Ecommerce website cost: what a store costs each month and per sale

A store has two bills: the platform's monthly fee and a payment fee on every sale. Here are both, from each platform's own page.

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How much does an ecommerce website cost?

On a hosted platform, an online store costs about $0 to $400 a month plus card fees. On October 28, 2026 Shopify listed Basic at $25, Grow at $65 and Advanced at $399 a month billed monthly; BigCommerce Core was $39 a month ($29 billed annually); Square Online had a free plan, with Plus at $49 and Premium at $149 a month. WordPress.com's Commerce plan was $45 a month billed yearly.

Card processing adds roughly 2.9% + 30¢ per online sale on most of these platforms, and some charge an extra fee if you use an outside payment provider.

Store platforms: monthly fee and online card rate (US, checked October 28, 2026)

	Monthly fee	Online card rate
Square Online Free	$0	3.3% + 30¢
Square Online Plus	$49	2.9% + 30¢
Shopify Basic	$25 billed monthly	Not shown to us
BigCommerce Core	$39 ($29 billed annually)	From 2.89% + 29¢
Squarespace Core	See our Squarespace guide	2.9% + 30¢, no extra store fee
WordPress.com Commerce	$45 billed yearly	0% WordPress.com fee; Stripe's fee applies

Prices as listed on each platform's own page on October 28, 2026, in US dollars, before tax. Card rates are for online sales in the US. Confirm on the platform's page before you buy.

Pros and cons

Shopify

Best for: Stores that plan to grow and want the largest app ecosystem

Price: Basic $25, Grow $65, Advanced $399 a month billed monthly; Plus from $2,300; checked Oct 28, 2026

Pros: Built for selling first; Thousands of apps and themes

Cons: Apps add monthly costs; Extra fee if you use an outside payment provider, rate depends on plan

Square Online

Best for: Shops that also sell in person with Square

Price: Free plan; Plus $49 and Premium $149 a month per location; checked Oct 28, 2026

Pros: Real free plan; In-person and online sales in one system

Cons: Free plan's online rate is higher (3.3% + 30¢); Fewer design options

BigCommerce

Best for: Larger catalogues that want more built in

Price: Core $39 a month ($29 billed annually), Growth $105 ($79), Scale $399 ($299); checked Oct 28, 2026

Pros: Many features without apps; Choice of payment providers

Cons: Plans capped by yearly online sales; Higher entry price

We.Inc

Best for: People who want to describe a site or web app in plain English and have AI build it

Price: Free plan: up to 3 template sites on a we.inc address, no AI. AI building from $20/mo (Starter, 250 credits). Pro $50/mo, Max $99/mo.

Pros: Describe what you want in chat and AI builds a full, editable site or app; Edit by clicking on the page, by asking in chat, or in a real code editor; Export the React and TypeScript code to GitHub, so you are never locked in; Unlimited sites on paid plans, custom domains from Starter

Cons: The free plan is templates only; AI building needs a paid plan; Newer platform with a smaller app marketplace than the big names; Store features are simpler than a dedicated ecommerce platform

Payment fees matter more than the plan

At $5,000 a month in online sales, a 2.9% + 30¢ card fee with an average order of $50 costs about $175 a month, far more than most plan fees. Square Online's own page showed online rates of 3.3% + 30¢ on Free and 2.9% + 30¢ on Plus and Premium. BigCommerce said card processing begins at 2.89% + 29¢.

Some platforms add a fee for outside payment providers. BigCommerce listed 2.0% on Core, 1.0% on Growth and 0.6% on Scale. Shopify says third-party transaction fees apply when you do not use Shopify Payments and that the rate depends on your plan. Squarespace's help centre listed a 2% fee on Basic and 0% on Core and above for online store sales.

Plan caps based on sales

BigCommerce limits each plan by yearly online sales: Core up to $30K and Growth up to $100K, with Scale charging 0.9% above $33,333 a month. Square Pro, for businesses processing over $250,000 a year, is priced by Square's team. Check where your sales will be in a year, not only today.

Costs beyond the platform

Budget for a domain (around $10 to $24 a year to renew), any paid theme, apps for reviews, subscriptions or email marketing, and shipping labels. A designer or developer to set the store up is a one-off cost on top; our website cost guides cover that side.

Where We.Inc fits: the free plan publishes up to 3 template sites on a we.inc address, with no AI and no custom domain, and needs no credit card. AI building, where you describe the site and it is written for you, starts at $20 a month (Starter, 250 credits); Pro is $50 and Max is $99.

Who wrote this and how

We.Inc makes a competing website builder, so read this with that in mind. Every price on this page comes from the vendor's own pricing page on the date shown, with a link to it. We say where the other option is the better choice, and we do not publish scores for tests we have not run.

Start from a template

Sources

Shopify: Pricing (Checked Oct 28, 2026)
BigCommerce: Pricing (Checked Oct 28, 2026)
Square Online: Plans (Checked Oct 28, 2026)
Squarespace Help: Transaction fees and payment processing rates (Checked Oct 28, 2026)
WordPress.com: Pricing (Checked Oct 28, 2026)
We.Inc: Pricing (Checked Sept 25, 2026)

Frequently asked questions

How much does an ecommerce website cost per month?

From $0 on Square Online's free plan to about $400 a month for higher plans; Shopify Basic is $25 a month billed monthly and BigCommerce Core $39, as listed on October 28, 2026. Card fees come on top.

What are typical payment fees for an online store?

About 2.9% + 30¢ per online card sale on the platforms we checked; Square Online's free plan charged 3.3% + 30¢.

Is there a free ecommerce website?

Square Online has a free plan; you pay only the card fee on each sale. Most other platforms offer a free trial instead.

Does Shopify charge transaction fees?

Shopify says third-party transaction fees apply when you use a payment provider other than Shopify Payments, and that the rate depends on your plan. Its page did not show the rates to us on October 28, 2026.