shopify vs prestashop: With the rise in the eCommerce industry, multiple platforms have been launched to build online stores. Among these, Shopify and PrestaShop are the popular ones. Before going into the reasons for choosing PrestaShop, let’s briefly discuss both of these platforms.

Shopify is a subscription-based SaaS eCommerce platform that allows you to start, grow and manage your business through a streamlined dashboard. It allows you to set up an online store and sell your products quickly by using Shopify POS (Point Of Sale). Whereas PrestaShop is an open-source platform with all the features required to build and increase your online business.

You can easily hire an eCommerce development company to meet your project needs for either of these platforms. This blog will discuss various reasons for selecting PrestaShop over Shopify.

Reasons To Choose PrestaShop Over Shopify

Every platform has its benefits and drawbacks; however, the best platform depends on specific project requirements. Let’s discuss several factors which show that PrestaShop is better than Shopify for developing your eCommerce store.

Customization

PrestaShop and Shopify both offer customization capabilities to some extent; however, PrestaShop is more customizable. Since it is an open-source platform, it can be completely edited and modified. The platform includes impressive out-of-the-box built-in features that can be customized even to extend the functionality. Additionally, it also offers a wide range of themes and modules; therefore, you can add any feature to your online store.

One of the most notable customizations of PrestaShop is its payment processing. It lets you integrate various payment gateways and doesn’t charge additional credit card processing fees.

On the other hand, Shopify offers a wide range of plans, such as Basic Shopify, Shopify Advanced, and Shopify Plus, with varying capabilities. You can select the plan based on the features you wish to integrate into your website. As a proprietary eCommerce platform, Shopify restricts access to its source code. And therefore, it cannot be modified like PrestaShop.

Thus, PrestaShop has an edge over Shopify due to customization. You can hire a reliable PrestaShop development company to build a highly customizable website based on your project needs.

Community Support

PrestaShop has broad, active, and robust community support. They ensure to keep the platform competitive with timely updates. Shopify also has a community and a team. They release security patches, update the latest versions, and so on, to keep it at the top of the eCommerce development platform.

When we talk about queries, PrestaShop offers the option for merchants to read informative blogs by posting their queries on the forum to get the solution. Shopify community also helps in this matter by providing a solution to merchants’ queries. However, Shopify does not offer a forum similar to PrestaShop that takes it a step ahead of Shopify.

Multiple Stores Management

PrestaShop allows you to manage multiple stores with its pre-installed multi-store management tool in your backend. Whereas Shopify doesn’t let you set up multiple stores in one account, it supports and permits owning various accounts as required to operate multiple stores. In such cases, businesses have to set up accounts for every new store separately, handling inventory for each through their own Shopify accounts.

It shows that managing multiple stores is more leisure with PrestaShop. So can partner with a PrestaShop eCommerce development company to build an eCommerce site that helps in managing multiple stores.

Inventory Management

You need to be aware of your inventory stocks in order to fulfill your customer’s demands. Inventory management with PrestaShop is accessible through its advanced product and inventory add-on. It ensures that your stock is updated as per consumers’ demands. The platform also allows businesses to automate their inventory across all channels and better handle suppliers. Additionally, PrestaShop gives you insights into product performance and can sell more bundles and kits.

On the other hand, Shopify offers in-built inventory management tools that allow you to hide products when it’s out of stock. You can also immediately reorder supplies when they’re low.

Both PrestaShop and Shopify have benefits and drawbacks in inventory management. It depends on which way suits you more between Shopify and PrestaShop. However, PrestaShop has some advanced inventory management functionalities. You can also hire a Shopify development company for a competitive eCommerce store with enhanced inventory management.

International Capabilities

Shopify offers only limited features for international selling, whereas PrestaShop provides various functionalities available for global eCommerce. Some pre-built features of PrestaShop include multiple currency and language capabilities along with checkout options for international shipping and taxes.

Additionally, with different payment processing options offered by PrestaShop, international merchants have the option to choose the one best suitable as per their choice. This feature is one of the most significant comparisons with Shopify, which charges an extra transaction fee if you don’t use Shopify Payments (available in limited countries).

Reviews

While deciding on which platform is better, it is essential to see what the current users have to say about it.

PrestaShop: For PrestaShop, most users have given positive feedback about their experience with this open-source platform. They have described this platform as scalable, professional, and customizable. They have also highlighted the built-in selling capabilities and the wide range of PrestaShop development companies available for assistance.

Shopify: Shopify users have reviewed the platform as a simple and easy-to-use option. However, they also stated that the platform’s subscription is expensive, especially if you’re just starting out and if you require additional functionality that comes only with the higher-level plans. Additionally, users also don’t like the transaction fee Shopify charges for using third-party payment gateways.

Conclusion

Both platforms, Shopify and PrestaShop, are better for entrepreneurs to sell products and services online. However, their functionalities may differ, which sets them apart from each other. The best eCommerce development platform, however, depends upon specific project needs.

PrestaShop is a self-hosted platform that offers more flexibility and freedom to scale and customize an eCommerce store. Although its learning curve is steeper, your eCommerce store’s security and performance depend on the hosting services. Businesses that don’t know much about coding and need a ready-to-use solution should choose it.

Additionally, PrestaShop is multilingual and multi-currency software that allows users to launch their site internationally. Nothing is better for improving a platform than to have a large community that extends its support for all types of PrestaShop development services.

These were significant reasons to choose PrestaShop over Shopify. However, you can choose the eCommerce platform according to your business needs, technical acumen, and budget.

Also Read: Shopify Plus Agency Pricing and What it Means for Your Business