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Online shopping is a billion-dollar industry and with the wide variety of online stores available, it can be hard to decide where to spend your money. If you’re looking for a way to create and manage your online store, the best option is with an online shopping cart integration. An online shopping cart is a web-based software that businesses can add to their online store for customers to operate as a physical shopping cart. This software allows customers to collect the items they want to purchase and adjust the quantities before checking out. There are many options available to choose from, but here’s a list of the 10 best online shopping cart software solutions for small businesses to help you get started.
A Review of the Top 10 Website Shopping Cart Software
Businesses need more than just a robust eCommerce platform to please their customers. A long and confusing checkout is one of the top reasons users abandon their shopping cart.
1. Shopify
Shopify is an eCommerce platform that allows you to create a unique online store with the ability to sell products and services. This software is designed to help you manage your inventory, orders, and customers with ease. The software provides a checkout that is easy to navigate and a reporting feature that lets you view how well your online shop is doing.
Shopify pricing and features
Shopify employs powerful features, including:
- Easy website integration
- Automatic SEO generation
- Multiple shipping options
- Cross-border selling capabilities
For only $9 per month, Shopify offers several different types of packages with their free trial, including Basic Shopify ($29.99/month), Shopify ($79.99/month), and Advanced Shopify ($299.99/month).
2. BigCommerce
Similar to Shopify, BigCommerce also allows you to create an online store with the ability to sell products and services. With their user-friendly interface, BigCommerce gives you the ability to design your own storefront while simultaneously taking care of hosting and maintenance for you. From small businesses to large enterprises, Bigcommerce has been supporting companies since 1998.
BigCommerce pricing and features
With over 175 features that include:
- Customizable templates
- Multiple selling tools
- Real-time shipping quotes
Bigcommerce ensures that all your needs are satisfied without breaking the bank. The platform has five different plans available for use, starting at $24.95 per month plus a 14-day free trial period.
3. Magento
When it comes to website shopping cart solutions, Magento offers one of the best options available. This online shopping cart software is perfect for small businesses that are looking to customize their website design. Magento provides users with an open-source code, which makes it easy to integrate with your current website. With this unique feature, you have the ability to change your site in any way you see fit with absolutely no coding experience required.
Magento pricing and features
This product allows you to create an online store that:
- Is integrated with SEO and multiple languages and currencies
- Includes personalized emails for each customer purchase
- Helps you design a unique storefront
- Has the ability to track the number of visitors who viewed certain products in order to measure conversion rates
eCommerce solutions from Magento start at $29 per month and include a free 30-day trial.
4. OpenCart
OpenCart offers eCommerce solutions with an online store that is user-friendly and easy to customize. You can design, launch, and manage your website with the click of a few buttons. This software also offers customized templates with thousands of free Google web fonts for you to choose from. It automatically creates meta tags, headings, titles, short descriptions, and long descriptions.
OpenCart pricing and features
OpenCart provides users with:
- Tools to send notifications via email when any transaction is completed, including refunds or order creation
- An RSS feed that updates all customers simultaneously through email or RSS feeds when any changes are made on site.
- OpenCart ensures that all necessary customer information is stored securely online in an encrypted format for authorized users only
You can start using OpenCart with a free 30-day trial. There are also several different plans available at varied prices.
5. Zen Cart
Similar to other shopping cart solutions mentioned above, Zen Cart offers the ability to design an online store with the capability to sell products and services. But, unlike the other shopping carts mentioned above, this software allows you to choose your hosting service company as it’s not a hosted solution. This gives users complete control over their websites as there is no third-party involvement when creating or maintaining your website. With this shopping cart solution, you have the ability to manage multiple warehouses and set up taxes for each type of shipping option offered.
ZenCart pricing and features
If you’re looking to create an online store that possesses all the necessary features required by businesses today, then Magento will be the best choice for you. This powerful eCommerce platform provides users with:
- Thousands of free Google web fonts
- Customizable templates
- Customer notifications upon completion of transactions
- SEO integrations
- Multiple languages
Zen Cart has a free 30-day trial with several different plans to choose from ranging anywhere from $24.95 per month up to $599.95 per year depending on your specific business needs.
6. 3dCart
3dCart is a great choice when it comes to creating an online store. This software possesses over 50 features, all of which will help you with your purchase decisions and optimize your website for improved conversion rates. With this product, you have the ability to design a platform that contains customized templates according to your unique preferences.
3dCart pricing and features
With 3dCart, you can:
- Create a powerful storefront in order to sell products and services
- Manage warehouses
- Track inventory
- Set up taxes depending on shipping options offered
- Accept credit card payments (including recurring billing)
- Send out personalized emails for each client purchase (which can include special offers like loyalty programs)
- Monitor customer spending patterns
- Get access to real-time reports upon completion of transactions.
You can start using 3dCart with a free 14-day trial. The software is also available on several different plans, ranging from $49 per month to $249 per month
7. WooCommerce
With WooCommerce, you can create an online store in a few minutes. You can use free templates and plugins in order to customize your website. There are over 100,000 extensions available that you can integrate into your eCommerce solution.
WooCommerce features and pricing
When you purchase WooCommerce, you have the ability to:
- Accept different currencies for each product on your site
- Offer and accept coupons and daily deals that will help increase revenues for your business at no additional cost
- Use Google web fonts
- Offer free shipping based on geographical location
- Offer real-time reports upon completion of transactions
- Integrate and sell products from different platforms including eBay and Amazon
- Customize your site using over 30 free themes and templates
- Offer a mobile version of your website so customers can purchase products from any location
WooCommerce pricing is based on your specific needs and the features that you want to include with your shopping cart solution. There are different tiers of pricing depending on how much you want to customize. For example, there are plans in the range of $9-$249 per month in order to meet your needs.
8. X-Cart
X-Cart is one of the more affordable shopping cart solutions available on the market today. This software allows you to create an online store with the ability to include built-in content management features, recurring billing while also supporting multiple shopping carts for small businesses and large. With this product, you have the ability to manage your entire inventory while also creating different types of payment gateways for users to choose from.
X-Cart features and pricing
With X-Cart, users have the ability to:
- Offer coupons and daily deals while shopping on their site
- Include a mobile version of their website so customers can access prices and buy products from any location
- Offer shopping cart solution options for different types of businesses
- Customize their website using over 150 different themes and templates
- Offer better search features throughout your site for products that may be difficult to find
- Manage inventory and orders from within the X-Cart solution
- Include recurring billing for your customers to select from while also offering a free trial for any customer looking to purchase from you
X-Cart pricing is based on the overall features that you want as a business. For example, there are plans available in the range of $9 per month and $49 per month.
9. PrestaShop
PrestaShop is one of the most flexible shopping cart software applications on the market today. This platform has over 240,000 free themes that can be customized according to your unique preferences without any HTML or CSS coding knowledge. In addition to this, you have access to a large variety of payment gateways and shipping options available with their software.
PrestaShop features and pricing
With PrestaShop, you can:
- Offer coupons to your customers while shopping on your site
- Create a mobile version of your website so customers can access prices while they are on the go
- Create custom modules for your site in order to expand the features of this shopping cart software.
PrestaShop offers plans at different price points including $29 per month, $89 per month, and up to $249 per month.
10. Volusion
Volusion is a great product to choose if you want your online store designed according to your unique preferences. With this software, you have access to more than 350+ professionally designed templates that can be customized without the need for HTML and CSS coding knowledge. In addition to this, you’ll get 24/7 support in order to troubleshoot any issues that may arise when using their service.
Volusion features and pricing
With Volusion, you have the ability to:
- Offer coupons and promotional codes on your site for added savings
- Create a mobile version of your website so customers can access prices while they are on the go
- Support more than 160 different payment gateways that range in price points from $20 per month to $99 per month
- Customize your products with unique features such as adding, removing, and editing photos of your inventory
Offer a customizable design for your online store that can be customized according to your preferences without HTML or CSS coding knowledge
Volusion price plans include Basic at $20 per month, Professional at $35 per month, Plus Pro at $59 per month, and Unlimited Pro at $99 per month. For pricing specific to these plans, contact their team directly for more details.
What is Shopping Cart Software?
An online shopping cart is a web-based application that enables customers to collect items in one place while shopping online. As customers add items to their carts, they can review the contents and adjust quantities before finalizing their purchase.
Many eCommerce small businesses need more than just an online store to get started. They require an efficient way of managing customer orders, inventory, and customer data. With online shopping cart software, you can do all of that.
How do Online Shopping Carts Work?
In order for an online shopping cart to work, you’ll need a few things from your business. At a minimum, you’ll need a computer with internet access and a web hosting company that can provide server space for your website. In addition to this, the shopping cart software will require payment processing capabilities as well as an SSL certificate before its functionalities can be activated. Once your website is up and running, you can start adding products to your store as well as customize it according to your preferences.
How Much does Shopping Cart Software Cost?
Small business shopping cart software generally costs between $30 and $500, depending on the features and functionality included with each product. Although there are free options available, they lack the robust functionality that you need in order to run a successful online store.
Shopping Cart vs eCommerce Platform
Shopping cart software is software that allows customers to select and gather items they want to purchase. You can integrate this software with your current website.
On the other hand, an eCommerce platform is a more complex solution that takes care of everything, including online payment processing. These systems are often capable of handling every aspect of the transaction process without relying on third-party services or email marketing software programs. If this sounds more like the solution you need, check out our list of the best eCommerce platforms.
How to Choose the Best eCommerce Shopping Cart for Your Business
Many small business owners rely on an affordable shopping cart service as part of their sales strategy to reach a wider audience through the Internet. An easy-to-use platform that integrates with payment services providers such as PayPal and eBay, will help you to get started without too much hassle. Make sure to take careful consideration into costs, compatibility, and ease of use to determine which software is best for your business. And if you’re still unsure which shopping cart software to use, reach out to a payment processing provider like PaymentCloud, and we can guide you to make the right decision.
Final Thoughts
There is no “perfect” solution for every business owner because everyone’s needs vary. However, shopping cart software offers businesses access to much more than just an online store. These solutions come complete with everything you’ll need in order to build and maintain your eCommerce website while optimizing it to grow your profits. If you want a way of managing all aspects of your business in one place, this may be the best option for you.
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