Are you planning to create an e-commerce website for your business but are confused about the selection of the right platform?
Most web developers insist upon choosing WordPress to build an online store while some of them prefer to use OpenCart.
Yes, it’s true that these 2 software/plugins are among the major leading e-commerce platforms, but both of them have their own specialties & qualities which you must consider.
In this blog post, I have covered some of the major differentiating factors between WooCommerce & OpenCart that will help you to choose the appropriate one for your website development. Before that, let’s have a look over the basics & benefits of these 2 eCommerce platforms.
Let’s begin.
What is WooCommerce?
WooCommerce is a plugin that’s used for creating WordPress-based eCommerce stores. WooCommerce, equipped with numerous essential e-commerce features, proves to be a favored choice among web developers and webmasters for swiftly and cost-effectively setting up successful online stores. Its robust plugin offers everything needed to create an efficient e-commerce website with ease.
When to Use WooCommerce:
- When you already have a WordPress site and you want to add eCommerce features to it.
- When you want to build a professional eCommerce website at a low cost.
- When customization and flexibility are essential for tailoring the online store.
- For businesses seeking a user-friendly interface suitable for non-technical users.
- When you want to use a platform for which an abundance of web developers are available.
What is OpenCart?
OpenCart is a well-known open-source e-commerce platform designed exclusively for online selling. With its simple and user-friendly interface, OpenCart prioritizes essential e-commerce functionalities without the added complexity of a content management system.
When to Use OpenCart:
- When your primary focus is on eCommerce and you don’t require the additional features of a content management system.
- When you want to use an easy-to-use and user-friendly eCommerce platform.
- For budget-conscious businesses seeking an affordable open-source eCommerce solution.
#1 Framework
WooCommerce, being one of the WordPress plugins, need a WordPress website to set up an e-commerce store. In other words, WooCommerce is not a standalone option. It requires WordPress to work.
OpenCart is a standalone platform and you can create an e-commerce website using PHP & MySQL.
#2 Ease Of Setup
WooCommerce is fairly easy to set up. It’s available free of cost to download and use.
Even a non-programmer webmaster can also create a basic e-commerce website using WooCommerce. Although you will need a web developer to give your e-commerce website a professional look & power-packed features.
OpenCart is also available free of cost to use but it has a steep learning curve. You definitely need a web developer to set up and customize your e-commerce store when you are using OpenCart.
Although a lot of help and materials are available online, in order to use them, you need to have a programming background.
#3 Usability
WooCommerce wins the battle when it comes to the usability of the backend. The admin section of WooCommerce websites is so easy to manage that a layman can understand to use it in just a few hours.
For example, creating a discount coupon or product category on WooCommerce is as simple as a few clicks only.
OpenCart, however, requires a bit more time for webmasters to understand and use it.
#4 SEO
Although both of these platforms are SEO-friendly, you get more options to install and use SEO plugins in the case of WooCommerce. Not only that, you can easily customize these plugins yourself without hiring any web developer.
OpenCart does provide basic SEO elements like the insertion of important meta tags however you need to go deep in order to explore advanced SEO options for your OpenCart website.
Again, if you are not a programmer, then you will have to hire an OpenCart developer to make your website SEO-friendly.
#5 Scalability
In the case of WooCommerce, you can use several 3rd party plugins that are compatible with WooCommerce, to enhance the features of your e-commerce store. Most of these plugins are available free of cost and few of them are nominally paid.
Even if you need some advanced customization in your WooCommerce website, you can easily hire an affordable WordPress developer.
OpenCart also comes with plenty of extensions (in WordPress, they are known as plugins) that can be integrated to enhance the functionality of your existing OpenCart website. Same as in the case of WooCommerce, you can find & hire affordable OpenCart developers too.
However, the option of extensions and web developers for OpenCart is not as many as in the case of WooCommerce.
#6 Themes
In the case of WooCommerce, you can find hundreds of free and paid themes that you can use & change the design of your e-commerce store.
in the case of OpenCart, you won’t find several options for themes however you can anytime find a web developer who can help you to change the design of your e-commerce store.
Recommended Post: 7 Tips To Choose WordPress Theme For Your E-Commerce Website
#7 Security
Everything has some benefits and certain drawbacks too. Now as you know, there are lots of options for 3rd party plugins & themes that can be used to enhance any WooCommerce website, some of these plugins or themes may not be secured and can affect the security of your website too.
It is, therefore advised to take necessary precautions before choosing WordPress plugins & themes for your website.
This doesn’t mean at all, that WordPress websites are not secured. But your WordPress developer needs to take care of your website security by choosing legitimate plugins & themes and following certain security guidelines.
OpenCart-based e-commerce websites are more secure as compared to WordPress websites because of the limited options that it has, for integration of 3rd party extensions.
Recommended Post: 10 Easy Ways To Make A WordPress Website Secured
Conclusion:
If you need an affordable e-commerce website, you can choose WordPress but at the same time, be cautious while choosing a reliable WooCommerce developer for your website in order to ensure its security.
However, if you have enough budget to build a robust e-commerce website, you can go with OpenCart.