Ecwid vs Shopify Comparison 2026
Ecwid and Shopify both have a $29 a month entry plan, but they are different kinds of purchase. Ecwid's $29 Venture tier bolts a hundred-product shop onto a site you already have. Shopify's $29 Basic plan, billed yearly, is the whole platform: the storefront, the checkout and card processing at 2.9 percent plus 30 cents, a rate that falls as the plan rises. Shopify's card rate is the real second cost that Ecwid's listing does not carry an equivalent of. Pick Ecwid to add selling to an existing site cheaply. Pick Shopify to run the store, and the payments, as the main event.
A store that bolts onto a site you already have
A storefront whose card rate falls by plan
At a glance
- Ecwid starts cheaper, at $5.
- Neither has a free tier.
Side by side
Ecwid | Shopify | |
|---|---|---|
| Starting price (they differ) | From $5 | From $29 |
| Pricing model | Paid subscription | Paid subscription |
| Free tier | No | No |
| Billing | Not stated | Monthly or annual |
| Free trial | Not stated | Not stated |
| API | Yes | Yes |
Ecwid
A store that bolts onto a site you already have
Ecwid adds a shop to a site that already exists rather than asking anybody to rebuild on a new platform, which is what makes it the answer when the site is fine and only the selling is missing. It will also stand on its own with an included site builder and a free subdomain. Plans are separated by product count first: ten on the cheapest, a hundred on the next. Selling through Instagram and Facebook, the mobile management app and automated tax all start one tier above the entry plan.
Our note
Count your products before choosing, because the jump from ten to a hundred is the whole difference between the first two tiers and it is not a soft limit. If the shop is going to be the main event rather than an addition, pay for Shopify or BigCommerce now instead of migrating in a year.
Shopify
A storefront whose card rate falls by plan
Shopify runs the shop itself, the checkout and the card processing, which is why its pricing has two numbers rather than one: a monthly plan and a card rate that drops as the plan rises. Selling on social, in person and through a site all report into the same catalogue and stock count. The plans are otherwise similar enough that most people choose on the card rate and the staff seats. Using a payment provider other than Shopify's own adds a transaction fee on top, so the cheap plan is not always the cheap option.
Why people weigh these two
- Shopify instead of Ecwid
- Shopify is built the way round Ecwid is not: the shop is the site, from $29 a month with a card rate that falls by plan, the stronger home for a large catalogue.
- Ecwid instead of Shopify
- Ecwid bolts a store onto a site you already run instead of replacing it, starting at $5, for somebody who does not want to rebuild a site on Shopify's platform.
Which one should you pick
Ecwid is the pick when the website already exists and only the selling is missing, especially somewhere a full storefront platform cannot be installed. Venture is $29 a month for a hundred products, with no separate card-rate ladder described in its pricing.
Shopify is the pick for a shop selling physical goods at real volume, where the falling card rate is worth more than the plan price itself. Basic is $29 a month billed yearly at 2.9 percent plus 30 cents, and the rate drops to 2.7 percent on the $89 Grow plan. Anybody selling a single digital download is overbuying Shopify, and a storefront charging per sale instead will cost nothing until something sells.
Common questions
- Both start at $29 a month. Are they really the same price?
- Only on the subscription line. Shopify's $29 Basic plan also carries a card processing rate of 2.9 percent plus 30 cents, a real ongoing cost on every sale. Ecwid's listing does not describe an equivalent platform transaction fee, so its $29 Venture plan is closer to the whole cost, aside from whatever payment provider is connected.
- Does Ecwid's card rate fall with the plan the way Shopify's does?
- Ecwid's listing does not describe a card rate at all, tiered or otherwise. Shopify's is explicit and central to its pricing: 2.9 percent plus 30 cents on Basic, falling to 2.5 percent on Advanced and 2.25 percent on Plus, which is why high-volume sellers often find the higher Shopify plans worth it.
- When does Ecwid's own guidance say to switch to Shopify?
- Once the shop is the main event rather than an addition to an existing site. Ecwid's own editorial note says to pay for Shopify or BigCommerce from the start in that case, rather than migrating a large catalogue later.
- Which one is better for selling on Instagram and Facebook?
- Ecwid includes Instagram and Facebook selling from its Venture plan at $29 a month. Shopify's listing describes selling across social, in person and a site sharing one catalogue and stock count, which covers similar ground at a higher effective cost once the card rate is counted.
Ratings are the average of reviews readers left. The facts are stated by each tool’s own listing and are not verified by CloutStack. How we make money.