Many now prefer to visit online markets rather than the physical markets that will reliably give one more stress at least when compared to the ease and comfort offered by the internet. Given the preference and the growing need to expose you to availability, we shall be helping you with the top 10 best free online store builders.
With more of the world connected than ever, accessing the global marketplace has only gotten easier. While there aren’t many truly free online store builders, there are plenty with a free trial. There are also some platforms that will let you build to your heart’s content, then pay to launch.
In the current economic climate, it’s vitally important that we don’t lose the nerve to try and test new ideas, or nothing will ever properly recover. Free online store builders are so important in this as they give life to new businesses without having to sacrifice large amounts of capital.
With our research and in-depth testing, we’ve been able to narrow a wide range of platforms down to a list of the top 10 best free online store builders which are set to help you run purchases of goods of your choice in the comfort of your home.
Top 10 Best Free Online Store Builders
In this new article, the interest is to highlight and discuss the top 10 best free online store builders for you to choose which one you will best patronize for the best e-commerce trading experience ever.
1. WooCommerce for WordPress
If you’re looking for one of the top 10 best free online store builders, you’ll want to consider WooCommerce. The free WooCommerce online store builder, however, needs the WordPress platform to run. It’s not a standalone e-commerce store platform like others on our list. However, pairing the powerful WordPress blogging platform with the WooCommerce e-commerce plugin lets you create the online store of your dreams at a very economical price.
WooCommerce lets you sell just about anything via a WordPress site. Physical items that ship, digital downloads, service bookings, subscription sales, online lessons and even donations are all fair game with WooCommerce. The free version supports physical and digital goods, but the other selling scenarios might require paid extensions or add-ons.
2. Square Online
Square Online is a website builder with a wealth of e-commerce features and seamless integration with Square. It is another one of the top 10 best free online store builders. The company developed it after acquiring the e-commerce platform Weebly. If you’re a Square user and want to combine an online store with your POS, it’s the ideal online store builder for you.
Square Online doesn’t offer the robust multichannel sales features that you get with Shopify or BigCommerce, nor does it match the blogging capabilities of WordPress with WooCommerce. However, Square users can certainly benefit from the seamless integration with Square POS and all other Square services.
3. Shopify
Shopify is the most popular of the top 10 best free online store builders for startups and small businesses who want to get up and running quickly. It is affordable, user-friendly and feature-packed. It is almost free as the amount to be paid is very much affordable.
Shopify is primarily geared toward sellers that ship physical goods to customers, or that need to tie online and in-store sales within one system. Publishing products to various channels, and tracking inventory, customer orders and shipping is an easy affair in Shopify. It’s also an ideal platform for dropshipping and print-on-demand businesses and offers plenty of plug-and-play integrations to these types of suppliers. You can even manage your entire operation on the go with its mobile app.
It seamlessly connects all of your sales channels, including your branded website, social channels, Amazon, eBay and in-person sales, within one convenient system. It’s also a leading platform for dropshipping sales and every Shopify user can access its free built-in supplier platform, Oberlo.
4. Wix
Wix is one of the top 10 best free online store builders for restaurants, event promoters and service businesses selling locally. These companies can tap into online ordering, delivery and pickup tools, ticket sales and booking features to easily market and sell to local audiences. Wix is also particularly good for businesses selling digital goods and subscription access to photography, music and video products.
Wix is a simple-to-use online store builder that offers an array of attractive and modern website designs and online sales capabilities. Wix isn’t a multichannel online store builder — but that’s not its goal.
Instead, Wix offers an array of online commerce options beyond its product sales features. You can easily sell services, event tickets and subscriptions, take online bookings and even accept orders for pickup using Wix.
5. BigCommerce
BigCommerce is a multichannel-focused online store builder that seamlessly integrates with Amazon, eBay, Google Shopping, Facebook, Pinterest, Instagram and other sales channels. BigCommerce is extremely user-friendly and offers plenty of ready-to-go designs, so you can easily launch a store within a few hours.
BigCommerce surpasses other all-in-one e-commerce platforms in one key area — it integrates with WordPress. This lets growth-minded brands pair WordPress’ virtually unlimited content features with BigCommerce’s powerful multichannel sales tools. Startups and small businesses who want the most complete online multichannel sales platform should consider BigCommerce as one of the best online store builders. Plus, BigCommerce is the ideal solution for sellers who want to pair a content-focused WordPress website with a multichannel sales machine.
6. Ecwid
Ecwid is an economical multichannel online store builder that supports sales on a website as well as Amazon, Facebook, Instagram and more. Along with features that rival Shopify and BigCommerce, Ecwid has another claim to fame mostly because of its being among our top 10 best free online store builders.
You can integrate your Ecwid store with websites on Wix, Square Online, WordPress, Joomla, Squarespace and many other platforms. If your platform’s built-in e-commerce features aren’t doing the trick, Ecwid just might be your answer. Ecwid is ideal for businesses wanting to add a full-featured online store to an existing website on Wix, Square Online, WordPress or other platforms. In most cases, Ecwid offers more multichannel sales features than these platforms’ built-in e-commerce solutions.
7. Shift4Shop
Shift4Shop is another industry-leading online store builder that was popular long before Shopify and BigCommerce hit the scene. It has a lot to offer startups and small businesses, plus it’s less expensive than other top options.
Although Shift4Shop can work for any size seller, it’s going to offer the best way to build an online store for sellers with large catalogs and fast-moving inventory. Shift4Shop delivers an SEO-friendly page structure that ranks well in search, offers over 50 free store themes and supports hundreds of payment processing options. Its dashboard is also ideal for sellers with large product catalogs.
8. Squarespace
Squarespace is a user-friendly multipurpose website platform that also offers e-commerce features — in this way, it’s one of the top 10 best free online store builders for new online stores. Squarespace is an ideal online store builder for image-minded service providers, nonprofits and influencer brands who want to sell physical or digital goods on a branded website and via Instagram. However, it isn’t right for the multichannel power-seller who wants to sell everywhere, like on a branded website, Amazon and other marketplaces and all social media sites.
Like Wix and Square Online, Squarespace supports a variety of sales, including products that ship, subscriptions, services and appointments, and digital files like music or photos. It also offers a tidy donations feature and supports Instagram shoppable posts, which is a nice social selling perk.
9. Weebly
Weebly is a basic online store builder powered by Square. It’s ideal for small to medium-sized businesses that want a small online store and don’t want to do much maintenance. If you’re a beginner user who doesn’t want to get lost in any technical elements, Weebly’s a good option for you.
Anyone can build a website on Weebly for free. But you won’t be able to use your own domain name (or get rid of the annoying ads) until you buy a plan. The free plan offers a few solid features, like real-time shipping and coupons, but if you want to grow beyond that, you’ll have to upgrade.
Business owners who use Square for payments can also check out Square online. Similar to Weebly, you can build a professional ecommerce website with no frills in minutes.
10. Freewebstore
Another one of the top 10 best free online store builders is Freewebstore which might be the ideal solution. Freewebstore is a free e-commerce tool geared for the shoestring startup that wants to launch a side-gig or online business at little to no cost. Individuals can also launch a store on Freewebstore, so it’s perfect for test-driving an e-commerce idea with no costs or commitments.
Unlike some e-commerce platforms that offer a free, but limited-feature version, Freewebstore doesn’t hold back. You can access all built-in sales features for free. The Freewebstore platform appears dated, but it boasts great reviews and many happy users. Clearly, the platform delivers as expected and the price is right.
