Shopify vs a custom e-commerce site — which is right for me?

Short answer: Shopify is a platform you rent monthly and never fully own; a custom e-commerce site is a one-off build you own outright. Shopify suits people who want a quick, self-managed store and do not mind ongoing fees. A custom site suits people who want lower long-term costs and full control.

What each one actually is

The two options are more different than they look, and the difference is mostly about ownership.

Shopify is a hosted platform. You pay a monthly subscription, pick a theme, and add products. It handles hosting and updates for you. In return you are tied to their monthly fee, their transaction charges if you do not use their own payment product, and often paid apps to add features the core platform lacks.

A custom e-commerce site is built for you and handed over. You pay once, you own it, and there is no platform subscription. Ours is a one-off £750 that includes the product catalogue, cart, secure checkout, payment gateway setup, and order management. We host it for you free, forever, if you want us to keep it running, but that is your choice, not a condition of staying online.

This is the same one-off versus monthly question that runs through all web pricing, covered in one-off vs monthly website pricing.

The cost over time

Upfront, Shopify looks cheaper because you can start on a low monthly plan. The picture changes when you add up the years.

A Shopify store carries a monthly fee, and many stores also pay for extra apps, premium themes, and transaction fees on every sale. None of that stops. Over three or four years those fees quietly outweigh a one-off build.

A custom site costs more on day one but nothing on the platform after that. You are not renting your shop. If you want the full breakdown of an e-commerce build, our guide on how much an e-commerce website costs lays it out, and why website prices vary explains what sits behind the numbers.

Control, flexibility and lock-in

Shopify is quick to get going, and if you are happy to work within its templates and app store it does the job. The trade-off is that you build on someone else's rules. Design changes are limited to what the theme allows, and features often mean bolting on another paid app.

A custom site is built around how your business actually works. You are not squeezing your shop into a template. The other side of lock-in matters too: if you ever leave Shopify, your data exports but your store does not, so you rebuild elsewhere. When you own a custom site, you own the site and there is nothing to migrate away from.

Which should you choose?

Choose Shopify if you want to run everything yourself, you are comfortable with ongoing monthly costs, and you want to be live today with a large catalogue you will manage hands-on.

Choose a custom e-commerce site if you want lower long-term costs, a shop shaped around your business, and the peace of mind of owning it outright. For most small UK businesses selling a manageable range of products, the one-off route works out better and simpler.

Not sure which fits? Our e-commerce service page shows what a custom build includes, and you can see our recent work for a sense of the standard.

Want a straight answer for your situation? Get a clear price and we will tell you which route makes sense.