Contents16 sections
A shopping cart is the part of a website that lets a customer choose products, pay and get a receipt. People also use the word for the whole piece of store software, and that is how we use it here. Picking the best shopping cart for small business use is less about finding the “top” cart and more about matching one to the kind of shop you run.
This guide compares ten carts in plain terms: who each one suits, what it costs and the honest catch. You do not need any experience to follow it. If a word is new to you, the short “Words you will see” list just below the first table explains it.
At a glance
Here are all ten side by side. The numbers are only there to help you find your way around. They are not a ranking.
| Cart | Best for | Type |
|---|---|---|
| WooCommerce | A WordPress site selling physical items | Self-hosted |
| Easy Digital Downloads | A WordPress site selling downloads | Self-hosted |
| Shopify | A full online store, set up quickly | Hosted |
| BigCommerce | A growing shop selling physical and digital items | Hosted |
| Ecwid | Adding a shop to a site you already have | Hosted |
| Square Online | Shops that also sell in person | Hosted |
| Wix | A small, design-led site with a shop | Hosted |
| Payhip | Selling downloads without running a website | Hosted |
| PrestaShop | An open-source store you control | Self-hosted or hosted |
| Adobe Commerce (Magento) | Large catalogues with a developer on hand | Self-hosted or Adobe cloud |
Words you will see
A few terms come up again and again. Here they are in plain English.
- Hosted: the company runs the software and the server for you. You sign up, pay a monthly plan and start building. Updates and security are their job.
- Self-hosted: you install free software on web hosting, which is space you rent on a server (a computer that is always online). You get full control, and you are responsible for updates, backups and security.
- WordPress: free software for building websites. Two carts here run inside a WordPress site.
- Plugin, extension or app: an add-on that gives your site or cart a new feature. WordPress calls them plugins, WooCommerce calls its add-ons extensions, and hosted carts usually call them apps.
- Theme: the design of your site: its layout, colours and fonts.
- Domain name: your website’s address, the part people type into the browser.
- Payment gateway: the service that takes the card payment and sends the money to your bank, such as Stripe, PayPal or the cart’s own payment service.
- Processing fee: what the payment service keeps from each sale, usually a percentage plus a few cents, for example 2.9% + 30¢.
- Transaction fee: an extra cut that some carts take on top of the processing fee, often on a free plan or when you use an outside payment service.
- Digital download: a file the customer receives after paying, such as an ebook, a template or a song.
How we chose
Every cart had to pass these checks:
- It is actively developed and widely used by small shops.
- It has a published price, or a free edition, that a small shop can check for itself.
- It meets a clear need: physical goods, digital downloads, selling in person, or adding a shop to an existing site.
- We could confirm its prices and fees on the maker’s own pricing page and on at least one independent source.
Prices are US dollars unless we say otherwise, and they are the figures shown in October 2026. Prices change, and some vary by country, so always check the maker’s current page before you sign up. Where a plan is cheaper when you pay for a year up front, we say so.
A note on fairness. Locker Forge’s own shop runs on Easy Digital Downloads. It appears here because it fits one specific job, selling downloads from a WordPress site, and we describe its costs and its catch as plainly as every other cart.
1. WooCommerce
Best for: a WordPress site that sells physical items, or a mix of physical and digital.
WooCommerce is a free plugin that turns a WordPress site into a shop. Because it is self-hosted, the store lives on your own hosting and you own all of it. It handles stock, shipping and instant downloads side by side. If you choose it, our tutorials WooCommerce: Add Your First Product the Plain Way, WooCommerce Variations Without Tears and WooCommerce Shipping Zones Explained walk through the first steps.
Who it suits: Physical goods and mixed shops. Self-hosted on WordPress.
What it costs: The plugin is free. You pay for hosting, which WooCommerce’s own pricing page estimates at about $25 to $350 a month for most stores as of October 2026; independent reviewers note that a very small shop can start on cheaper shared hosting. Card payments through the free WooPayments plugin cost from 2.9% + 30¢ per US card sale, with no extra platform fee. Optional paid extensions cost about $29 to $299 a year each.
The honest catch: You are the one who keeps the shop running: updates, backups and security are your job. Features such as subscriptions usually come from paid extensions. Payment plugins need WooCommerce installed first; if one will not activate, see WordPress Plugin Dependencies.
2. Easy Digital Downloads
Best for: a WordPress site that sells only digital downloads.
Easy Digital Downloads is a WordPress plugin built for selling files: ebooks, templates, music or software. It is what runs the Locker Forge shop. The free version includes a cart, a checkout, Stripe and PayPal payments and protected download links, so only paying customers can get the file. For the other plugins a download shop needs, see our ten plugin picks for a digital store.
Who it suits: Digital downloads. Self-hosted on WordPress.
What it costs: The plugin is free, plus hosting. The free version adds a 3% fee to each sale made through its built-in Stripe and PayPal connections. To remove that fee you need one of its paid plans, which it calls passes: the Extended pass or higher, normally $399 a year, with a first-year price of $199.50 shown in October 2026. The cheaper Personal pass, normally $199 a year, does not remove it.
The honest catch: The 3% fee adds up as sales grow, and passes renew at the full price. It is built for downloads, so shipping physical products is only included in its two most expensive passes.
3. Shopify
Best for: a full hosted store that you want online quickly.
Shopify is a hosted store builder. You pick a design, add products and connect a payment method, and Shopify runs the rest, including hosting and security. It suits physical goods well, and its free Digital Products app delivers downloads too.
Who it suits: Physical goods first, digital downloads through a free app. Hosted.
What it costs: The Basic plan is from about $29 a month billed yearly, or $39 a month billed monthly, as of October 2026 (US prices). Card sales through Shopify Payments cost from 2.9% + 30¢ online.
The honest catch: If you use an outside payment gateway instead of Shopify Payments, Shopify adds a 2% transaction fee on the Basic plan. Shopify Payments is only available in certain countries. Paid apps and themes can push the monthly cost well above the plan price.
4. BigCommerce
Best for: a growing shop selling physical items, or physical and digital together.
BigCommerce is another hosted store builder. Like Shopify, it runs the hosting and security for you, and it can sell downloadable products as well as physical ones without an extra app.
Who it suits: Physical goods and downloads. Hosted.
What it costs: The Core plan is from about $29 a month billed yearly, or $39 a month billed monthly, as of October 2026. Core is for shops with up to $30,000 in sales over the past 12 months, measured BigCommerce’s way. Above that, you are moved up to the Growth plan, from about $79 a month billed yearly.
The honest catch: Your plan is tied to your sales, so the price rises as you grow, whether or not you need the extra features. Since June 2026, sales through payment services that are not on BigCommerce’s “embedded” list of built-in partners carry an extra 2% fee on Core. Stripe and PayPal are on the list.
5. Ecwid
Best for: adding a shop to a website you already have.
Ecwid is a hosted shop you can drop into almost any existing website, or run on its own simple site. That makes it handy if you already have a site you like and just want a cart on it.
Who it suits: Physical goods, and downloads from the Venture plan up. Hosted, added to any site.
What it costs: There is no free plan as of October 2026. Starter is about $5 a month for up to 10 products. Venture, which adds digital downloads and up to 100 products, is from about $29 a month billed yearly, or $35 billed monthly. Ecwid charges no transaction fees of its own; your payment gateway still charges its processing fee.
The honest catch: Each plan has a product limit, so a growing catalogue means a bigger plan. Ecwid raised the prices of its paid plans above Starter in March 2026, a reminder that hosted prices can change.
6. Square Online
Best for: a shop, stall or café that also sells in person.
Square Online is the online store that comes with Square’s payment system, which many small shops already use at the counter. Items you set up in Square once can be sold at the counter and on your website.
Who it suits: Physical goods and local pickup or delivery. Hosted.
What it costs: Square Free is $0 a month, but online card sales cost 3.3% + 30¢ each. Square Plus is $49 a month per location and lowers online card sales to 2.9% + 30¢, as of October 2026 (US prices).
The honest catch: Digital items are possible, but Square leaves you to email the file to each customer yourself unless you add a separate app. The free plan’s online fee is higher, so compare the two plans against your real sales.
7. Wix
Best for: a small, design-led website with a modest shop.
Wix is a hosted website builder with a store built in. You design pages by dragging and dropping, then add products, physical or digital, from the same dashboard (the control panel where you manage your site).
Who it suits: Physical goods and downloads. Hosted.
What it costs: Core, the cheapest plan that can accept payments, is from about $29 a month billed yearly as of October 2026 (US prices). The Light plan, about $17, cannot take payments. Card sales through Wix Payments cost 2.9% + 30¢ in the US. Paying month by month costs more.
The honest catch: A Wix site has to stay on Wix’s servers; you cannot move it to another host. You can export a list of physical products, but not digital ones, so think about the long term before you build.
8. Payhip
Best for: selling downloads without running a website of your own.
Payhip is a hosted platform for creators. You upload a file, set a price and share the link, and Payhip delivers the download automatically. It also handles courses, memberships and physical products, and it collects EU and UK VAT (sales tax) on digital sales for you.
Who it suits: Digital downloads first. Hosted.
What it costs: Every plan has the same features; you pay either a monthly price or a bigger cut of each sale. As of October 2026, Free is $0 a month plus 5% of each sale, Plus is $29 a month plus 2%, and Pro is $99 a month with no Payhip fee. Stripe or PayPal processing fees apply on top, on every plan.
The honest catch: On the free plan the 5% grows with your sales. At about $967 a month in sales, Plus becomes the cheaper choice, so revisit your plan as you grow.
9. PrestaShop
Best for: an open-source store you control, with an optional hosted plan.
PrestaShop is free, open-source store software, which means anyone can download, use and change it. You can install it yourself on your own hosting, or pay PrestaShop to host and set it up for you. It sells physical products and downloadable “virtual” products.
Who it suits: Physical goods and downloads. Self-hosted, or hosted by PrestaShop.
What it costs: The Classic version is a free download; you pay for hosting and a domain name. The Hosted offer is from about €24 a month (excluding VAT) paid yearly, or €29 a month with no commitment, as of October 2026. Its prices are in euros.
The honest catch: PrestaShop says plainly that you need some technical knowledge to install it on a server and to customise it. If that is not you, budget for the Hosted offer or for help from a developer.
10. Adobe Commerce (Magento)
Best for: a large or complex catalogue, with a developer to look after it.
Magento comes in two editions. Magento Open Source is free, self-hosted software. Adobe Commerce is the paid edition, sold to larger businesses with hosting on Adobe’s cloud as an option. Both can sell physical and downloadable products, and Adobe Commerce is built for very large catalogues.
Who it suits: Physical goods and downloads at scale. Self-hosted, or on Adobe’s cloud.
What it costs: Magento Open Source costs nothing to license (the licence is your right to use the software); you pay for hosting, extensions and development. Adobe publishes no price for Adobe Commerce and quotes each business. As of October 2026, independent estimates start at about $22,000 a year.
The honest catch: It is not a beginner’s tool. Setting it up, keeping it patched and upgrading it is a job for a developer, and that work costs money even when the licence is free. For most small shops it is more than they need today.
Costs side by side
Starting prices as of October 2026. Prices change, so check each maker’s page before you decide.
| Cart | Starts from | Extra fee per sale from the cart | Digital downloads |
|---|---|---|---|
| WooCommerce | Free plugin, plus hosting | None | Built in |
| Easy Digital Downloads | Free plugin, plus hosting | 3% on the free version and Personal pass | Built for them |
| Shopify | $29 a month, billed yearly | 2% on Basic with an outside gateway | Free app |
| BigCommerce | $29 a month, billed yearly | 2% on Core with a non-embedded gateway | Built in |
| Ecwid | $5 a month (10 products) | None | From Venture, $29 a month |
| Square Online | $0 a month | None, but 3.3% + 30¢ online card fee on Free | You send the file |
| Wix | $29 a month, billed yearly | None on store products | Built in |
| Payhip | $0 a month | 5% on Free, 2% on Plus, none on Pro | Built for them |
| PrestaShop | Free download; Hosted from €24 a month | None stated on its offers page | Built in |
| Adobe Commerce (Magento) | Open Source free; Adobe Commerce by quote | None for Open Source | Built in |
On top of any cart fee, every card sale also carries the payment gateway’s processing fee.
Which one is for you?
Start with two questions: what do you sell, and do you already have a website?
| Your shop | Look at first | Why |
|---|---|---|
| A WordPress site selling physical items | WooCommerce | Free, flexible, and you own it |
| A WordPress site selling only downloads | Easy Digital Downloads | Built for files, nothing extra to switch off |
| No website yet, physical products | Shopify, BigCommerce or Wix | Hosted, so there is no server to manage |
| A website you like, and you want a cart on it | Ecwid | Adds a shop to almost any site |
| You also sell at a counter or market stall | Square Online | One system for in-person and online sales |
| Downloads, and no wish to run a website | Payhip | Start free, pay a cut of each sale |
| You want open-source control and have technical help | PrestaShop or Magento Open Source | Free software, your own hosting |
| A very large catalogue and a real budget | Adobe Commerce | Built for scale, priced by quote |
Two quick examples
Maya sells hand-poured candles at weekend markets and already takes cards with Square. She turns on Square Online so her market customers can reorder from home, using the items she already set up in Square.
Leo writes a WordPress blog and sells printable planners as PDF files. He installs Easy Digital Downloads, connects Stripe and adds three products. With a small catalogue the free version is enough to start, and he plans to compare the 3% fee against the Extended pass once sales pick up.
Next steps
Picked WordPress? Our Tutorials hub has beginner guides for building and running your shop, including WooCommerce Taxes: The Basic Setup for a Small US Shop and Test Your WooCommerce Checkout Before Real Customers Do. Still choosing a platform? WordPress or Joomla for a Small Store? compares the two fairly.
If something goes wrong after you install a theme or plugin, our Solutions section can help, for example WordPress Theme Looks Broken After Install?. Whichever cart you choose, work through our free Before-You-Launch Checklist before you open the doors.