Guide · For ecommerce

Best Website Builder for an Online Store (2026)

By the WBF Editorial Team · Website Builder Finder — Updated July 2026

Not all website builders are built for selling. A platform that makes a beautiful portfolio can fall short when you need inventory management, tax calculations, or abandoned cart recovery. Choosing the right e-commerce builder from the start saves you from having to migrate everything later.

The key question is: how seriously do you plan to sell? The answer changes which platform is right for you.

Features to look for in an e-commerce builder

• Payment processing — accepts credit cards, PayPal, Apple Pay
• Inventory management — track stock levels automatically
• Shipping integrations — calculate rates, print labels
• Abandoned cart recovery — email customers who didn't complete checkout
• Tax calculation — automatic sales tax by location
• Transaction fees — some platforms take a cut of every sale
• Product limits — some plans cap how many products you can list

Watch out for transaction fees

This is the most overlooked cost in e-commerce. Some builders charge a transaction fee (0.5%–2%) on every sale on top of your payment processor's fees. At any meaningful sales volume, this adds up fast. Shopify charges 0% transaction fees when you use Shopify Payments; other builders vary.

Top picks by use case

• Shopify — the gold standard for serious e-commerce. Purpose-built for selling, with the best inventory tools, shipping integrations, and app ecosystem. Starts at ~$29/month. Best for anyone expecting to sell consistently and at scale.
• Wix eCommerce — the most flexible option for small stores that also want a proper website. Excellent design freedom, up to 50,000 products, and no transaction fees on paid plans. Best for businesses that sell occasionally or alongside other content.
• Squarespace Commerce — beautiful product pages and the cleanest checkout experience in its class. Best for lifestyle brands, clothing, art, and physical goods where presentation is everything.
• BigCommerce — built for larger catalogues and higher volume. No transaction fees on any plan. Best for established businesses or those expecting rapid growth.

Cost overview

Basic e-commerce features (card payments, inventory, a few products) are available from ~$16–23/month. Advanced features — abandoned cart, gift cards, professional reports — typically require a $25–36/month plan. Shopify's entry-level plan is ~$29/month and includes everything most small stores need.

Pros and cons of each top pick

Shopify

Pros:

• Purpose-built for e-commerce — every feature is designed around selling
• Best inventory management of any builder: variants, bulk editing, low-stock alerts
• 6,000+ apps in the Shopify App Store covering every conceivable store need
• Shopify Payments processes payments natively with 0% transaction fees
• Excellent multi-channel selling: list on Amazon, Instagram, TikTok Shop, and more
• Shipping integrations with USPS, UPS, DHL, and real-time carrier rates
• Point of sale (POS) system for in-person selling included

Cons:

• More expensive than alternatives — Basic plan starts at ~$29/month
• If you don't use Shopify Payments, transaction fees of 0.5–2% apply
• The website builder is functional but less design-flexible than Wix or Squarespace
• Overkill and over-budget for stores selling just a handful of products casually
• Many essential features (reviews, subscriptions, bundles) require paid apps

Wix eCommerce

Pros:

• Best design flexibility of any e-commerce builder — full drag-and-drop editor
• Supports up to 50,000 products on higher plans
• No transaction fees on any paid Wix plan
• Wix Stores handles physical and digital products, subscriptions, and event tickets
• Built-in abandoned cart recovery emails on Core plan and above
• Good for businesses that want a proper website alongside a shop — not just a store

Cons:

• E-commerce features are less mature than Shopify — fewer advanced inventory tools
• Reporting and analytics not as detailed as Shopify at scale
• Multi-channel selling is limited compared to Shopify
• Store management UI is less intuitive for large product catalogues

Squarespace Commerce

Pros:

• Best-looking product pages of any builder — ideal for premium and lifestyle brands
• Built-in subscription products and membership features
• Seamless checkout experience — low cart abandonment rates reported by users
• Good digital product selling (downloads, courses)
• All templates are commerce-ready from the start

Cons:

• Business plan charges 3% transaction fees — you need Commerce Basic ($28/month) to avoid them
• Limited payment providers compared to Shopify
• No native POS for in-person selling
• Inventory tools are basic — not suitable for large or complex catalogues

BigCommerce

Pros:

• No transaction fees on any plan — unlike Shopify without Shopify Payments
• Excellent built-in SEO for product pages — better than Shopify by default
• Handles large catalogues and high sales volume without requiring expensive upgrades
• Strong B2B features including customer groups and tiered pricing
• Multi-currency and international selling built in

Cons:

• Annual revenue caps on lower plans — if you exceed them, you're forced to upgrade
• Steeper learning curve than Shopify or Wix
• Smaller app marketplace than Shopify
• Template designs are functional but not as polished as Squarespace or Wix

Pricing comparison

How to choose an e-commerce builder

Volume is the most important factor. If you expect to process more than a few hundred orders per month, or you're building a business that depends on reliable fulfilment at scale, Shopify is the right choice. Its infrastructure, shipping tools, and app market are built for this. For occasional selling — a small craft shop, a few digital products, products sold alongside a service — Wix or Squarespace are more than sufficient and cost less.

Transaction fees can change the economics completely. Squarespace's Business plan charges 3% per sale until you upgrade to Commerce Basic. Shopify charges nothing if you use Shopify Payments, but 0.5–2% if you use a competitor. Wix and BigCommerce charge no transaction fees on any paid plan. At $10,000 in monthly sales, a 1% transaction fee costs $100/month — more than the plan itself.

Think about what you're selling. Physical goods with variants, sizes, and stock tracking benefit most from Shopify's inventory management. Digital products like courses, downloads, and memberships work well on Squarespace. If you need to sell in person as well as online, Shopify's POS system is the only complete solution among these options.

Consider your design priorities. Shopify's storefronts are functional but not as design-flexible as Wix. If having a beautiful, branded shopping experience matters — particularly for premium or lifestyle products — Squarespace Commerce or Wix eCommerce will serve you better. Customers do judge stores by their appearance.

Frequently asked questions

What is the best website builder for e-commerce?

Shopify is the best dedicated e-commerce platform in 2026 — it handles everything from inventory management to shipping, tax calculation, and international selling. For smaller stores or businesses that want a proper website alongside their shop, Wix eCommerce and Squarespace Commerce are excellent alternatives at lower monthly costs. Use Shopify if selling is the primary purpose of your site; use Wix or Squarespace if you need a full website with a shop section.

Is Shopify better than Wix for online stores?

Shopify is better for serious, high-volume online stores. Its inventory tools, shipping integrations, app ecosystem, and multi-channel selling are more advanced than Wix's. Wix eCommerce is better for small stores or businesses that primarily need a website and want to sell products as a secondary feature. Both start at around $29/month for e-commerce plans, but Shopify's toolset at that price point is more commerce-specific.

What is the cheapest e-commerce website builder?

Hostinger's e-commerce plan is around $3.99/month — the cheapest entry point for a real online store. SITE123's e-commerce plan starts around $14/month. Wix and Shopify both start e-commerce at around $29/month. The cheapest option isn't always the best value: factor in transaction fees, feature limits, and how many products you can list before the price savings disappear.

Which website builder has no transaction fees?

Wix, BigCommerce, and Squarespace Commerce Basic (not the Business plan) all charge zero transaction fees. Shopify charges 0% when you use Shopify Payments, but 0.5–2% if you use a third-party payment processor. Always confirm which payment gateways are supported in your country — Shopify Payments is not available everywhere, which changes the fee calculation significantly.