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It's a split decision.
Big Cartel is the cheaper fit for independent sellers who need a straightforward shop: Gold is free, and paid plans are $15 or $30 monthly. BigCommerce is the stronger choice for B2B/B2C selling, global storefronts, and checkout tools, but starts at $29/month billed annually ($39 monthly), with GMV caps and fees on eligible open-provider orders. For modest needs, choose Big Cartel; for more selling controls, price BigCommerce in first.
01Side by side
| Big Cartel | BigCommerce | |
|---|---|---|
| Starting price | $0 Gold; paid plans are $15 or $30/month | $29/month annually; $39/month monthly |
| Free plan | Yes; Gold has limited features | No; 15-day free trial |
| Best for | Independent sellers building a simple online shop | B2B/B2C brands selling across markets |
| Core strength | Physical, digital, and print-on-demand products | B2B tools, global selling, and checkout options |
| Learning curve | Review ease-of-use score: 8/10 | Review ease-of-use score: 7/10 |
| Integrations/data | Imports Shopify, Etsy, Squarespace; Diamond adds Zapier | API/code access and product-feed tools |
| Team/seat costs | Staff-seat pricing not published | Staff-seat pricing not published |
| Support | Plan support details not listed | 24/7 chat/email on Core; phone on Growth and Scale |
Big Cartel Choose Big Cartel if
- Choose Big Cartel if you need a free starting plan.
- Choose Big Cartel if you sell a small independent-shop catalog.
- Choose Big Cartel if lower monthly costs matter most.
BigCommerce Choose BigCommerce if
- Choose BigCommerce if you need B2B selling tools.
- Choose BigCommerce if you sell across languages and currencies.
- Choose BigCommerce if you need more checkout options.
02Pricing compared
Big Cartel is cheaper at every listed tier: Gold is free, Platinum is $15 per month, and Diamond is $30 per month. The pricing page lists a 7-day free period for paid plans; annual prices are not published on the vendor's site.
BigCommerce starts at $29 per month when billed annually, or $39 month to month, for Core. That plan has a $30,000 trailing-12-month GMV limit and a 2% fee on eligible open-provider order GMV; reaching the limit triggers an upgrade to Growth. Growth is $79 annually billed or $105 monthly, with a $100,000 GMV limit and a 1% fee. Scale costs $299 or $399, with a $33,333 monthly GMV cap and 0.6% eligible-order fee, plus 0.9% on GMV above the cap. Performance starts at $1,499 per month, billed annually.
03Features and depth
Big Cartel covers the basics for independent sellers: customizable storefront templates, product imports from Shopify, Etsy, or Squarespace, and support for physical goods, digital products, and print-on-demand. Its paid plans include custom domains and shipping labels; Diamond adds abandoned-cart recovery, scheduled product drops, password-protected products, and Zapier access to 7,000+ apps. The feature set also includes discounts, social selling, and online or in-person payments.
BigCommerce has broader selling controls in the published feature list. It supports B2C and B2B, with account-specific pricing, quotes, reorders, invoice payments, buyer roles, and approvals. Its checkout supports one-page checkout, digital wallets, one-click payments, and buy now, pay later. It also lists multiple languages and currencies, product-feed tools, and features for selling in AI experiences. Choose Big Cartel for a simpler independent shop; consider BigCommerce when you need more sales channels, B2B controls, or global storefronts.
04Ease of use and learning curve
Big Cartel is the more straightforward starting point in the published details: its templates can be customized without coding, and product imports are available from Shopify, Etsy, and Squarespace. The feature list focuses on setting up a shop and managing products and sales.
BigCommerce offers a visual drag-and-drop storefront editor, but also supports custom components and API and code access. That gives teams more ways to shape a storefront, while leaving more decisions and controls to learn. The published information does not say that coding is required. If you want a basic shop with fewer listed controls, Big Cartel looks like the simpler fit; if you need deeper selling features, budget time to assess BigCommerce’s setup.
Questions people ask
Is BigCommerce the same as Shopify?
No. The published details describe BigCommerce as an ecommerce platform with B2C and B2B tools. They describe Shopify as a platform from which Big Cartel can import products. They do not provide a full Shopify comparison, so features and pricing between Shopify and BigCommerce are not established here.
What are the 7 types of eCommerce?
The published product information does not define seven ecommerce types. It does say BigCommerce supports B2C and B2B selling, while Big Cartel supports physical and digital products, print-on-demand, and in-person selling. Those are selling models and product types, not a sourced list of seven ecommerce categories.
Does BigCommerce require coding?
The published details do not say that coding is required. They list a visual drag-and-drop storefront editor, alongside custom components and API and code access. That suggests there are visual and technical options, but the materials do not specify which tasks require code.
What are the key differences between WooCommerce and BigCommerce?
The published information does not cover WooCommerce, so we can’t make a sourced feature or pricing comparison. It describes BigCommerce as an open ecommerce platform with B2B and B2C tools, GMV-based plan limits, and fees on eligible open-provider orders. WooCommerce pricing and capabilities are not provided.