Short on Time? These Are the Best E-Commerce Platforms for Startups in 2025
- Wix – The widest selection of e-commerce templates with excellent built-in tools.
- Shopify – Great built-in e-commerce payment features and plenty of third-party apps to extend your store’s functionality.
- BigCommerce – A robust e-commerce platform with advanced language tools for startups with an international audience.
What We Look For in the Best E-Commerce Platforms for Startups
I used several criteria to evaluate the best website builders for startups. In addition to comprehensive security features, I also placed particular emphasis on the following:- Ease of use. Your e-commerce platform should be easy to set up and manage, even with minimal technical knowledge. All the website builders on my list are user-friendly and suitable for beginners.
- Well-designed, customizable templates. A good e-commerce website starts with a high-quality template that you can customize to match your style. I picked website builders with attractive templates that give you plenty of design flexibility.
- Marketing tools. Startups rely on marketing to help them increase their online presence. For this reason, I included platforms that offer versatile tools such as a blog, email marketing automations, social media integrations, and more.
- Affordable plans. Starting and maintaining an e-commerce website shouldn’t eat into your budget. I chose e-commerce platforms that offer a range of pricing plans, including budget-friendly options.
- Scalability. E-commerce platforms should be able to scale with the growth of your business. I opted for the platforms that can handle large amounts of data, orders, and website traffic.

Save up to 50 % on your Wix plan!
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Plus get a free custom domain for 1 year!
Features
- Built-in SEO and marketing. Wix SEO Setup Checklist lets you enhance your startup’s search engine rankings with instant Google indexing and keyword recommendations. Also, the Coupons, Discounts, and Price Quotes tools allow you to create the perfect price strategy to boost your sales.
- Free Wix-made apps. Wix App Market has over 50 Wix-created apps you can install for free. Standouts include Wix Loyalty Program to reward returning customers and Wix Chat to make it easy for site visitors to reach out.
- Ascend by Wix. For an additional (but affordable) fee, Wix offers an effective set of business tools to help you handle marketing and payments. These include a social post builder, an email marketing platform, an invoicing tool, and more.
- Robust analytics. With Wix Analytics, you’ll get real-time insights into your site’s traffic, customer behavior, and product metrics to help you identify areas that need improvement.
E-commerce templates | 500+ |
Built-in SEO tools | ✔ |
Transaction fees | Varies by country and payment method |
Starting price | $17.00 |


Save up to 25 % on your Shopify plan!
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Features
- Efficient order management. Your startup can improve performance and customer satisfaction by taking advantage of Shopify’s tools for tracking, managing, and filling orders from one place.
- Built-in POS system. If you have a brick-and-mortar store, Shopify’s Point-of-Sale (POS) system lets you sync data between your physical and online stores, allowing you to manage inventory and staff access.
- Shopify Payments. In addition to providing access to over 100 payment processors, Shopify has its own payment solution, Shopify Payments. It costs extra but supports multicurrency selling and eliminates transaction fees.
- Shopify Email. Shopify’s native email marketing tool lets you send up to 10,000 monthly emails for free to keep your subscribers informed and engaged. Also, you can tailor your email templates to align with your store’s design, enhancing your brand’s recognition.
E-commerce templates | 170+ |
Built-in SEO tools | ✔ |
Transaction fees |
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Starting price | $29.00 |




Save up to 25 % on your BigCommerce plan!
Limited-time offer - Don't miss it!
Features
- Discount options. BigCommerce offers over 70 discount options to help boost your sales, from coupon codes to gift cards and bulk pricing.
- Persistent cart. You can ensure a smooth customer experience by saving their shopping cart items to their account. If they switch devices, the items in their cart will still be there.
- Customer segmentation. This feature allows you to sort customers into groups (e.g., for promotions or product access) to create personalized experiences on your website.
- Multicurrency selling. BigCommerce allows you to integrate payment gateways like PayPal and Amazon Pay and accept payments in over 100 currencies.
E-commerce templates | 200+ |
Built-in SEO tools | ✔ |
Transaction fees | None |
Starting price | $29.00 |

Features
- Beginner-friendly blogging. Squarespace provides a powerful blogging platform that makes it easier to organize and publish content on your site. You can post product-related news and tips and let your customers share them on social media.
- Squarespace Extensions. Squarespace has a carefully curated selection of third-party tools that are extremely useful for startups. For instance, TaxJar helps you create tax returns, Printify allows you to ship custom products globally, and soona provides expert e-commerce product photography and video.
- Free logo maker. You can use Squarespace’s completely free logo-making tool to promote your brand and make it more memorable.
- Tools for service sellers. Thanks to Squarespace’s Client Invoicing feature, service sellers can accept payments, manage invoices, and collect client information from one single place.
E-commerce templates | 40+ |
Built-in SEO tools | ✔ |
Transaction fees | 3% on the Business plan, none on higher-tiered plans |
Starting price | $16.00 |
5. SITE123: The Easiest Way to Get Your Startup Online

Features
- Conversion tool. SITE123’s conversion code tool allows you to track where leads come from so you can make informed decisions about your site’s layout and content.
- Wire transfer payments. If you live in an area where online payment methods aren’t widely used, you can add your bank details in the store settings to collect funds from clients who pay offline.
- Built-in forms. SITE123’s custom form builder lets you tailor your forms based on the type of information you want to collect from your customers. You can choose from various layouts, customize fields, create auto-reply messages, and more.
- Accessible support. SITE123 is very easy to use but if you get stuck, live chat support is available in English (24/7) plus 16 other languages (at various times).
E-commerce templates | 6 |
Built-in SEO tools | ✔ |
Transaction fees | None |
Starting price | $12.80 |
6. IONOS: Affordable E-Commerce Platform with Helpful AI Tools

Features
- Free business email. IONOS gives you a professional contact email for free on all plans. Your email address can match your domain, helping to promote your startup.
- rankingCoach and List Local apps. rankingCoach and List Local will help you optimize your site for SEO. List Local also helps to increase your online visibility by listing your startup details in the most important online directories for your field of business, including Google.
- marketingRadar. This built-in tool allows you to track your competitors’ social media and search engine activity to stay on top of the latest trends and learn how to make your startup more successful.
- Built-in privacy features. IONOS provides legal page outlines to help you create privacy settings and cookie banners.
E-commerce templates | 5, plus custom templates using AI |
Built-in SEO tools | ✔ |
Transaction fees | None |
Starting price | $6.00 |
Other Notable E-Commerce Platforms for Startups
If you want to review more options, here are some additional considerations for your e-commerce startup.7. Webador

8. WordPress.com

Choose the Best E-Commerce Platform for Startups to Grow Your Business
Although every business has its own needs, startups mostly need a platform that’s inexpensive and simple to use. It should also be scalable and provide useful e-commerce tools to help your startup grow while allowing you to concentrate on your business.
Whether you’re placing emphasis on an affordable solution, a user-friendly website builder, or a comprehensive set of built-in e-commerce features, several platforms can meet your requirements and help your startup.
If you want a balance between ease of use and creative control, Wix is my top recommendation. Wix offers 500+ e-commerce templates, which you can customize to your heart’s content using its intuitive drag-and-drop editor.
On the other hand, if you’re looking to scale quickly, Shopify has what you need. You get access to an extensive app market with over 8,000 integrations to add more functionality to your store.
Or, if you want robust built-in e-commerce tools, BigCommerce is a great option. It also offers advanced multilingual features to help you reach out to international customers.
If you’re still undecided, here’s a quick comparison of the different e-commerce platforms I tested.
Free Plan | Best Feature | Best For | Starting Price | ||
Wix | ✔ | Wide selection of e-commerce templates | E-commerce startups looking for creative freedom and built-in tools | $17.00 | |
Shopify | ✘ | Extensive third-party functionality | Startups looking to scale quickly | $29.00 | |
BigCommerce | ✘ | Advanced language tools | E-commerce businesses that want to attract international customers | $29.00 | |
Squarespace | ✘ | Built-in social media tools | Creatives focused on social media marketing | $16.00 | |
SITE123 | ✔ | Incredibly simple editor | Startups looking to get online quickly | $12.80 | |
IONOS | ✘ | Innovative AI tools | Startups looking for an affordable solution | $6.00 |