Shopify vs WooCommerce vs custom: an honest cost comparison for Indian sellers
Which platform should you sell on? It depends on your catalogue, margins and team — here's how to decide.
There's no best eCommerce platform — only the best fit for your catalogue size, margins and team.
Shopify
Choose it when you want to launch fast, your catalogue is under a few thousand products and you don't want to manage hosting. Watch out for monthly fees and app costs that add up.
WooCommerce
Choose it when you want full control, already use WordPress, or sell B2B with custom pricing. Watch out for hosting quality and plugin bloat.
Custom
Choose it when your checkout, pricing or fulfilment logic is genuinely unusual, or you're integrating deeply with an ERP. Watch out for higher upfront cost.
A quick rule of thumb
| Situation | Pick |
|---|---|
| Launching a D2C brand this month | Shopify |
| Content-heavy brand with a blog | WooCommerce |
| B2B with dealer pricing and ERP | Custom or WooCommerce |
Shopify Store in a Week
Theme setup, up to 50 products, payments and shipping.
- Theme setup & branding
- Up to 50 products
- Razorpay / UPI / COD
- Shipping & GST setup
- Abandoned-cart emails
Custom eCommerce
WooCommerce or custom store with integrations.
- Custom design
- Inventory & shipping integrations
- WhatsApp cart recovery
- Product-page CRO
Prices exclude GST. Final pricing depends on scope — you get a fixed number in writing before anything starts.
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