Shopify vs Big Cartel Comparison: Which Is Best For You 2026?

When deciding between Big Cartel and Shopify for your online store, it's essential to weigh the pros and cons of each platform. While Shopify often emerges as the preferred choice for its extensive features and scalability, Big Cartel has its unique advantages, especially for independent artists and smaller businesses.

Let's delve into the comparison to determine which platform suits your needs best.

Shopify vs Big Cartel: Main Key Points

Shopify and Big Cartel are both popular eCommerce platforms that have been around for a very long time. Big Cartel started in 2005, which is actually one year earlier than Shopify.

Both of them aim to help users create their online store but they cater to different segments of the e-commerce market.  

Shopify stands out as a comprehensive e-commerce platform suitable for businesses of all sizes. It offers an extensive array of features, customizable themes, and scalability, making it ideal for businesses looking to establish a robust online presence. 

On the other hand, Big Cartel targets independent artists, makers, and smaller businesses with its user-friendly interface and streamlined setup process. While it may lack the advanced features and scalability of Shopify, Big Cartel provides a straightforward approach for creative entrepreneurs to showcase and sell their products online. 

Shopify is for you if:

• If you want a platform that has unlimited scaling capability and extensive marketing, eCommerce features.
• You want a platform with a large user base and a super active community.
• You have an offline store so you need a POS system to operate both online and offline.
• You need multi-channel selling including your online store, social media, and marketplaces like Amazon and eBay. 

Big Cartel is for  you if:

• You are an artist or own a small business.
• You want to save money and own a store with no cost forever.
• You just need the most basic eCommerce features to run your store.
• You like simplicity and ease of use and don’t want to get overwhelmed by too many options.
• Your main focus is selling digital goods instead of physical goods.

Shopify vs Big Cartel: Quick Comparison

Pricing & Payments - Big Cartel Wins

In summary, Shopify provides a more extensive range of subscription plans, catering to businesses of varying sizes and needs, with pricing starting from $25 per month and going up to $399 per month. Additionally, Shopify offers over 100 payment gateway options, providing businesses with flexibility and choice in how they process transactions.

On the other hand, while Big Cartel offers lower-priced subscription plans ranging from 0 to $30 per month, it lacks the scalability of Shopify's plans. Furthermore, Big Cartel has fewer payment gateway options, primarily relying on Stripe, PayPal, and Apple Pay.

Ultimately, businesses seeking affordability may find Big Cartel appealing. There is even a free plan that you can use as long as you want, which is a big plus for indie stores.

Ease of Use - Big Cartel Wins

In assessing user-friendliness, Shopify and Big Cartel vie for simplicity and ease of navigation.

Shopify offers a comprehensive onboarding process with guided setup steps, making it easy for users to get started quickly. Its intuitive interface and clear instructions help users navigate through the initial setup process without feeling overwhelmed. Additionally, Shopify provides a wide range of customizable themes and templates, allowing users to create a professional-looking online store with minimal effort.

=> Check out our comprehensive Shopify tutorial: Shopify Tutorial - How to Start a Shopify Store for Beginners

Big Cartel, on the other hand, provides a simpler onboarding process, ideal for users who prefer a more straightforward setup. Its minimalist approach is easy for beginners or users with basic needs. Of course, however, it lacks the extensive customization options and scalability of Shopify. 

Templates - Shopify Wins

Both Shopify and Big Cartel offer mobile-responsive, beautifully designed templates. Their free templates differ in design rather than just color and stock photos. Big Cartel’s templates cater to artists, while Shopify’s cater to various industries, giving it an edge.

Shopify’s Online Store web builder surpasses Big Cartel’s WYSIWYG editor in features and ease of use. Shopify's drag-and-drop building blocks make it easy for anyone to create a professional-looking store, even tech novices.

Big Cartel’s editor is straightforward but limited to basic changes like banner images, fonts, colors, and section visibility. While its templates are modern and elegant, the lack of customization options can be frustrating for businesses seeking more personalized stores.

Overall, Shopify's extensive theme library and versatile builder make it a standout choice for creating professional and visually appealing online stores. Big Cartel's options, while clean and functional, lack the versatility and customization that Shopify provides.

SEO Tools & Blogging - Shopify Wins

Shopify excels with comprehensive SEO tools and a built-in blogging platform, enhancing visibility and attracting organic traffic. Big Cartel, with limited SEO tools and no blogging platform, falls short in this area.

Big Cartel’s templates support basic SEO with valid markup and automatic sitemaps but lack advanced features like meta descriptions and URL editing.

Shopify offers greater control over SEO elements, including titles, descriptions, images, and URLs. Its SEO toolkit, while not the most robust, provides significant advantages for search engine rankings.

Overall, Shopify's advanced SEO tools and blogging platform make it the superior choice for boosting online presence and driving traffic.

Site Security & Compliance - Shopify Wins

Shopify and Big Cartel differ significantly in site security and compliance.

Shopify provides robust security with SSL certificates for all stores and PCI DSS compliance, ensuring secure payments and data protection.

Big Cartel offers basic security features with SSL but lacks PCI compliance, relying on external payment processors like PayPal and Stripe for security.

Overall, Shopify is the superior choice for comprehensive site security and compliance, offering stronger protection for your online store.

App Integrations & Add-ons - Shopify Wins

Shopify's app store boasts an impressive collection of over 16,000 apps, offering a diverse range of functionalities to cater to various business needs. These apps cover everything from marketing and sales to inventory management and customer support, providing users with extensive customization options and flexibility to enhance their online stores.

In contrast, Big Cartel falls short with fewer than 50 apps and integrations available. While it still offers some basic tools for marketing and store management, the limited selection pales in comparison to Shopify's extensive marketplace.

With such a significant difference in the number of available apps, Shopify clearly outshines Big Cartel  

Sales & Product Features - Shopify Wins

POS for In-person Sales

Shopify's POS app offers a more comprehensive solution than Big Cartel's basic Stripe integration, with immediate payment processing and hardware options. Shopify also supports digital goods better through a wider range of third-party apps and has more flexible product variant options, up to 100 per product.

Big Cartel lacks tools for custom orders, whereas Shopify offers them via add-ons. Shopify's real-time shipping calculators and shipping discounts through Shopify Shipping surpass Big Cartel's features, improving cost accuracy and margins. Shopify also excels in social media integration, abandoned cart recovery, and inventory management, offering advanced tools and options not available in Big Cartel.

While both platforms support social media integration, Shopify provides broader multichannel selling opportunities. Big Cartel does not offer real-time shipping calculators or discounts, which Shopify includes, especially in higher plans, for better shipping management.

Customer Support - Shopify Wins

Shopify offers robust customer support options, including 24/7 live chat, email support, phone support, and an extensive knowledge base. Users can quickly access help and guidance whenever they encounter issues or have questions about the platform. Additionally, Shopify's active community forums and user groups provide valuable insights and tips for maximizing the platform's features.

In contrast, Big Cartel's customer support options are more limited, with email support as the primary channel for assistance. While Big Cartel's support team is responsive and helpful, users may experience longer wait times for resolution compared to Shopify's live chat or phone support. Additionally, Big Cartel's knowledge base and documentation are less comprehensive, making it more challenging for users to troubleshoot issues independently.

In summary, Shopify offers a more comprehensive onboarding process and robust customer support options, making it suitable for businesses seeking scalability and customization. 

Which eCommerce platform will you choose?

Big Cartel advertised itself as “a much affordable Shopify alternative” and I think that pretty much sums it up. The platform keeps everything super simple and caters exclusively to artists and independent sellers. So if you are among their target customers, Big Cartel is a must-try option, especially when it has a forever free option.

Shopify, on the other hand, only offers a 3-day free trial and a $1/month plan for the first three months, which is not really enough to fully experience everything the platform has to offer. Therefore, if you plan to use Shopify, you should have a certain level of commitment to justify the cost and make the most of its tools. However, for medium and larger businesses, Shopify is hands down the best option.

Check out more Shopify comparison below:

• Shopify vs GoDaddy: Which Website Builder Is Best?
• Shopify vs ClickFunnels: Which Is Better for Sales Funnels?
• Shopify vs Magento: Which Platform Is Right for You?
• Shopify vs Volusion: Which E-commerce Solution Wins?