Cheapest Ecommerce Platforms
in the UK: 2026
Platform pricing is not what the homepage says it is. This page shows what UK sellers actually pay — headline plan price, typical app costs, transaction fees, and the realistic total. No promotional rates, no asterisks.
The Real Cost Problem
Why "cheapest ecommerce" is harder to answer than it looks
Most "cheapest ecommerce platform" comparisons list the starter plan price and call it done. That's fine if you're comparing two products at a supermarket. It's misleading if you're comparing platforms that monetise through app ecosystems, transaction fees, and paid add-ons rather than through their plan price.
The real cost of running a UK ecommerce store has three components: the platform plan, the apps and plugins you need to make it function properly, and any transaction fees charged on top of payment processing. For some platforms — including Shopify — these three things together push the all-in monthly cost two to four times above the advertised plan price.
This page compares all three components for the main UK ecommerce platforms in 2026. Prices are in pounds sterling and reflect rates as of mid-2026. Platform pricing changes; check the official pricing pages before committing.
We've also included the things beyond monthly cost that UK sellers need to consider: VAT compliance, Consumer Contracts Regulations, Stripe UK processing rates, and Royal Mail integration — because a "cheap" platform that requires expensive add-ons for UK-specific compliance isn't as cheap as it appears.
Full Price Comparison · 2026
What UK sellers actually pay per month
The table below uses the following assumptions: a UK seller with 50–200 products needing SEO tools, email marketing, basic analytics, and a blog. These are not edge-case requirements — they're the standard toolkit for any UK ecommerce business trying to grow without paying for every customer.
| Platform | SellKit | Shopify Basic | WooCommerce | Wix | Squarespace |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Base plan price | £8.49 all features included |
£19 before any apps |
£0 plugin is free |
£17 Core plan/month |
£17 Basic Commerce/yr billing |
| Hosting | ✓ Included | ✓ Included | ✗ £10–25/mo | ✓ Included | ✓ Included |
| SSL certificate | ✓ Included | ✓ Included | Via host (usually incl.) | ✓ Included | ✓ Included |
| SEO tools | ✓ Full — £0 | ✗ App: £10–30/mo | ✗ Plugin: £0–10/mo | Basic only | Limited |
| Blog | ✓ Included | ✓ Included | ✓ Included | ✓ Included | ✓ Included |
| Email marketing | ✓ Included — £0 | ✗ App: £10–40/mo | ✗ Plugin: £5–20/mo | Basic (Wix Ascend extra) | Basic plan included |
| Analytics & attribution | ✓ Included — £0 | ✗ App: £15–30/mo | ✗ Plugin required | Basic analytics | Basic analytics |
| UK VAT invoicing | ✓ Included — £0 | ✗ App: £10–25/mo | ✗ Plugin: £6–10/mo | Limited | Limited |
| Marketing automation | ✓ Included — £0 | ✗ App: £15–40/mo | ✗ Plugin: £5–25/mo | Ascend add-on required | Not included |
| Transaction fees | ✓ None | ✗ 2% (non-Shopify Pay) | ✓ None | ✓ None | ✓ None (Commerce) |
| Free training | ✓ 7 courses | ✗ None | ✗ None | ✗ None | ✗ None |
| Realistic all-in monthly cost | £8.49 | £40–70 | £25–55 | £17–30 | £17–35 |
Prices in GBP. Shopify prices at official UK rates as of 2026. WooCommerce hosting range reflects managed vs. shared hosting. Wix and Squarespace monthly pricing assumes annual billing. App/plugin cost ranges are indicative of the most commonly used tools in each category.
Platform-by-platform: what you actually get for your money
SellKit
£8.49/moThe lowest all-in cost of any full-featured UK ecommerce platform. One price covers everything — no apps, no add-ons. SEO tools, blog, email marketing, analytics, marketing automation, and VAT-compliant invoicing are all included. Zero transaction fees. Stripe UK integration and Royal Mail Click and Drop support built in. Seven free training courses in the dashboard.
Best for: UK sellers who want a properly equipped store at the lowest possible monthly cost, without managing a stack of apps or a WordPress installation.
Start free →Shopify Basic
£19 → £40–70/moShopify's advertised £19/month plan becomes £40–70/month for a properly equipped UK store. The gap is filled by apps: SEO (£10–30), email (£10–40), reviews (£10–20), VAT invoicing (£10–25). On top, the 2% transaction fee on non-Shopify Payments orders adds meaningful cost at any sales volume. The platform itself is excellent — the business model around it is expensive.
Best for: UK sellers doing significant volume (£30,000+/month) who need Shopify's enterprise-scale app ecosystem and have the margins to absorb the platform cost.
WooCommerce
£0 plugin → £25–55/moThe WooCommerce plugin is free but the total monthly cost is not. Managed hosting from SiteGround or Kinsta runs £10–25/month for reliable performance. Add Yoast or Rank Math (free to £99/year), a backup plugin (£3–10/month), a security plugin, and the WooCommerce UK VAT plugin (£69/year) — you're at £25–55/month before a developer touches anything. No platform transaction fees, which helps.
Best for: technically confident UK sellers who want complete control over their store, or those who need a specific WooCommerce plugin that doesn't exist on other platforms.
Wix eCommerce
£17–25/moWix is more honestly priced than Shopify — the Core plan (£17/month) genuinely covers most basics with no transaction fees. The advanced marketing and automation features that serious sellers need require the Business plan (£25/month) or Wix Ascend (separate subscription). SEO is functional but limited compared to WooCommerce or SellKit. For small catalogues and beginner sellers, Wix is clean and accessible.
Best for: first-time UK sellers with small product ranges who prioritise ease of use and don't need advanced ecommerce features.
Squarespace
£17–35/moSquarespace's Basic Commerce plan (£17/month annual) includes zero transaction fees and a genuinely attractive set of templates. It works well for smaller catalogues where brand aesthetics are central to the proposition. Above that, the Advanced Commerce plan (£35/month) adds abandoned cart recovery, subscriptions, and advanced shipping. The pricing is honest; the SEO capabilities are limited relative to the cost.
Best for: UK sellers in creative industries — fashion, art, photography — where design quality is a direct sales driver.
Ecwid Free
£0 (5 products max)The only genuinely free option on this list for selling products online. Ecwid's free tier allows up to 5 products with no transaction fees and no monthly charge. It embeds into any existing website (WordPress, Wix, Squarespace, or a plain HTML page). For a UK seller with a tiny product range who already has a website, it's a legitimate zero-cost option. Above 5 products, you're on a paid plan (from £17/month).
Best for: UK sellers with 1–5 products who already have an existing website and want to add ecommerce without rebuilding it.
The true cost over 12 months — a UK seller's view
Monthly cost is how you feel the platform expense. Annual cost is how you should evaluate it. Below is a 12-month cost calculation for a typical UK ecommerce seller with these requirements: product catalogue of 50–150 items, SEO-driven growth strategy, email list of under 2,000 subscribers, basic analytics, no large developer budget.
| Cost Component | SellKit | Shopify Basic | WooCommerce |
|---|---|---|---|
| Platform plan (12 months) | £101.88 | £228 | £0 |
| Hosting (12 months) | Included | Included | £150–300 |
| SEO tools (12 months) | Included | £120–360 | £0–120 (Yoast free tier / paid) |
| Email marketing (12 months) | Included | £120–480 | £60–240 |
| Analytics & attribution (12 months) | Included | £180–360 | £60–200 |
| UK VAT invoicing (12 months) | Included | £120–300 | £69 |
| Security / backups (12 months) | Included | Included | £36–120 |
| Transaction fees (on £3,000/mo sales) | £0 | £720 (2% × £3k × 12) | £0 |
| 12-month total | ~£102 | ~£1,490–2,450 | ~£375–1,050 |
Transaction fee calculation uses £3,000/month in sales as a baseline. Shopify assumes all sales via non-Shopify Payments (2% Basic plan rate). Stripe processing fees (1.5% + 20p per UK card) apply universally to all platforms and are not included above. WooCommerce range reflects managed hosting + essential paid plugins.
What UK sellers overlook when comparing platform costs
Stripe UK processing fees
Every platform connects to Stripe, PayPal, or both. Stripe UK charges 1.5% + 20p for UK Visa and Mastercard transactions, 2.5% + 20p for EU cards, and 3.25% + 20p for other international cards. These fees are non-negotiable and identical regardless of which ecommerce platform you use. They're the baseline cost of accepting card payments in the UK and should not be included in platform comparisons — they belong in your payment processing budget.
Domain registration
A .co.uk domain typically costs £6–10/year. A .com runs £10–15/year. Namecheap and 123-Reg are the most popular UK registrars. Some platforms include a free subdomain (shopname.myshopify.com, shopname.wixsite.com) — but selling on a subdomain of someone else's platform looks unprofessional and hurts SEO. Budget for your own domain regardless of which platform you choose.
VAT and tax compliance tools
Once you cross the £90,000 VAT registration threshold (or choose to register voluntarily), your platform needs to generate VAT-compliant invoices showing your VAT number, the VAT amount, and the net and gross values on every order. On SellKit, this is built in and configured automatically. On Shopify, you need an app. On WooCommerce, you need a plugin. That's an ongoing monthly cost that should factor into your platform comparison before you launch, not after you've crossed the VAT threshold mid-year.
Migration costs if you choose wrong
Switching platforms mid-stream costs time and potentially SEO equity. Products need exporting and importing, URLs need redirecting, themes need rebuilding. A developer migration from Shopify to WooCommerce typically costs £500–2,000 depending on catalogue size and complexity. Choosing a platform with realistic long-term costs from the start is cheaper than switching later. SellKit's migration tool accepts Shopify CSV exports directly and generates 301 redirects automatically — but the best migration is the one you never need to do.
Klarna and Clearpay — buy now, pay later for UK buyers
UK consumers increasingly expect BNPL (buy now, pay later) at checkout, particularly for purchases over £50. Klarna and Clearpay (Afterpay's UK brand) are the dominant providers. Both charge merchants a fee per transaction (typically 2–6% depending on average order value and volume). On some platforms, BNPL integration requires a paid app. On SellKit, Klarna and Clearpay integration is available without additional apps. Not a headline platform cost, but relevant if your average order value makes BNPL adoption worthwhile.
The verdict: which is genuinely the cheapest ecommerce platform for UK sellers?
For a UK seller with a real product catalogue, a growth strategy, and the standard set of tools a functioning ecommerce business needs: SellKit is the cheapest ecommerce platform available in 2026, by a significant margin. The all-in monthly cost of £8.49 compares with £40–70 for a properly equipped Shopify Basic store, £25–55 for WooCommerce, and £17–35 for Wix or Squarespace.
The difference is structural, not a promotional discount. SellKit includes the tools others charge for: SEO, email marketing, analytics, automation, and UK VAT invoicing are all in the base plan. Shopify's model is to charge a competitive plan price and monetise through apps. WooCommerce's model is to charge nothing and monetise through hosting dependency and plugin ecosystem complexity. SellKit's model is to charge a single honest price and include everything in it.
If you're building a UK ecommerce store in 2026 and want the lowest total cost of ownership with the least operational complexity, SellKit is the logical starting point. Below £8.49/month, the only option is Ecwid's free tier — limited to five products and dependent on a separate website.
If your needs genuinely require something SellKit doesn't offer — a specific WooCommerce plugin, Shopify's enterprise integrations, or Squarespace's design-first templates — choose accordingly. But go in clear-eyed about the real monthly cost, not the headline one.
The cheapest UK ecommerce platform
is the one where the real cost is lowest.
Frequently Asked Questions
Questions about cheap ecommerce in the UK
What is the cheapest ecommerce platform in the UK in 2026?
SellKit at £8.49/month is the cheapest all-in-one ecommerce platform for UK sellers. That price includes SEO tools, email marketing, analytics, and UK VAT invoicing — features that add £20–50/month in app costs on Shopify. For very small catalogues (up to 5 products), Ecwid's free tier is the lowest-cost option.
Is WooCommerce free for UK sellers?
The WooCommerce plugin is free. Running it isn't. Managed hosting costs £10–25/month, essential plugins add £10–30/month, and UK compliance tools (VAT invoicing, GDPR consent) require additional plugins. Realistic total: £25–55/month. That's cheaper than Shopify but more expensive than SellKit, and it requires ongoing technical maintenance.
How much does Shopify actually cost in the UK?
Shopify Basic is £19/month. A properly equipped UK store typically runs £40–70/month once you add essential apps. The 2% transaction fee on non-Shopify Payments orders adds further cost — on £3,000/month in sales, that's £60/month in friction alone. Shopify makes sense at significant volume; below £30,000/month it's hard to justify the all-in cost.
What ecommerce platform has no transaction fees in the UK?
SellKit, WooCommerce, Wix, Squarespace (Commerce plans), and Ecwid all charge zero platform transaction fees. Shopify's Basic plan charges 2% on orders not processed through Shopify Payments. Note that Stripe and PayPal gateway fees (1.5% + 20p for UK cards on Stripe) apply universally regardless of platform.
Is there a truly free ecommerce website builder in the UK?
Ecwid offers a genuinely free plan for up to 5 products. Big Cartel's free plan also covers 5 products. For anything beyond a tiny catalogue, a paid plan is necessary. SellKit at £8.49/month is the cheapest option for an unlimited-product, fully featured UK ecommerce store.
Can I build a cheap online store in the UK for less than £10/month?
Yes. SellKit costs £8.49/month, includes everything for a properly equipped UK ecommerce store, and charges zero transaction fees. Your additional costs are your domain (£10–15/year) and Stripe processing fees. Total annual fixed cost for a fully functioning UK online store: under £103.
Related Guides
More reading for UK sellers
Best Shopify Alternatives UK
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See rankings →Sell Without a Website UK
eBay, Etsy, Vinted, TikTok Shop — how to sell online before you have your own store.
Read guide →SellKit vs Shopify
Side-by-side feature and cost comparison for UK sellers switching from Shopify.
See comparison →Start Selling UK
Step-by-step guide to launching a UK ecommerce business in 2026 — HMRC, Stripe, shipping.
Read guide →The cheapest full-featured UK ecommerce store
£8.49/month. No transaction fees. SEO, email, analytics, and VAT invoicing — all included. No apps needed.
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