Volusion vs Shopify: Which E-commerce Platform Reigns Supreme?

As the world of e-commerce is on a spree and is growing at a rapid pace and will continue even faster in the time to come owing to its scope. Therefore, the platform you choose for your online store is all the more important. Hence you have to make an informed decision in this regard.  Two popular and reliable options that come to my mind are Volusion and Shopify.

In this article, a comprehensive comparison of Volusion vs Shopify, we will dive into the various features, pricing, and customer support of these leading platforms. Let us dive in to know which online store is best suited to your need and requirements after thoroughly analyzing the features and other factors.  

Features

In order to opt for any of the choices, you need to be in a position to understand the platform in a better and more comprehensive manner. Therefore, it is important to know the features of the two platforms, which as a result, will help you understand the two in tattoo and make a decision accordingly.

1. Ease of Use

Both Volusion and Shopify prioritize the user experience. Both are easy-to-navigate platforms, therefore, are perfect for both beginners and seasoned online merchants.

Shopify has a more intuitive interface with drag-and-drop functionality, allowing you to quickly set up your store and start selling. Volusion also has a user-friendly interface, but it may require a bit more time to familiarize yourself with its features.

2. Design and Themes

There is a wide range of professionally designed themes boasted by Shopify. You will get both paid and free themes on both platforms. The themes are versatile in nature and can aptly meet the requirements of various industries and styles. Its themes are responsive, ensuring your store looks great on all devices.

Volusion also offers a selection of responsive themes but with fewer options available. In terms of design, Shopify has a slight edge due to its more extensive theme library.

3.  Product Management

Shopify and Volusion both platforms offer robust product management capabilities. You can add, edit, and organize products easily on either platform. However, the products supported by Shopify are unlimited.

Whereas, Volusion has limitations, thereby, is based on the chosen plan. This is a crucial factor for businesses with a large or growing inventory. 

 4. App Integrations

Shopify has a vast app marketplace with over 3,200 apps, ranging from marketing tools to inventory management solutions. Since it integrates a wide range of apps, it allows you to customize and expand the functionality of your online store.

On the other hand, Volusion’s app store is more limited in comparison, with around 80 apps available. If you’re looking for extensive customization options, Shopify may be the better choice.

5. Payment Options

 Both Shopify and Volusion entertain numerous payment gateways, thereby providing much-needed flexibility to customers. However, Shopify has its own Shopify payment gateway. Shopify Payments, which allows for seamless integration and lower transaction fees. 

Volusion doesn’t offer its own payment solution, which means you’ll need to rely on third-party gateways and potentially higher fees. Therefore, when it comes to payment options, Shopify is more option based. 

6. SEO and Marketing

Both platforms have built-in SEO tools. The SEO tools are designed that allows you to optimize the store for search engines. Shopify’s SEO features are more comprehensive and easier to use, with features like editable meta descriptions and title tags. Volusion’s SEO tools are also robust but may require more manual intervention.

When it comes to marketing, Shopify has the distinction of supporting the features like discount counts, email marketing, and social media integration, all due to its inbuilt features. Volusion, while still providing marketing tools, tends to rely more on third-party app integrations for additional functionality.

Pricing

Shopify offers three primary plans. The pricing plans are enlisted as under.

1. Basic Shopify at the cost of $29/month.
2. Shopify Plan priced at $79/month.
3. Advanced Shopify costs you $299/month.

Each tier provides more advanced features, such as lower transaction fees and additional staff accounts. There’s also a Lite plan at $9/month for businesses looking to sell on social media or add buy buttons to their existing websites. For larger enterprises, Shopify Plus is available with custom pricing.

Volusion’s pricing structure is based on four tiers:

1. Personal Plan: It is priced at $29/month.
2. Business Plan: The plan prices $79/month.
3. Business plan: This plan is priced at $299/month.
4. Prime Plan: The charges of the Prime plan are based on Custom pricing. 

Each plan comes with different product limits and features. One thing to note is that Volusion charges bandwidth overage fees if you exceed the allotted amount on your plan, while Shopify does not.

Customer Support

Both Shopify and Volusion offer excellent customer support to their users. Shopify provides 24/7 support via phone, live chat, and email. Additionally, they have an extensive knowledge base and community forum where users can find answers to common questions and share their experiences.

Volusion also offers 24/7 support, but only for the Professional plan and above. Users on the Personal plan have access to support via live chat and email, but phone support is not available. Like Shopify, Volusion allows you to explore more with the help of a comprehensive knowledge base and a community forum.

 Scalability

The scalability of Shopify is very high. It is an apt choice for businesses of all sizes. It allows the integration of numerous apps. It is easy to scale up the business. Shopify Plus allows you to achieve high-growth businesses with certain additional added-on features and customization. 

Volusion also offers scalability, but its product limitations and bandwidth overage fees can be restricting for larger businesses. The Prime plan provides custom solutions for enterprise-level clients, but it may not be as flexible as Shopify Plus.

Pros and Cons

Shopify Pros:

1. Easy-to-use, intuitive interface.
2.  Extensive app marketplace.
3. Unlimited products.
4. Built-in payment gateway (Shopify Payments.)
5. Comprehensive SEO and marketing tools.
6. 24/7 customer support.

Shopify Cons:

1. Transaction fees if not using Shopify Payments.
2. Some features may require additional app installations.

Volusion Pros:

1. User-friendly platform.
2. Robust product management features.
3. Responsive themes.
4. No transaction fees.

Volusion Cons:

1. Limited theme options.
2. Product limitations based on pricing plans.
3. Bandwidth overage fees.
4. Fewer app integrations.
5. Limited customer support for Personal plan users.

Wrapping Up

In the battle between Volusion vs Shopify, both platforms offer powerful e-Commerce solutions. Both have their own strengths and weaknesses. Shopify is the more versatile and scalable option, providing a comprehensive feature set, an extensive app marketplace, and top-notch customer support. Whereas, Volusion is a solid choice for businesses that require robust product management features and are less concerned with app integrations and scalability.

The final choice depends upon your business requirements. The choice of your online store will depend on your specific need and priority. In the article above, features, pros, and cons are comprehensively explained. So you are at liberty to choose the one you think deems fit to your need and requirement.