Launching an online shop can cost €500 or €50,000. That range makes it hard to plan realistically. This article explains the true costs of the three most common options, including expenses that suppliers often leave out of the initial quote.
Shopify: low barrier, expensive over time
Shopify is popular with starters because you can go live in an afternoon. But the Basic plan costs around €29 per month, plus 2% transaction fees if you do not use Shopify Payments. Add a premium theme (€100-350) and essential apps (€10-50 per month each). For a shop turning over €5,000 per month, platform costs alone can easily exceed €1,500-€2,000 per year.
WooCommerce: cheap to start, ongoing maintenance
WooCommerce is free as a plugin, but not free to run. Hosting (€10-50/month), a premium theme (€50-200), required plugins (€100-400/year) and payment gateway fees (0.25-0.35% per transaction). Advantage: you own your data and pay no platform subscription. Disadvantage: you need technical skills or outsourced maintenance.
Custom build: higher upfront, better long-term ROI
A bespoke online shop costs more to launch (from €449-€1,499 at CanarySites), but there is no monthly platform fee and no extra commission on top of Stripe or Mollie. It is built exactly for your catalogue, fulfilment and market. In the Canary Islands that includes correct IGIC setup and payment methods for Spanish and European customers.
Which option fits you?
- Shopify: Choose this if you want to launch fast and accept higher recurring costs.
- WooCommerce: Choose this with a limited budget and someone to handle technical upkeep.
- Custom build: Choose this for long-term growth and lower monthly overheads.
At CanarySites we build online shops for clients in Gran Canaria and the Netherlands, including IGIC, multilingual checkout and correct tax settings. Request a no-obligation quote.