Shopify is one of the biggest eCommerce platforms in the world. Some studies, in fact, peg it as the biggest – although others put it at third or fourth place after platforms like WooCommerce.

In any case, it's popular – and its popularity shows no sign of wavering anytime soon.

Shopify is popular because it's easy to use. Sign up, choose a theme, throw some content together and you can be up and running with a webstore in, ooh… three to four days?

But it's not all sunshine and profits. Despite its virtues, Shopify has attracted its fair share of criticism.

For one, it's not exactly cheap. Sure, the Basic plan is a bargain at £25 per month. But as your business grows, so does the bill. By the time you've graduated to the Advanced plan, you'll be forking out £344 each month – and that's before transaction fees.

There are other reasons to grumble. Shopify's detractors point to its limited customisation and non-existent email hosting – among other things.

Don't get us wrong. Many Shopify customers are very happy with their choice of eCommerce platform.

But there's no harm in looking elsewhere. Perhaps you're feeling the sting of rising costs – or you're a born content marketer who wants more than a bog-standard blogging interface. 

Maybe you just want to try something fresh, new and a little exciting.

We've got you covered. Here are four lesser-known Shopify alternatives to try in 2024.

1. Jumpseller

Jumpseller doesn't try to reinvent the wheel. Read its list of features and you'd swear it had been copying Shopify's homework.

Like the eCommerce heavyweight, Jumpseller offers easy-to-use, customisable storefronts, as well as a host of payment integrations and a robust customer support system.

But Jumpseller has a few tricks up its sleeve. For one, it has built-in support for multiple languages, so it's worth a look if you're selling overseas. And Jumpseller integrates with WhatsApp out of the box, while Shopify relies on a third-party extension to do the job instead.

Perhaps the biggest difference, though, is cost. With no transaction fees and affordable monthly plans, Jumpseller won't keep your finance department up at night.

2. Shift4Shop

Shopify is getting on a bit, having been founded way back in 2006. However, it's a spring chicken compared to Shift4Shop.

Yes, this old-timer has been around since 1997. It has to be doing something right because it's maintained a dedicated user base to this day.

What is that "something", exactly? It depends on who you ask. Some fans point to its strong SEO capabilities, which allow for easy optimisation of all site components. Others love it for its proliferation of pre-built themes – Shift4Shop might have the most themes of any eCommerce platform.

There are caveats, though – the biggest being that Shift4Shop isn't exactly easy to use. But if you're a dab hand at SEO and you don't mind the odd technical headache, it's worth a look.

3. Dukaan

Most eCommerce platforms sell themselves as all-rounders. Dukaan, however, points its promotional activities squarely in the direction of small and growing businesses.

If you fit this mould, it might just be the Shopify alternative you've always dreamed of. Shopify requires very little technical knowledge. Dukaan requires none. If you left it running in a chicken coop and went for a quick cup of tea, you'd probably have a website by the time you got back.

It's easy to use because it has a foolproof interface and grants access to several ready-made themes. But if you want to get your hands dirty and fiddle with CSS, you can.

What's less easy to swallow, though, is its B2C limitations. If your website targets other businesses, you should probably look elsewhere.

4. Ecwid

We might be stretching the definition of a "lesser-known eCommerce platform" here. Ecwid is hardly an online retail heavyweight, but its reputation and user base are growing. According to one source, the number of active Ecwid stores increased by more than 100% between Q1 2021 and Q1 2023.

What's attracting all these users? Ecwid proponents point to its ease of use and affordable pricing. The basic Ecwid plan is free – but you'll have to pay for the unlimited plan at £99 per month to match Shopify feature-for-feature.

Ecwid's secret weapon, though, is its flexibility. Like Shopify, Ecwid lets you create an eCommerce website from scratch. But Ecwid also works as a plugin for other website platforms such as Wix, WordPress and Squarespace.

Want Shopify-style simplicity with a powerful blogging solution built-in? Just plug Ecwid into a Wordpress site and you've got the best of both worlds.

Fulfilment, growth and integrations

So, you've chosen an eCommerce platform. You've filled it with awesome product images and Pulitzer-worthy copy. And like a master topiarist, you've snipped at the fringes until it perfectly represents your brand.

And it's working. Orders are flooding in faster than you can fulfil them.

At this point, you might want to consider enlisting the help of an online fulfilment centre. These are the unsung heroes of the supply chain. They handle all the hassle of fulfilment for you – storing, picking, packing and dispatching your products so you can focus on building your brand.

A good fulfilment centre can help you unlock efficiencies and accelerate growth. But not all fulfilment centres are created equal.

Some are more flexible than others. Some are better at scaling as you grow – or deliver better customer service. And, perhaps most importantly, every fulfilment centre will offer its own list of eCommerce platform integrations.

Integrations are really important. They're the glue that joins your eCommerce website to the fulfilment centre's warehouse management system (WMS). With an integration in place, customer orders flow directly to the fulfilment centre so its staff can start picking and packing instantly.

Here at Stowsafe Fulfilment, we offer robust integrations with all the major eCommerce platforms. That includes Shopify, as well as Amazon, eBay, WooCommerce and Magento.

But we also offer bespoke integrations. This is crucial if you're using a lesser-known Shopify alternative. It means we can ensure that our WMS and your webstore speak the same language – no matter the platform you've chosen.

Are you looking for a trusted Shopify fulfilment service? Or a bespoke integration with a smaller eCommerce platform? We're here to make it happen. Get in touch with Stowsafe today to arrange a free consultation.