BigCommerce vs Shopify
The ultimate side-by-side head-to-head analysis for 2026.
Short answer
- Price: BigCommerce is cheaper — $29/user/mo vs $39/user/mo.
- How to start: BigCommerce is from $29/user/mo, Shopify is from $39/user/mo.
These lines are generated from the pricing we track, not from a paid placement. We do not publish a quality score, because we do not have one we can stand behind. They cannot tell you which tool fits your workflow — the sections below are there for that. How we score tools.
BigCommerce
Shopify
Category
E-commerce
E-commerce
Base Price
$29/user/mo
$39/user/mo
Public API
Yes
Yes
Mobile app
No
Yes
Open source / self-hostable
No
No
SSO (SAML)
Yes
Yes
Choose BigCommerce if:
Growing Brands and B2B-Focused Retailers.
Choose Shopify if:
E-commerce Entrepreneurs and Retail Brands.
BigCommerce: pros & cons
- No Transaction Fees: Does not take extra commissions from your sales, unlike Shopify.
- B2B Ready: Features for wholesale are strong even in its more basic tiers.
- Variant Support: Easily handles complex products with thousands of different options.
- Headless Support: Integrates flawlessly with WordPress or React-based frontends.
- Templates: The number of free themes is lower and they may not look as modern as Shopify's.
- Sales Caps: Automatically pushes you to higher tiers as your annual revenue grows.
- App Ecosystem: Its app store is not as vast or diverse as that of Shopify.
Shopify: pros & cons
- Rapid Start: Launch a professional store in minutes with no technical hurdles.
- Huge Ecosystem: There is a Shopify app for virtually every feature you might need.
- High Reliability: Your site remains stable even during the heaviest shopping holidays.
- Shopify POS: Manage your physical and digital stores from a single unified inventory.
- Transaction Fees: Charges extra commission if you don't use Shopify Payments.
- App Costs: Monthly subscription costs for apps can add up very quickly.
- Customization Limits: Deep design changes require knowledge of the 'Liquid' code.
Our verdict on BigCommerce
The smartest choice for brands seeking corporate features without paying extra commissions.
Our verdict on Shopify
The world's best platform for starting, growing, and scaling an e-commerce empire.