Reasons to Switch from Shopify to WordPress WooCommerce

A quick sharing: Personally, I find WordPress’s flexibility and control incredibly appealing, especially for businesses aiming for long-term growth and a unique brand identity.

WordPress is More Cost-Effective

Shopify’s monthly fees range from $39 to $399 (and even higher for Shopify Plus). These plans include hosting, security, and various features. However, as your business grows, the costs can add up.

On the other hand, WordPress is open-source and free to use. You’ll need to invest in hosting and potentially some premium themes or plugins. However, the overall cost is often significantly lower, especially in the long run.

• Hosting: a few dollars per month to much more, depending on your needs.
• Themes: free themes or paid themes cost between $50 and $200 (one-time purchase).
• Plugins: plugins for security, SEO, and eCommerce functionality (like WooCommerce) can be free or premium and cost from a few dollars per month to hundreds per year.

In my experience, WordPress can be cheaper than Shopify, especially when starting out. I was able to launch my first website with a minimal investment using a free theme and a few essential plugins.

WordPress Has Better Customizability

As being open-source, WordPress allows extensive modifications and customizations. You can choose from thousands of themes and plugins, modify them, or even create your own from scratch. This level of control lets you create an online store that truly reflects your unique style and needs.

So, Shopify also offers lots of cool themes and ways to customize your online store, which is awesome for beginners. But because it’s somewhat limited, you have less freedom in creating unique designs and adding extra functionality compared to WordPress.

In my own experience, the customizability of WordPress truly matters. It allowed me to design every aspect of my online store, from the layout and color scheme to specific features and integrations.

WordPress Is Feature-Rich

I understand the importance of WordPress’s core strength, which lies in its intuitive and powerful content management system. Even without plugins, you can easily create, edit, and manage pages, posts, and various content types.

Moreover, WordPress includes features like customizable permalinks, categorization, tagging, and the ability to optimize meta descriptions and improve your search engine visibility. Even without plugins, WordPress provides a strong foundation for content-focused websites and blogs.

WordPress Offers WooCommerce Plugin

WooCommerce is a powerful and versatile eCommerce plugin for WordPress, designed to transform any WordPress website into a fully functional online store. As an open-source solution, WooCommerce offers complete control over your store’s design, functionality, and data, allowing for extensive customization through thousands of available themes and plugins. Its seamless integration with WordPress makes it easy to manage products, process payments, and optimize for search engines, all within a familiar and user-friendly interface. Whether you’re running a small business or a large enterprise, WooCommerce’s scalability, flexibility, and cost-effectiveness make it an ideal choice for creating a unique and robust online shopping experience.

Methods to Migrate from Shopify to WordPress

Choosing the right method to migrate your Shopify store to WordPress is crucial for a smooth and successful transition. Below, I will tell you a detailed comparison of three popular options, outlining their pros, cons, and suitability for different scenarios.

Transfer Data Manually

This involves manually exporting your data from Shopify and importing it into WordPress. You’ll need to handle data mapping, formatting, and potential troubleshooting yourself.
Pros: If you have the technical expertise and time, this method can be the cheapest option, as you’re not paying for external services.
Cons:

• Manually exporting and importing data can be extremely time-consuming, especially for large stores with extensive product catalogs and customer data.
• This method requires significant technical knowledge and expertise in data management and WordPress configuration.
• Manual data manipulation increases the risk of errors, potentially leading to data loss or inconsistencies.

Suitable for: Tech-savvy individuals with time and a deep understanding of data migration processes.

Hire a Migration Expert

You hire a freelance developer or agency to handle the entire migration process for you. They will manage data export, mapping, import, and configuration.

Pros:

• This option requires minimal effort on your part, allowing you to focus on other aspects of your business.
• Experienced professionals ensure accurate data migration and minimize the risk of errors.

Cons:

• Hiring an expert can be significantly more expensive than other options.
• Research and vetting potential developers or agencies can be time-consuming.

Suitable for: Businesses with a larger budget and a preference for a hands-off approach, prioritizing expert handling and minimizing potential disruptions.

Choose a Migration Service like LitExtension

Migration service providers like LitExtension offer an automated migration service that handles data export, mapping, import, and configuration, along with personalized support and quality assurance.

Pros:

• Automated migration minimizes downtime and ensures a faster transition.
• Meticulous data mapping and expert handling ensure accurate data transfer and minimize the risk of errors.
• This option offers a balance between cost and efficiency, providing a valuable service at a reasonable price.
• Dedicated support teams provide guidance and assistance throughout the migration process.

Cons: While you have control over data mapping and settings, the actual migration process is handled by your migration partner.

Suitable for: Businesses seeking a balance between cost, efficiency, and peace of mind.

Personal recommendation:

Choosing migration service like LitExtension will give you the best balance between cost, efficiency, and peace of mind. The automated process minimizes downtime and ensures data accuracy, while the personalized support provides valuable guidance throughout the migration process.

How to Migrate Shopify to WordPress WooCommerce Manually 

This guide will walk you through the manual Shopify to WordPress migration, with a focus on setting up WooCommerce as your eCommerce platform.

Step 1: Export Data from Shopify

• Products: Go to Shopify’s admin dashboard and navigate to Products > All Products. Use the export feature to download your product data in a CSV format.
• Customers: Similarly, export your customer data by going to Customers and selecting the export option.
• Orders: Export order data by visiting Orders in your Shopify admin.

Step 2: Import Data into WordPress

After exporting your data, the next step is to migrate Shopify to WordPress by importing this data into WooCommerce:

• Import Products: Use WooCommerce’s built-in CSV Importer or a plugin like WP All Import to import your product data. These tools allow you to map Shopify’s CSV fields to the corresponding WooCommerce fields, ensuring a smooth transition.
• Import Customers: Use a plugin like WooCommerce Customer/Order/Coupon CSV Import Suite to import your customer data into WooCommerce. This tool ensures that customer information, including passwords, is accurately migrated.
• Import Orders: Importing orders can be complex, but plugins like WooCommerce Order Import Export Plugin allow you to import order data accurately. This step is crucial for maintaining your store’s transaction history.

Step 3: Configure WooCommerce Settings

To ensure your new WooCommerce store functions smoothly after the Shopify to WordPress migration, configure its settings to match your Shopify store:

• Payment Gateways: WooCommerce supports numerous payment gateways. Set up the ones you used in Shopify, such as PayPal, Stripe, or others.
• Shipping Options: Replicate the shipping settings from Shopify in WooCommerce. WooCommerce allows for flexible shipping configurations, including flat rate, free shipping, and integration with various shipping carriers.
• Tax Settings: Make sure that WooCommerce’s tax settings reflect those in your Shopify store to maintain consistency in pricing.

Step 4: Test the New WordPress Store

Before launching your new WordPress site, thoroughly test it to ensure everything works as expected:

• Check Functionality: Ensure all WooCommerce functionalities, such as product pages, checkout processes, and customer accounts, are working correctly.
• Verify Data Accuracy: Double-check that all products, customers, and orders have been accurately imported.
• Test Performance: Test the site’s performance, especially under load, to ensure it can handle the expected traffic.

Migrate Shopify to WordPress with LitExtension

Moving your store from Shopify to WordPress WooCommerce doesn’t have to be a daunting task with LitExtension.

Receive Consultation from LitExtension Experts

The first step in migrating your Shopify store to WordPress with LitExtension is initiating a consultation with our team of experts. But why so? As you’re working with an expert from LitExtension, aka your own Personal Assistant (PA), you will get:

• Personalized guidance
• Technical assessment
• Hands-on support and reassurance

Our team will take the time to understand your specific requirements for migrating from Shopify to WordPress. They will then recommend the most suitable migration plan and offer advice on best practices for a smooth transition.

Our migration experts will assess the scope of your data migration, identify potential challenges, and make a customized migration strategy to keep data integrity. This approach ensures that the migration process is efficient, accurate, and aligned with your specific business goals.

Data Mapping and Setting by Expert

The second step to move Shopify to WordPress with LitExtension involves meticulous data mapping and setting by our technical team. This stage is the most crucial, as it directly impacts the accuracy, completeness, and overall success of your migration project.

LitExtension’s experts guarantee the accurate transfer of all data from your Shopify store to your new WordPress store, including product details, customer information, and order history.

Precise data mapping helps preserve data integrity, making the migration process faster. Without careful data mapping, your migration project could lead to data loss and interruptions to your business. LitExtension’s expert handling of this stage sets the stage for a successful transition to WordPress.

Perform Full Migration from Shopify to WordPress

Thanks to the meticulous data mapping performed in the previous step, all your crucial data, including products, customers, orders, and other relevant information, are transferred comprehensively and accurately. Throughout the migration process, your Personal Assistant (PA) will closely monitor the data transfer, promptly addressing any issues that may arise and ensuring a smooth migration experience.

Our team is committed to providing comprehensive support throughout the migration process. Following the migration, LitExtension Quality Assurance team will conduct thorough checks to verify the accuracy and completeness of your data transfer. This ensures that your new WordPress store is fully functional and ready to launch.

Even after the migration is complete, LitExtension commits to offer ongoing support to address any questions or concerns you may have, ensuring a smooth transition and continued success on your new platform.