Shopify vs Magento

Shopify vs. Magento 2024 — Which Platform Is Best for You?

Shopify offers a first-party POS system, over 6,000 integrations, 24/7 support and advanced security features for businesses of any size.

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Shopify vs Magento

Key Features
Web hosting includedMagento
Shopify
Unlimited productsMagento
Shopify
First-party POS systemMagento
Shopify
Over 100 payment gatewaysMagento
Shopify
Unlimited bandwidthMagento
Shopify
Free themesMagento
Shopify
24/7 supportMagento
Shopify
Free subdomainMagento
Shopify
No-code store builderMagento
Shopify
Free SSL certificateMagento
Shopify
Includes blogMagento
Shopify
Staff accountsMagento
Over 6,000
Shopify
Detailed sales reportsMagento
Shopify
PCI-DSS compliantMagento
Shopify
International payment processorsMagento
Shopify
Built-in fraud protectionMagento
Shopify
Mobile app for store ownersMagento
Shopify
Open sourceMagento
Shopify

Start selling with Shopify today

Try Shopify for free, and explore all the tools and services you need to start, run, and grow your business.

Try Shopify free for 3 days, no credit card required. By entering your email, you agree to receive marketing emails from Shopify.

10 Things Shopify Can Do vs Magento

Web hosting

Your monthly subscription on Shopify includes web hosting. This allows for an easier set-up as you don’t need to manually sign-up for a web host provider as you would on Magento.

Beginner friendly

When comparing Shopify vs Magento, you’ll be pleased to know that Shopify offers a drag and drop feature when building your online store. Since Magento is built for enterprise businesses, you’ll likely need a developer to set-up your website or the addition of extensions to build. Fortunately, on Shopify, you can build your website on your own without needing support.

Contemporary themes

All Shopify themes come with a responsive design, including free themes. On Magento, you have a choice of 11 themes that you’ll have to pay for. With Shopify, you’ll find more than 70 themes, including 12 that are free. Go from ideation to launching an ecommerce store without any additional costs.

Thousands of integrations

Shopify offers over 6,000 apps on the Shopify App Store. When comparing Shopify to Magento, the latter only offers just over 4,000 extensions. Shopify’s extensive collection of apps allows for easy customization of your online store.

24/7 support

Shopify support is available 24/7, no matter which plan you’re on. You’ll also have access to help docs, webinars, blog posts, and online courses to guide you along the way. Magento offers support via help center, forums, developer documentation, tech resources, as well as phone, ticket, and demo support.

Subdomain included

When comparing Shopify vs Magento, one benefit of Shopify is that a subdomain is included with your monthly subscription. For instance, if you’re not ready to commit to a domain name yet you can use the .myshopify.com subdomain to promote your business. Since Magento caters to enterprise businesses, you would need a domain name on Magento.

No need to code

While Shopify offers HTML and CSS editing, you won’t need to know how to code to use the platform. With easy drag and drop functionality, over 6,000 apps for support, and an ability to hire Shopify Experts for complex changes, Shopify is a no-code store builder anyone can learn to use quickly. On Magento, most businesses will need to hire or have an in-house developer set up their website or will heavily depend on use of extensions.

Easy to setup

Shopify has a simplified process that leads you through the steps when you sign-up to build your online store. You can go through all the steps one at a time with it’s easy to navigate experience. There’s also a theme editor you can go through to complete and customize your site easily.

Affordable option

In a comparison between Shopify vs Magento, Shopify comes out as a more affordable option. Transaction fees for payment gateways are lower. The need for web development work is greatly reduced. You’ll also have web hosting, a subdomain, free themes, free dropshipping options, and many more. While Magento doesn’t have a monthly subscription, the cost to get a site up and running is greater.

Easy customization

You’ll be able to customize your fonts, colors, images, layout, currency, and so much more with Shopify’s theme editor. Comparing Shopify vs Magento, Magento often requires the use of third-party extensions for customization.

Why Merchants Prefer Shopify to Magento

Content management system feature

Shopify has a built-in CMS feature that allows online retailers to run and manage their own blog. You’ll find the simple editor allows you to change headers, change typeface, add links, include images, and many more. On Magento, to create a blog you’ll likely need to include a third-party Magento extension for the same effect.

Unlimited bandwidth

Shopify provides merchants with unlimited bandwidth and online storage on all plans. On Magento, you’ll need to set up your online storage separately to receive unlimited bandwidth.

First-party POS system

When comparing Shopify vs Magento in terms of POS system. Shopify provides a first-party POS system whereas Magento provides one via ConnectPOS, a third-party POS system, via their extensions. Shopify’s POS system integrates with your online store so you can view data for your whole business.

Trusted by merchants

Shopify has millions of merchants using the ecommerce platform. Magento has over 250,000 merchants using their platform. Shopify supports merchants from all stages: from small to enterprise allowing entrepreneurs to grow their business on Shopify.

SEO best practices

Shopify has built-in SEO features such as meta descriptions, meta titles, and more allowing you to optimize your website for search. Merchants can also add additional features through an app on the Shopify App Store. Features like Shopify’s content management system allow people to build their own blog on their website to improve search engine rankings.

No transaction fees

While Magento doesn’t charge transaction fees, you’ll notice incremental fees with the addition of a payment provider. For example, Stripe charges 2.9% and 30¢ per transaction to accept card payments online and 2.7% plus 5¢ to accept in-person payments. Shopify Payments doesn't charge transaction fees on any plan, making it the most cost-effective solution.

Dropship affordably

Entrepreneurs can dropship on both Shopify and Magento. On Magento, users need to integrate a dropshipping extension that ranges in price from $219 USD to $699 USD. On Shopify, users can choose from multiple dropshipping companies, with several offering free plan options.

Built-in security

When comparing Shopify vs Magento, take a look at security. Shopify has a built-in fraud analysis feature, provides SSL certificates, and is PCI-DSS compliant. Shopify is also compliant to GDPR. To add an SSL certificate to Magento, you’ll need to contact support. You need to be PCI-DSS compliant to sell on Magento but will need to install it manually.

Built for all ecommerce businesses

Magento is made for enterprise businesses. Shopify is built for all businesses. Additional features are available as your business grows to better support you, so you only need to pay for the features you need when you need them.

We’ve been able to build something in 3 years that a lot of brands haven’t actually gotten to in 10 years.

  • Cee Cee’s Closet NYC
  • Chioma

Learn More About Shopify

Compare Shopify

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Shopify Community

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Shopify Help Center

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Start selling with Shopify today

Try Shopify for free, and explore all the tools and services you need to start, run, and grow your business.

Try Shopify free for 3 days, no credit card required. By entering your email, you agree to receive marketing emails from Shopify.

FAQs

How to switch from Magento to Shopify?

To learn more about migrating from Magento to Shopify visit: Migrate to Shopify

Which is better for SEO: Shopify or Magento?

Shopify is better for SEO due to it’s fast site load speed, SEO functionality, and abundance of apps. Unlike Magento, Shopify also has a built-in blog component that you can utilize to create search-based blog posts to improve your search rankings.

What is the difference between Magento and Shopify Plus?

The main difference between Magento and Shopify Plus is that Magento is open-sourced. While Shopify Plus is not, Shopify Plus includes hosting, advanced security features, and lower transaction costs making it a better product choice for enterprise businesses.

Which site is easiest: Magento or Shopify?

Shopify’s no code store builder empowers anyone to start their own business. The theme editor allows you to easily customize your online store your way in only a few simple steps.

Which is better: Shopify or Magento?

Magento is a good platform for teams with their own in-house developers. Shopify is better for businesses ranging from small to enterprise while being accessible to non-developers. Shopify also offers hosting and unlimited bandwidth and online storage in all plans whereas you’d need to source your own hosting and cloud storage from Magento. As your business scales, the cost for hosting and storage will likely increase if using a third-party while on Magento.

What are Magento and Shopify?

Magento and Shopify are online store builders. Shopify allows you to learn, build, and grow an online store. With Shopify, you won’t need to know how to code allowing you to launch your store quickly.

What is the best platform for ecommerce Magento 2 or Shopify?

Shopify’s mission is to make commerce better for everyone. Whether you’re launching a business for the first time or an enterprise looking for a new solution, Shopify offers features that allow you to successfully run an online store. All plans come with unlimited products, unlimited bandwidth and online storage, Shopify Point of Sale (POS), gift cards, fraud analysis, and much more.

Page last updated: November 24, 2023

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