WooCommerce vs Magento: Which Ecommerce Platform Should You Use?

If you’re looking to sell products online, you’ll need an ecommerce platform to list items, accept payments, and host important store pages. WooCommerce and Magento are two of the most popular options. But, you might not know which is best for online stores.

There are some key differences between Magento and WooCommerce that make them better suited to different users and budgets. For example, WooCommerce is more beginner-friendly. Meanwhile, Magento provides some advanced marketing and SEO tools.

In this post, we’ll compare WooCommerce vs Magento in terms of usability, features, performance, security, and pricing. Let’s get started!

An Introduction to WooCommerce

WooCommerce is the most popular ecommerce platform worldwide. It functions as a WordPress plugin that can be installed directly in the WordPress dashboard.

The tool comes with everything you need to transform your WordPress site into an online store. Additionally, there are a range of free (and paid) extensions if you need more functionality.

For instance you may want to integrate a different payment gateway, support gift cards, or sell subscriptions. You can also list an unlimited number of products on the platform, and choose a dedicated theme:

This makes it easy to create beautiful online stores that reflect the feel of any unique brand.

What’s more, WooCommerce is an excellent option for beginners on a budget. That’s because the only real cost of building an ecommerce website with WordPress is web hosting and a domain name (unless you’re using premium extensions and themes).

Furthermore, designing your WooCommerce website is made easier thanks to intuitive building tools like the block editor and site editor. Plus, with extensive WooCommerce documentation, it’s easy to resolve any issues you come across.

It’s important to note that you’ll likely want to install the self-hosted version of WordPress when setting up a WooCommerce store. That’s because it’s much more flexible and customizable than WordPress.com.

An Introduction to Magento

There are two versions of Magento. Adobe Commerce is the paid version of the platform, which offers two plans (Commerce Pro and Managed Services). However, you can also use the free version of Magento (Magento Open Source).

Like WooCommerce, the Magento ecommerce platform supports an unlimited number of products, and comes with templates and extensions to help build an online store. Better yet, you can design an ecommerce store that’s optimized for sales and conversions:

For example, Magento offers a streamlined checkout process which enables customers to complete transactions quickly. And, guest checkout is enabled by default so that visitors don’t need to create an account to purchase products.

What’s more, Magento comes with a wide variety of payment gateways out-the-box, including Authorize.net and Braintree. However, the downside of Magento is that it comes with a steep learning curve.

Compared with WooCommerce, Magento requires more technical knowledge, since it’s geared toward web development professionals. Although, if you invest time and effort into learning the platform, Magento offers a powerful, scalable ecommerce solution.

WooCommerce vs Magento: 5 Factors Compared 

Now that you know a bit more about each of these ecommerce platforms, let’s dive into this WooCommerce vs Magento comparison.

#1. Ease of Use

If you want to design an online store, it’s important that the platform is easy to set up and navigate. The WooCommerce plugin is the clear winner in this category.

WooCommerce is especially easy for WordPress users since it’s a free plugin. Therefore, you can go right ahead and install it within the WordPress interface.

All you have to do is go to Plugins > Add New to install and activate it:

Then, you’ll be guided through the setup wizard which helps you set up payment gateways, list items, and add important business details.

On the other hand, to unlock the full functionality of Magento websites, you’ll need some coding knowledge and an understanding of technical terminology. Even the setup procedure is likely to be difficult for beginners.

For example, you’ll need to use the command line to install Magento. Plus, you’ll have to configure a server that meets Magento’s requirements. While Magento does offer a user-friendly dashboard and intuitive navigation, it’s important to be aware that it will require web development knowledge.

#2. Features

As a more complex solution, Magento comes with more features out-the-box, including multi-language options, multi-store capabilities, product reviews, page recommendations, wishlists, and more. Additionally, it offers tons of customization options.

For example, the Magento Marketplace supports thousands of third-party extensions and templates:

Plus, you can create your own extensions (and access those created by other Magento users).

Unlike Magento, WooCommerce provides a more streamlined offering. This likely includes everything you need to run a successful online store. But, if you want more advanced features, you can browse the WooCommerce Extension store.

Here, you’ll find tons of free and paid extensions:

For instance, you can let customers subscribe to your products/services, create product bundles, add shipment tracking to orders, accept reservations, and more.

The main difference between WooCommerce vs Magento in this category is that WooCommerce features tend to be more affordable. Naturally, this differs on a case-by-case basis. But, since Magento extensions are more complex, it’s fair to say that you can expect to pay more.

#3. Performance 

The next way to compare WooCommerce vs Magento is to take a look at speed and performance. This is a top priority for ecommerce stores, since it can affect the user experience (UX) and your rankings in search engines.

Before we start though, it’s important to note that it’s difficult to compare WooCommerce and Magento in this area, since website performance can be affected by a number of other factors. For example, the size of the website, the hosting plan, and the number of media files and plugins can impact site speed.

However, a study by Quanta found that Magento has slightly faster loading times than WooCommerce. Although, the study concluded that Magento was also slower than other ecommerce platforms overall.

Therefore, it’s a good idea to optimize other areas of your website in order to improve performance. For instance, you can choose a fast web host, optimize images, or use a content delivery network (CDN).

#4. Security

One of the most important concerns when choosing an ecommerce solution is security. If you expect customers to hand over their payment details, it’s vital that you can protect this data.

Both WooCommerce and Magento are open-source. Therefore, it’s possible to implement as many security measures as you like. For example, an SSL certificate is required to encrypt data. Meanwhile, it’s a good idea to install a malware scanner to prevent security threats.

However, as we discussed, Magento comes with more built-in features, so you won’t have to rely as much on third-party extensions. Since every piece of software on your site makes it more susceptible to hacks, this can make your website more secure.

That’s not to say that WooCommerce doesn’t provide a secure environment for your online store. In fact, the core software is updated regularly when it undergoes vulnerability and security patches. And, while Magento also comes with security patches, these require technical expertise to apply.

#5. Pricing 

The final way to compare WooCommerce vs Magento is to take a look at the pricing options. Magento and WooCommerce both provide free options, but it’s important to be aware of additional costs.

For example, you’ll require web hosting to make your website publicly available. The cost of this varies depending on the type of hosting you choose.

You can find quality web hosting providers, like SirsteveHQ, that provide affordable WordPress packages.

SirsteveHQ plans include a free SSL certificate, free business email, WooCommerce installations, and more. Plus, with higher priced plans, you’ll get a free domain name too.

You can search for a domain using SirsteveHQ’s free domain tool. Then, you’re able to purchase it along with privacy protection.

Besides web hosting, costs can pile up if you use premium themes or rely too much on extensions. As we discussed, you may be more likely to require extensions with the WooCommerce platform, since it isn’t as complex as Magento.

Still, WooCommerce offers tons of quality free extensions – whereas Magento’s add-ons tend to be more expensive. And, of course, you have the option to upgrade to Magento Commerce. However, you’ll have to contact the sales team for pricing information.

Conclusion

Choosing the best ecommerce platform can help you set up a successful store that’s affordable, fast, and secure. While WooCommerce and Magento are both great options, there are some important factors to consider before you make the decision.

To recap, here are five differences to help you choose between WooCommerce vs Magento:

1. WooCommerce is ideal for beginners, whereas Magento requires technical expertise.
2. Magento comes with more built-in features, but you can acquire the same commerce functionality using WooCommerce extensions.
3. Magento was found to be slightly faster, but website performance is affected more by factors like hosting and unoptimized files.
4. Both platforms enable you to implement appropriate security measures. However, WooCommerce security patches are applied during updates, whereas you’ll need to manually apply these for a Magento store.
5. WooCommerce is completely free, while Magento offers a free option. With both platforms, you’ll face other costs for things like hosting, domains, and premium extensions.

Do you have any questions about WooCommerce vs Magento? Ask us in the comments below!