If you're comparing Shopify and WooCommerce, you're not alone. In Australia, they're the two most common options businesses consider when launching or rebuilding an online store. Both can work well. The right choice depends on what you're selling, how quickly you need to launch, how much control you need, and what your long-term growth looks like.
Quick answer (TL;DR)
- Choose Shopify if you want a fast launch with less technical overhead and predictable monthly costs.
- Choose WooCommerce if you want maximum flexibility, full ownership, and the ability to tailor your store without platform limits.
- If you want help choosing, a short discovery call with a Shopify developer or WooCommerce developer can save weeks of rework later.
What Shopify is (in plain English)
Shopify is a hosted eCommerce platform. You pay a subscription fee and Shopify provides the hosting, security, and core shopping features. You build your store using a theme, and you add extra features using apps or custom development.
For many Australian businesses, Shopify is the fastest way to go live and start selling, especially if you don't want to manage hosting, backups, or server updates.
What WooCommerce is (in plain English)
WooCommerce is an eCommerce plugin for WordPress. It gives you the shopping cart and product system, while WordPress handles the website and content side. You choose your hosting and you can customise almost everything, which is why it’s a popular choice for businesses that want long-term flexibility.
WooCommerce can be extremely powerful, but it requires proper setup, ongoing updates, and performance/security care. That’s where a good WooCommerce developer makes a big difference.
Costs: Shopify vs WooCommerce (what people forget)
Costs are not just the platform fee. The real cost is the total of platform + features + maintenance + improvements.
Shopify typical costs
- Monthly subscription
- Paid apps (often monthly)
- Theme costs and customisations
- Transaction fees depending on how payments are configured
WooCommerce typical costs
- Hosting (quality hosting matters)
- Premium plugins (annual renewals are common)
- Developer time for setup, upgrades, and improvements
- Maintenance for security, backups, and updates
In practice, Shopify is often simpler to budget month-to-month. WooCommerce can be more cost-effective for some stores, but the build quality and hosting choice matter a lot.
Performance and SEO
Shopify typically gives you a strong baseline for performance because hosting is managed, but speed can still suffer with heavy themes and too many apps.
WooCommerce performance depends heavily on hosting, theme quality, and how plugins are used. When built properly, WooCommerce can be just as fast as Shopify, but it needs the right technical foundation.
For SEO in Australia, both platforms can rank. The winning factors are usually content quality, technical performance, structure, and ongoing improvements.
Flexibility, ownership, and lock-in
If you plan to heavily customise checkout, product rules, or integrations, consider how much control you’ll need.
- Shopify offers lots of flexibility, but some areas are limited or require apps/custom work within Shopify’s ecosystem.
- WooCommerce gives full control because it’s open source and runs on your hosting, but that freedom comes with responsibility.
Which platform should you choose?
Shopify is usually best if:
- You want to launch quickly
- You want a simpler setup with less maintenance
- Your store needs common eCommerce features with minimal custom logic
WooCommerce is usually best if:
- You want full ownership and control
- You need deeper customisation or complex product rules
- You want to build content and eCommerce together on WordPress long-term
Common mistakes we see (and fix)
- Choosing a platform before defining requirements
- Installing too many apps/plugins and slowing the site down
- Using a cheap theme that makes customisations harder later
- Underinvesting in hosting, security, and ongoing improvements
Need a Shopify or WooCommerce developer in Australia?
We build and support both Shopify and WooCommerce stores. If you want help choosing the right platform, improving performance, or planning a migration, get in touch and we’ll recommend the best fit based on your goals.
