Webflow vs Shopify for Ecommerce: Which Should You Build On?

Shopify is the better ecommerce platform for most stores. Webflow fits design-led brands with small catalogs that care most about custom pages and content.

Scout's verdict

  • ShopifyShopifyStore platformsShopify is a hosted ecommerce platform for building and running an online store, with checkout, payments and an app store for add-ons. Paid from $39/mo, 3-day trial.Click for Scout's full analysisBetter for most stores
    Visit Shopify
  • WebflowWebflowWebsite buildersWebflow is a visual website builder and CMS that gives designers close control over layout and code without writing it by hand. Free plan, paid from $15/mo.Click for Scout's full analysisDesign-first, small catalogs
    Visit Webflow

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For most online stores, ShopifyShopifyStore platformsShopify is a hosted ecommerce platform for building and running an online store, with checkout, payments and an app store for add-ons. Paid from $39/mo, 3-day trial.Click for Scout's full analysis is the better choice: it costs the same as Webflow's entry ecommerce plan, charges no extra platform fee when you use Shopify Payments, and has in-person selling and an app store built around commerce. WebflowWebflowWebsite buildersWebflow is a visual website builder and CMS that gives designers close control over layout and code without writing it by hand. Free plan, paid from $15/mo.Click for Scout's full analysis is the better pick for design-led brands with a small catalog that want full control over page layout and a strong CMS for content, and that accept item caps and a 2% fee on its cheapest store plan.

Quick comparison

ShopifyShopifyStore platformsShopify is a hosted ecommerce platform for building and running an online store, with checkout, payments and an app store for add-ons. Paid from $39/mo, 3-day trial.Click for Scout's full analysis WebflowWebflowWebsite buildersWebflow is a visual website builder and CMS that gives designers close control over layout and code without writing it by hand. Free plan, paid from $15/mo.Click for Scout's full analysis
Free plan No (3 days free, then $1/mo for 3 months) Free Starter site plan, but no ecommerce
Entry store plan Basic: $39/mo, or $29/mo billed yearly Ecommerce Standard: $29/mo billed yearly (monthly price not listed)
Next plans Grow $105 ($79 yearly), Advanced $399 ($299 yearly) Plus $74/mo, Advanced $212/mo (billed yearly)
Platform transaction fee None with Shopify Payments; 2% on Basic with a third-party provider 2% on Standard; 0% on Plus and Advanced
Card processing Shopify Payments: 2.9% + 30¢ online on Basic Stripe or PayPal, at their own rates
Ecommerce item limit None listed in what we read 500 (Standard), 5,000 (Plus), 15,000 (Advanced) items
Staff accounts None on Basic, 5 Grow, 15 Advanced 3 Standard, 10 Plus, 15 Advanced
In-person selling Shopify POS (2.6% + 10¢ in person on Basic) Not listed
Standout Commerce-first platform and app store Visual design control and CMS

Prices are US prices from each company's pricing page, read in November 2026.

Pricing compared

ShopifyShopifyStore platformsShopify is a hosted ecommerce platform for building and running an online store, with checkout, payments and an app store for add-ons. Paid from $39/mo, 3-day trial.Click for Scout's full analysis: Basic is $39 a month or $29 billed yearly, Grow $105 ($79), Advanced $399 ($299), and Plus starts at $2,300 a month. Online card rates through Shopify Payments are 2.9% + 30¢ on Basic, 2.7% + 30¢ on Grow and 2.5% + 30¢ on Advanced. If you use a third-party payment provider, Shopify adds 2% on Basic, 1% on Grow and 0.6% on Advanced. Our Shopify pricing guide covers every fee.

WebflowWebflowWebsite buildersWebflow is a visual website builder and CMS that gives designers close control over layout and code without writing it by hand. Free plan, paid from $15/mo.Click for Scout's full analysis ecommerce site plans (billed yearly; the pricing page does not list monthly prices for them):

Plan Price Items Transaction fee Staff CMS items
Standard $29/mo 500 2% 3 2,000
Plus $74/mo 5,000 0% 10 Up to 10,000
Advanced $212/mo 15,000 0% 15 Up to 10,000

Webflow's pricing page says the transaction fee is charged "in addition to Stripe or PayPal processing fees." All three plans list a custom cart and checkout, unlimited form submissions, Stripe, PayPal and Apple Pay or web payments, and automatic tax calculation. Plus and Advanced add unbranded emails.

Webflow also sells workspace plans for teams (Core $19 and Growth $49 a month, billed yearly) as a separate subscription from site plans, so an agency or in-house team may pay for both.

What it costs at two sales levels

Billed yearly, US prices. Shopify's figure includes Shopify Payments processing on standard US cards. Webflow does not set card rates, so its figures show the platform cost before Stripe or PayPal fees.

$5,000 a month in sales (100 orders):

  • ShopifyShopifyStore platformsShopify is a hosted ecommerce platform for building and running an online store, with checkout, payments and an app store for add-ons. Paid from $39/mo, 3-day trial.Click for Scout's full analysis Basic: $29 + $145 + $30 processing = $204 including processing
  • WebflowWebflowWebsite buildersWebflow is a visual website builder and CMS that gives designers close control over layout and code without writing it by hand. Free plan, paid from $15/mo.Click for Scout's full analysis Standard: $29 + $100 (2% fee) = $129 before processing
  • WebflowWebflowWebsite buildersWebflow is a visual website builder and CMS that gives designers close control over layout and code without writing it by hand. Free plan, paid from $15/mo.Click for Scout's full analysis Plus: $74 before processing

$20,000 a month in sales (400 orders):

  • ShopifyShopifyStore platformsShopify is a hosted ecommerce platform for building and running an online store, with checkout, payments and an app store for add-ons. Paid from $39/mo, 3-day trial.Click for Scout's full analysis Basic: $29 + $580 + $120 = $729 including processing
  • WebflowWebflowWebsite buildersWebflow is a visual website builder and CMS that gives designers close control over layout and code without writing it by hand. Free plan, paid from $15/mo.Click for Scout's full analysis Standard: $29 + $400 = $429 before processing
  • WebflowWebflowWebsite buildersWebflow is a visual website builder and CMS that gives designers close control over layout and code without writing it by hand. Free plan, paid from $15/mo.Click for Scout's full analysis Plus: $74 before processing

The fair comparison is the platform cost alone. Shopify Basic is $29 a month with no added fee on Shopify Payments. Webflow Standard is $29 plus 2% of sales, so it costs $100 more at $5,000 a month and $400 more at $20,000. Webflow Plus costs $45 a month more than Shopify Basic before processing. Whether either Webflow plan is cheaper overall depends on the Stripe or PayPal rate you get, which you should check on their own pages.

The practical rule: on Webflow, skip Standard once you sell more than about $2,250 a month, because 2% of that equals the $45 gap to Plus.

Where Shopify is stronger

Built for commerce. ShopifyShopifyStore platformsShopify is a hosted ecommerce platform for building and running an online store, with checkout, payments and an app store for add-ons. Paid from $39/mo, 3-day trial.Click for Scout's full analysis is a hosted ecommerce platform first, with checkout, payments and the Shopify App Store for add-ons such as reviews, subscriptions and shipping apps.

Inventory and teams that scale. Every Shopify plan includes 10 inventory locations (Plus up to 200), and staff accounts grow to 15 on Advanced. Webflow's plans, by contrast, cap your catalog at 500, 5,000 or 15,000 items.

Selling in person. Shopify publishes in-person card rates on every plan, starting at 2.6% + 10¢ on Basic. Webflow's pricing page does not list in-person selling.

Predictable fees. Plan, card rate and the third-party provider fee are all on one page.

Watch out: Basic has no additional staff accounts, so teams usually need Grow. Using a payment provider other than Shopify Payments adds a 2% fee on Basic. Design control is theme-based; heavy customization usually means a page builder app or a developer. See our roundup of Shopify page builders.

Where Webflow is stronger

Design control. WebflowWebflowWebsite buildersWebflow is a visual website builder and CMS that gives designers close control over layout and code without writing it by hand. Free plan, paid from $15/mo.Click for Scout's full analysis is a visual designer that gives close control over layout and code without writing it by hand, and it lists a custom cart and checkout on every ecommerce plan.

Content. The built-in CMS holds 2,000 items on Standard and up to 10,000 on Plus and Advanced, which suits brands that publish a lot of editorial content alongside products.

More staff on the entry plan. Standard includes 3 staff accounts, while Shopify Basic includes none.

Watch out: the 2% fee on Standard, the 500-item cap, yearly-only pricing on the page, and separate workspace billing for teams. The pricing page lists Stripe, PayPal and Apple Pay or web payments as the payment options, so card fees are set by those providers, not Webflow.

Who should choose Shopify

  • Stores where the shop is the business, with a growing catalog.
  • Sellers who also sell in person at markets, pop-ups or a shop.
  • Owners who want to add features through apps rather than custom builds.

Who should choose Webflow

  • Design-led brands with a small catalog (under 500 items) that care most about custom page design.
  • Content-heavy brands that want a strong CMS for blogs, lookbooks or guides.
  • Agencies building client sites that already work in Webflow.

Which one should you choose?

  • Choose ShopifyShopifyStore platformsShopify is a hosted ecommerce platform for building and running an online store, with checkout, payments and an app store for add-ons. Paid from $39/mo, 3-day trial.Click for Scout's full analysis if selling is the main job of the site, you want in-person sales, or you expect more than a few hundred products.
  • Choose WebflowWebflowWebsite buildersWebflow is a visual website builder and CMS that gives designers close control over layout and code without writing it by hand. Free plan, paid from $15/mo.Click for Scout's full analysis if the site's design and content come first, your catalog is small, and you are comfortable with Stripe or PayPal. Budget for Plus once sales pass about $2,250 a month.
  • Not sure? Shopify's trial costs $1 a month for three months after three free days, and Webflow's free Starter plan lets you design before paying, though it does not include ecommerce.

For a wider view of platforms, see the best ecommerce platform for small business.

Common questions

Is Webflow good for ecommerce? It works well for small, design-led stores. Its ecommerce plans cap items at 500, 5,000 or 15,000, and the Standard plan adds a 2% fee on top of Stripe or PayPal processing.

Does Webflow charge transaction fees? Yes on the Standard ecommerce plan: 2% of each sale, in addition to Stripe or PayPal fees. Plus and Advanced have 0% transaction fees.

Is Webflow cheaper than Shopify? Both start at $29 a month billed yearly. Shopify adds no platform fee with Shopify Payments, while Webflow Standard adds 2%, so Shopify's platform cost is lower once you have any real sales. Card processing is separate on both.

Which is better for a large catalog? Shopify. Webflow's biggest ecommerce plan, Advanced at $212 a month billed yearly, caps you at 15,000 items, and Standard at 500.

How we put this together

We did not test Webflow or Shopify hands-on. Prices, fees and limits come from Webflow's pricing page and Shopify's pricing page, both read in November 2026. The cost examples are our arithmetic on published US prices; Webflow processing costs are left out because Stripe and PayPal set them. Prices change, so confirm them on each pricing page before you choose.

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