Shopify advantages and disadvantages of the e-commerce platform

Are you currently looking for the right e-commerce platform for your brand or are you already running an online store and wondering whether it's worth switching to Shopify? Then you've come to the right place, in this article I'll show you the advantages of Shopify as well as the Shopify disadvantages.

You can then make a well-informed decision for or against the e-commerce solution. But first, a short intro to Shopify.

What is Shopify?

Shopify is an e-commerce platform designed to make it easier for merchants to start selling online. Founded in Canada in 2006, the solution for online retailers quickly gained popularity. Today, Shopify provides the foundation for many e-commerce merchants worldwide and is responsible for a large part of online shopping sales.

Shopify is a comprehensive e-commerce platform that enables companies to create and manage their own online stores. It offers a wide range of functions that facilitate the sale of products and services both online and offline.

Shopify's features include:

• - Online store creation: Creation of professional, mobile-optimized stores with design templates.
• - Product management: Simple management of products, variants, stocks and categories.
• - Payment processing: Support for various payment methods such as credit cards and PayPal.
• - Shipping solutions: Tools for calculating shipping costs, labels and shipment tracking.
• - Sales channels: Sales via online stores, social media, marketplaces and Shopify POS.
• - Marketing tools: Integrated functions for SEO, discount codes and email marketing.
• - Analysis and reports: Dashboards with sales and traffic data for business decisions.
• - App integration: Access to over 7,000 apps for additional functions.
• - Multilingualism and currencies: Support for international sales.
• - Security and hosting: Automatic updates, backups and secure hosting.

Why successful companies rely on Shopify

In this video, Christian tells you why many successful companies rely on Shopify as their e-commerce solution

Shopify advantages and disadvantages at a glance

If you prefer a quick overview, here are the pros and cons at a glance.

Pro: Advantages of Shopify

• - Low entry costs: basic plan from € 27/month, trial phase available for € 1.
• - Easy to use: Intuitive operation, also suitable for beginners.
• - Low running costs: maintenance, updates and backups are included.
• - High scalability: Suitable for small retailers and large companies with high traffic.
• - Extensibility: Large selection of Shopify apps and themes to customize the store.
• - Proven success: Many successful companies use Shopify (e.g. Gymshark, Snocks).

Cons: Disadvantages of Shopify

• - Limited checkout customizations: Customizations only possible in the expensive Shopify Plus.
• - Additional costs: Transaction fees when using external payment gateways.
• - High app costs: Many essential functions are only available through paid apps.
• - Limited developer freedom: Backend is closed, individual customizations are restricted.
• - Difficult migration: Switching to other platforms is time-consuming and complicated.

The most important Shopify advantages

It is not without reason that so many companies rely on the popular e-commerce platform. Here are the most important Shopify benefits that make both large and small companies rely on the platform. 

Low entry costs

Shopify started out with the idea of making it as easy as possible for merchants to get started and has remained true to this approach to this day. The basic plan starts at €27 per month and is therefore relatively affordable. Shopify also offers you the opportunity to test all functions for one month for one euro.

This means you can get started with just a few clicks and a tight budget and test your business project cost-effectively. This advantage makes Shopify particularly attractive for small retailers and start-ups.

Low running costs

Another big advantage of Shopify is the low running costs. Shopify takes care of things like maintenance, updates and backups. These processes are part of every webshop and must be taken care of by self-hosted providers. You may need experienced IT support for this.

With Shopify, these are included in the costs. That's why Shopify is inexpensive and beginner-friendly. You can concentrate on other things while technical stability is guaranteed in the background.

Easy to use

Another advantage is that the Shopify admin area is very user-friendly and intuitive. Compared to other platforms, experience has shown that you can easily find your way around here.

Good scalability

Shopify offers fundamental advantages not only for small retailers. The cloud-based e-commerce platform is also very attractive for large companies. This is because Shopify is extremely scalable. Even thousands of products, high traffic peaks and many orders are no problem for the Shopify servers.

Shopify therefore not only offers an easy way to get started, but also allows you to scale as you wish from there.

Expandable through apps

Shopify offers you the basic functions you need to sell your products online. For advanced functions, there are a large number of apps in the Shopify App Store to expand your online store as you wish.

In the meantime, a huge network of third-party providers has been established that offer smart solutions for the Shopify platform. The same applies to various Shopify Themes. Here, too, there is a large selection of different designs that allow you to create a visually appealing store with little technical knowledge.

Successful companies rely on Shopify

These advantages seem to have convinced some of the most successful online retailers to use Shopify. The combination of ease of use, high stability and the ability to scale at will provides the right incentive for many companies to use Shopify as their shopping system.

Companies like Snocks, Teveo and Gymshark started with Shopify and today have sales in the millions. Thanks to Shopify Plus, they still have the best possible platform at hand with Shopify and can offer their customers a seamless shopping experience.

The biggest Shopify disadvantages

Of course, Shopify also has certain disadvantages. The high level of stability and the closed system ensure less flexibility in certain areas. Here are the biggest disadvantages of Shopify.

Limited checkout customizations

One of the most serious disadvantages of Shopify is the limited customizability of the checkout process. For merchants with special user experience requirements, Shopify offers little scope here. Except for Shopify Plusthe expensive Enterprise plan, it is hardly possible to customize the checkout. This can be particularly problematic for brands that want to stand out from the competition with a personalized shopping experience. What can at least partially compensate for this disadvantage is that Shopify has developed Store Pay the checkout with the demonstrably best conversion rate.

Additional costs due to transaction fees

Shopify charges additional fees when third-party payment gateways are used instead of Shopify Payments are used. These fees can quickly add up and reduce margins, especially for small margins or high transaction volumes. Merchants who rely on flexibility in payment processing must expect additional operating costs.

Higher costs for functional enhancements

Shopify scores with a wide range of apps, but many essential functions are only available via paid apps. These additional costs can quickly add up, especially for smaller retailers or start-ups. Anyone with complex requirements should therefore think carefully in advance about which functions are available natively and which require additional investment. In order to be able to calculate the costs correctly.

Limited backend and developer freedom

As a closed system, Shopify only offers limited customization options in the backend. Merchants who want to implement more complex projects or make far-reaching changes quickly reach their limits here. This can increase the development effort and limit the scope for individual customizations. That's why you should always rely on experienced Shopify experts at all times.

Migration and data portability

One aspect that is often overlooked is the difficulty of migrating from Shopify to other platforms. Due to the proprietary structure, switching is associated with considerable effort, as data cannot simply be exported and transferred to another system. If you want to remain flexible in the long term, you should definitely consider this point.

Is Shopify too expensive?

I have various Shopify costs mentioned in both the advantages and disadvantages. So how does it compare overall? In fact, it's a criticism Shopify receives more frequently.

As already mentioned, the entry costs are comparatively low and you can set up a functioning store without an agency. On the other hand, there are the costs for the required apps and transaction fees. These costs can quickly add up.

The decisive difference lies in the running costs that you save thanks to Shopify. The store system takes care of maintenance and hosting, saving you the sometimes high costs of external service providers. At the same time, Shopify is constantly evolving to set itself apart from the competition, and you benefit from this at no additional cost.

That's why we see Shopify ahead of the competition in terms of value for money and recommend it to our customers.

Conclusion - the advantages of Shopify outweigh the disadvantages

Shopify is a versatile and user-friendly e-commerce platform that offers many advantages to both small start-ups and large companies. The low entry costs, ease of use and the option to expand the store with numerous apps make Shopify particularly attractive for merchants who want to get started in online retail quickly and easily. Added to this are the high scalability and stable servers, which ensure a seamless shopping experience even with heavy traffic.

However, Shopify also has disadvantages that can be more serious depending on the business model. The limited checkout customization, additional costs due to transaction fees and the dependence on paid apps are points that can be particularly problematic for merchants with specific requirements or narrow margins. The limited developer freedom and the difficulty of migrating to other platforms should also be considered.

Overall, however, the advantages of Shopify outweigh the disadvantages, especially for merchants who value stability, ease of use and rapid scalability. Shopify is an excellent solution for companies that need a professional and high-performance online store without in-depth technical knowledge. For retailers with high demands on customization or cost control, however, it is worth weighing up the disadvantages carefully and looking for alternatives if necessary.

Whether Shopify is the right platform for your business ultimately depends on your individual requirements. With the pros and cons outlined here, you can now make an informed decision. Shopify isn't perfect, but for many merchants, it's a powerful tool that makes the path to successful e-commerce easier.

If you are considering Shopify but are not sure, we can find out together in a consultation whether the platform is right for you. Or whether one of the Shopify alternatives is a better fit.