Platform Comparison · 2026
Shopify vs BigCommerce
Both are serious ecommerce platforms. The difference is in who they're built for — and it matters more than the feature list suggests.
Head-to-head comparison
The features and trade-offs that actually determine which platform fits your business.
| Feature | Shopify | BigCommerce |
|---|---|---|
| Starting price | $29/month (Basic) | $39/month (Standard) |
| Transaction fees | 0% with Shopify Payments · 0.5–2% with third-party gateways | 0% on all plans, including third-party payment gateways |
| Annual revenue cap | None | Standard: $50k · Plus: $180k · Pro: $400k/year before forced upgrade |
| App ecosystem | 8,000+ apps — the largest in ecommerce | ~1,000 apps — much narrower coverage |
| Built-in features | Lean core — relies on apps for advanced features | More features built-in: faceted search, multi-currency, gift cards, product comparisons |
| B2B / wholesale | Available on Shopify Plus via Shopify B2B | Strong native B2B: price lists, customer groups, quote management |
| Multi-storefront | Via Markets or Shopify Plus expansion stores | Native multi-storefront on Plus — one backend, multiple storefronts |
| Headless / API | Hydrogen (React), Storefront API, mature ecosystem | GraphQL Storefront API, fewer headless frameworks |
| Theme customisation | Liquid + Online Store 2.0 — large developer community | Stencil framework — smaller developer pool, less flexibility |
| Checkout customisation | Full checkout UI (Shopify Plus) · checkout extensibility on all plans | Checkout customisation available but more limited |
| SEO control | Full meta, canonical, schema, robots, sitemap control | Good SEO controls, slightly less flexible on technical side |
| POS | Native Shopify POS with dedicated hardware | Square POS integration — not native |
| Ease of use | Simpler admin, widely understood by teams and agencies | More complex — steeper learning curve |
| Developer availability | Thousands of Shopify developers globally | Significantly smaller talent pool |
| Enterprise tier | Shopify Plus — from $2,300/month | BigCommerce Enterprise — custom pricing |
The BigCommerce revenue cap problem
This is the one thing most comparison articles underplay — and it catches stores off guard.
No revenue limits, ever
Your plan price is fixed. Whether you do $50k or $50M in sales, you stay on the plan you chose. Scaling doesn't trigger forced upgrades.
- Basic: $29/month — no revenue cap
- Shopify: $79/month — no revenue cap
- Advanced: $299/month — no revenue cap
- Plus: $2,300/month — for enterprise scale
Revenue caps per plan
BigCommerce charges based on how much you sell. Exceed the cap and you're automatically bumped to the next tier — often at significantly higher cost.
- Standard ($39/mo): capped at $50k/year
- Plus ($105/mo): capped at $180k/year
- Pro ($399/mo): capped at $400k/year
- Growing stores hit forced upgrades at exactly the worst time
Transaction fees: where BigCommerce genuinely wins
BigCommerce charges 0% transaction fees regardless of which payment gateway you use. Shopify charges 0.5–2% if you don't use Shopify Payments.
0% only with Shopify Payments
Use Shopify Payments and there are no platform transaction fees. Use a third-party gateway (PayPal, Authorize.net, Klarna, etc.) and Shopify charges 0.5% (Advanced), 1% (Shopify), or 2% (Basic) on top of gateway fees.
- Shopify Payments: 0% platform fee
- Third-party gateway on Basic: +2% per transaction
- Can add up significantly at scale with preferred gateways
- Shopify Payments not available in all countries
0% on every plan, every gateway
BigCommerce charges no platform transaction fees regardless of which payment provider you use. For businesses that need specific payment gateways — or operate in markets where Shopify Payments isn't available — this is a real advantage.
- Any payment gateway: 0% platform fee
- Works with 65+ pre-integrated payment gateways
- Particularly relevant for international merchants
App ecosystem and developer availability
This is the gap that compounds over time. Shopify's ecosystem is an order of magnitude larger than BigCommerce's — which matters every time you need something that isn't built in.
8,000+ apps, thousands of developers
Every category is covered — subscriptions, loyalty, upsells, reviews, search, bundles, returns, B2B, and on. And when you need custom work, the Shopify developer community is massive.
- 8,000+ apps in every category
- ReCharge, Skio, Yotpo, Klaviyo, Gorgias all native to Shopify
- Largest community of Shopify developers globally
- Shopify Partners programme with vetted developers
- Hydrogen for headless builds (React, mature tooling)
~1,000 apps, smaller talent pool
The app store covers the basics but has obvious gaps. Popular Shopify-native tools either don't have BigCommerce versions or the integrations are less mature.
- ~1,000 apps — meaningful gaps in some categories
- Some top Shopify apps support BigCommerce, many don't
- Much smaller developer community
- Stencil theme framework — fewer developers know it
- Harder to find custom development help at scale
Which platform should you choose?
Most stores should be on Shopify. BigCommerce makes sense in specific, well-defined scenarios.
You want the largest ecosystem and easiest path to growth
- You're a DTC brand selling direct to consumers
- You need a wide range of apps and third-party integrations
- You want to sell in-person alongside online (Shopify POS)
- You're planning to grow fast and don't want revenue-triggered plan upgrades
- You need custom development — Shopify developers are everywhere
- You want headless commerce via Hydrogen
- You're migrating from another platform and want future flexibility
You have specific B2B or multi-storefront needs
- You're primarily a B2B/wholesale business and need native customer groups, quote management, and price lists without Plus pricing
- You need to run multiple storefronts from one backend (native on BC Plus)
- You rely on payment gateways that aren't supported by Shopify Payments and transaction fees are materially affecting margins
- You want more built-in features without paying for apps
On BigCommerce?
Migrate to Shopify without losing data or SEO
I handle BigCommerce to Shopify migrations — products, customers, order history, 301 redirects, and theme rebuild — so you don't lose rankings or revenue in the switch.
