This is 2021 and all businesses, maybe small or big or just a startup, all need a platform where they can sell their products, digitally. Yes, we are talking about eCommerce platforms here. And, we are not talking about the aggregators like Amazon and eBay but an independent website that shows the individuality of the brand.

A brand needs to look authentic to attract its target audience and convert them into paying customers. It doesn’t matter if you have a business that sells products or services, eCommerce websites can work great for both but the problem here is how do you get one?

A lot of people answer to get a website created with Shopify as it is one of the most popular eCommerce website development websites. It is in no way an option that you will regret but it can be expensive to some and might as well not give all the features that they look for.

To solve this, this article will show you alternatives that you can choose against it in the year 2021. You can hire any of the top web development companies to get your website developed but it is always better that you do your research first.

If you are one of those people who have not heard of Shopify we would suggest you check it as well before or after you read these alternatives. The reason is that you will only be able to know if the tools that are mentioned are better than Shopify is by knowing what it offers in the first place.

A lot of people would also advise you to get a website developed from scratch and then host it individually. That is again, without any doubt a great option but only if your requirement is so big. This option is suitable for the business who are already selling a lot of their services and products and are looking to scale up their business.

If you are living in the Middle east, search for e-commerce companies in Qatar to make your website development easy. Hiring a developer can be expensive as it will be a constant cost to the company.

After the website is developed you can hire a website manager who works at a way less cost as compared to a developer. It is important that you pay attention to all the expenditures that you make while getting a website developed for your business.

There should be a plan and a budget and you need to make sure that it is followed as much as possible. Sometimes you might have to make decisions that will go out of the plan but that is something that no one can control but without a plan, a website might do more bad than good to a company.

Shopify Alternatives For eCommerce Business in 2021

1. BigCommerce

Bigcommerce is a platform that can help organizations with more things than just providing an eCommerce builder platform.

This platform helps them in marketing and managing some parts of their business. BigCommerce is a great platform if the organization wants to cut the struggle of digital marketing through another tool.

There are a lot of eCommerce websites that have been created using BigCommerce around the world. This is one of the strongest competitors of Shopify and in a lot of areas where they have a stronger presence than Shopify.

Website development companies in Atlanta and areas nearby prefer this one over a lot of other platforms. They also provide native support for multi-channel commerce. There are a lot of benefits but with benefits, there are some disadvantages attached too.

The ownership and control over your content and functionality of the website are limited. This means that sometimes things can get a bit frustrating. Other than that, the interface is simple and even if you are a beginner you can get a hold of it in a few trials.

2. Simvoly

Basically, this a website and funnel builder but a company can easily use this to create their own eCommerce store. The reason is the functionality it provides and the interface. The easy-to-use interface and extensive functionality allow the developers and the company owners to use it as an eCommerce website builder.

This is great for entrepreneurs and businesses that work with funnels and also want to have their own eCommerce website. The purpose can be scaling or launching something, this can work for all requirements.

There are so many features that help businesses in enhancing the marketing of the products that they list on eCommerce websites. It also provides a great funnel builder that helps a lot. The interface again is really simple and looks clean which helps while building and showing in the website as well.

3. Big Cartel

So, they market themselves as an eCommerce store that aims to serve artists, creatives, and influencers. The features that are provided by them might be limited but this makes it one of the easiest websites to create your own eCommerce store.

A lot of small businesses or startups do not have a big list of products or a lot of policies for which they need a lot of pages. They also don’t organize many events or want too many advanced features in their store.

Hence, this is one of the easiest yet the best websites for small business owners and startup owners. This is also the same reason why it cannot be used by big companies looking to scale up their business.

Those businesses will never be able to get what they want from Big Cartel. This is a great alternative to Shopify for only those businesses who have just started and have limited products and want limited functionality.

4. Square Online Store

This is best for the businesses that are looking for an eCommerce store that gives them all-inclusive functionality.

Maybe Shopify is a platform that can’t give it all to you and hence you move to this alternative. This is popular for its point of sale feature, and that is important for a lot of businesses that want to scale their already growing business through an eCommerce website.

You can start with the free plan that Square Online Store has to offer and get all the essential features for your eCommerce store. If it works for you then you can easily scale it up and get the premium plans and add more advanced features to your store.

5. WooCommerce

WooCommerce is WordPress for eCommerce. A self-hosted eCommerce platform that allows you to scale up your physical business in the online world and get the best of features.

Because it is built on top of WordPress, the developers and the owners of the business do not have to worry a lot about the on-page SEO and other technical issues. Things done with this platform look pretty good according to the market standards.

The benefits that users get with this platform make it one of the best choices for eCommerce solutions. eCommerce development companies in Canada use this because they can provide their clients with 100% ownership of their website and content. That is sometimes not the case with other platforms.

6. Magento

The name most of you might have been waiting for is Magento. Magento is one of the most popular and trusted websites. It has not been long since it came into existence but the status it has in the market in relation to eCommerce, it is nothing less than WordPress.

It can be called the pro player in the eCommerce world if we look at the current scenario. There are so many developers around the world who develop eCommerce websites on Magento and the only reason is the functionality.

The platform is continuously getting better with time and is offering all the latest features that come in the market for the eCommerce industry.

It is used by the biggest of the brands around the world and that is enough to let you know that yes, it is one of the best. But, that doesn’t mean that it can’t be used by smaller organizations.

They offer a fully-hosted solution to their clients and some of their features make them a better competitor of Shopify. This open-source platform is one business should try if they want a platform that can take care of all their needs.

7. Volusion

This platform is basically focused on small and medium-sized companies. If you are searching for an easy eCommerce solution that can be the one you should try. The interface is simple and you also get step-by-step guidance on how you can create your eCommerce store all by yourself.

This is something that can be really beneficial for small companies and startups where they don’t have extra money to pay to a developer or an agency. Though you can opt for eCommerce development services in Qatar at a low cost as well it is always better to do it yourself.

They also offer a CRM and a feature to take orders by phone. More than this, there is an in-house team that can help you with creatives and other things to get started with your website and keep it running in the best possible way.

8. Weebly

Again, a low-cost option that can help brands that are not so big but still want to get into the online market and create a presence. It has to be accepted that not all organizations have the same pocket power and hence some have to settle for some things that are not the best in the market.

If you are a business that is looking for a solution that can improve their business, you should go for the one that is best in your budget and not in the world. This platform offers something that most others don’t, simplicity.

You don’t need to put in a lot of time or effort to get started with your own eCommerce store with Weebly. They also offer a website basic use plan that gives you all the essential features. The best part is that even the paid plans are not too expensive and can fit the budget of most small businesses. Hence, it is worth a try.

9. Wix

If you have searched for eCommerce development platforms earlier then you must have come across the ad of Wix. Wix is that easy to create website development portal where you can just drag and drop elements to your web page and make a website that can do most of the things that you wish for.

They also offer features to develop an eCommerce website and that feature makes it a pretty good competitor of Shopify, Wix is already a big name when we talk about the platforms that give easy but effective solutions, this can be added to the top 3 list.

Top web development companies around the world choose Wix as a platform for a lot of their clients because of all the above-mentioned reasons.

10. Selz

This is a complete native eCommerce platform that offers a business everything they can need with their eCommerce store. There are some advanced features like cart recovery that make it a bit better than some of the other platforms in the market. The website builder is simple and offers drag and drop functionality.

You can automate some of the parts of the store like the earlier mentioned shopping cart recovery feature. You also get multi-channel selling no matter which plans you are on. With all these benefits this can be a great option for your eCom website.

Website development companies Atlanta can be using this as there are a lot of businesses that need such kind of features.

Conclusion:

All the above-mentioned platforms serve something that the other doesn’t. Some have great prices and some have great features, choose the one that has a balance of these two and suits your plans in the best way.

You can also go with Shopify if none of them works then try finding something else. These are all tried and tested and have provided their users with great results. You can also try, but remember, building a new eCommerce store is a job that takes time, so choose what you try wisely.