TL;DR:
Ecwid is a lightweight, hosted way to add “buy” buttons and a full cart to any website and sell across channels fast. WooCommerce is a fully customizable, open-source commerce platform inside WordPress that scales with extensions and hosting. Start on Ecwid if you want speed and simplicity. Move to WooCommerce when you need deep customization, content/SEO control, and enterprise-grade flexibility. When you’re ready, Ecwid2Woo migrates products (including categories, images, options/variations) from Ecwid to Woo — without rebuilding your catalog.

How each platform is built

Ecwid (by Lightspeed) in a nutshell

Ecwid is a hosted cart that you can drop into an existing site (WordPress, Webflow, Wix, custom) or use as a standalone “Instant Site.” It’s designed for quick setup and multichannel selling (site + social + marketplaces) with a managed checkout. Plans currently start with a Starter tier (replacing the old free plan) and scale up to Business/Unlimited.

WooCommerce in a nutshell

WooCommerce is a free WordPress plugin that turns your WP site into a store. The plugin is free, but you budget for hosting, themes, and extensions (or use Woo Express for an all-in-one hosted Woo on WordPress.com). Expect real costs to vary by traffic and stack.

Quick comparison (what actually matters)

Sources for claims that change over time: Ecwid features & plans; Woo pricing/hosting; Woo ecosystem size.

Pricing & total cost of ownership (TCO)

• Ecwid plans (2025): Ecwid replaced the free plan; the entry tier is Starter (commonly shown at $5/mo), with Venture, Business, and Unlimited above it. Exact inclusions vary by tier (e.g., catalog size, variations, channels, support).

• WooCommerce: The plugin is free, but a realistic baseline includes managed Woo hosting (~$250+/yr for quality plans), a theme, and a few paid extensions depending on your needs. If you don’t want to assemble the stack, Woo Express bundles hosting + Woo + hand-picked tools (plans commonly cited at $39–$70/mo).

Bottom line: Ecwid wins for predictable monthly pricing when you want to ship fast. Woo’s TCO starts higher but buys you long-term flexibility (and often lower marginal costs at scale once you stop stacking SaaS fees).

Growth, scale, and ecosystem

• Woo at scale: Woo powers millions of stores and continues investing in performance and “builder-supported” scalability. Case studies include high-volume subscriptions and complex catalogs.

• Extensions: Expect 1,000+ official extensions on WooCommerce.com, plus thousands on WordPress.org and marketplaces like CodeCanyon — covering subscriptions, B2B, bookings, headless, and more.

• Ecwid multichannel: A strong out-of-the-box play for selling across your site and social/marketplaces from one dashboard, with a managed, PCI-compliant checkout.

When to pick which (simple rules)

Choose Ecwid if you need to:

• Add a store to an existing site in an afternoon

• Sell across social channels quickly, with minimal setup

• Keep checkout/security fully managed by the platform

Choose WooCommerce if you:

• Care a lot about content + SEO and want WordPress control

• Need custom checkout flows, complex product data, or B2B logic

• Expect to scale and don’t want app-by-app limits later (taxes, catalog size, data access)

Signs you’ve outgrown Ecwid

• You’re fighting the theme/embed to achieve your desired UX

• You need custom product types, complex attributes/variations, or advanced SEO control

• You want full access to your data and code, or deeper integrations with ERP/CRM

• You’re planning heavy content marketing that needs WordPress-level flexibility

If those sound familiar, moving to WooCommerce is usually the right call.

Seamless migration: move products with Ecwid2Woo

When you’re ready to switch, Ecwid2Woo (our plugin) safely migrates your catalog from Ecwid to WooCommerce — no CSV gymnastics or manual re-entry.

What Ecwid2Woo brings over

• Products & categories — mirrors your catalog structure

• Images & galleries — pulls assets into your WordPress media library

• Options & variations — recreates variant attributes/SKUs where available

• SEO fields — attempts to retain slugs/titles where Ecwid data allows

• Large catalogs — designed to handle big imports (tested on catalogs 10k+ products and thousands of variations)

How it works (high level)

1. Prep Woo: Install WordPress + WooCommerce (or Woo Express).

2. Back up your sites (Ecwid export, WP backup).

3. Install Ecwid2Woo in WordPress and connect to Ecwid using your store ID and access token. (Ecwid’s REST API uses tokens; rate limits are generous but real, so the plugin respects them.)

4. Choose what to import (all products, specific categories, include/exclude drafts).

5. Run the import — monitor progress, review logs, and validate products/variations in Woo.

6. Finish: Map menus, test checkout, and redirect any key URLs.

Note on API access: Ecwid’s API requires an access token for your store/app. (Historically, API access wasn’t available on the legacy Free tier; with today’s Starter tier and above, consult your plan’s capabilities.)

Best-practice migration checklist

• Stand up a staging Woo site to test the import

• Normalize attributes (sizes, colors) before importing to keep variants clean

• Audit product visibility and tax settings before launch

• Set 301 redirects for any high-value URLs that change

• Rebuild collections/categories pages and re-link internal content

• Re-submit sitemaps and verify in search consoles

FAQ

Is WooCommerce really free?
Yes — the plugin is free. The cost comes from hosting, theme, and the extensions you choose. Woo Express bundles those for predictable monthly pricing. ElementorWooCommerce

Does Ecwid still have a free plan?
As of March 2025, Ecwid replaced the free plan with a Starter plan (commonly shown at $5/month). Forbes

Can Ecwid handle variations?
Yes. Ecwid supports product options and variations via its admin/API. Ecwid2Woo maps these to Woo’s attributes/variations during import. docs.ecwid.comEcwid Help Center

How big can WooCommerce go?
With the right hosting and architecture, very big. The Woo team showcases merchants running substantial subscription and order volumes. The WooCommerce Developer Blog

Wrap-up

• Start simple: If speed and multichannel convenience matter most, Ecwid is excellent.

• Scale smart: If you need deep control, content/SEO power, and long-term flexibility, WooCommerce wins.

• Move cleanly: When it’s time to switch, Ecwid2Woo brings your products and structure over to Woo with minimal friction.

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