Shopify is the default for online stores, but not every business is mainly a store. Here are the alternatives, and who should stay put.
People usually leave Shopify for one of two reasons: monthly app costs keep growing, or their business is really a service or brand website with a few products, not a full store. If selling is the core of your business, the realistic alternatives are other commerce platforms. If the website is the core and products are a side line, a website builder with a simple checkout is often cheaper and simpler.
AI website and app builder. Describe what you want in chat and advanced AI models generate a live, editable site or web app in your browser. Refine visually with click-to-edit or in a full code editor.
Best for: Service and brand sites that sell a few things, built by describing them in chat
Pricing: Free plan: 3 template sites, no AI. AI plans from $20/mo.
Pros: Chat-to-build: describe it, AI builds a live site or app; Visual click-to-edit plus a real code editor (Monaco); Publish instantly with free SSL on a we.inc subdomain or custom domain; Export the full React/Vite/TypeScript/Tailwind code to GitHub, no lock-in; White-label reseller option for agencies (keep 100% of revenue)
Cons: Newer platform with a growing template library; Advanced e-commerce features still expanding
E-commerce platform aimed at growing and B2B stores.
Best for: Growing stores with bigger catalogues
Pricing: From $39/mo
Pros: No platform transaction fees; Strong B2B features; Multi-channel selling
Cons: Plans tied to annual sales; Fewer themes; Steeper setup
Design-led website builder with polished templates, a built-in store and blogging.
Best for: Design-focused small businesses and creatives
Pricing: From $12/mo
Pros: Beautiful templates; Solid built-in commerce; All-in-one hosting
Cons: No AI chat-to-build of full custom sites; Less flexible layouts than code; One site per plan
Store you can add to an existing website or social page.
Best for: Adding a small shop to a site you already have
Pricing: Free / from $15/mo
Pros: Works with any site; Free plan; Sell on social channels
Cons: Limited as a standalone site; Basic design; Free plan is small
Popular drag-and-drop website builder with a large app market.
Best for: Small businesses that want drag-and-drop
Pricing: From $17/mo
Pros: Huge template library; App market; Easy editor
Cons: Can get slow with many apps; Hard to switch templates later; One site per plan
Managed hosting for WordPress, the most widely used CMS.
Best for: Bloggers and content sites that want flexibility
Pricing: From $4/mo
Pros: Huge plugin and theme ecosystem; Strong blogging; You can move to self-hosting later
Cons: Steeper learning curve; Plugins need upkeep; Best features on higher plans
Prices come from each vendor's public pricing page and are not individually dated, so they may have changed. Confirm on the vendor's site before you buy.
For a serious product business, Shopify is hard to beat and BigCommerce is the closest like-for-like switch. For a website that also sells, Squarespace or Wix keeps things in one place, and Ecwid can bolt a shop onto a site you already have. We.Inc fits when you want the site built for you from a description and you add checkout through your own Stripe account. It is not a replacement for Shopify's inventory, shipping and POS tools.
Commerce depth: inventory, shipping, taxes, point-of-sale and a very large app store. If running a store is the whole business, Shopify or BigCommerce is the better fit.
For adding a small shop to an existing site, Ecwid has a free plan. For a full site with a few products, website builders such as Squarespace or We.Inc can cost less than Shopify plus apps. Check each platform's current prices and fees before you switch.
Yes. The free plan lets you publish up to 3 template sites on a we.inc address, with no card needed. It does not include the AI builder; AI plans start at $20/month.
How we research, test and update this page: our editorial policy. We.Inc is our own product.
We.Inc is an AI-powered website builder you can resell under your own brand. Launch a branded client dashboard, bill on Stripe Connect, and deliver AI-generated websites in minutes. White-label plans start at $99 a month for 25 client sites, with a 7-day free trial and no per-site fees.