When it comes to eCommerce platforms, the most widely popular names come in front of us are – Magento and WooCommerce. Both of these platforms come with open source free versions and are based on the PHP programming language. 

Now when seeking the best eCommerce software for your organization, it is important to look for aspects like features, speed, vendor, prices etc.

According to a survey- WooCommerce score at 9.3 and its user satisfaction is 97%. On the other hand, Magento’s overall score is 9.0 and user satisfaction is 90%. 

This shows that the competition is very close. If you are looking for the fair comparison between Magento VS Woocommerce along with the aspects that set them apart from each other, then keep reading this post... 

Understanding about Magento and WooCommerce 

Magento

Magento is a powerful e-commerce platform designed for the web development of medium to a large eCommerce store. It has both Enterprise edition and a free open source edition that you can use as a cloud edition or self-host. The Choice is yours!

Magento comes with the most powerful features that make it perfect for any medium to large store. But to reap utmost benefits, it is important to look for the best Magento Hosting solutions that offer value for money. Some of the names are Hostinger, SiteGround etc.

If you are wondering what makes Magento one of its own kind, then have a look:

Key features

• Magento comes with it’s own layout system and theming.
• It includes efficient APIs that can easily connect with 3rd party solutions.
• It supports a number of products, product creation tools and admin interfaces.
• Catalog management that enable download audio, music, & videos.
• Support virtual products, RSS feeds and more.

Pros

• Magento is flexible that enable user to modify source codes as per the requirements.
• It is mobile-friendly and user-friendly as well.
• It is scalable that makes it easy to handle large stores.
• Easily integrate with Authorize.net, PayPal etc.  

Cons

• Enterprise Edition is Expensive
• Designed for developers than regular users
• Slow loading time
• Less Magento Developers
• Magento hosting can be carried out on dedicated server

WooCommerce

For most WordPress users, WooCommerce is a familiar name. This eCommerce platform includes 400,000 sites and has all the important functionalities required to open an online store. It is an amazing plug-in and most used eCommerce platform by many people. This lightweight eCommerce platform is great to build any size online store.

Features

• Offers free and premium themes
• It has powerful extension that is based on the WP plugin format
• Users can choose any payment processors
• Supports a number of products
• Easy to modify templates

Pros

• Easy to set-up store
• Extensive Documentation for the users
• Good Customer support
• Easy to integrate Google analytics by using an extension
• Includes SSL certificate if you have your own certificate

Cons

• If you are unaware of WordPress Platform then you don’t need to learn it first.
• Premium extensions and themes are expensive

Which one is Good for Beginners?

Between Magento vs WooCommerce, Magento doesn’t seem as beginner friendly than WooCommerce. It is, in fact, good for ambitious users who want to grow their shop quickly or have time for mastering on this platform.

• Performance

One of the most important aspects for any website is it’s loading time. If your website takes too long for upload, chances are people will leave it immediately. When it comes to the winner between Magento vs WooCommerce, it is difficult to figure out which platform is the best as both of these behave differently because of the size and functionality. Apart from this, there are many things that play an important role in the overall performance like the type of web hosting you choose, optimized images and Content Delivery Network (CDN).

In short, the performance of your online store largely depends on two major factors- On the store owner and your hosting provider. So, both are good in their own ways when it comes to performance.

• Security

When it comes to security, let me make it very clear – eCommerce platforms can’t be overstated here. Customers want their payment details and information to be protected. Here, both Magento and WooCommerce enable users to implement advanced security features. While no one platforms ensure 100% security, but here Magento leads the race by providing dedicated security patches to the users. However, these patches are not easy to apply. But if you are concerned about your security and take it seriously then Magento is your right choice.

• Product Management

Every small or big online store owner looks for good product management on their priority list. Here, WooCommerce offers an amazing approach to product management for both digital and physical products. It enables you to set new items easily, especially if you are familiar with WordPress. On the other hand, Magento offers many amazing features WooCommerce lacks like product personalization, advanced pricing rules etc. But if you don’t need advanced features then WooCommerce is a great choice as it enables you to set store easily and run quickly. So, the best platform for product management directly goes to WooCommerce.

• Pricing

The last, but not the least. When it comes to pricing between Magento vs WooCommerce, WooCommerce is FREE whereas Magento offers only Free Community version along with multiple premium services.

Final Verdict

So as far as the best eCommerce platform for beginners is WooCommerce without any doubt. It is cheap to set-up and easy to use that makes it ideal for small businesses.