An ecommerce content management system (CMS) allows you to present a well-designed, trustworthy website, integrating a user-friendly front-end interface with secure back-end management.
The importance of ecommerce CMS platforms is growing, as eMarketer data projects global ecommerce sales to reach almost $8 trillion by 2028.
This guide covers the top CMS platforms powering successful online stores and the key features that set the best ecommerce CMS platforms apart.
What is an ecommerce CMS?
An ecommerce CMS, also known as an ecommerce content management system or ecommerce management system, is software that enables businesses to create and manage digital content on their online stores. That content can include multimedia web pages, product listings, blog posts, and more.
According to Grandview Research, the content management software market size reached almost $35 billion in 2025 and is expected to grow to $77.77 billion in 2033, at a compound annual growth rate (CAGR) of 10.6%.
CMS vs. ecommerce platform
A CMS supports the digital management of content, and an ecommerce platform specifically enables checkout and sales. You don’t always need a separate CMS for ecommerce; platforms like Shopify combine the two.
Here are the key differences between the two:
| Standalone CMS | Full ecommerce platform | |
|---|---|---|
| Responsibilities | Collection, management, and organization of digital content like blog posts, landing pages, media assets, and more. | Enables digital commerce through cart and checkout functionality, payment processing, product organization, and inventory and order management. |
| Flexibility | Very high flexibility on both the front end and back end. | Open-source or headless ecommerce platforms can be very flexible. SaaS ecommerce platforms can be less flexible but have lower setup times. |
| Typical use cases | Blogs, portfolios, media sites, and content-first brands. Also works well for creators who initially build a content site and later add commerce. | Brands selling physical or digital goods, marketplaces, crafts, and subscription models. Cases where full commerce features are required from the start. |
Types of ecommerce CMS solutions
There are two primary types of CMS platforms—software-as-a-service (SaaS) and open source. Headless ecommerce platforms and/or API-first solutions are also options, though they are distinct trade-off models.
SaaS
SaaS ecommerce CMS services charge a subscription fee to use a CMS hosted in the cloud, ensuring ease of use, security, and continuous updates. Shopify and Squarespace are examples of SaaS platforms.
Pros of using a SaaS ecommerce CMS
- Lower upfront costs
- Ease of use
- Scalability
- Automatic updates
- Access from anywhere
- Integrated payment options
- Built-in security features
Cons of using a SaaS ecommerce CMS
- Less customizable than open source platforms
Open source
Open source ecommerce CMS platforms are free to download and adapt, giving users more options for customization. However, they typically require technical coding expertise to operate.
Open-source CMSs provide more control but require managing ecommerce security, hosting, and platform updates on your own. WordPress is an example of open-source software.
Pros of using open source software for ecommerce CMS
- Free to download and use
- Fully customizable
Cons of open source software
- Web hosting and development services, which are not included, can get expensive
- Must have development expertise
- Users must manage their own website security
Along with the above cons, Julian Klenda, founder and CEO at Maine Lobster Now, says, “There’s a weird maintenance aspect to plug-ins on other platforms, where you feel really married to this plug-in, but then there’s a required update that they aren’t maintaining for the long run.”
Headless CMS vs. traditional CMS for ecommerce
Headless commerce is a model of ecommerce architecture where the front end is separated from the back end of the website. Because businesses can make changes to the front end without having to touch the back end, it provides more flexibility and freedom.
Brands might choose a headless architecture to provide a more omnichannel brand experience or build a customized website.
When a headless CMS is API-first, the back end is entirely decoupled from the front end. APIs deliver content from the back end to any front end you choose, across channels like web and mobile. Shopify Hydrogen supports this model alongside platforms like Contentful and Sanity.
In contrast to headless commerce, traditional commerce (monolithic systems) couples front-end and back-end systems. While less customizable, they are also less complex to set up.
Choosing a headless versus monolithic model is a key part of your ecommerce strategy. Below, review the benefits of headless architecture.
Benefits of headless architecture
Applying this concept to commerce provides:
- Omnichannel experience. Craft more enriching customer experiences by unifying online and in-store shopping. Provide a multitouchpoint delivery experience: Statista reports that mobile devices accounted for 52.27% of global website traffic in Q1 of 2026.
- Rich personalization. Because headless CMS solutions centralize all customer information, it’s easier to show personalized content based on prior purchases and keep online and in-store purchases reconciled.
- Flexibility. Take a more modular development process and choose your ideal tech stack with no limitations.
- Agility and speed to market. You can benefit from faster web development, as developers can work on the front end and back end of your website at the same time.
- Scalability and performance. Grow your website on the front end without disrupting your store’s core ecommerce functionality on the back end.
Brands like Taschen, Denim Tears, Ruggable, and BYLT chose the benefits of headless commerce. They’ve achieved strong results going headless or building custom storefronts with Shopify’s Hydrogen framework.

Taschen publishing house saw a 20% increase in sales after switching to a headless CMS on the Shopify Plus plan. “Shopify Plus improved the customer experience, our sense of control, and enabled new products to come into play,” says Gaëlle Mehanna, ecommerce director at Taschen.

Denim Tears’ agency, Kamp Grizzly, leveraged Shopify’s Hydrogen framework and saved time to deliver on Tremaine Emory’s storytelling, museum-like vision.

After switching to a headless CMS, Ruggable gained more than faster site speed and greater reliability. “The site is so much faster for our customers, leading to conversion and SEO boosts. Google sees our website as being much faster now and is sending a lot more traffic to us, which is fantastic,” says Daniel Graupensperger, director of product management at Ruggable.

“Since moving to Hydrogen, we’ve seen immediate improvements in site performance and server-side rendering,” says Ryan Groh, head of ecommerce at BYLT.
The brand was able to unify brick-and-mortar and ecommerce segments of the business, resulting in expansion from one to seven profitable retail stores. It also drove more than 50% of DTC conversions through Shopify Payments.
Read: DTC to Brick-and-Mortar: 11 Brands That Opened Stores
When to choose traditional vs. headless
Both traditional and headless CMS options for ecommerce come with pros and cons. When contemplating which style is best for your business, consider the following:
- Technical resources. While headless systems allow for a great amount of flexibility, they also take a lot of time to build and maintain.
- Overall budget. Headless platforms are significantly more expensive to develop and maintain than traditional platforms.
- Go-To-Market urgency. A traditional ecommerce engine is fast to deploy, whereas headless solutions can take months to build.
- Current or projected revenue. Businesses that choose the headless route often generate more than $100 million in online revenue, versus between $20 million and $50 million with the traditional route.
- Unique criteria. You may have specialized requirements a traditional ecommerce CMS cannot provide.
Top 9 ecommerce CMS platforms
Here are some of the top ecommerce CMS platforms, with their features and pricing. Some starting prices, while listed monthly, are tied to an annual contract. Prices are subject to change at each platform’s discretion.
| Platform | Who it’s for | Starting price |
|---|---|---|
| Shopify | Ecommerce businesses of all sizes | $5 per month |
| BigCommerce | Large enterprises | $29 per month, billed annually |
| WordPress + WooCommerce | Bloggers and content-led sites | Free + hosting/add-ons |
| Drupal | Users with some coding skills | Free + hosting/add-ons |
| Adobe Commerce | Enterprise (B2C and B2B) | Custom (contact Adobe) |
| OpenCart | Small, simple stores | Free + hosting/add-ons |
| Wix | Simple website needs | $17 per month, billed annually |
| HubSpot | Inbound marketing and CRM | Free; Content Hub from $15 per month per seat |
| Squarespace | Simple sites; content creators | $16 per month, billed annually |
Shopify
Shopify is an all-in-one ecommerce CMS solution designed to help store owners easily build and manage their online businesses. With affordable plans, beautiful designs, and powerful selling features, Shopify is the easiest, most reliable way to start an online store.
Shopify captures the largest share of websites in the US that use ecommerce technology, at 28.21%.
Use the AI store builder to create a free store design in minutes or get started with one of many ready-built themes. Adam Wolfe, founder and CEO at Boost Auto says, “Within a couple hours I was live and selling.”
Once designed, content management is easy with Shopify’s intuitive user interface (UI) and asset library.
From there, Shopify’s ecommerce functionality handles all of the essential functions of an online store, from inventory management to payment processing.
Who it’s for
Shopify is built for ecommerce businesses of all sizes, from solopreneurs to large enterprises to everywhere in between.
Features
- AI tools. Use Shopify Magic to streamline your store design process and create landing pages and product listings, then tap Sidekick as your always-on business consultant.
- Integrated payment processing. Shopify Payments is an integrated payment gateway that accepts all major payment methods. Plus, more than 100 third-party payment providers are compatible.
- Extensive app store. Access the Shopify App Store for more than 8,000 integrations.
- Customizable checkout. Offer customers a variety of payment options, including express checkout, in-store pickup, discount codes, and Shop Pay—the internet’s highest-converting checkout option.
- Shopify POS. Integrate with physical retail through Shopify POS, blending online and offline sales channels.
- Shipping and fulfillment. Built-in order, inventory, and shipping tools generate labels, collect import taxes, provide tracking information, manage returns, and more.
- Abandoned cart recovery. Boost sales with automated tools for recovering abandoned shopping carts.
- SEO tools. Shopify’s built in SEO features handle the minutiae of SEO work—such as generating robots.txt and appending your brand name to meta titles—for you.
- Advanced analytics. Track sales, customer behavior, and other essential ecommerce metrics with robust analytics and reporting features.
- Advanced customization and API access. While coding isn’t required, you can tailor your storefront and back-end systems to meet your unique needs with extensive customization options and API support.
- Omnichannel and multichannel commerce capabilities. Ensure a consistent customer experience and manage inventory seamlessly across desktop, mobile, social media, marketplace, and in-person retail.
- 24/7 customer support. Enjoy round-the-clock support via email, live chat, and phone.
Plans and pricing
Shopify offers a wide range of plans to support businesses of all sizes:
- Starter: $5 per month
- Basic: $29 per month billed annually
- Grow: $95 per month billed annually
- Advanced: $360 per month billed annually
- Plus: From $2,300 per month
Start your Shopify free trial, no credit card required. Get three days free, then the first three months for $1 per month.
BigCommerce
BigCommerce is an “open SaaS” ecommerce platform, meaning it has SaaS functionality with an open API. BigCommerce has an enterprise-grade product along with an Essentials product for small businesses.
Who it’s for
BigCommerce’s primary product is for large enterprises.
Features
- Basic website builder functionality. BigCommerce’s ecommerce CMS for small businesses comes with basic website builder tools such as drag-and-drop page design and built-in mobile responsiveness.
- SEO capabilities. BigCommerce comes with SEO features like clean URLs and automatic redirects.
- Multichannel selling. Business owners can integrate their stores with social media and marketplace platforms, allowing them to sell products through these channels.
- Scalable infrastructure. BigCommerce’s enterprise product can handle high volumes of traffic and transactions.
Plans and pricing
BigCommerce pricing ranges from a Core plan at $29 per month to a Scale plan at $299 per month, billed annually, with a 15-day free trial. Contact sales for Enterprise pricing.
WordPress + WooCommerce
WordPress is an open-source content management system made for bloggers. You can use a WordPress site as an ecommerce CMS with the addition of the WooCommerce plug-in, which provides ecommerce functionality like payment gateways. Or, add on Shopify for WordPress instead.
Who it’s for
WordPress can be used by anyone, but it was originally built for bloggers.
Features
- Familiar UI for some. If you’re familiar with WordPress’s user interface, this allows you to use a platform you already know for managing ecommerce content.
- Customizable and extendable. WordPress has thousands of plug-ins and modifiable themes to extend the functionality of a WordPress website and help customize it. This can be a drawback for those unfamiliar with website development, as customization may require knowledge of HTML and CSS.
Plans and pricing
WordPress and WooCommerce are free. However, there are hosting costs, as well as expenses associated with domain registration, themes, payment gateways, plug-ins, and more.
Drupal
Drupal is an open-source CMS that offers deep customization but requires technical expertise. Drupal commerce is an open-source Drupal module that adds ecommerce tools like products, carts, checkout, and orders. Payment gateways, shipping, and fulfillment are available through contributed extensions.
Drupal is flexible and customizable, but as an open-source software, it requires more technical expertise than ecommerce website builders. Drupal recently released a more user friendly CMS version called Drupal CMS 2.0, which features a tool called Drupal Canvas for editing. The update also includes optional AI tools.
Who it’s for
Drupal is for users with some coding skills.
Features
- Customization. With many modules and themes and the ability to write custom modules, businesses can tailor their online presence.
- Scalability. The platform is designed to scale with the growth of a business while maintaining security standards.
Plans and pricing
Drupal is a free open-source software. However, there are costs for hosting, registering a domain name, themes, payment gateways, and more.
Adobe Commerce
Adobe Commerce, formerly known as Magento, is an ecommerce platform that includes a CMS component, designed to enable both business-to-consumer (B2C) and business-to-business (B2B) transactions. Adobe Commerce is designed for large, enterprise-level companies looking
for a highly customizable platform.
Anis Tayebali, senior vice president of engineering at Lulu and Georgia found that the “Adobe Commerce app ecosystem wasn’t mature, and their integrations were not seamless.”
“There weren’t enough integrations and apps to help us scale and improve the site,” Anis says. “There wasn’t even a solid offering for basic reporting—and with Shopify, even the bare-bone offerings are solid.”
Who it’s for
Adobe Commerce is geared toward enterprise businesses.
Features
- B2B buying portals. Adobe Commerce allows B2B businesses to create self-serve B2B buying experiences.
- Inventory management. The platform offers inventory management to support B2C and B2B catalogs. It facilitates omnichannel sales by letting customers buy online and pick up orders in the store, or BOPIS.
- Enriched content. Modular capabilities allow product information and product links to be embedded in blog articles.
Plans and pricing
Adobe Commerce offers Adobe Commerce Pro and Managed Services plans. Contact Adobe for pricing information.
OpenCart
OpenCart is an open-source ecommerce platform. Its free version requires businesses to secure their own ecommerce website hosting. It integrates with common payment processors and other third-party apps.
After replatforming from OpenCart to Shopify, Christy Ng saw a 400% revenue growth, 50% reduction in checkout time, and a 97% decrease in order processing time.
Who it’s for
OpenCart is for owners of small, simple stores.
Features
- SEO functionality. OpenCart offers built-in SEO tools to help your site show up in search results.
- Multilingual and multicurrency support. The platform supports multiple languages and currencies.
- Marketplace of designs. You can find templated page designs and themes in OpenCart’s marketplace. Some are free, and some are available for a fee.
Plans and pricing
OpenCart is free. However, hosting, domain registration, themes, payment gateways, and more will cost you.
Wix
Wix is a website builder and CMS offering design templates and a drag-and-drop interface for simple website design. Wix offers some ecommerce features, but it isn’t purpose-built for ecommerce.
Who it’s for
Wix can be used by anyone with basic website needs.
Features
- Simple website builder. Wix’s drag-and-drop functionality lets users design their ecommerce store without coding.
- Templates. Design templates give users a head start in creating an online storefront.
- Integrated ecommerce features. Wix includes tools for inventory management, payment processing, and shipping.
Plans and pricing
Wix offers plans starting with Light at $17 per month and ranging to its Business Elite plan at $159 per month. Its Enterprise plan is available for businesses with custom pricing. It extends a 14-day money-back guarantee.
HubSpot
HubSpot is a software company best known for its customer relationship management (CRM) and marketing tools, but it also offers a CMS. HubSpot’s CMS isn’t purpose-built for ecommerce, but you can add ecommerce capabilities using HubSpot payment links or by integrating an existing Shopify store.
Who it’s for
HubSpot is for businesses that rely on inbound marketing and customer relationship management.
Features
- CRM-powered CMS. HubSpot’s CMS is integrated with its CRM system, which can help you enable personalized customer experiences.
- Drag-and-drop page builder. HubSpot’s drag-and-drop page builder can help you build a website without extensive technical knowledge.
- Blog maker. The platform offers a blog maker, allowing users to publish SEO-friendly content with the goal of driving traffic to their website.
Plans and pricing
HubSpot CMS offers a free forever plan. Paid plans for Content Hub start at $15 per month, per seat when billed annually.
Squarespace
Squarespace is a website builder letting business owners create sites with predesigned templates. Its templated styles are both a benefit and a constraint—Squarespace is known for being minimalist and professional-looking, but allows fewer customization options.
Squarespace has integrated ecommerce capabilities as well as web hosting services. It also offers additional features for content creators, such as a course builder.
Who it’s for
Anyone with simple website needs can use Squarespace, and the platform has additional features for content creators.
Features
- Design templates. Professionally designed templates cater to specific industries and professions, like restaurants, content creators, and photographers.
- Membership content tools. Squarespace allows you to gate specific content, like blog articles, behind a paywall, so it’s available only to members.
- SEO tools. Squarespace integrates with Google Search Console and has basic SEO tools like clean URLs and an auto-generated sitemap.
Plans and pricing
Squarespace offers a 14-day free trial. Paid plans that include commerce features start with Basic at $16 per month, billed annually, and range to the Advanced plan at $99 per month when billed annually.
Must-have ecommerce CMS features
- Catalog management
- Ease of use
- AI tools
- Drag-and-drop page builder
- Media management
- Support for integrations
- SEO features
- Omnichannel content delivery
- Localization and multicurrency support
- Site speed and performance
When choosing an ecommerce CMS, the core ecommerce CMS features to look for include customizable templates, SEO features, a user-friendly interface, support for integrations, omnichannel content delivery, and more.
Catalog management
Essential ecommerce features to look for in a CMS include catalog management tools. Look for solutions that make listing products fast and simple, offer variant creation, and inventory tracking. Ensure the platform also has ecommerce product management features.
Ease of use
You probably didn’t become an ecommerce entrepreneur to spend your days tinkering with your online store. An intuitive, easy-to-use ecommerce CMS platform will cut down on time spent managing the technical aspects of running your ecommerce site, so you can focus on growing your business.
For example, home fragrance brand Pura reduced development time related to checkout functionality by 50% with Shopify.
Look for an easy-to-navigate dashboard, clear settings, and a high-quality help center (to minimize the need for technical support).
Adam Wolfe, founder and CEO at Boost Auto, says, “It was pretty clear I needed to go with Shopify. It was what felt right for long-term success, and it was just so intuitive.”
AI tools
According to Precedence Research, the market size of AI tools for ecommerce was $11.21 billion in 2026 and is expected to grow to almost $75 billion in 2035 at a compound annual growth rate (CAGR) of 23.59%.
This data shows that AI tools for business are becoming essential features for ecommerce owners, as a way to boost efficiency and accelerate growth.
For example, Shopify’s AI tools, Magic and Sidekick, make the platform’s user friendly interface even more accessible.
“That’s where Shopify Magic comes in, because it is so much better than myself and most of my staff,” says Mikey Moran, founder and CEO at Private Label Extensions.
Drag-and-drop website builder
Drag-and-drop website builders enable non-technical users to create professional websites with little design or coding experience.
When evaluating the best fit for your business needs, look for SEO tools, customizable templates, AI tools, design options that match your brand style, and robust ecommerce tools.
Media management
A great ecommerce CMS will make it simple to manage your digital assets by creating a library of the photos, blogs, videos, and PDFs you’ve used on your website. This organized system can help you save time creating and updating content.
Support for integrations
A robust ecommerce CMS will offer a wide range of integrations with other ecommerce software to make for seamless ecommerce functionality and boost efficiency. For example, an ecommerce CMS might integrate with your customer relationship management (CRM) system, email platform, and inventory management software.
A large app ecosystem can be powerful. For example, Adam Wolfe, founder and CEO at Boost Auto, says, “When we started out, it was just me and the app ecosystem.”
SEO features
A content management system with built-in search engine optimization (SEO) tools helps you optimize product descriptions, images, and other content for search engines like Google. Look for a CMS that automatically generates robots.txt and sitemap.xml files—which help search engines crawl your website—and adds canonical tags to pages to prevent duplicate content from harming your search performance.
For businesses using Shopify, implementing Shopify SEO techniques can help increase search engine rankings. Ecommerce SEO features can also help you improve the success of your content marketing strategy with optimized metadata. Effective content marketing can help you build search engine visibility and develop audience trust.
Beyond traditional search, AI shopping assistants like Google AI Mode, Gemini, and Perplexity also rely on structured data and robots.txt access to discover and evaluate products. Use Shopify’s free audit tool to check whether your product pages have the schema markup and crawler access these AI assistants need.
In 2025, 33% of holiday shoppers said they planned to use generative AI while they shop, double the percentage from 2024. Whether shoppers use traditional organic search or GenAI tools, use the SEO tools in your CMS to increase your site’s visibility.
Omnichannel content delivery
Omnichannel commerce means enabling customers to browse, interact, and purchase across interconnected channels, whether that’s online, via mobile, IoT/connected devices, in-store, or on social media, with a seamless, consistent experience.
Ecommerce CMS platforms (especially headless or omnichannel CMSs) support this by delivering unified content across multiple touchpoints.
Read: Omnichannel vs. Multichannel: Key Differences
Localization and multicurrency support
Look for CMS solutions that offer localization and multicurrency support. That means translating your store into different languages based on the regions in which you sell, and offering payment gateways that support local currencies globally.
With help from Shopify, Snuggle Hunny grew their international sales from 5% to 15% of total sales.
Site speed and performance
The ecommerce CMS you choose should prioritize site load time and fast performance across channels. These are considered core web vitals by Google and integral to how it ranks your site. They’re also user experience (UX) factors, and affect website usage and sales.
For example, Ruggable improved site speed, stability, SEO, and conversions by moving to a headless site architecture with Shopify.
How to choose the right ecommerce CMS for your business
Whether you’re choosing an ecommerce CMS for the first time or making a crucial replatforming decision, it’s important to make the right call.
On the technical side, you’ll want to look at scalability, integration capabilities, development flexibility, and security. From a business perspective, consider factors like an intuitive interface, ease of use for non-technical teams, total cost of ownership, time to market, and support for growth strategies like omnichannel selling.
A 5-step framework for choosing an ecommerce CMS
“Our greatest frustration was seeing our budgets tied up in maintaining the platform, rather than channeling those resources into creating exceptional experiences for our customers,” says Richard Voyce, digital director at The Conran Shop, of the team’s experience with Magento (now known as Adobe Commerce).
Below is a five-step framework for choosing the best ecommerce CMS for your team from the start:
- Start with your business stage. Assess your current order volume, catalog size, team size, and growth trajectory.
- Narrow down the platform type. Decide between a hosted all-in-one platform like Shopify that handles hosting, security, and updates for you, a self-hosted open-source platform you maintain yourself, or a general-purpose CMS with ecommerce added through plug-ins.
- List your must-have features. Write down your non-negotiables, then check each shortlisted platform against that list rather than its marketing.
- Weigh the actual cost. Look past the monthly subscription to total cost of ownership, including transaction fees, apps, hosting, and developer time. After replatforming from Magento to Shopify, The Conran Shop saw a 50% reduction in total cost of ownership.
- Validate before committing. Start a free trial, build a test store, and run through workflows (like adding products, configuring checkout, testing a payment, and previewing on mobile) to confirm whether the platform feels right for your team.
Evaluation criteria checklist
When evaluating CMS ecommerce solutions, these are the minimum capabilities you should expect:
- Table-stakes ecommerce features. Product and inventory management, shipping and fulfillment, order tracking, customer data management, and robust security measures.
- AI-powered tools. Features like auto-generated product descriptions, personalized recommendations, and image editing.
- Integrated payment processing. Acceptance of all major methods, from credit cards to digital wallets.
- Ecosystem support. An extensive app store or integrations that plug into your existing tech stack.
- Flexible checkout. Customizable flows with express options, discount codes, and in-store pickup.
- Analytics and reporting. Visibility into performance across all sales channels.
- Omnichannel capabilities. Seamless selling across web, mobile, social, marketplaces, and in-store.
- Customer support. Responsive, helpful service when you need it.
- Marketing automation. Tools like abandoned cart recovery, email campaigns, and retargeting.
- Scalability. Advanced features for international selling, B2B, wholesale, and enterprise growth.
- Site speed and performance. Fast loading times across platforms and devices: desktop and mobile.
B2B ecommerce CMS considerations
Grandview Research projects the global B2B ecommerce market to reach $28 trillion in 2026 and $105.9 trillion by 2033. Look for account-specific pricing, the ability to place large or repeat orders quickly, and a self-service experience that mirrors that of a DTC store.
When evaluating a CMS for B2B, look for these capabilities:
- Customized purchasing experiences for each of your customers, including company profiles and customer-specific catalogs.
- Self-service purchasing and account management that supports quick bulk and repeat orders.
- Workflow automations that automate account requests and invoices.
- Design customization to make your wholesale storefront feel on-brand.
A few ecommerce CMS platforms that offer B2B functionality include Adobe Commerce, BigCommerce B2B Edition, Salesforce Commerce, and Shopify Plus B2B.
Shopify Plus B2B stands out for SMB and mid-market store owners:
After launching wholesale on Shopify, &Collar increased wholesale revenue by 418%. Now their wholesale business accounts for 20% of their total revenue.
For Boost Auto, “When a customer orders our product on somebody else’s website, that order just pops right into our system. It can go through all our standard workflows,” says founder and CEO Adam Wolfe.
Swimwear brand Kulani Kinis finds the platform’s branding and design capabilities impactful. “We’re all about branding, appeal and aesthetic, and with Shopify Plus, we’ve been able to make the wholesale store feel like us.”
“Shopify’s B2B capabilities have given us the cohesive brand experience we wanted and customization options that meet the needs of our wholesale partners. We’re not bound by others’ constraints," says co-founder and managing director Alex Babich.
Business size and technical requirements
Here’s a breakdown of which CMS platforms suit small startups, mid-market, and enterprise brands:
Small to medium businesses likely benefit most from a traditional all-in-one ecommerce CMS because of their low upfront cost, ease of getting up and running, and lower maintenance.
Mid-market shops should evaluate all-in-one ecommerce CMS platforms as well as a blended approach between headless and monolithic in order to gain systems like product information management (PIM).
Enterprise brands might prefer headless architecture for its flexibility, customization, and strength as an omnichannel platform. However, a blended approach or scalable commerce platform like Shopify Plus could be the right fit.
Choosing your ecommerce CMS
The right ecommerce CMS depends on your business stage, the types of tools you’re looking for, and how much customization you need. Small businesses and mid-market brands get the most from Shopify, which is an all-in-one, powerful ecommerce CMS solution.
For example, after relaunching on a custom Shopify theme, Puraincreased its conversion rate by 100% and cut subscriber churn by nearly 60%.
Shopify supports Enterprise-level teams too, with headless architecture available. BYLT Basics scaled from one to seven profitable retail locations in under a year after unifying its operations on Shopify.
Ecommerce CMS FAQ
Is Shopify a CMS?
Yes. Shopify is a CMS specifically designed for ecommerce websites.
Which CMS platform is best for ecommerce?
Shopify is among the easiest CMS options for setting up and managing an ecommerce website.
What are the benefits of an ecommerce CMS?
The benefits of an ecommerce CMS include streamlined management of products and content, integrated sales and marketing tools, and the ability to create a personalized customer shopping experience.
What is a CMS for ecommerce?
An essential piece of your ecommerce tech stack, a CMS for ecommerce enables you to manage digital content for your online store. Shopify is an example of an all-in-one CMS for ecommerce.
Can I use a CMS for ecommerce?
Yes, you can use a CMS for ecommerce. Shopify is an example of an all-in-one platform that has a user-friendly CMS, full service site builder, and robust ecommerce tools.












