WooCommerce vs Shopify in 2026: Why 4.4 Million Businesses Choose WordPress for E-commerce

When most business owners think about starting an online store, Shopify often comes to mind first. It’s heavily marketed, appears everywhere, and seems like the “obvious” choice. But here’s what the actual data reveals: WooCommerce powers 4.4 million active online stores worldwide—that’s 57% more than Shopify’s 2.8 million stores.

For small and medium businesses in the Netherlands and across Europe, this isn’t just an interesting statistic. It’s a signal that savvy business owners are choosing WordPress-based e-commerce for good reasons: lower costs, complete ownership, and flexibility that grows with your business.

The Real Numbers Behind E-commerce Platforms in 2026

According to the latest State of Ecommerce report, the platform landscape looks very different from what marketing budgets might suggest:

• WooCommerce: 4,435,024 active stores (33% market share)
• Shopify: 2,830,340 active stores (21% market share)
• Custom solutions: 1,652,566 stores (12% market share)

What’s particularly interesting for European businesses: the Netherlands ranks 9th globally with 267,531 e-commerce stores, while Germany sits at 4th place with 445,132 stores. This represents a massive, growing market where Dutch businesses compete—and where platform choice directly impacts your bottom line.

Why WooCommerce Dominates: It’s About Total Cost of Ownership

Let’s talk real numbers. A typical Shopify store pays:

• €29-€299/month in platform fees (Basic to Advanced plans)
• 0.5-2% transaction fees on every sale
• €5-€50/month per app for essential features
• Custom development at €100-150/hour when you need unique functionality

Compare this to WooCommerce on managed WordPress hosting:

• Hosting (including SSL, security): €30-50/month
• WooCommerce: Free (open source)
• Essential plugins: €50-100/month (often one-time costs)
• Custom development: Same rate, but you own the code
• Total: €80-150/month or €960-1,800/year

The Hidden Advantage: You Own Everything

Here’s where WooCommerce’s 4.4 million installations become even more significant. Each of those businesses owns their:

• Customer data (not held by a platform)
• Store functionality (custom code belongs to you)
• Content and SEO value (portable to any host)
• Payment processing (direct integration, no middleman)

When one of our spa and wellness clients in Noord-Holland wanted to integrate their booking system with their e-commerce checkout, Shopify would have required a custom app at €8,000+ development cost, plus monthly fees. With WooCommerce, we built the integration for €3,500—and they own it outright.

Industry-Specific Success: What the Data Shows

The e-commerce report reveals the top categories where online stores thrive:

At Imagewize, we’ve focused on verticals where WooCommerce’s flexibility provides clear advantages:

Spa & Wellness (Beauty & Fitness category): These businesses need appointment booking, membership management, and product sales in one system. Our Elayne theme handles this seamlessly with WooCommerce Subscriptions and booking plugins—something that would cost thousands more on Shopify.

Legal Services (Business & Industrial): Law firms selling consultation packages and legal templates need professional presentation, document delivery, and compliance with EU privacy regulations. WooCommerce gives them complete data control—essential for GDPR compliance.

When Shopify Makes Sense (Yes, Really)

We’re not saying WooCommerce is always the answer. Shopify excels for:

• Very fast launch (days instead of weeks)
• Minimal technical knowledge required
• US-focused businesses leveraging Shopify Payments
• Dropshipping models with tight app integrations

But for established SMEs in the Netherlands and EU, especially those in professional services, health and wellness, specialized retail, or B2B e-commerce, WooCommerce’s dominance isn’t accidental—it’s better economics and better control.

The Custom Cart Alternative: When to Build Your Own

The report shows 1.65 million stores use “Custom Cart”—fully custom e-commerce solutions. These are typically large enterprises (Nike, Apple, Amazon) with specific needs that no platform can meet.

For most SMEs, this is overkill. But here’s the insight: WooCommerce gives you 80% of custom cart flexibility at 10% of the cost. You get:

• Custom checkout flows
• Unique pricing logic
• Specialized integrations
• Industry-specific features

Without the €50,000+ development cost and ongoing maintenance burden of a fully custom solution.

Real-World Example: From Shopify to WooCommerce

Last year, a Dutch home & garden retailer approached us. They were spending €6,200/year on Shopify (platform + apps) and hitting limitations:

• Couldn’t integrate their supplier’s API for real-time inventory
• Needed custom B2B pricing (40+ different customer groups)
• Wanted blog content that actually ranked (Shopify’s SEO limitations)

Making the Right Choice for Your Business

The 4.4 million businesses running WooCommerce aren’t making a technical choice—they’re making a business decision. They’ve calculated total cost of ownership, valued flexibility, and chosen to own their platform rather than rent it.

For Dutch and European SMEs, additional factors matter:

• GDPR compliance (easier with self-hosted solutions)
• EU payment methods (iDEAL, Bancontact, SEPA)
• Multilingual requirements (Dutch, German, English)
• VAT complexity (EU cross-border sales)

WooCommerce handles all of this natively or through EU-focused plugins—often better than US-centric platforms.

Getting Started: Three Paths to WooCommerce Success

Don’t Forget: E-commerce is More Than Your Platform

Whether you choose WooCommerce, Shopify, or build custom, your platform is just the foundation. The businesses succeeding in those 13.4 million active stores are the ones who also invest in:

• SEO optimization (how customers find you organically)
• Speed optimization (directly impacts conversion rates)
• Social media marketing (where your customers spend their time)

A fast, well-optimized WooCommerce store with strong SEO outperforms a slow, poorly marketed Shopify store every time.

The Bottom Line

4.4 million active WooCommerce stores vs. 2.8 million Shopify stores isn’t just a popularity contest—it’s evidence of business owners choosing:

• Lower total cost of ownership
• Complete data and code ownership
• Flexibility to grow without platform limitations
• Better ROI on development investment

For SMEs in the Netherlands and Europe, especially in professional services, health and wellness, and specialized retail, the numbers support what we see daily: WooCommerce provides better business outcomes.

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Looking to improve your existing WooCommerce store? Check out our guide on speed optimization or learn about professional SEO services for e-commerce.