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Most buyers should pick Shopify.
Choose Shopify if you want published entry pricing and built-in selling across online, in-person, social, and AI channels: Basic starts at CHF 21/month billed yearly or CHF 29 monthly. Choose commercetools if your enterprise needs API-led B2C, B2B, or hybrid commerce across custom touchpoints. Its plans include a 60-day trial, but pricing is custom-quoted, and seat limits and add-on costs are not published. Shopify's stated prices are in CHF, while Plus starts at EUR 2,100/month.
01Side by side
| commercetools | Shopify | |
|---|---|---|
| Starting price | Custom quote; monthly price unpublished | CHF 21/month yearly; CHF 29 monthly |
| Free plan | No free plan; 60-day trial | Agentic plan listed at CHF 0/month |
| Best for | Enterprise teams needing API-led B2C, B2B, or hybrid commerce | Businesses selling online, in person, socially, and through AI |
| Core strength | API-first commerce across digital, in-store, and AI channels | Multichannel selling with centralized store and sales tools |
| Learning curve | Ease score 5/10; API-led setup | Ease score 8/10 |
| Integrations and data | Ready-to-go integrations; count not published | 21,000+ apps in the Shopify App Store |
| Team and seat costs | Seat limits and costs not published | Staff caps by plan; Plus includes unlimited staff |
| Support | Premium Support add-on; price not published | Support details not stated on the vendor's site |
commercetools Choose commercetools if
- Choose commercetools for API-led enterprise storefronts across multiple touchpoints
- Choose commercetools for B2B, B2C, or hybrid commerce on one platform
- Choose commercetools if custom pricing and undisclosed seat limits are acceptable
Shopify Choose Shopify if
- Choose Shopify for published entry prices and familiar monthly plans
- Choose Shopify to sell online, in person, socially, and through AI
- Choose Shopify if its app ecosystem and staff caps fit your needs
02Pricing compared
Shopify is easier to budget for: Basic is CHF 21/month billed yearly or CHF 29 month to month, according to its pricing page. Grow is CHF 59 or CHF 79, and Advanced is CHF 269 or CHF 359, respectively. Shopify Plus starts at EUR 2,100/month; annual pricing is not listed. The listed card rates also vary by plan, and third-party transaction fees range from 2% on Basic to 0.2% on Plus.
commercetools publishes no plan prices. Its B2C, B2B and Hybrid plans are custom-quoted, with a 60-day free trial. Seat limits, overage costs and add-on prices are not published. That makes a direct price comparison impossible without a quote. Shopify's Agentic plan is listed at CHF 0/month, but sellers pay when they make a sale and card rates apply.
03Features and depth
Both platforms support selling across multiple channels, but they target different operating models. Shopify bundles store creation, online and in-person selling, social and AI channels, payments, fulfillment and retail management. Its pricing page lists 21,000+ apps in the Shopify App Store, plus Shopify Markets for international sales. Basic, Grow and Advanced include up to 3 B2B catalogs; Plus lists unlimited B2B catalogs.
commercetools is built around API-led commerce for B2C, B2B and hybrid businesses. Its platform covers catalogs, carts, orders, inventory, promotions and pricing, with support for storefronts, in-store operations and AI commerce channels. The plans list unlimited catalogs, channels and storefronts, but seat and order limits are not published. Some capabilities, including Checkout and additional regions, are paid add-ons with costs not published; B2B and Hybrid also list Advanced B2B APIs as an add-on. Choose Shopify for packaged selling tools; choose commercetools when custom touchpoints and commerce operations need to be composed around APIs.
04Ease of use and learning curve
Shopify is the more approachable starting point for a business that wants a store and selling tools in one platform. Its pricing page lists AI store creation, prebuilt themes, centralized management and Sidekick AI in the admin. The platform also has an app ecosystem, though app costs can add to the bill.
commercetools is the more demanding option if you need to build custom storefronts or connect systems through APIs. Its flexibility suits complex enterprise setups, but the published review rates ease of use at 5/10, compared with 8/10 for Shopify. commercetools also leaves price and several limits unpublished, so planning requires a sales quote. If your priority is a fast, more predictable start, Shopify is the simpler choice; if the requirements are specialized, expect more implementation work with commercetools.
Questions people ask
Who is Shopify's biggest competitor?
There is no single biggest competitor established in the information here. commercetools is one alternative for enterprise businesses that need API-led B2C, B2B or hybrid commerce. Shopify is a closer fit for businesses seeking published plan prices and packaged online, in-person, social and AI selling tools.
Is commercetools like Shopify?
Both are commerce platforms for selling across channels, but they differ in approach. Shopify packages store creation, payments and channel tools with published plan prices. commercetools centers on API-led commerce for enterprise B2C, B2B and hybrid use cases; its pricing is custom-quoted and its implementation needs can be more specialized.
How much does Shopify take from a $100 sale?
Shopify lists standard online card rates in CHF: 2.95% + CHF 0.30 on Basic, 2.75% + CHF 0.30 on Grow, and 2.55% + CHF 0.30 on Advanced. Since those rates are not stated in USD, the exact charge on a US$100 sale cannot be calculated from this pricing information. Third-party transaction fees may also apply.
Who are commercetools' competitors?
Shopify is one comparison point, especially for businesses deciding between a packaged commerce platform and API-led enterprise commerce. The published information does not establish a complete competitor list. commercetools is positioned for custom B2C, B2B and hybrid operations, while Shopify publishes entry prices and bundles store and channel tools.