BigCommerce: 12 Features Worth Choosing This Ecommerce Platform For

BigCommerce is often compared to Shopify. Formally, both are SaaS platforms for online stores. But BigCommerce takes a different path: instead of an ecosystem of thousands of paid apps, it offers powerful out-of-the-box functionality. Let’s break down what you get immediately after signing up.

1. Page Builder on Makeswift

A visual, no-code page editor. Drag blocks — get a custom landing page. Unlike Shopify, where you need to pay extra for a decent page builder (Shogun, PageFly), it’s built-in here.

2. Catalyst Storefront

A branded headless frontend on Next.js. Developers get a modern stack, and the business gets instant page loading and full customization. One-click launch. Shopify rolled out Hydrogen as a counterpart, but Catalyst came first.

3. Optimized Checkout

A single-page checkout that, according to BigCommerce, is 37% faster than the previous version. Support for Apple Pay, Google Pay, Amazon Pay, and buy-now-pay-later services. Crucially — no penalties for using a third-party payment gateway. Choose whoever gives you the best rate.

4. B2B — Not an Add-on, But Core

BigCommerce earned #1 B2B platform status in Paradigm’s 2025 Mid-Market Report. Out of the box: price groups, SKU-level price lists, wholesale pricing, purchase order ordering, quotes. 391% ROI over three years on B2B Edition. Shopify does B2B with basic functionality.

5. Multi-Storefront

Manage multiple brands, countries, or pricing tiers from a single dashboard. Launch a new brand — deploy a separate storefront without duplicating the backend.

6. Feedonomics Surface

Included in all plans. Automatically syncs your product catalog with Google Shopping, Meta, TikTok, Amazon, Walmart. Merchants using Surface showed +24% GMV year-over-year (November 2025). Ready-made feeds for ad channels save hours of manual work.

7. SEO Out of the Box

Custom URLs, meta tags, robots.txt, faceted search on Elasticsearch. No additional apps needed. Shopify, by comparison, has issues with URL structure customization — some slugs are hardcoded by the system.

8. Coupons and Discounts — 70+ Types

Stackable coupons, shipping-based restrictions, loyalty codes, automatic promotions. No scripts, no third-party apps. Shopify’s basic discounts are free, but BOGO and complex rules require paid apps.

9. International Commerce

Multi-currency (60+ currencies), local currency pricing display, automatic conversion. Real-time shipping quotes via ShipperHQ.

10. Blog and Content

Built-in blog. Shopify reduced blog functionality to a minimum, forcing you to use WordPress or paid apps. BigCommerce’s blog is decent — with SEO settings and RSS.

11. API and Headless

Full REST API, webhooks, GraphQL. WordPress integration via official plugin, Acquia integration for enterprise content. If you want a custom frontend on React/Next.js — Catalyst provides a starter template out of the box.

12. Security

Free HTTPS and dedicated SSL on all plans. Platform on Google Cloud with Cloudflare caching.

Pricing

• Core — $39/month: up to $30K GMV/year, mobile site, checkout, basic coupons.
• Growth — $105/month: up to $100K GMV, abandoned cart recovery, customer segmentation, stored credit cards.
• Scale — $399/month: up to $400K GMV, advanced product filtering, price groups, custom faceted filtering.
• Performance — from $800/month: custom GMV ceiling, all features without limits.

Who Should Choose BigCommerce Over Shopify

BigCommerce beats Shopify in three scenarios: (1) you sell in the B2B segment and need price groups, quotes, and purchase orders; (2) you’re growing and don’t want to go broke on monthly subscriptions for 20+ Shopify apps; (3) you need SEO control and headless architecture without compromise.

Shopify remains simpler for beginners. But if your store has crossed $50K in revenue — BigCommerce starts looking more appealing. Simple math: Shopify charges a transaction fee if you don’t use Shopify Payments. BigCommerce doesn’t. At higher volumes, the difference adds up to thousands of dollars.

Official website: https://bigcommerce.com Verdict: 8.5/10. A powerful platform for growing stores, especially B2B. Deducting 1.5 points for a higher entry barrier compared to Shopify and a less active third-party developer ecosystem.