BigCommerce and Shopify are major players in the world of hosted e-commerce software. The latter is offering their simple-to-use shopping platform to entrepreneurs and merchants since 2004, while BigCommerce was founded in 2009. Both companies deal with billions of dollars in total sales generated by tens of thousands online retailers.
Among these are some of the largest online retailers in the world, which is a great testament to the scalability and versatility of these platforms.
However, chances are that you are just starting out on your long and exciting journey to success and are in a dire need for a reliable platform that can support all your needs. Our comparison of BigCommerce and Shopify covers all key areas that might concern you and should give you a clear answer about which platform is better suited for you.
We can say with confidence that both platforms can serve remarkably well to support the needs of all online retailers and aspiring entrepreneurs. The final choice between them will depend mostly on your own personal values.
If you value a professional approach to customer care and business in general, BigCommerce might be the ideal partner for you. Shopify will appeal to those who value trendy design and the ability to start selling products without having to pay any fees at all.
Here below is a tl;dr summary version of our of BigCommerce and Shopify head-to-head comparison.
The following web hosting features have been compared and scored (click on the link to scroll to each feature section): 1. Interface & Ease of Use, 2. Themes & Designs, 3. Payments & Transactions, 4. Hosting & Security, 5. Marketing & Reporting and 6. Customer Support.
| Company | Main features | Price | Rating | More |
|---|---|---|---|---|
 Shopify | Free 14-day trial Unlimited products & file storage 0 - 2.0% transaction fees 70 integrated payment gateways Modern & fully customizable themes More features at shopify.com | From 9.00 /mo | 82% score | Visit website Read reviews |
 Bigcommerce | Free 15-day trial Unlimited products & file storage No transaction fees 38 integrated payment gateways Responsive & customizable themes More features at bigcommerce.com | From 29.95 /mo | 86% score | Visit website Read reviews |
If something goes wrong and you’re entirely on your own, it’s likely you’ll rely on customer support of some sort, whether it’s:
More importantly, you need these options to be available at all times, so you aren’t stuck.
A quick glance at the support page of BigCommerce reveals that the company really tried to provide their customers with the best customer support experience possible. Their large knowledge-base and online video series cover all common questions and topics in an easy-to-understand manner.
If that’s not enough, a 24/7 local phone support service is available for 9 countries, and international support is available for the rest of the world. Customers who prefer communication via text can either use the live chat or contact the support via email.
Like BigCommerce, Shopify also offers 24/7 support, you can reach Shopify via email, or chat directly with a Shopify Guru or talk directly over the phone for additional help.
Shopify answers are really fast, correct, and helpful. They have a large database of FAQs, however, Shopify’s knowledgebase doesn’t nearly reach the level of quality demonstrated by BigCommerce, and users often have to seek independent tutorials online.
Visit BigCommerce.com Visit Shopify.com
Overall, it’s a close match. Both of these professional services are suitable for most small businesses and worth a close look.
If you are in Canada, we suggest looking at Shopify, as they are a Canadian company and have a special discount with Canada Post that might be worth looking into.
Otherwise, we like BigCommerce’s simplified pricing structure, unlimited user accounts for staff, and expert integrations with eBay, Amazon, Facebook and more.