How Much does a WooCommerce Store Cost?

• Over 3.8 million websites around the world currently use WooCommerce. (Source: Builtwith)
• WooCommerce recorded a peak of 473,564 downloads in 2020 alone. (Source: WordPress)

The ease of use and strong developer support has surged WooCommerce to the top of the industry. Businesses extensively use this versatile and multi-purpose WordPress plugin to power online storefronts.

The reason why most businesses choose WooCommerce to develop their digital storefronts is that it’s highly customizable. However, to launch a WooCommerce store, you need to be aware of the costs involved in setting it up.

This article focuses on the factors that determine the cost of developing a WooCommerce store.

Hosting and Domain Fees

Firstly, to build a WooCommerce store, it’s crucial to choose a host and purchase a domain.

There is an array of hosting options that you can choose to host your WooCommerce store. AWS, LiquidWeb, and RackSpace are some of these options.

There are a few points that you need to remember before choosing a hosting provider, for example:

• How many sites does your server have? Too many websites can slow down a server.
• Is the customer service up to the mark? You need to check if you will get customer support via different online forums, live chats, and phone calls. Also, you need to verify whether the executives will charge an additional fee for support.
• How are security features? It would be best if you looked for email spam filters, malware prevention, and automatic backups.
• What is the server uptime? It refers to the percentage of time a server is up and running. Look for a high percentage for the best results.

Now coming to the hosting cost. It can be as little as $75 per month and go up to $5000 a month.

The next step is to register for a domain name. To purchase a domain, you need to pay around $15 per domain name each year.

SSL Certificate

SSL stands for Secure Sockets Layer. This is basically a technology that enables the secure transmission of data between servers and browsers. Data is sent and received via an encrypted connection named Hypertext Transfer Protocol Secure or HTTPS.

SSL certification is immensely important as it confirms the identity of a website to both, the visitors and servers. SSL certificates are tiny data files that validate the identity of your organization and are required for the implementation of SSL technology on your official website.

You can get an SSL certificate from a provider at a yearly cost of $100.

WooCommerce Themes

Now we come to an optional expense, which is selecting the theme for your WooCommerce store. Most startup businesses begin with using the free WooCommerce themes, which are simple, well-designed, intuitive, and flexible.

Although the WooCommerce themes are free, open-source, and easy-to-use, they come with limited functionality that can hinder you from adding innovative or creative solutions. Moreover, the free themes are somewhat similar, and often they do not stand out. On the other hand, paid WooCommerce themes are regularly updated, making them extensible, scalable, feature-rich, and eye-catching.

Paid WooCommerce themes may cost you between $20 and $100.

After you’ve selected the hosting option, domain name, and theme, you need to focus on managing the WooCommerce store with absolute efficiency.

Two of the most important aspects that you need to consider while focusing on WooCommerce store management are shipping and payment integrations.

Shipping Options

WooCommerce comes with a range of flat-rate shipping options, which are cost-effective and ideal for small businesses and startups.

However, large-scale businesses can invest in shipping extensions, for example:

• ShipStation Integration (starting at $9 per month)
• Table Rate Shipping (costing around $99)
• Distance Rate Shipping (costing around $79)

You can also hire expert WooCommerce Developers to get the job done easily.

Payment Gateways

Next, you need to invest in a secure payment gateway. Although the cost of integrating each payment gateway differs, the best option is to go for WooCommerce Payments. This lets you maintain your expenses directly in the WooCommerce dashboard.

Another convenient and secure payment gateway is Paypal Pro that costs around $30 per month. Other popular options are:

• Stripe (costing 2.9% + $0.30 for every online credit card transaction and 2.7% + $0.30 for every in-person credit card transaction using a Stripe terminal. Stripe terminals start at $59)
• Authorize.net (costing around $25 per month)

To Summarize

It isn’t easy to put a fixed price tag for creating a WooCommerce store since expenses significantly differ depending on various factors.

The key is to map out your user journey and, accordingly, spend on hosting, domain, themes, shipping, and payment gateways, to convert your online shoppers into customers.

To create a profit-generating WooCommerce store on-budget, schedule a call with us.

We’ll help you fully leverage the best options to create a high-converting storefront that genuinely stands out.