BigCommerce vs. Shopify! WooCommerce vs. Magento! Comparing Platforms for Auto Parts: It’s a Knock-down Drag-out!
In this article we do a comprehensive comparison of Shopify vs. BigCommerce vs. WooCommerce vs. Adobe Commerce, platforms commonly used to sell auto parts and accessories.
In the fast-paced world of eCommerce, selecting the right automotive e-commerce software for your automotive parts and accessories business is crucial. With a plethora of options available, it is challenging to navigate through the myriad of features to find the perfect fit for your website. In this article, we compare four popular eCommerce platforms – Shopify, BigCommerce, WooCommerce and Adobe Commerce (formerly Magento) – focusing on their marketing and selling capabilities in the context of the automotive aftermarket industry.
Shopify: the all-in-one solution for auto parts
Shopify claims to be good at starting and scaling an online auto parts business. They cite advantages with inventory management and bulk product uploads, a smooth checkout process, and customer personalization. It is also designed to be used by eCommerce companies relying on dropshipping, which is very common in the aftermarket industry. (By the way, with its built-in product information database, or PIM, eTool Developers also claims to be an all-in-one solution.)
Some benefits of Shopify
Unlimited SKUs: All Shopify plans handle an unlimited number of SKUs but does have a limit of adding 1,000 new SKUs each day.
User-Friendly Interface: Shopify stands out for its intuitive and user-friendly interface, making it easy for automotive retailers to set up and manage their online stores without the need for extensive technical expertise.
Inventory Management: Shopify lets you track in-stock products with built-in inventory management. It includes the option to sell or not sell out-of-stock products (although that option doesn’t apply to Shopify POS).
Extensive App Store: The Shopify App Store offers over 10,000 plugins and extensions, providing flexibility for automotive retailers to enhance their store’s functionality and cater to specific customer needs.
Mobile Responsiveness: With a growing number of users accessing online stores through mobile devices, Shopify ensures a seamless and responsive mobile shopping experience for automotive enthusiasts on the go.
If you need an automotive POS system for your brick and mortar store, Shopify has an option that integrates with their eCommerce platform, too.
Some disadvantages of Shopify
Transaction Fees: While Shopify offers various pricing plans, automotive retailers should be mindful of transaction fees for using a third-party payment provider, which can impact overall costs. It can range from 2.9% per transaction or 3.9% per American Express and international transactions, for Shopify Basic.
Customization Limitations: Although highly customizable, advanced customization options for your auto parts website may require familiarity with Liquid. That is Shopify’s proprietary language, and is potentially a challenge for automotive retailers with specific design requirements that require a programmer.
Table of Shopify costs:
| Shopify Plan | Monthly Shopify Charge | Shopify Transaction Fee/Credit Card Fee | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|
| Shopify Basic | $39.00/month | 2.9% + 30 cents online transaction (international and Amex slightly higher); 2.7% in person transaction | Basic reports included; Up to 1,000 inventory locations; Up to 77% shipping discount; 2 staff accounts |
| Shopify Regular | $105.00/month | 2.6% + 30 cents online transaction (international and Amex slightly higher); 2.5% in person transaction | Professional reports included; Up to 1,000 inventory locations; Up to 88% shipping discount; 5 staff accounts |
| Shopify Advanced | $399.00/month | 2.4% + 30 cents online transaction (international and Amex slightly higher); 2.4% in person transaction | Custom report builder included; Up to 1,000 inventory locations; Up to 88% shipping discount; 15 staff accounts |
| Shopify Plus | $2,000.00/month and up | Credit card fees vary by country; 0.15% for third-party payment processors; No fee if you use Shopify Payments | For high volume sellers |
BigCommerce for auto parts: Scalability with built-in features
BigCommerce claims to be used by over 2,600 auto parts and accessories websites globally. Like Shopify, BigCommerce has plugins available to download, including several that are designed for year/make/model/engine search.
BigCommerce includes a business-to-business (B2B) option to include on a business-to-consumer (B2C) website, eliminating the need to develop a separate site.
The platform also has built-in integration with Feedonomics for product data.
Some advantages of BigCommerce
Scalability: BigCommerce is designed to accommodate businesses of all sizes, offering robust scalability that allows automotive retailers to expand their product offerings without the need for a platform switch.
No Transaction Fees: BigCommerce does not charge a transaction fee if you use one of 65 standard payment gateways.
Built-In Features: With a comprehensive set of built-in features, BigCommerce minimizes the reliance on third-party apps for essential functionalities, including multi-channel selling and inventory management, catering to the diverse needs of automotive parts retailers.
Responsive Customer Support: Automotive retailers appreciate BigCommerce’s responsive customer support, ensuring timely assistance and issue resolution.
Some disadvantages of BigCommerce
Pricing Structure: Some users find BigCommerce’s pricing structure complex, with costs increasing as the business grows, especially with the Enterprise version. Smaller automotive businesses may find the initial investment relatively higher compared to other platforms.
Learning Curve: While user-friendly, there may be a learning curve for automotive retailers new to e-commerce, as they acquaint themselves with the platform’s features and settings.
Table of BigCommerce costs:
| BigCommerce Plan | Monthly BigCommerce Charge | BigCommerce Transaction Fee/Credit Card Fee | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|
| BigCommerce Standard | $29.00/month (billed annually) | No transaction fees on leading gateways | Up to 3 storefronts; Integration with Amazon, eBay and Walmart; Unlimited staff accounts; Single page checkout; Built-in blog |
| BigCommerce Plus | $79.00/month (billed annually) | No transaction fees on leading gateways | Same plus up to 5 storefronts; abandoned cart saver; persistent cart; stored credit cards. |
| BigCommerce Pro | $299.00/month | No transaction fees on leading gateways | Same plus up to 8 storefronts; Google reviews; custom product filtering |
| BigCommerce Enterprise | $1,000.00/month and up | No transaction fees on leading gateways | For high volume sellers |
WooCommerce: The store for WordPress
WooCommerce is the popular eCommerce plugin for WordPress, with about 4.5 million installations worldwide. “Woo,” as it’s known by a lot of developers, is technically free but that has a big asterisk: If you’re able to devote the time and resources to setting it up, great, otherwise it’s best to hire a developer. One of the big benefits of WooCommerce and WordPress is the myriad of plugins to add functionality. Some are free and some have an upfront cost or monthly/annual fee.
Benefits of WooCommerce
Good for Smaller Sites: Since customization is easier on WooCommerce, it’s usually a good choice for smaller auto parts websites.
Flexibility: As a WordPress plugin, WooCommerce provides unmatched flexibility for automotive retailers already using the WordPress content management system. It seamlessly integrates into existing websites, allowing for a cohesive online presence.
Cost-Effective: WooCommerce is an open-source platform, making it a cost-effective choice for automotive retailers on a budget. The base plugin is free, with the option to enhance functionality through various extensions.
Community Support: The large and active WooCommerce community ensures ample resources for troubleshooting and expanding the platform’s capabilities, providing a valuable support network for automotive parts retailers.
Disadvantages of WooCommerce
SKU considerations: While WooCommerce technically doesn’t have a SKU limit, adding a large number of SKUs can slow the site down. When you get up to 50,000 SKUs or more, look at Shopify, BigCommerce or Adobe Commerce. Still, we’ve worked with WooCommerce sites that have a high SKU count and using some clever programming and site hosting, the sites worked fine.
Technical Knowledge Required: While user-friendly, WooCommerce may not be as straightforward for automotive retailers new to eCommerce. Some technical knowledge of WordPress and web development can be beneficial. For auto parts and accessory sites managing their own product data, WooCommerce is easier to use than Shopify or BigCommerce.
Hosting Responsibility: Unlike Shopify or BigCommerce, WooCommerce users are responsible for their own hosting. This requires additional considerations and costs for reliable hosting services.
What does WooCommerce cost?
Well, actually, we don’t have a pricing table for WooCommerce, there are too many variables to consider. Some plugins are free, some aren’t; you have to factor your own hosting fees, and transaction fees through your own gateway. WooCommerce is an accessible platform to non-technical store owners, but you may still want to hire your own IT company to manage it.
Adobe Commerce: The power of open source
Adobe Commerce is the rebranded Magento platform. Adobe purchased Magento in 2018 for $1.7 billion and has rebranded it as Adobe Commerce. Keeping the old and new names straight can be daunting but we’ll lay it out for you.
And to make things a bit more complicated, a “Magento” product still exists, it’s Magento Open Source. It’s truly open source with a vibrant community of developers.
Benefits of using Adobe Commerce
One platform to manage your business: Adobe talks about a “single unified platform” with everything you need to run an eCommerce business.
Flexibility and Customization: Adobe Commerce is an open-source platform that provides a lot of flexibility for automotive parts retailers. It allows deep customization, catering to the unique needs and branding requirements of sellers in the automotive parts industry.
Scalability: Like BigCommerce and Shopify, Adobe Commerce is known for its scalability, making it a suitable choice for growing automotive businesses. The platform can handle increased traffic and product listings as retailers expand their offerings.
Advanced Features: Adobe Commerce comes with advanced features, making it suitable for automotive retailers looking for a robust platform with capabilities such as product bundling and advanced inventory management. Adobe Commerce handles B2B, B2C, inventory, personalization, just about anything you’d need.
Disadvantages of using Adobe Commerce
Reviews: Adobe Commerce tends to get lower reviews from users than Shopify, BigCommerce and WooCommerce.
Technical Expertise Required: While Adobe Commerce offers extensive customization, it requires a higher level of technical expertise and a knowledgeable developer. Automotive retailers might need assistance from developers for complex customizations and maintenance. Adobe Commerce is not a DIY platform. The world of Adobe is complex.
Cost of Hosting: Being a self-hosted solution, automotive retailers using Magento Open Source or Adobe Commerce need to consider the cost of hosting. This adds an additional layer of responsibility and potential expenses. The various editions of Adobe Commerce can get pricy and tend to be better for larger eCommerce sellers.
Magento and Adobe Commerce pricing table:
| Adobe Commerce Plan | Monthly Adobe Charge | Adobe Transaction Fee/Credit Card Fee | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|
| Magento Open Source (previously Magento Community Edition) | Technically free, but plan on spending $500 to $2000/month depending on hosting, IT support, etc. | You set up your own credit card processing. | Yes, there’s still an option named “Magento.” |
| Adobe Commerce (previously Magento Commerce On-Premise and Magento Enterprise Edition) | $1,800 to $10,000/month depending on gross merchandise volume (GMV) and average order value (AOV) | 2% to 4% | For high volume sellers |
| Adobe Commerce Pro (previously Magento Commerce On-Premise and Magento Enterprise Edition) | $1,800 to $10,000/month depending on gross merchandise volume (GMV) and average order value (AOV) | 2% to 4% | For high volume sellers |
| Adobe Commerce Cloud (formerly Magento Commerce Cloud and Magento Enterprise Cloud Edition) | $3,500 to $18,000/month depending on gross merchandise volume (GMV) and average order value (AOV) | 2% to 4% | For high volume sellers |
| Adobe Managed Services | $3,500 to $18,000/month or more depending on gross merchandise volume (GMV) and average order value (AOV) | 2% to 4% | Platform as a Service (PaaS); For high volume sellers; Includes hosting services |
Conclusion for your automotive eCommerce business
In the dynamic realm of automotive eCommerce, choosing the right automotive eCommerce software is a strategic decision that hinges on the specific needs and goals of each retailer. Any comparison of Shopify vs. BigCommerce vs. WooCommerce vs. Adobe Commerce gets very complicated.
Shopify offers simplicity and a vast app store, BigCommerce excels in scalability and built-in features, WooCommerce offers the advantage of WordPress integration and cost-effectiveness, while Adobe Commerce provides unmatched flexibility and power.
For automotive parts and accessories retailers, considerations should extend beyond general eCommerce features to industry-specific needs. Features like advanced inventory management, compatibility with automotive data, and seamless integration with automotive marketplaces can play a pivotal role in enhancing the customer experience.
Ultimately, the best choice depends on the unique requirements, budget constraints, and growth plans of automotive retailers. We have a lot of experience with all four platforms and the best platform for you depends on what you need, where you are in terms of business growth, or your comfort level with technical complexity. There’s just no easy answer.
By carefully evaluating the pros and cons of each platform in the context of selling automotive parts and accessories, retailers can make an informed decision that aligns with their vision for online success.
