Leaving OpenCart, PrestaShop or Magento: WooCommerce or Shopify?
A practical guide for shop owners who need to choose a new platform and move without losing sales or rankings.
The quick verdict
Short answer: choose WooCommerce if your shop has a complex catalogue, special pricing rules, ERP or local carrier integrations, or you want to keep your URLs and own the stack. Choose Shopify if the catalogue is straightforward and you want the platform to handle hosting, updates and checkout.
Either way, the migration succeeds or fails on the same things: a clean data move, a complete redirect map for every old URL, and a test period before the switch.
At a glance
WooCommerce
Flexible and owned by you
- Complex catalogues and custom pricing rules
- ERP, accounting and local carrier integrations
- Your own URLs, hosting and data
- Content and shop in one WordPress site
Shopify
Hosted and low-maintenance
- Hosting, security and checkout included
- Polished admin for a small team
- Large app store for common needs
- Fast to relaunch for simple catalogues
WooCommerce is usually the better fit for shops that outgrew a simple platform but do not want to lose flexibility: many attributes and variants, customer-specific prices, B2B rules, integrations with accounting or warehouse systems, and several languages. You also keep full control of URLs, hosting and data.
Shopify is usually the better fit when you want the shop to run without technical upkeep: hosting, security and checkout are the platform’s job, the admin is polished, and a small team can manage it. You pay for that with monthly fees, app costs and a fixed URL structure.
If the shop is on an old version of OpenCart, PrestaShop or Magento, the cost of staying is rising: unsupported PHP versions, outdated extensions and fewer developers who want to touch it. The question is rarely whether to move, but where and how safely.
Where each platform is stronger
WooCommerceShopify
Speed to relaunch
Catalogue complexity and pricing rules
ERP, accounting and local carrier integrations
Keeping your old URLs and rankings
Day-to-day ease of managing the shop
Less technical upkeep
Coma’s assessment for typical shop migrations (5 = strongest). It is not a measurement or a benchmark.
| Decision factor | WooCommerce | Shopify |
|---|---|---|
| Best for | Complex catalogues, B2B, integrations and shops that want full control | Straightforward catalogues and teams that want minimal technical upkeep |
| Relaunch speed | Weeks, depending on design and integrations | Often faster for a simple catalogue |
| Cost model | Free software; you pay for hosting, development and optional maintenance | Monthly plan plus apps; fees on payments made through third-party gateways |
| Old URLs and SEO | Permalinks can mirror the old structure; redirects cover the rest | Fixed /products/ and /collections/ paths; every old URL needs a 301 |
| Integrations | Custom code and plugins for ERP, accounting, carriers and banks | Apps and APIs; local specifics may need custom work or compromises |
| Maintenance | You or your agency manage updates, backups, hosting and security | Shopify manages hosting, updates and core security |
| Data and ownership | Database and files are yours | Data export is possible; the platform stays hosted by Shopify |
| Languages | Any number with WPML and full URL control | Built-in multi-language tools with less control of structure |
Choose WooCommerce if…
- Your catalogue has many attributes, variants or special pricing rules.
- You need ERP, accounting, warehouse or local carrier integrations.
- You want to keep your existing URL structure and rankings.
- You sell in several languages and want full control of each one.
- You want your content, blog and shop in one site that you own.
- You have an agency to maintain hosting, updates and security.
WooCommerce is strongest when the shop has business logic that a standard platform cannot express.
Choose Shopify if…
- Your catalogue is straightforward and the checkout can stay standard.
- You want the platform to handle hosting, security and updates.
- A small team will manage the shop without technical help.
- You accept monthly fees, app costs and a fixed URL structure.
- You plan to sell across borders with the standard checkout and markets.
- Speed to relaunch matters more than deep customisation.
Shopify is strongest when the priority is a shop that runs itself and a team that can focus on selling.
Why shops leave OpenCart, PrestaShop and Magento
The reasons are usually practical. Old versions run on PHP releases that no longer receive security fixes, extensions bought years ago are no longer maintained, the design looks dated, pages are slow, and fewer developers are willing to work on the code base. Magento 1 reached end of life in June 2020, and Magento 2 shops are expensive to host and maintain.
The table below shows what is typical for each platform. It is a rule of thumb, not a verdict: the right target depends on your catalogue, team and integrations, which we review before recommending anything.
| Current platform | What is typical | What needs the most care | Often moves best to |
|---|---|---|---|
| OpenCart | Lightweight shops, often on old versions, with purchased extensions | Extension functionality, product options, languages and SEO URLs | WooCommerce for custom logic; Shopify for simple catalogues |
| PrestaShop | Mid-size multi-language catalogues with many modules; major upgrades are painful | Variants (combinations), module data, customer groups, price rules and redirects | WooCommerce when rules and integrations matter; Shopify for straightforward catalogues |
| Magento | Large or complex catalogues, B2B pricing, heavy hosting and developer costs | Configurable products, attribute sets, store views and ERP integrations | WooCommerce with custom work for complex rules; Shopify to simplify operations |
Cost: relaunch budget and running costs
A migration is priced like a relaunch. A new e-commerce site with a redesign from us starts at 4,000 euros and typically takes four to eight weeks; a like-for-like data move is quoted after we review the catalogue size and integrations. Shopify subscriptions, apps and WooCommerce hosting and care plans then determine the running costs.
On WooCommerce the software is free; hosting on Coma Cloud starts at 10 euros a month (larger shops run on a VPS) and a care plan is 50 euros a month plus VAT. On Shopify you pay a monthly plan, and third-party payment gateways add a per-transaction fee on top of the card fees.
What you pay for
WooCommerce
The software is free, the project is not
- €0 — WordPress and WooCommerce (open source)
- + Hosting (from €10/month on Coma Cloud, VPS for larger shops)
- + Design and development (e-shop from €4,000)
- + Maintenance, backups, security (€50/month, optional)
- + Payment gateway fees
Shopify
A monthly plan, then add-ons
Basic$29per month
Grow$79per month
Advanced$299per month
+ apps, theme, card fees and 2% to 0.6% on third-party gateways, and your own time
Shopify prices in USD with yearly billing, as checked on shopify.com in October 2026; month to month they are higher. Coma prices are starting prices from our price calculator.
Do not compare only monthly fees. Count the apps you need, the transaction fees, the integration work and the time your team spends on technical tasks.
SEO: keeping your URLs and rankings
Rankings are the asset most at risk in a migration. Every old product, category and content URL that receives traffic needs either to stay the same or to redirect with a 301 to its closest new equivalent.
WooCommerce lets you shape permalinks so that many old URLs can stay exactly as they were. Shopify uses fixed prefixes such as /products/ and /collections/, so almost every URL changes and a complete redirect map is mandatory.
Also carry over titles, meta descriptions, canonical tags, image alt text, structured data and hreflang for multilingual shops, then monitor Search Console after launch. A temporary fluctuation is normal; a collapse usually means redirects were missed.
Who looks after the shop after launch
On Shopify the platform runs servers, applies updates and handles core security and backups. That is a real advantage for a small team.
On WooCommerce someone has to look after hosting, updates, backups and security. Done well it is invisible; done badly it causes slow pages and security problems. We offer a maintenance plan and managed WordPress hosting, and for bigger shops VPS or bare-metal servers looked after by our own administrators.
Who looks after what
WooCommerce
Shopify
Hosting and performance
You or your agency
The platform
Platform updates
You or your agency
The platform
Core security
You or your agency
The platform
Backups and restore
You or your agency
The platform
Design and layout changes
You or your agency
You or your agency
Catalogue and SEO setup
You or your agency
You or your agency
The fair comparison: Shopify is easier to operate by default; WooCommerce gives more control when a capable team looks after it.
A simple decision checklist
Answer these five questions before choosing the new platform:
Five questions to decide
QuestionPoints to WooCommercePoints to Shopify
-
How complex are the catalogue and pricing?Many attributes, special rules, B2BStraightforward products and prices
-
Who runs the shop day to day?A team with an agency behind itA small team without technical help
-
How many integrations do you need?ERP, accounting, local carriers, banksStandard apps are enough
-
How much do old URLs and rankings matter?A lot; keep as many as possibleWe accept redirects for everything
-
What kind of costs do you prefer?One-off build and hostingMonthly subscription and apps
What a migration has to carry over
A migration is more than exporting products. It is a project with an audit, a test import, a redirect map, a short content freeze and a controlled switch. We run it in a staging copy first and move the final orders and customers just before go-live.
What the move has to carry over
- Products, variants and images
- Categories and attributes
- Customers (passwords usually reset)
- Order history
- Reviews and coupons
- Pages and blog content
- URLs and 301 redirects
- Payment, shipping and tax settings
The biggest SEO risk is changing URLs without redirects, and losing titles, descriptions and internal links during the rebuild.
Automated migration tools and services can move products, customers, orders and pages, but the result always needs to be checked: variants, attributes, prices, tax settings, order numbering and images.
Final recommendation
If the shop has real business logic, integrations or a strong organic position that depends on its URLs, choose WooCommerce and let the migration be a careful relaunch. If the shop is simple and the team wants the platform to run itself, choose Shopify and plan the redirects thoroughly.
Do not start with the tool. Start with an audit of the catalogue, the traffic, the integrations and the people who will run the shop, and the platform will usually become obvious.
FAQ
Is WooCommerce or Shopify better after OpenCart, PrestaShop or Magento?
It depends on the shop. WooCommerce fits complex catalogues, integrations and shops that want to keep their URLs and own their data. Shopify fits straightforward catalogues and teams that want minimal technical upkeep.
Can customers and orders be migrated?
Yes, with migration tools or a custom import. Customer passwords usually cannot be carried over and customers reset them, and order numbering, tax and variants need careful checking.
Will I lose my Google rankings?
Not if every old URL is kept or redirected with a 301 and titles, descriptions and structured data are carried over. A temporary fluctuation after launch is normal.
How long does a migration take?
A new e-shop with a redesign typically takes four to eight weeks from us. A like-for-like data move can be shorter; we quote it after reviewing the catalogue and integrations.
Is Magento worth keeping?
Only when the catalogue and business rules are large and you have developers and a budget for it. Magento 1 ended in 2020 and must be replaced; Magento 2 is costly to host and maintain.
Need help moving your shop?
Coma audits your current shop, recommends WooCommerce or Shopify honestly and runs the migration, including redirects and testing, with hosting from shared to VPS and bare metal looked after by our own administrators.
See our e-commerce development, Shopify development, prices or contact us for a practical recommendation.
Sources checked
Platform facts and pricing checked in October 2026: Shopify pricing, WooCommerce, WordPress.org download. Coma prices come from our price calculator.
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