BigCommerce vs Shopify (2026): Which Platform Should You Choose?

Key takeaways

• Both are hosted SaaS platforms: no servers to manage, with plans from about $39 a month billed monthly.
• BigCommerce charges no surcharge for third-party payment gateways but moves you up a plan as annual sales grow.
• Shopify has the larger app ecosystem, theme marketplace and partner network, and the fastest-converting checkout through Shop Pay.
• BigCommerce builds more features in, especially for B2B and complex catalogues; Shopify relies more on apps.
• Both can rank well in search. Your catalogue, team and growth plans should decide, not the logo.

BigCommerce and Shopify solve the same problem — selling online without running your own servers — and their plan prices look almost identical. The differences are in the details: how you are charged as you grow, how much is built in versus added with apps, and how much flexibility you get in design and checkout.

Pricing and fees

Shopify's standard plans cost $39, $105 or $399 a month billed monthly, with Shopify Plus from $2,300 a month. If you use a payment provider other than Shopify Payments, Shopify adds a surcharge of 2%, 1% or 0.6% per order depending on the plan.

BigCommerce's plans start at a similar price but take a different approach: no surcharge on third-party gateways, but each plan has an annual online sales limit, and passing it moves you to a more expensive plan. Check the current thresholds on BigCommerce's pricing page — they decide what you will really pay as you grow.

Built-in features vs apps

• BigCommerce: More is built in: product options and variants, faceted search, customer groups and B2B features come out of the box on many plans, which can mean fewer paid apps.
• Shopify: A lean core with the largest app ecosystem in ecommerce. Most missing features are an app away, but monthly app costs add up, so budget for them.

Checkout and conversion

Shopify's checkout is one of its strongest assets. Shop Pay remembers buyers across millions of stores, which shortens checkout for returning shoppers, and the checkout is fast and trusted. BigCommerce's checkout is solid and more open to customisation on standard plans. For most consumer brands, Shopify's checkout gives it an edge; for B2B buyers who pay on account, the difference matters less.

B2B and complex catalogues

BigCommerce has long positioned itself for B2B, with customer groups, price lists and quote features. Shopify narrowed the gap when it brought B2B to all plans in April 2026: company accounts, price lists, payment terms and quick order forms. For very large catalogues with many options per product, BigCommerce's native options handling can still be simpler. See our guide to Shopify B2B for what Shopify offers today.

Design, themes and developers

Shopify's Theme Store and Online Store 2.0 make it easy for non-developers to edit pages with sections and blocks, and there are far more Shopify developers and agencies to hire. BigCommerce's Stencil theme framework is capable, but the talent pool is smaller. Both support headless builds — Shopify through Hydrogen and the Storefront API, BigCommerce through its GraphQL APIs.

SEO

Both handle the fundamentals: editable titles and descriptions, sitemaps, canonical tags and fast hosting. Shopify uses fixed URL prefixes such as /products/, which rarely affects rankings. In practice, content, speed and a clean technical setup matter far more than the platform. Our Shopify SEO checklist covers what to get right.

Which should you choose?

Choose Shopify if

• You sell direct to consumers and conversion is your priority.
• You want the widest choice of apps, themes and developers.
• You sell across online, social, marketplaces and in-person with one system.

Choose BigCommerce if

• You want many features built in rather than added as apps.
• You use a third-party payment provider and want to avoid gateway surcharges.
• Your catalogue relies heavily on complex product options.

Frequently asked questions

Is BigCommerce cheaper than Shopify?

It can be if you use a third-party payment gateway, because BigCommerce adds no gateway surcharge. As annual sales grow, its plan thresholds move you to higher plans, so compare costs at your expected revenue.

Which is better for SEO, BigCommerce or Shopify?

Both handle SEO fundamentals well. Rankings depend on your content, speed and technical setup far more than on the platform.

Can I move from BigCommerce to Shopify?

Yes. Products, customers and orders can be migrated, and 301 redirects from old URLs protect your rankings.

If you are already on BigCommerce and considering a move, migration is well-trodden ground: products, customers and orders transfer, and 301 redirects protect your rankings. Our Shopify migration service covers BigCommerce moves end to end.