E-commerce: Shopify, WooCommerce or Custom? An Honest Comparison

Shopify, WooCommerce or custom: what is the real question?

The real question is not the technology, but your sales volume, your business processes and your total budget over 3 years. The Shopify versus WooCommerce debate often turns into a fan war, yet all three options are legitimate: it all depends on what you sell, how you sell it and what stage you are at. A platform that is ideal for a maker launching their first products can become a drag for a store shipping hundreds of orders a month.

Before comparing technologies, answer three questions. How many orders per month are you aiming for within 3 years? Are your sales processes standard (cart, payment, shipping) or specific (bookings, quotes, subscriptions, in-store pickup)? And what total budget, build plus running costs, are you prepared to commit?

How do Shopify, WooCommerce and custom development differ?

In short: Shopify trades a subscription and transaction fees for simplicity, WooCommerce trades more maintenance for freedom, and custom development trades a higher upfront investment for a perfect fit.

No column wins across the board. That is exactly why the choice depends on your situation, not on dogma.

Which solution fits which profile?

Three typical cases cover most real-world situations.

• The maker just starting out: Shopify is an honest choice. You test your market in days, everything is integrated, and the subscription plus fees are the price of that speed. The question will come back once volume grows.
• The established store protecting its margin: WooCommerce takes the lead. No mandatory subscription, no platform fees, only your payment provider's charges. Across hundreds of orders a month, the difference adds up to thousands of euros a year.
• The business with bookings or specific processes: rentals, time slots, personalised quotes, pricing by customer profile. When standard plugins stop keeping up, custom development costs more upfront but saves years of workarounds.

What are the hidden costs of each option?

Each option has its own, and they often weigh more than the sticker price. On Shopify: paid apps that stack up every month, a premium theme, fees that grow with your revenue, and a costly migration the day you want to leave. On WooCommerce: quality hosting, premium plugins renewed yearly, and security updates that must be handled seriously, or technical debt sets in. With custom development: a higher initial investment, and every evolution goes through the developer, which is why a clear maintenance contract matters.

For market benchmarks, see our guide to website prices in 2026: observed agency rates range from 1,500 to 6,000 €.

Is your store compliant with GDPR and accessibility rules?

Since 28 June 2025, digital accessibility has been mandatory for e-commerce in Europe (European Accessibility Act), and GDPR has applied since May 2018 with fines of up to 20 M€ or 4 percent of worldwide turnover. In practice: a compliant cookie banner, a record of processing activities, clear information about customer data, and a store usable by everyone, including with a screen reader. The French authority CNIL publishes the applicable guidelines. One key point: whichever platform you choose, the legal responsibility remains yours. Our guide to GDPR compliance for websites details the steps.

How do you calculate your total 3-year budget?

Add up the build cost, then 36 months of subscriptions, transaction fees, apps, hosting and maintenance. It is the only calculation that lets you compare options with different business models. A platform with a low starting cost but high monthly fees and commissions can, over 3 years, end up more expensive than a store you own with a bigger initial investment. Estimate your target revenue, apply the fees, add the apps you will actually need: the ranking often changes at that point.

How does Neting approach e-commerce?

Neting builds on WooCommerce or fully custom, without dogma: these are the two options where you remain the owner of your store and your data. The Business package at 990 € covers up to 8 pages with booking and payment gateway included; specific projects go through custom development with a tailored quote; hosting starts at 29 €/month, maintenance included, with no surprise invoices. And if Shopify is objectively the right choice for your situation, we will tell you: the quote is free, with a reply within 24 hours. Full details on our web design page.