Detailed report on Shopify Plus total cost of ownership (TCO) compared to leading e-commerce platforms
Executive summary
Shopify Plus offers the best value among the major commerce platforms in North America, thanks in particular to its payment process with the best conversion rate in the world. An independent study of 251 senior executives, conducted in December 2023 and January 2024, shows that Shopify Plus' total cost of ownership (TCO) is up to 36% lower than its competitors. Here are the main comparative results:
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36% lower than WooCommerce
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35% lower than Adobe Commerce (Magento)
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31% lower than BigCommerce
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29% lower than Salesforce Commerce Cloud
TCO encompasses all direct and indirect costs associated with an e-commerce platform, generally over a period of 3 to 5 years.
Costs of e-commerce platforms and technologies
Platform costs include fixed and variable costs for licenses, transactions and third-party applications. Shopify Plus is distinguished by overall costs that are 30 % on average, thanks to better coverage of native functionalities, reducing the need for numerous costly external applications.
Concrete examples:
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Salesforce 14% more expensive than Shopify Plus
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BigCommerce 32% more expensive
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WooCommerce 32% more expensive
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Adobe 42% more expensive
Shopify Plus offers a simple, intuitive interface, facilitating rapid user integration and limiting the costs associated with learning and additional development.
Operating and support costs
These costs include day-to-day management of the platform, technical support, infrastructure and the human resources required to maintain site performance and security. Shopify Plus's operating costs are 23 % than its competitors thanks to :
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A more stable and secure SaaS infrastructure,
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Less dependence on technical development teams,
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Fewer resources needed to manage updates and security.
Comparative operating costs :
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Salesforce 6% higher
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BigCommerce 21% higher
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Adobe 24% higher
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WooCommerce 41% higher
Implementation and configuration costs
Shopify Plus can be implemented and put online 37% faster than the average of competing platforms. This speed translates into significantly lower initial costs, particularly in terms of front-end and back-end engineering, data migration and technical integration.
Comparative implementation time savings with Shopify Plus :
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BigCommerce 28% faster
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Salesforce : 41% faster
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Adobe 40% faster
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WooCommerce 36% faster
In terms of actual implementation costs, Shopify Plus is on average 49% less expensive than its competitors, especially when compared to BigCommerce (88% more expensive), Adobe (42% more expensive), WooCommerce (49% more expensive), and Salesforce (16% more expensive).
Opportunity lost in conversion
Shopify Plus also boasts a higher conversion rate, up to 36% higher than its competitors, representing a substantial gain in potential sales. The presence of Shop Pay, Shopify Plus' accelerated payment solution, improves conversions by up to 50% compared with a conventional guest payment.
Financial impact based on hypothetical annual sales of $100 million with a 10% margin :
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Salesforce potential gain of $3.6 million a year with Shopify Plus (+36% conversion)
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BigCommerce potential gain of $1.2 million per year (+12% conversion)
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WooCommerce potential gain of $1.7 million per year (+17% conversion)
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Adobe potential gain of $0.5 million per year (+5% conversion)
Conclusion
Shopify Plus clearly offers the lowest total cost of ownership among the major e-commerce platforms. Thanks to its low platform costs, ease of use, rapid implementation and superior conversion rates, Shopify Plus enables businesses to invest more in growth and innovation, confirming its position as market leader.
For more information on Shopify Plus support : Make an appointment with a Shopify expert.
