Comparing The Top E-Commerce Platforms In 2021

With the increasing usage of smartphones and the internet, E-Commerce or Electronic Business, an online platform for selling or buying good or services through the internet, has become popular. By clicking a few buttons, people can purchase the desired products and get them at home with ease. Many local businesses have adopted the E-Commerce platform to sell their services or brands to remote customers. The most significant thing to consider for an E-Commerce platform is the platform design or the website design.

The E-Commerce website should be attractive and user-friendly. It should attract the target customers and offer the best user experience. To get a convenient website design, you can consult a leading digital marketing company, like Techmagnate, which offers web design services at an affordable price. Alternatively, you can use an E-Commerce website builder to design your website as per your requirements. Below are some best website builders, compare their features, and select the best one that fits your requirements.

Top 5 E-Commerce Platforms

1. BigCommerce

BigCommerce is considered to be one of the top E-Commerce website builder platforms. It is preferred by several individuals and companies who want to get large and complex retail store websites built out. Brick-and-mortar stores can also use this platform to build robust websites. There are numerous customizable templates available, where users can personalize their online store without requiring any coding skill. The biggest advantage is it offers string and robust SEO performance.

2. Prestashop

One of the convenient E-Commerce website builders is Prestashop, founded in 2007. It is an open-source cloud-hosted platform that offers the best website designing features. To build an online store with the Prestashop’s free version, you have to pay for some modules, like SSL certificate, web hosting, etc. Moreover, if you don’t possess in-depth HTML, CSS, or PHP skills, you need to pay for a developer. You will get ten free themes, but there is no drag and drop option with theme customizer. Therefore, a little knowledge of CSS and HTML is required.

3. Shopify

Another most desirable website builder platform is Shopify. This platform is best if you desire to promote your business via Facebook Ads or Instagram marketing. When you compare Prestashop vs Shopify, you will notice that Shopify offers drag and drop features, making it more comfortable to use. This platform is best for novice website developers. Shopify POS enables brick-and-mortar stores to accept payments via mobile apps. But, the significant drawback of this platform is it is poorly rated when it comes to SEO.

4. Wix

Wix has progressed a lot in the past few years. Today, this platform has transformed into one of the major website builder platforms for brick-and-mortar stores and solopreneurs. It has enhanced its existing features and added several others. It has introduced features, like abandoned cart recovery, multi-channel integration, print on demand capabilities, and dropship. Wix offers more than 500 themes out of which 72 are open-source. The SEO performance of Wix is not very good. Though it has made SEO improvements, it fares poorly on the metric which matters a lot.

5. Weebly

Weebly platform is best for individuals who aim to have a simple and straightforward website, having built-in marketing automation. It is a perfect option for startup entrepreneurs and individuals who do not want a developer to hire. Weebly comes in three different packages – Starter, Business, and Performance. Business and Performance plans are suitable for E-Commerce businesses. The Starter plan does not include E-Commerce features such as inventory management, coupons, and shopping cart.

BigCommerce vs Prestashop vs Shopify

BigCommerce	Prestashop	Shopify
It is highly flexible and scalable	It is an open-source and flexible E-Commerce website platform	Shopify is extremely straightforward to set up and has the fastest load time
BigCommerce supports multi-channel integration	Prestashop is entirely customizable, and you can make your store available in 75 different languages	This platform has a high rating for its ease of use, integrations, and design & themes
It offers a high and robust SEO performance	It provides a powerful SEO performance	The SEO performance is weakly rated

Conclusion

BigCommerce platform is best suited for all types of businesses, like small-scale businesses, small startups and beginners, and complex businesses. Shopify, Weebly, and Wix are suitable for brick-and-mortar stores.