“Everybody has a plan until they get punched in the face” -Mike Tyson
As an eCommerce Entrepreneur, it’s your job to provide the customer with the best products and services. Therefore, each and every decision that you make for your eCommerce store should improve the user experience for your customers while being cost effective for you. One such important decision is to choose the right eCommerce platform for your online store. Today we will be deciding which the best eCommerce platform between Magento Vs WooCommerce is. It is a general acceptance that these two platforms are the best in class.
So let’s start this highly anticipated battle between Magento Vs WooCommerce. But before that, let’s take a look at some facts and figures to Get a Good Idea where both the contenders stand. Stay till the end of the blog to also learn what to look for while hiring the Best Magento Development Company and Best WooCommerce Development Company.
WooCommerce
WooCommerce owns 47.3% market share making it the most widely used eCommerce platform at present.
WooCommerce has 10 million+ active users across the globe.
USA and India are responsible for the most visitors to WooCommerce.
WooCommerce source code consists of 7 programming languages.
Some of the leading companies using the Magento platform for their website are Porter and York, Sodashi, SnapTank, Game Texture, etc.
Magento
Magento has the market share of 13.1% which makes it the second most used eCommerce platform.
Magento has 250,000+ active users at present.
Magento has become a $50 billion industry.
Samsung, Ford, Olympus, Nike, and North Face are some of the leading companies that use Magento platform for their websites.
Let’s Begin the match between Magento Vs WooCommerce.
Round 2 of Magento Vs WooCommerce: Security
WooCommerce is the most used platform so it is obvious that they would provide some security, but being a free platform has its limitations. WooCommerce allows its clients to enable many security measures but all of them are no compare to Magento’s security.
Magento takes a hefty fee every year from its users so it is but obvious that their security is of very high standards. Magento developers deploy security patches regularly with the latest of threats and attacks in mind.
Verdict: If security is a big concern for you then the clear winner for this round is Magento.
Round 3 of Magento Vs WooCommerce: Cost
WooCommerce is not a complete eCommerce platform but a plugin that you can use if you develop your website using WordPress. Further, WooCommerce is a totally free plugin to download and use so you don’t have to spend any money to own and use the WooCommerce.
Magento has two versions of its platform. One is the Community version that has the most basic features to run an eCommerce website. This community version is absolutely free for anyone to use. The other version is the Enterprise version with more advanced features and all the bells and whistles costing you around $18,000 per year.
Verdict: The winner for this round undoubtedly is WooCommercehowever if you wish to have the most advanced features for your website then you should go with Magento platform.
Round 4 of Magento Vs WooCommerce: Convenience in using
WooCommerce is quite easy to use and anyone with the knowledge of WordPress won’t find it even a bit difficult. Even non-developers with no knowledge of coding can easily learn to use this plugin. The best part is that WooCommerce is easily accessible and customizable from your WP-Admin dashboard. The testing and changes can also be done with a whole lot of ease.
For someone starting from scratch, Magento may seem bit trickier than WooCommerce. It will take some time to get used to Magento’s working and system because the platform has a difficult to grasp front-end for people without much technical knowledge. Magento is a platform that is not very user-friendly for the beginner user but for a more advanced user; it does offer all the useful features to successfully run an online shop.
Verdict: The winner for this round seems to be WooCommerce if you are a beginner in technology but if you know your surroundings then Magento is the right call for you.
Round 5 of Magento Vs WooCommerce: Site Performance
WooCommerce is quite nimble and easy to use. It takes almost no time to load unless you add a lot of animations and transitions which will affect its loading time.
Magento offers very professional and quick loading websites. The users have a very smooth and responsive experience from Magento websites. Most of the loading time of the website depends on how optimized your images in the page are and whether you are using a Content Delivery Network (CDN) or not.
Verdict: The winner for this round of Magento Vs WooCommerce is undecided due to a draw.
Round 6 of Magento Vs WooCommerce: Extensions
WooCommerce itself is free and many of the basic add-ons are also free for this platform but if you wish to have advanced features then you need to pay for such extensions.
Magento charges its users with $18,000 per year, so most of the extensions you will need are given built-in with the Enterprise version. If you wish to have the most advanced features (the ultimate ones which aren’t used unless you are a multi-million dollar company) for your websites then you have to pay extra.
Verdict: The winner for extension round in Magento.
After 6 amazing rounds, our contenders are still strong and the match is still a tie. So we need a tie-breaker. Let’s analyze some Pros and Cons for both the platforms to find the winner between Magento Vs WooCommerce.
Pros and Cons of WooCommerce
| Advantages | Disadvantages |
|---|---|
| It is an additional plug-in to WordPress so absolutely free. | When it comes to scalability, database architecture proves to be weak. |
| WooCommerce platform has an easy learning curve. | Most of the features are very basic, not unique. |
| It has a large number of themes to choose from. | Only one (free) version of WooCommerce. |
| Many of the extensions are free. | Large sites find it difficult to scale with the WooCommerce platform. |
| It has the largest open source community. | Weak product data capabilities for complex catalogs. |
| In most cases, hosting is very cheap. | Paid extensions and premium themes can cost more. |
| Easy to pick up if you have experience with WordPress. | |
| Integrates with Google Analytics using an extension. |
Pros and Cons of Magento
| Advantages | Disadvantages |
|---|---|
| Magento platform supports an unlimited number of products. | Its enterprise edition may feel costly due to its yearly payment model. |
| Includes APIs that can connect with any third-party solutions. | It has a larger learning curve to use. |
| Product creation tools and admin panel is very versatile and simple to learn. | Not fit for content heavy sites. |
| If your hosting server can store large data, Magento has no problem handling them. | Maintenance cost is high. |
| The feature of Guest checkout in enabled by default, making the purchase without login possible. | Most of the extensions are paid. |
| Integration with PayPal, Authorize.net and other payment modes can be done quickly. | Hosting this platform is a costly affair. |
| Magento has strong B2B eCommerce capabilities. | Building the front-end website theme is complicated. |
Well, the tiebreaker also has end up in a tie, making this match a double tie therefore we have only one way to solve this problem. We need to list out the key features and USPs of each platform and decide which the ultimate winner between Magento Vs WooCommerce is.
WooCommerce
Key features of WooCommerce
WooCommerce can handle all eCommerce issues from WP-Admin dashboard.
The WooCommerce platform offers an advanced reporting facility for every statistics.
Has an option to control tax settings with tax classes and other local tax rates.
Supports multiple payment gateways; PayPal, credit/debit card, Cash on Delivery (CoD), etc
Has an option to integrate coupon codes, discounts, usage limits, etc.
USP of WooCommerce
Gives full control over code base customization.
Thousands of themes and extensions to choose from with Paid and free versions.
Has the best CMS capabilities than any of its present-day competitors.
Takes no transaction fees from clients.
Magento
Key features of Magento
Provides pre-sets and templates to get a perfectly customizable design for your store.
Magento offers the ability to set up more than one wish list to the end users.
You can add any number of product attributes.
Has an integrated Content management system (CMS).
Gives features to perform target marketing, merchandising, etc.
Offers privacy features for purchase to every individual customer.
USP of Magento
Scalability and flexibility are high with Magento.
Has the highest number of features in the core functionality, without any additional extensions.
Perfect for B2B eCommerce services.
Provides catalog and product management facilities.
Conclusion
WooCommerce Vs Magento is a question with no one answer. It is more of a personal choice of a user. Each platform outperforms the other in several different aspects. Now it’s up to you which aspects are more important to you. After reading through this blog and reaching here at the very end, you must have a clear decision in your head about which platform between WooCommerce Vs Magento is right for you. Now that you have decided your pick between Magento vs. WooCommerce you will need to find the Best Magento Development Company and Best WooCommerce Development Company.
