Define the same store before comparing platforms
Write a short requirement list: catalogue structure, variants, search, delivery rules, staff access, subscriptions, international selling, integrations and support. Ask how each requirement is met, who maintains it and what happens when it changes.
Use the same reporting period and separate year-one setup from renewal-year operations. A discounted opening offer should not stand in for the ongoing price. Record currency, billing commitment, renewal terms and the stated VAT basis of every quote.
Download the UK platform-cost workbook. It has four columns for Shopify year one/renewal and WooCommerce year one/renewal. Missing cost or payment inputs leave the total marked Incomplete. Enter zero only after confirming that a line is not required or is covered elsewhere.
A dated official UK price snapshot
The following Shopify subscription figures were checked on its official UK pricing page on 23 October 2026. Annual-billed monthly equivalents are not a month-to-month contract.
| Shopify plan | Paid monthly | Monthly equivalent when billed yearly |
|---|---|---|
| Basic | £25 | £19 |
| Grow | £65 | £49 |
| Advanced | £344 | £259 |
For example, twelve times the displayed £19 Basic equivalent is £228, before any separately applicable charges or tax. The read pricing section did not clearly establish whether subscription VAT was included or added; confirm the actual billing treatment. Payment rates, staff requirements and extras need a separate check.
WooCommerce's official pricing page states that the core software has no monthly subscription. Hosting, paid extensions and the work needed to operate the store are separate. Its general hosting and extension ranges are quoted in US dollars; they are not GBP quotations for your UK shop.
Compare setup and recurring costs
Platform or hosting
For Shopify, use the plan needed for the agreed features and team. Hosting is included in the platform offering, so avoid adding an unrelated hosting charge for the same storefront. A custom domain still needs its own registration and renewal check.
For WooCommerce, obtain a hosting quote suitable for the actual catalogue, traffic, integrations, backups and support needs. Check introductory and renewal terms, storage or usage limits and what support handles. A cheap advertised starting price does not establish suitability for the store.
Apps, extensions and maintenance
List each required capability and its delivery method. Include subscription fees, annual renewals, usage-based charges and any implementation work. Do not budget an app twice if it is already included in a quoted package.
Identify who tests changes, resolves integration problems, maintains content and handles incidents. Hosted infrastructure does not remove all merchant responsibilities. Self-hosting requires an explicit operating arrangement, whether work is done internally or by a provider.
Include internal time separately if it matters to the decision, using your own measured hours and chosen cost basis. Do not label an invented allowance as a market average. Our ecommerce cost-factors guide helps define build scope, while the maintenance services page is the starting point for discussing an actual support requirement.
Use the maintenance proposal comparison worksheet to specify what support covers, how incidents are handled and which charges renew separately.
Payment processing and platform transaction charges
Keep the processor's percentage and fixed fee separate from any platform charge for using another provider. Rates depend on the business, payment method, card origin and currency. Model the mix you expect rather than applying one headline rate to every sale.
As checked on 23 October 2026, Shopify Basic's UK page lists standard online card processing at 2% +25p, with different Amex and international rates and a separate third-party-provider charge. Verify the applicable plan and provider rules before budgeting.
The official WooPayments fee table lists UK card base fees of 1.5% +25p, with additional international/currency-conversion charges and VAT-on-fees notes. WooPayments and the separate Stripe extension are not interchangeable names for one pricing schedule. Use the actual processor's terms.
For one hypothetical £50 eligible domestic online card payment, the base arithmetic is:
| Processor example | Calculation | Base fee |
|---|---|---|
| Shopify Payments on Basic | £50 × 2% + £0.25 | £1.25 |
| WooPayments UK cards | £50 × 1.5% + £0.25 | £1.00 |
This example excludes fee VAT, international/conversion additions, refunds, disputes, subscriptions, other payment methods and any extra platform charge. It illustrates arithmetic, not a forecast, a quote or a conclusion about total store cost. Check the provider's current fee and tax notes against your circumstances.
Build a first-year and renewal-year budget
Enter annual amounts for platform, hosting, apps/extensions, domain, maintenance, setup and other required costs. The workbook seeds only the displayed Basic annual-equivalent subscription and published UK base card-fee inputs; hosting, apps, support, revenue and transaction counts remain for you to complete. The zero WooCommerce core-platform line does not imply free hosting or operation.
For each year and platform, the calculation is:
- Recurring/setup subtotal: sum of the annual cost lines, with setup included only in the appropriate year.
- Simplified payment estimate: annual eligible sales × applicable percentage, plus transaction count × fixed fee, plus any entered platform percentage on that same eligible base.
- Modelled total: cost subtotal plus the payment estimate, only when all required inputs are numeric.
This is a simple single-rate model before tax, not a complete payments forecast. Split card/payment categories in a more detailed model when their rates or fee bases differ. Record refunds, disputes, FX, usage charges, tax treatment and internal time separately where applicable; do not interpret the workbook result as complete cash expenditure if those are unresolved.
Replace the seeded figures when your selected plan, provider or date changes. Check a renewal-year column independently rather than copying a promotional first-year price. If an extension renews annually, do not also multiply its annual quote by twelve.
What changes when the catalogue or team grows?
Revisit the required plan, search, stock integration, staff access and operating support. A lower payment rate can offset part of an upgrade, but only on the sales to which it applies. Compare the added subscription with the applicable fee difference using your actual eligible volume and the other features required.
If the platform move requires catalogue work, use the product/variant mapping and reconciliation process before treating migration as a fixed-cost checkbox. Preserve images, identifiers and URL outcomes as part of the implementation scope.
The product-data migration checklist and workbook make those catalogue relationships and acceptance checks explicit before you compare implementation quotations.
Choose using operational requirements
Use our UK ecommerce platform comparison to test catalogue and staff workflows. Then compare complete, dated budgets for requirements that both options can actually deliver. The Birmingham ecommerce buying guide explains how to give developers a comparable brief.
A lower completed budget can inform the choice. It does not prove better checkout performance, less staff work or higher sales. Those need evidence from the relevant store and workflow.
Common questions
Does a free plugin mean a free store?
No. WooCommerce core is free, while hosting, domains, chosen extensions, payment processing and operating work can still cost money.
Which charges depend on the payment provider?
Processing, fixed transaction, international, currency-conversion, refund and dispute arrangements can vary. A separate platform fee may also apply. Check the named provider and current plan.
How should annual renewals be compared?
Use a separate renewal-year budget with the same scope and a stated tax/currency basis. Replace introductory rates and include the recurring licences and support the store still needs.
