Ecommerce platforms, compared honestly
Every platform below can run a real store. The differences show up later, in what it costs to change something. So each page says what the platform is bad at and who should not pick it, not just what it does well. We build on all of these, which is exactly why we will tell you when one is the wrong answer.
Last reviewed August 22, 2026.
| Platform | Right for | Wrong for | Typical build |
|---|---|---|---|
| Adobe Commerce | B2B sellers whose pricing differs per customer or per contract | Small catalogs with flat pricing and no integrations | $60k to $200k |
| Shopify | Brands and D2C sellers who want to launch fast and stay lean | Per-contract pricing negotiated account by account | $35k to $120k |
| BigCommerce | Mid-market B2B catalogs that need native price lists and customer groups | Very complex catalog or pricing logic, where Adobe Commerce fits better | $40k to $130k |
| WooCommerce | Content-led sites where the shop supports the publishing | Large catalogs with deep attributes and variations | Not modelled |
| OpenCart | Small to mid-size catalogs with simple pricing | B2B selling with negotiated pricing or approvals | Not modelled |
The short version on each
- Adobe Commerce
- Choose it when your pricing rules, catalog structure or ERP data are the actual product. Skip it when they are not, because you will pay for depth you never use. Strengths, limits and who it suits
- Shopify
- Choose it when you want to sell quickly and let somebody else own uptime, payments and PCI. Reconsider when your pricing is different for every customer. Strengths, limits and who it suits
- BigCommerce
- Choose it when you want hosted convenience but need more B2B in the box than Shopify gives you, without taking on Adobe Commerce. Strengths, limits and who it suits
- WooCommerce
- Choose it when the site is mostly content with a shop attached and WordPress is already where your team works. Reconsider when the catalog is the main event. Strengths, limits and who it suits
- OpenCart
- Choose it when the catalog is straightforward, the budget is real, and you want to own the code. Look elsewhere when you need depth. Strengths, limits and who it suits
ERP and back-office systems
Only systems we have actually integrated. There are ERPs with more search demand than these that we have never touched, and we would rather leave a gap than claim one.
- Epicor Prophet 21
- The integration is very doable and the hard part is never the API. It is deciding which system owns each piece of data. What the integration involves
- QuickBooks
- Straightforward once you accept that QuickBooks is an accounting system, not an ERP, and stop asking it to be one. What the integration involves
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