The bottom Line
Ecwid is a top-choice e-commerce platform because it has no transaction fees (aside from standard credit card processing fees), and it offers a free plan. What might sound like an unusual name for a company is just a portmanteau—it stands for e-commerce widget. It’s named this because it’s meant for existing websites (such as a WordPress blog). Using HTML, you add Ecwid’s code to your site, and you have a fully functional e-commerce store to showcase your products, all without having to create a new site.
Ecwid’s Venture plan is $15 per month and allows multichannel selling and POS. Its Business plan allows for product variations, staff accounts and abandoned cart emails for $35 per month. If you sign up for an annual Unlimited plan at $99 per month, you can even get your own branded iOS or Android shopping app.
Who should use it
Sellers who already have a blog or website.
Ecwid Pros & Cons 2022
Ecwid At a Glance
Ecwid is one of our top picks for best e-commerce platforms because of its no additional transaction fees, free plan and drag-and-drop dashboard. While it does provide a stand-alone site option, it’s best used as a widget on an existing site. That’s where Ecwid gets its name—it’s a portmanteau for e-commerce widget.
There are four plan tiers:
- Free. While free, you’re limited to ten products. However, it allows for unlimited bandwidth.
- Venture. This plan costs $15 per month, allows 100 products and lets you sell on Facebook and Instagram.
- Business. You’ll pay $35 per month for up to 2,500 products and the ability to sell on Amazon and eBay.
- Unlimited. For $99 per month, enjoy unlimited products. You even get a custom, branded iOS or Android shopping app for your store if you pay annually.
If your business is a nonprofit, Ecwid offers six months of the Venture plan for free. Each of the paid plans provides a discount when you pay annually. The Business and Unlimited annual plans also get you free customization; Ecwid developers will spend two hours customizing your shop if you have the Business plan, and 12 hours when you have the Unlimited plan.
All paid plans allow multichannel selling and inventory management across each of those channels. This means if you make a sale on one channel, inventory automatically adjusts across each channel.
Other Benefits
Ecwid integrates with existing sites using HTML and gives you access to over 70 themes. Examples of existing sites include a WordPress blog, Wix, Squarespace, Weebly and Blogger. And, with a paid plan you get a mobile point-of-sale (POS) system so you can make sales at craft fairs, farmers markets and even brick-and-mortar stores.
Access the App Market for apps, tools and extensions to expand the functionality of your store. There are hundreds of both paid and free apps focused on marketing, store design, drop shipping, catalog and order management, accounting, shipping, analytics and reporting and customer support and rewards.
Fine Print
While you can use Ecwid as a stand-alone site, it only gives you one page to use. If you’re just selling one product, that might work for you. If you have multiple products, you’re better off using Ecwid on an existing website.
Additionally, Ecwid does not offer any refunds if you decide the service isn’t for you. It doesn’t specify whether or not you receive a prorated refund if you pay annually, only that no refunds are allowed.
How Ecwid Stacks Up
| Ecwid | Shopify | Shift4Shop | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Offers a Free Plan | Yes | No | Yes |
| Custom iOS or Android App | With Unlimited plan | No | No |
| Multichannel Selling | On paid plans | Yes | Yes |
While Ecwid does offer a free plan, it isn’t nearly as robust as Shift4Shop’s free plan. However, you must use Shift4Shop’s payment processor in order to use its free option. Shopify doesn’t offer a free plan at all, although it does have a credit card-free 14-day trial to test out the platform.
Another big difference between each platform is transaction fees. Shopify charges these fees if you don’t use Shopify Payments, whereas Ecwid and Shift4Shop have no transaction fees.
Is Ecwid for You?
If you want a top-rated e-commerce widget to add to an existing website, Ecwid is a great choice. Its Venture plan is perfect for businesses in their first year in particular because it allows up to 100 products and selling through both Facebook and Instagram. Even if you get the free plan, you have no transaction fees and can have up to ten products.
