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eCommerce has changed the ways of doing business. The rise of eCommerce has become a boon for small to mid-size enterprises wanting to reap maximum benefits from the eCommerce space. However, it’s not that easy; how do you develop an eCommerce platform and begin to profit from it? Or, if you already have one, how do you maintain and upgrade it to suit the new demands of the digital age?
You need to develop a reliable eCommerce portal that will help you gain new customers, reduce the maintenance cost of physical stores, and enable a vibrant online marketplace. It will help you to survive in the cutthroat competition. Hence, solutions like Magento and Shopify have emerged that help businesses mitigate these challenges. These two titans compete fiercely against the services they offer for web development.
The question remains, how do you choose between them?
Here’s an interesting stat, W3techs shows the appeal of both platforms:
- 4.1% of all websites use Shopify while
- 0.6% of all websites use Magento as it slowly grows its market share
Before you make a choice, consider these aspects. What is the impact of smartphones, eCommerce apps, and the rise of m-Commerce? It is also necessary to reflect on how you will integrate eCommerce with management, operations, and sales.
All of this seems like an avalanche of worries, right?
Don’t lose hope. You can build a reliable eCommerce platform, target customer segments, and integrate processes. Let’s examine why you should consider Shopify or use Magento.
Shopify vs. Magento – How is it Different from Each Other?
1. Shopify is a hosted platform, while Magento is an open-source solution
Using Shopify, you can find an all-in-one shopping solution. You can develop an online store without worrying about infrastructure. Although, you need basic coding skills.
You can configure the program with Magento, as it is an open-source platform to match your unique needs. It is accessible for everyone to download, install, and extend.
2. Shopify platform targets small and medium-sized businesses (SMBs), whereas Magento targets more prominent enterprise-level companies
Many small businesses now prefer Shopify. You can easily integrate apps and seamlessly connect workflows. This helps to save time and money and gives direct control over your data. Hire Shopify developers to get a competitive edge.
As companies search for a content management system, Magento tops their list. It offers enterprise-grade database scalability.
3. Shopify uses the coding language Liquid and Ruby framework, and Magento uses PHP and Zend framework
To use Shopify, you need knowledge of HTML and CSS to use Liquid. With Liquid, you can use tools to build themes and templates. Shopify has used the Ruby on Rails framework for a long time.
Magento backend developers should know PHP, MySQL, XML, and Javascript. Frontend developers need to know HTML, CSS, LESS, RWD, Javascript, Knockout JS, PHP, and XML. Magento is a complex system of many frameworks, including Zend. To use Magento, you require much experience as well as technical knowledge. It has a complex architecture, which is a challenge for new developers. It takes a long time for developers to add new features to Magento. Hire Magento developers to handle complexities in your project.
4. Shopify is merchant-friendly, and Magento caters to the development community
Shopify gives your customers freedom and flexibility with payments. Shopify facilitates a transaction seamlessly through a secure process. It is merchant friendly, as you can start accepting digital payments. Your business revenue will increase as you speed up sales with online transactions with many customers.
You need experienced developers for the backend and frontend for Magento eCommerce development. Magento requires high coding skills. Hence, it’s more for the developer community.
Features of Shopify vs. Magento
1. Point of Sale Solution (POS)
Shopify
Shopify POS tracks your orders and inventory, online store, and helps in sales. You can manage your orders in the app.
Magento
Magento does not have its own POS system. It has feature-rich extensions. The prices vary, but you can synchronize your inventory and orders as per your requirement.
🏅 Verdict: – Shopify, as its own POS.
2. Payment Processors
Shopify
Shopify Payments effortlessly connects all of the features of your e-commerce site. It offers top-notch security. It helps you accept credit card payments and process orders.
Shopify supports 100+ payment gateways like PayPal, Stripe, Amazon Pay, and Apple Pay with a transaction fee.
Magento
Magento doesn’t have payment processors. However, Magento Marketplace offers payment processors that you can download. You have to pay a transaction fee for each payment.
Magento supports over 150 payment gateways that target large businesses. You can integrate Stripe or Square if you want.
🏅Verdict: - Shopify is easier to use than Magento. It is an excellent choice for SMBs as well.
3. Add-ons and Extensions
Shopify
With Shopify product add-ons, you can customize products to suit your business needs. These extensions can integrate apps, social media, various payment systems, and email service providers. You can use these extensions to increase customer loyalty through discounts, coupons, rewards, membership, etc.
Magento
Magento comes with third-party pre-packaged extensions. In Magento Marketplace, you can purchase and download third-party extensions. Magento has a global community of developers. It means there’s no shortage of ready-to-use third-party extensions.
🏅Verdict: - The simplicity and breadth of functionality of Magento’s extensions make it the clear winner.
4. Themes
Shopify
Shopify themes are mobile-ready with optimized performance and usability. You can use it on all devices as a package of template files, building blocks, and supporting assets. Changing your theme or switching to a new theme doesn't affect your account.
Magento
Magento themes are generally available as Composer installs packages. You can also upload archives to the Magento filesystem and install them via the command line. By default, Magento offers two themes with Magento features called Luma and Blank.
🏅Verdict: - Unlike Magento, Shopify offers more extensive (and less expensive) themes. To modify Shopify's themes, you don't need to know how to code.
5. Pricing
Shopify
Shopify comes out as a more affordable option. Transaction fees for payment gateways are lower. You'll also have web hosting, a subdomain, free themes, and free dropshipping options.
Magento
Magento doesn’t require a monthly subscription. It’s available for free download, installation, and setup. Domain and a hosting provider are chargeable if you want to publish your website. With Magento developers, you can add several integrations to enhance your store's capabilities.
🏅Verdict: - Shopify has three affordable fixed-price plans, but you’ll still need to pay for themes and apps.
Check our case study above on Shopify app development for a leading eCommerce company.
Conclusion:
It takes time to decide between Magento or Shopify. Choose Shopify if you want an all-inclusive service to launch your eCommerce app. Choose Magento if you wish to handle project complexities or design your website.
We can help you with eCommerce development with our team of developers at Clarion. Hire Shopify developers from us who can provide complete Shopify modification services. Our team can help with themes, Shopify migration, merchandise, payments, checkouts, and other features.
Clarion's Shopify development team can complete your tasks in less than 24 hours. Think of them as an extended part of your development team. Clarion is among the top Shopify development companies, delivering cutting-edge, custom solutions. Get in touch with us or email info@clariontech.com to learn more about choosing the right platform for your business.
