BigCommerce vs Shopware (2026): which should you pick?

Pick BigCommerce if

• Fits if you want discount types and shipping rules built in rather than added as apps
• Works for selling on Amazon, eBay and Walmart from one catalog

Look elsewhere if

• Tight if your sales are growing, as passing $30K a year moves you up to Growth at $79 a month
• Pricey if you want abandoned-cart emails, customer groups or stored cards, which start on Growth at $79 a month
• Watch out: paying through a provider outside BigCommerce's list adds 2% a sale on Core and 1% on Growth
• Watch out: Scale covers $33,333 of sales a month and charges 0.9% on anything above it
• Skip it if you want a free plan, as there's only a 15-day trial

Pick Shopware if

• Fits if you have developers or an agency and want to own the code for a B2B or B2C store
• Works for sellers who start on the free Community Edition and move to a paid plan later

Look elsewhere if

• Pricey if you want hosted support, because Rise starts at EUR 600 a month
• Skip it if you have no developer or partner, as self-hosted stores pay for hosting and implementation separately
• Watch out: plan prices depend on sales volume, so the listed euro figures are only a starting point
• Watch out: linked shops past EUR 1 million in gross sales over 365 days need a paid plan for the Shopware Account
• Watch out: SaaS and PaaS plans go through sales; instant booking is for self-hosted stores only

BigCommerce

• Each plan caps sales over the past twelve months (gross order value minus 10%); passing $30K on Core or $100K on Growth moves the store up a plan.
• Orders paid through providers outside BigCommerce's embedded list carry a fee of 2% on Core, 1% on Growth and 0.6% on Scale.
• Scale covers $33,333 of sales a month and charges 0.9% on sales above that.
• Customer groups, abandoned-cart emails and stored cards need Growth or higher, and product filtering needs Scale.

Shopware

• Plan prices are set by sales volume (GMV) and other factors; the listed euro prices are the starting point.
• Shopware Account and Store access needs a paid plan once linked shops pass €1 million in gross sales over 365 days.
• Self-hosted stores pay for hosting and implementation separately; PaaS pricing depends on infrastructure needs.
• Instant Rise booking in the account is for self-hosted stores only; SaaS and PaaS go through sales.

BigCommerce

Checkout and payment partners

A single-page checkout with Apple Pay, Google Pay and Amazon Pay, and more than 100 currencies through the payment provider you choose, such as Stripe, PayPal, Adyen or Klarna.

Discounts and promotions

More than 70 discount options, coupons and gift cards come built in on every plan, without a third-party app.

Shipping quotes and rules

Real-time shipping rates from carriers such as UPS, USPS and FedEx, with the ShipperHQ shipping rules engine available as well.

Inventory across locations

Track stock and fulfil orders from 4 locations on Core up to 8 on Scale, including in-store pickup and curbside collection.

Marketplaces, ads and point of sale

Connect the store to Amazon, eBay and Walmart, send product feeds to Google, Meta and TikTok through Feedonomics Surface, and link POS systems such as Square or Clover.

Several storefronts in one account

Run extra storefronts for other brands or regions from one dashboard, for $30 a month each on Core (up to 3) and more on higher plans.

Shopware

Visual page builder

Drag-and-drop Shopping Experiences let non-developers build and change store layouts. The page builder is included in the free Community Edition.

Choice of hosting

A store can run on Shopware SaaS (hosting and updates included), on Shopware PaaS with more room for custom code, or be self-hosted.

B2B tools

Quotes and purchasing approvals arrive with Evolve; customer-specific pricing from external systems and Digital Sales Rooms with Beyond.

Extensions and Nexus

Apps and plugins come from the Shopware Store. Nexus connects other systems and runs workflows, with a free monthly execution allowance per shop.

AI tools

Rise adds AI-assisted product content and translation. Shopware Intelligence+ includes a Copilot that carries out multi-step tasks in the store.

Multi-language and SEO

Storefronts can be offered in several languages, with built-in management of meta tags, canonical URLs, breadcrumbs and structured data.

BigCommerce

• Core$29

  per month for up to $30K sales a year, billed annually ($39 monthly)

  For new stores: up to 4 inventory locations and 24/7 chat and email support, with a 2% fee on orders through payment providers outside BigCommerce's list.

• Growth$79

  per month for up to $100K sales a year, billed annually ($105 monthly)

  Adds customer groups, abandoned-cart emails, stored cards and phone support, with 5 inventory locations and a 1% fee on orders through other providers.

• Scale$299

  per month up to $33,333 sales a month, billed annually ($399 monthly)

  Adds product filtering and 8 inventory locations, charges 0.9% on sales above the monthly cap and 0.6% on orders through other payment providers.

• Performance$1,499

  per month and up, billed annually

  Custom pricing for high-volume stores, sold through sales, with a dedicated customer success manager and no fee on other payment providers under contract.

Shopware

• Community Edition€0

  Open-source core with source access. You choose hosting and implementation partners; community support only.

• Rise€600

  per month and up, excl. VAT

  Adds AI-assisted content creation, product customization, returns management and direct Shopware support. First 30 days free.

• Evolve€2,400

  per month and up, excl. VAT

  Adds B2B quotes and purchasing approvals, advanced product search, customer-group content and phone support.

• BeyondCustom

  Adds customer-specific pricing, multi-location inventory, Digital Sales Rooms and 24/7 priority support. Sold through sales.

BigCommerce

• Annual discount

  Pay annually to save 25%

  Core costs $29 a month billed annually against $39 billed monthly, Growth $79 against $105 and Scale $299 against $399.

Shopware

No public discounts listed.