Shopify vs BigCommerce: Two Hosted Giants Compared
Both platforms promise everything you need to sell online, but they differ on pricing philosophy, built-in features, and enterprise strategy.
Shopify
Best for: DTC brands that want the largest app ecosystem, polished themes, Shop Pay checkout, and enterprise scalability via Shopify Plus.
BigCommerce
Best for: Mid-market and B2B brands that prefer built-in features, zero transaction fees, higher variant limits, and native headless commerce.
Which Should You Choose?
The right platform depends on your situation. Find your profile below.
If you want the easiest setup, largest app ecosystem, and proven enterprise scalability path...
Shopify's intuitive admin, 8,000+ apps, polished themes, and Shopify Plus enterprise tier create the smoothest path from startup to scale for DTC brands.
If you want to avoid transaction fees and need strong built-in features without heavy app spending...
BigCommerce's zero transaction fees, 600 variants per product, native reviews, and built-in B2B features reduce total cost by eliminating apps that Shopify merchants pay monthly for.
If you need customer-specific pricing, purchase orders, and company accounts without paying for enterprise pricing...
BigCommerce B2B Edition provides comprehensive B2B features on standard plans, while Shopify gates equivalent functionality behind the $2,300+/mo Plus tier.
If you are scaling internationally and want the best multi-market selling tools with proven enterprise infrastructure...
Shopify Markets provides the most polished international selling experience in hosted ecommerce, and Shopify Plus powers major global brands at scale that BigCommerce has fewer references for.
Shopify vs BigCommerce
Side-by-side feature comparison to help you understand both platforms.
Overview
Shopify and BigCommerce are the two leading hosted ecommerce platforms. While they share many similarities, they diverge on pricing philosophy, built-in features, and enterprise strategy.
Shopify's strength lies in its massive ecosystem. With over 8,000 apps, merchants can bolt on virtually any capability. BigCommerce builds more features natively so merchants need fewer third-party apps. BigCommerce also avoids transaction fees on all plans.
For brands scaling across multiple channels, the choice may not be either-or. Some merchants run Shopify for checkout conversion and BigCommerce for B2B. Nventory makes this practical by synchronizing inventory and orders across both platforms seamlessly.
Shopify
Shopify powers over four million online stores and is renowned for its ease of use, beautiful themes, and Shop Pay accelerated checkout. Its app marketplace and Shopify Plus enterprise tier make it a dominant force in DTC ecommerce.
BigCommerce
BigCommerce emphasizes built-in features over app dependencies. It includes native B2B capabilities, multi-storefront support, and zero transaction fees on every plan. BigCommerce is a strong fit for mid-market and enterprise brands.
Category-by-Category Breakdown
Click each category for detailed analysis and platform-specific insights.
Running both platforms? Nventory syncs Shopify and BigCommerce automatically.
See integration detailsFrequently Asked Questions
No. BigCommerce does not charge any transaction fees on any plan, regardless of which payment gateway you use. Shopify charges 0.5% to 2% unless you use Shopify Payments.
BigCommerce offers native B2B features like customer-specific pricing, quote management, and purchase orders on standard plans. Shopify restricts most B2B functionality to the expensive Shopify Plus tier.
Yes. Some brands use Shopify for DTC and BigCommerce for B2B. Nventory synchronizes inventory across both in real time.
Shopify generally offers more polished free and premium themes with a larger marketplace. BigCommerce themes are solid but the selection is smaller.