instead of replacing your existing website, it adds a store to it. You can embed Ecwid into a WordPress site, a Squarespace site, or even a basic HTML page. Ideal for businesses with an established presence that just want to add selling capabilities.

Best for: Businesses with existing websites adding commerce for the first time

Pricing: Free (up to 10 products) to $99/month

How to Choose the Right Platform

• Want AI-first tools and fast iteration? → fromcart
• Want total control and own your data? → WooCommerce
• Selling at high volume with complex needs? → BigCommerce
• Design is your biggest priority? → Squarespace
• Complete beginner wanting simplicity? → Wix
• Developer building a custom storefront? → Webflow + Foxy
• Adding commerce to an existing site? → Ecwid

The Bottom Line

Shopify is a great platform — but it's not the only platform. The best choice depends on your business model, technical comfort, growth stage, and what you value most.

If you're building something new in 2026 and want AI to handle operational complexity so you can focus on products and customers, fromcart is worth watching. We're building the commerce platform we always wanted — one where the AI does the heavy lifting.