Choosing an e-commerce platform: Shopify, WooCommerce or a custom build
Each option can run a successful store. The right one depends on your catalogue, your team and how much of the technology you want to own.
There’s no single best e-commerce platform. Shopify, WooCommerce and custom builds all power successful stores; they just divide the work, cost and control differently. These are the questions we ask before recommending one.
Shopify: the store as a service
Shopify is a hosted platform. You pay a monthly subscription, and hosting, security, updates and the checkout are handled for you. Themes and a large app store cover most needs without custom code.
- Good for: teams who want to focus on selling rather than servers, and stores that need to launch quickly.
- Watch for: app subscriptions that add up month by month, and limits on how far the checkout and data structures can be customised.
WooCommerce: the store you own
WooCommerce is a free, open-source plugin that turns a WordPress site into a store. You choose the hosting and own the whole installation, so almost anything can be changed.
- Good for: businesses already on WordPress, content-heavy stores, and teams who want full control of their data and design.
- Watch for: hosting, updates, security and backups become your responsibility, and premium extensions carry annual licence costs.
Custom: when the business model is unusual
A custom build makes sense when your products, pricing or fulfilment don’t fit a standard store: configurable products, complex B2B price lists, unusual subscription rules, or deep integration with systems you already run.
- Good for: distinctive workflows that a platform would force you to work around.
- Watch for: a higher initial cost, and the need for a long-term development partner.
The questions that decide it
- How many products, and how complex? Fifty simple products and five thousand with variants are different problems.
- Who will run the store day to day? A hosted platform suits a small team without technical help.
- How do your customers pay? In India that usually means UPI, cards, netbanking and wallets through a gateway such as Razorpay, PayU or Cashfree, and sometimes cash on delivery. Check that the platform supports the gateway you want.
- What happens after the order? Shipping integrations, invoices and stock management often matter more than the storefront.
- Where is the business going? Plan for the store you expect to run in two or three years, not just on launch day.
Our approach
The best platform is the one your team can run confidently, so we start with how you work, not with a favourite tool. If you’re weighing the options, a short conversation usually narrows it down quickly.
