Setting up an online store and not sure whether to go with Shopify, Shoptet, WooCommerce, or a custom-built solution? Each option trades off launch speed, flexibility, and long-term cost differently. Here's how they compare.
Shopify
Shopify is a globally established platform with a huge ecosystem of apps and themes. The upside is a fast launch and reliable infrastructure; the downside is monthly fees, transaction fees, and the limits that come with a closed system — you can't customize everything.
Shoptet
Shoptet is a popular Central European platform, well suited to local needs — local payment gateways, shipping carriers, and invoicing work out of the box. Like Shopify, though, it's a pre-built solution with its own limits on design and functionality changes.
WooCommerce
WooCommerce is a plugin that turns WordPress into an online store. The upside is a lower entry price and a huge library of extensions; the downside is that it's still fundamentally a template-based system with all the usual risks — dozens of plugins that need ongoing updates, dependency on their mutual compatibility, and speed that often drops as your product catalog grows.
A custom-built online store
A custom-built store has no built-in ceiling — the cart, payment gateways, inventory system, and accounting integration are all designed specifically around your business. It's a bigger upfront investment, but with no ongoing platform fees and no limits on what you can add down the line.
Payment gateways and carriers: how the integration differs
Shopify and Shoptet handle payment gateways and shipping carriers as pre-built integrations — you just switch them on in the admin panel. With a custom-built store, every payment gateway and carrier has to be coded individually, which means higher upfront cost, but also no restriction on which services you can use — including local or industry-specific options large platforms might not support at all.
SEO and speed by platform
Load speed and SEO flexibility vary noticeably between platforms. Shopify and Shoptet have basic SEO built in, but customization beyond what the platform offers is limited or impossible. WooCommerce behaves much like any other WordPress site — the more plugins, the heavier the load. A custom-built store gives you the most control over both speed and page structure, which pays off in search rankings over time.
What to weigh when choosing
The key questions: how many products do you plan to sell, do you need integration with a specific inventory or accounting system, how much does the store need to stand out visually and functionally from competitors, and what's your long-term budget — a one-time investment, or monthly fees indefinitely.
Cost over time: subscription vs. one-time investment
Shopify, Shoptet, and WooCommerce (through paid extensions and hosting) all carry ongoing monthly costs for as long as the store runs — over five years, even a seemingly small monthly fee can add up to a sum comparable to a custom build. A custom-built store has a higher upfront investment, but once it's paid, there's no further platform fee — just regular hosting.
When a custom build is worth it
A custom solution pays off particularly when you're planning to grow, need non-standard features (a loyalty program, a product configurator, B2B pricing tiers), or find that recurring monthly fees for a platform with limited customization stop making sense long-term.
Talk it through before deciding
The right choice always depends on the specific business. Send me a description of your project and I'll help you work out whether Shopify, Shoptet, or a custom-built store makes more sense for you.
