VETTED SAAS
Alternatives · Website Builders

Best Shopify Alternatives

Shopify is built for serious selling, but plenty of sites need a store bolted onto a brand, not the other way round. Here is where each rival fits.

Shopify is the strongest dedicated commerce platform here, and if selling is the whole point of your site it is hard to beat. You might still look elsewhere if the store is secondary to a brand or content site, if you want stronger design defaults, if you need true visual design control, or if you would rather not pay Shopify's extra fee when you use an outside payment gateway. The four picks below cover those cases. Each is scored against the same website builders rubric we use everywhere, so the numbers line up. Pick by the job you are hiring the tool to do, not by the brand.

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Reviewed by ·Updated JUNE 2026·How we vet
The shortlist

Four builders worth weighing against Shopify

Website Builders 92 Squarespace Design led sites with a capable store for smaller catalogs. Read verdict → Website Builders 90 Wix A flexible all rounder that sells and builds a general site at once. Read verdict → Website Builders 88 Webflow True visual design control, with ecommerce for lower volume stores. Read verdict → Website Builders 85 WordPress.com Content first publishing with a store on the Commerce plan. Read verdict →
At a glance

How they compare

Scores are editorial assessments against our website builders rubric. Price from as of June 2026; check the vendor for current pricing.

Tool Best for Price from Score
Squarespace Design led stores $16/mo 92
Wix Flexible all rounder $17/mo 90
Webflow Custom visual design $15/mo 88
WordPress.com Content and selling $9/mo 85
Decision framework

Which one fits you

Squarespace Choose it if design comes first and your catalog is modest. Squarespace sells well for smaller stores and looks polished out of the box, without Shopify's depth or its scale.
Wix Choose it if you want one tool for both a general site and a shop, with a large app market and a free tier, and you do not need Shopify's heavy duty commerce engine.
Webflow Choose it if you want pixel level design control and clean output, and your store is lower volume. Webflow's ecommerce is lighter than Shopify but its design freedom is far greater.
WordPress.com Choose it if publishing and content lead and selling is secondary. A store is available on the Commerce plan, with real plugins once you reach Business, for a content first build.
Common questions

Shopify alternatives FAQ

What is the closest alternative to Shopify?

For a dedicated store, BigCommerce and WooCommerce are the closest like for like rivals. Among general builders, Wix and Squarespace are the nearest, since both add a capable store to a broader site builder.

Is there a cheaper alternative to Shopify?

Yes. WordPress.com and Wix start lower than Shopify's Basic plan, and budget builders such as Hostinger undercut all of them on entry price. The tradeoff is a less powerful store as you scale.

Which alternative is best for a small store?

Squarespace. It pairs strong design with a store that handles smaller catalogs well, and it is simpler than Shopify when selling is not the main focus of the site.

Can I avoid Shopify transaction fees with an alternative?

Shopify charges an extra fee when you use a payment gateway other than Shopify Payments. Some alternatives, including Squarespace and Wix on their commerce plans, do not add their own per sale fee on top of standard card processing.

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