Is BigCommerce cheaper than Shopify?

On paper BigCommerce charges no transaction fees and bundles more features, but it forces plan upgrades as your sales grow, and Shopify’s app costs are usually offset by a stronger converting checkout. For most DTC brands the total cost is close — the deciding factor is ecosystem and conversion, not the sticker price.

Will I lose SEO migrating from BigCommerce to Shopify?

Not with a proper 301 redirect map and metadata migration. Rankings are lost when URLs change without redirects — exactly what a planned migration prevents. See our BigCommerce → Shopify migration.

Does Shopify really convert better at checkout?

Yes for most stores — Shopify’s one-page checkout and Shop Pay (with saved buyers across the network) consistently lift conversion versus a generic hosted checkout.

Compare · Platform

Shopify vs BigCommerce

Both are hosted, both scale. The real difference is ecosystem and checkout conversion versus how much you get built-in. Here’s the honest breakdown.

Shopify is for you if

You want reach and conversion

You want the biggest app ecosystem and theme choice.
Checkout conversion (Shop Pay) matters to your revenue.
You’d rather add features via vetted apps than build them.

BigCommerce is for you if

You want more out of the box

You need native B2B, price lists and faceted search without apps.
You want zero platform transaction fees on any gateway.
You have a very large catalog and in-house dev support.

Dimension	Shopify	BigCommerce
Ease of use	Clean, fast admin most teams learn in a day.	More powerful settings, but a steeper, busier admin.
App ecosystem	The largest, most vetted app store — an app for almost anything.	Smaller marketplace; you build more yourself.
Built-in features	Some needs (faceted search, deep B2B) rely on apps.	More out of the box — native B2B, price lists, faceted search.
Transaction fees	Fees apply unless you use Shopify Payments.	No platform transaction fees on any gateway.
Checkout & conversion	Best-in-class checkout + Shop Pay — proven higher conversion.	Solid checkout, but no network-level accelerator like Shop Pay.
Themes & design	Huge theme ecosystem and app blocks; easy to look great.	Fewer themes; more design work to stand out.
Pricing as you grow	Predictable plan; you choose when to move up.	Plans auto-upgrade once you cross annual-sales thresholds.
Best when you want to	Grow a DTC brand with the widest ecosystem and best checkout.	Run a large catalog / B2B store on mostly native features.

Our recommendation

For most growing DTC brands, Shopify wins on ecosystem, design and checkout conversion — the things that move revenue day to day. BigCommerce earns its place when you need heavy native B2B and catalog features without stacking apps, and you have developers to lean on.

If you’re on BigCommerce and the admin, app limits or forced plan jumps are getting in the way, a move to Shopify usually pays for itself — done right, you keep your SEO and data.

Thinking about moving to Shopify?

Get a free audit — we’ll map the migration, protect your rankings and data, and tell you honestly if it’s worth it for your store.

Plan my migration