Top 15 Platforms To Sell Online In 2024

In this article, we’ll show you 15 online selling platforms with their features, pros, and who it is best suited for.

Key Takeaways

• Numerous online platforms for starting an online business offer various options to cater to multiple industries and target audiences.
• Shopify stands out as a leading platform to sell online due to its user-friendly interface, extensive customization options, and robust features that empower entrepreneurs to create successful online stores easily.

15 Best Platforms To Start An Online Business 2023

Best Platforms For Building Your Own Website

In today’s digital era, creating your website has never been more accessible and straightforward, thanks to the emergence of low-code tools. With platforms like Shopify, Wix, WordPress, Magento, and Square Online, building an online site has been revolutionized. These website builders offer many templates, allowing you to customize and design your website effortlessly, even with little to no prior technical expertise.

But, with so many options available, how do you select the perfect website builder that aligns with your unique needs?

Our comprehensive list will equip you with all the essential information you need to make an informed decision.

Shopify

Shopify is a powerful e-commerce platform that caters to businesses of all sizes, offering various features and tools to help entrepreneurs create, manage, and scale their online stores.

Shopify’s standout features include the following:

• Its user-friendly interface
• Simple drag-and-drop store builder and a wide selection of more than 150 customizable themes
• Unlimited products, ensuring flexibility as their inventory grows
• Multi-channel selling, enabling businesses to reach customers through their online store, social media platforms, online marketplaces
• Sell in-person with its POS system
• Built-in SEO tools and automated marketing features, enhancing the visibility of online stores and boosting sales
• A unique abandoned cart recovery feature for all plans, allows businesses to recover lost sales by sending automated reminders to customers.
• Over 8,000 apps and plugins to enhance the functionality of online stores.

Shopify’s pricing plans cater to businesses of all sizes, ranging from 5$ for selling on social media and messenger apps to $2,000+ for enterprises.

Before committing to a plan, new users can take advantage of Shopify’s 3-day free trial to explore the platform’s features. As an added incentive, Shopify often runs special deals, like the $1 per month offer for the first 1 month, providing a low-risk opportunity for new users to get started.

Compared to other platforms, Shopify stands out with its simplicity and power. It balances ease of use and robust functionality, making it a suitable choice for beginners and experienced entrepreneurs. 

Shopify’s reliability and scalability ensure that online stores can handle increased traffic and sales without compromising performance. Moreover, Shopify prioritizes security, providing merchants and customers with a safe and trustworthy environment.

Overall, Shopify is best suited for those new to e-commerce, entrepreneurs without coding knowledge, and all sizes of enterprises. Its user-friendly interface, comprehensive support, low startup costs, and scalability make it an excellent choice for anyone looking to establish a successful online business. 

Magento

Magento is a popular open-source e-commerce platform known for its high level of customization, flexibility, and scalability. It was launched in 2007 and later replaced by Magento 2.0 in 2015, becoming one of the most well-known e-commerce solutions worldwide.

Magento allows users to fully control and adjust their online stores, making it ideal for businesses with specific requirements. The platform supports multi-channel selling, enabling businesses to reach customers through various channels, such as online stores, social media, and marketplaces.

Magento is suitable for businesses of all sizes, from small startups to large enterprises, with the ability to handle increased traffic and growing inventories.

Magento offers two main pricing plans to cater to different business needs. First is Magento Open Source, a free edition that users can download and use as their e-commerce platform. While the core software is free, users need to budget for additional elements such as hosting, themes, and extensions to build and customize their online store. 

On the other hand, there is Magento Commerce for enterprise-level businesses seeking advanced features and comprehensive support. The pricing for this solution is more customized and typically requires a quote from a sales representative. Annual costs for Magento Commerce can range from $15,000 to $50,000, depending on the specific requirements and scale of the business.

Magento boasts several compelling advantages for businesses seeking a robust online presence. Its high level of customization allows businesses to design and tailor their online stores according to their unique needs and preferences, ensuring that brands can create a visually appealing and cohesive online shopping experience for their customers. 

Additionally, Magento’s extensive feature set provides a wide range of tools and functionalities to enhance the overall functionality of online stores. From advanced product catalogs and inventory management to robust marketing and SEO capabilities, the platform empowers businesses with the tools they need to succeed. 

The platform’s scalability is crucial, allowing businesses to expand their operations seamlessly as they grow and face increasing demands. With Magento, businesses can confidently set their sights on long-term success and continuous growth in the competitive e-commerce landscape.

In general, Magento’s robust customization and scalability make it a perfect fit for larger enterprises with the technical expertise or budget to invest in Magento Commerce. Companies prioritizing complete control over their online stores and seeking the flexibility to fine-tune every aspect of their e-commerce operations can greatly benefit from this platform.

Wix

Wix is an all-in-one website builder that lets you quickly create attractive websites without design or coding experience. Wix is popular among bloggers, entrepreneurs, and small business owners.

Wix offers a complete solution for selling online. You can trade on multiple channels, including web, mobile, Facebook, Instagram, and online marketplaces like Amazon and eBay. Wix offers a range of features to help you sell online, including customizable cart and checkout, Wishlist, Buy Now, and Add to Cart buttons, and the ability to optimize your store for mobile.

Wix pricing usually ranges from $16/month to $159/month. Wix’s strengths include an easy-to-use drag-and-drop interface, built-in SEO tools, and the availability of over 200 app integrations. However, there are also some cons to consider, such as visitor analytics not being available on free or Combo plans, storage limits on all plans, and the inability to change templates once your site is live.

Overall, Wix is best for small businesses, creatives, and beginners. It’s feature-rich with awesome SEO tools and hundreds of apps. You can choose from over 900 professionally designed and fully customizable templates. Anyone can create a beautiful website with Wix, even without tech experience.

WordPress

WordPress is a popular content management system (CMS) that greatly simplifies building a blog or website. It’s a piece of open-source software that’s free to download, adapt, modify, and otherwise use as you see fit. WordPress is popular for its flexibility, especially among bloggers and small business owners.

WordPress offers several options for selling items online through your site. WooCommerce is the most popular ecommerce solution on WordPress. WooCommerce is an ecommerce solution that allows you to add a cart and checkout process, take payment, monitor inventory, and everything else you need for an online store.

WordPress pricing usually ranges from $4/month to $45/month. Each premium plan includes a free domain name for a year and unlimited email support.

Moreover, the Premium, Business, and eCommerce plans also come with Google Analytics integration, premium themes, and live chat support.

Some of the pros of using WordPress include its easy-to-use interface, built-in SEO tools, and the availability of over 59,000 free WordPress plugins that add features and functionality to websites. However, some cons are also to consider, such as its steep learning curve and potential plugin conflicts causing sites to break easily.

WordPress is best for those who want to build their website from the ground up and maintain complete control over their site. This requires coding knowledge and is not for novice website designers. WordPress.com is much more user-friendly but does not allow for advanced website customization unless you purchase an expensive plan.

Square Online

Square Online is an all-in-one e-commerce platform that allows businesses to sell products with built-in inventory management, a point-of-sale (POS) system, and the ability to accept payments online. It’s a flexible platform that works well for mobile sellers, such as food trucks and fair vendors, online retailers, restaurateurs, and physical boutiques.

Square Online offers a range of features to help you sell online. You can sell on multiple channels, including web, mobile, Facebook, and Instagram. Square Online accepts and manages online and in-store orders from social and mobile showrooms to stockrooms. 

You can track customer data like sales history, loyalty points, gift cards, and more—for both online and in-store channels—in one central directory. Integrate that data with Square Marketing and Square Loyalty to drive repeat business.

Square Online offers a range of four pricing options, starting with a free plan to $72 if billed annually. 

Some of the advantages of using Square Online include its easy-to-use interface, built-in inventory management tools, and the availability of over 200 app integrations. However, there are also some disadvantages, such as limited customization options and transaction fees that can add up for high-volume sellers.

Square Online is best for storefronts that want to expand their presence online. It’s a user-friendly option for those who don’t have any knowledge of coding and web design.

Best Marketplaces To Sell On

Shopify Handshake

Shopify Handshake is a B2B (business-to-business) e-commerce platform introduced by Shopify, specifically targeting wholesale and bulk purchasing markets. It is designed to facilitate connections between retailers and wholesalers, enabling them to buy and sell products in larger quantities.

With Shopify Handshake, small businesses, and startups can access a specialized platform to connect with suppliers and distributors, streamlining the process of purchasing inventory for their online stores. The platform offers various tools to enhance the wholesale buying experience and support SMEs’ growth journey.

Handshake provides a dedicated wholesale marketplace where retailers can discover and connect with wholesalers offering bulk purchasing options. Retailers can efficiently manage bulk orders, track inventory, and handle invoicing and payments within the platform.

Wholesalers can set up custom pricing and discounts for specific retailers, ensuring a personalized and tailored wholesale experience.

Handshake is 100% free to use, and there are no listing or transaction fees on sales. You can list wholesale products for free and keep 100% of your sales as Handshake doesn’t charge a commission fee

Advantages of Shopify Handshake:

• Niche Market: Handshake caters to the wholesale and bulk purchasing market, providing a specialized platform for B2B transactions.
• Simplified Wholesale Buying: The platform streamlines the wholesale buying process, making it easier for small businesses to source and purchase inventory in larger quantities.
• Integration with Shopify: Retailers can seamlessly connect their Shopify online stores with Handshake to manage wholesale and retail operations from a single platform.

Handshake is best suited for:

• Retailers and Wholesalers: Handshake is ideal for businesses involved in wholesale transactions, enabling them to connect and conduct B2B commerce efficiently.
• Small to Medium-sized Enterprises: Shopify Handshake supports SMEs by simplifying the wholesale buying process, allowing them to grow their businesses and expand their product offerings.

Amazon

Amazon is a highly reliable and popular online selling platform, attracting over 20.6 million monthly visitors. Selling on Amazon automatically instills trust and comfort in customers, given its large user base. With such a massive audience, your products are more likely to be seen, leading to faster online sales and better monthly income.

Amazon is suitable for anyone selling almost anything, providing a platform to manage a successful business. However, it’s essential to ensure your price range remains competitive without compromising your profit margins. Small business owners may face more challenges as they compete with sellers offering products in large quantities, leading to highly competitive pricing.

Amazon’s pricing plans are as follows:

• Individual Plan: $0.99 per item sold, plus additional selling fees. This plan is suitable if you sell fewer than 40 items per month.
• Professional Plan: $39.99 per month, plus additional selling fees. This becomes the best option if you sell more than 40 items per month.

By adhering to Amazon’s basic product photography guidelines, you can optimize your listings and enhance your chances of success on the platform. Selling on Amazon offers a lucrative opportunity to reach a vast customer base and build a successful online business.

eBay

eBay is a vast and diverse online marketplace with nearly 25 million sellers and 170 million active buyers from all around the world. Established in 1995, eBay is renowned for its auction-style listings, but it also offers a “Buy it now” option, allowing sellers to offer items at fixed prices for immediate purchase.

On eBay, almost anything can be sold, ranging from books and electronics to furniture, jewelry, and essential oils. However, with its massive size, there is always a risk of getting lost in the crowd of sellers, making competition challenging.

eBay’s seller fees consist of two main components:

• Insertion Fees (Listing Fees): Sellers receive 50 free listings per month, and beyond that, the cost for most categories is $0.35 per listing.
• Final Value Fees: These fees are a percentage of the total sale price of an item. For most sellers, the final value fee is 10% or lower.

The exact fees may vary based on factors such as the type of product being listed, the category it belongs to, the number of items listed, and shipping costs. For more detailed information on eBay’s seller fees, sellers can refer to the platform’s official guide.

Selling on eBay presents a great opportunity to reach a massive and diverse customer base, but it also requires strategic planning to stand out in the competitive marketplace. By carefully managing fees and optimizing listings, sellers can make the most of eBay’s immense reach and grow their online businesses successfully.

Etsy

Etsy is an online selling platform for creative sellers offering handmade goods, art, and antiques. It attracts around 40 million shoppers worldwide, giving individual sellers a chance to stand out without competing against big brands. 

If you create unique products or have items that fit this market, Etsy is the perfect platform for you. It offers easy-to-use tools, analytics, and access to potential customers.

Etsy charges $0.20 for each product listing, and the listing lasts for four months or until sold. When you make a sale, there’s a 5% transaction fee and a 3% plus $0.25 processing fee. 

Selling on Etsy lets you connect with a supportive community and reach a global audience interested in one-of-a-kind items. It’s an excellent choice for creative entrepreneurs looking to grow their businesses.

Bonanza

Bonanza is a successful E-commerce company based in Seattle, attracting over 50,000 sellers and offering 35 million different items. It’s suitable for anyone looking to sell online, with reasonable fees. 

They have three membership options with different pricing: Gold ($25/month), Platinum ($55/month), and Titan ($167/month). Bonanza provides a great platform for sellers to reach a wide audience and grow their online business.

Craigslist

Craigslist was founded in 1995, and now it has become a popular online selling platform for individuals and businesses.

Craigslist stands out as it requires no fees for listing or selling items. It’s best for local sellers who prefer in-person transactions, making it ideal for bulky or expensive-to-ship items like furniture.

Users appreciate Craigslist for its social element, allowing them to meet buyers in person and receive cash payments without dealing with shipping or network fees. However, if you’re concerned about scams or prefer not to be personally involved in transactions, Craigslist might not be the best fit.

Flipkart

Flipkart is an Indian e-commerce company that initially focused on online book sales before expanding into other product categories such as consumer electronics, fashion, home essentials, groceries, and lifestyle products. The service competes primarily with Amazon India and domestic rival Snapdeal.

Flipkart charges sellers a commission fee that varies across sub-categories/verticals. For example, if the selling price of a product is Rs. 1500, the commission fee would be Rs. 150 (assuming 10%). In addition to the commission fee, Flipkart charges a shipping fee (for local shipping), a collection fee (2% on the order item value), and a fixed fee.

Flipkart is best for manufacturers, vendors, or suppliers who want to sell online in India. It offers an easy interface to work on and eliminates hassles and delays.

Facebook Marketplace

Facebook Marketplace is a section on Facebook where users can buy, sell, and trade items with others in their area. It’s accessible through the Facebook app or website.

Users aged 18 and above can:

• Browse items for sale
• Search by category or location
• Create listings
• Communicate with buyers/sellers via Facebook Messenger
• Launched in 2016, Facebook Marketplace connects millions of people from 70 countries for buying and selling. It supports E-commerce by partnering with platforms like Shopify.

No listing fees, but sellers must follow guidelines. This platform offers a convenient and social way for users to engage in local transactions and explore various products in their area.

Rakuten

Rakuten is a Japanese selling platform that offers a wide range of services, including online shopping, travel booking, and financial services. It is often referred to as the “Amazon of Japan” and is one of the largest e-commerce platforms in the country.

Rakuten charges sellers a commission fee that varies depending on the product category. The fee ranges from 8% to 15% of the item’s selling price. In addition to the commission fee, Rakuten also charges a $0.99 per item sold fee and a $39 monthly fee.

Rakuten is best for sellers who want to reach a large audience in Japan and other countries where Rakuten operates. The platform offers a high degree of customization for storefronts, allowing sellers to personalize their brand identity and own their policies. 

Rakuten also provides sellers with tools to boost their brand visibility, expert training and guidance, and actionable data to take action

Taobao

Taobao is a Chinese e-commerce website that was founded by the Alibaba Group in 2003. It is a customer-to-consumer platform that allows individual sellers and small business owners to sell their products to different buyers. It is similar in operation to eBay and Amazon. Sellers can create and operate virtual storefronts.

Taobao charges sellers a commission fee that varies depending on the product category. In addition to the commission fee, Taobao charges a $0.99 per item sold fee and a $39 monthly fee.

Taobao is best for small businesses and individual consumers, whereas Tmall, another selling platform owned by Alibaba Group, is more popular with larger businesses and foreign companies.

5 Tips To Successfully Selling Online

Leverage high-quality product images and descriptions.

High-quality product images and detailed descriptions can help attract customers and increase the likelihood of a sale. Ensure your images are clear, well-lit and showcase your product from multiple angles. Your descriptions should be informative and highlight your product’s key features and benefits.

Use social media and content marketing.

Promote your products and brand on social media platforms to reach a wider audience. Engage with your followers, share valuable content, and run targeted ads to drive traffic to your online store.

Make the checkout process simple.

A complicated checkout process can deter customers from completing their purchases. Make sure your checkout process is simple, straightforward, and user-friendly. Offer multiple payment options and make it easy for customers to enter their shipping information.

Diversify your shipping strategy.

Offering multiple shipping options can help you attract more customers. Some customers may be willing to pay extra for faster shipping, while others may prefer a more affordable option. Make sure you clearly communicate your shipping options and estimated delivery times to customers.

Provide excellent customer service.

Respond promptly to customer inquiries and resolve any issues or concerns effectively. Positive customer experiences lead to repeat purchases and positive reviews, enhancing your online reputation.

Final Thoughts

Above are the top 15 platforms to sell online in 2023 for you to embrace the digital age and explore the vast world of e-commerce. Among those, Shopify emerges as a top choice for building your own website and selling online for startups and solopreneurs.