Establishing a web store requires several layers, beginning with a serviceable website.
After that, you need inventory and a fulfillment provider.
Finally, you need the e-commerce software that will let customers find you and buy.
This is where Ecwid comes in.
Beginning at $15 per month (when paid annually), Ecwid is unlike most of the competition I've reviewed because it's neither overly simple nor is it delivered as a cloud-managed service.
While that means some integration and ease-of-use difficulties that place it slightly behind our Editors' Choice winners PinnacleCart and Shopify, Ecwid is still a powerful platform whose customization capabilities will appeal strongly to more experienced web professionals.
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To get the most out of Ecwid, simply set up your site via any reputable web hosting provider and then install Ecwid (short for "e-commerce widgets" and pronounced "eck-wid," if you're curious) on it.
After that, you're ready to get started customizing and presenting your wares.
While the back-end user interface (UI) to manage the store is simple to use, getting started with the storefront does require some manual setup and a willingness to muck around with the guts of the software.
That may not be what most merchants sign up for when they decide to sell online but, if you're game, Ecwid is a solid choice.
Keep in mind that PinnacleCart and Shopify are hosted services.
The files live on the companies' servers, and, if you have your own business website, you point to those servers for your store.
Again, Ecwid isn't accessed via the cloud; you buy an instance and it lives on your site.
You cut and paste the Ecwid code into a file saved on your web host.
Ecwid supports a number of plug-ins to make it easy to integrate with other sites, such as Drupal, Facebook, Joomla, Twitter, Wix, and WordPress.
However, it's still a full-featured enough solution to provide solid order and inventory management tools along with the ability to collect payments.
To get started, I used the free plan.
Since there is nothing hosted on Ecwid's servers, there is no other fee.
I signed up, copied the code, and was good to go, for free.
Since Ecwid doesn't provide your bandwidth or storage, you don't have to worry about any restrictions so it's better than PinnacleCart in that sense.
There are also no transaction fees, such as you'd pay with Shopify.
However, Ecwid has inventory restrictions, so make sure you sign up for a plan that supports enough products.
And, if you want one-on-one support—and considering the platform is more DIY than the competition, you probably do—you'll need to sign up for one of the higher tiers.
But the prices are all very reasonable.
The free plan lets you list 10 products, which is more than enough for the smallest merchants and for anyone trying to get a feel for the software.
The Venture plan ($15 per month) allows 100 products, has discount coupons, and integrates with PayPal for offline transactions.
The Business plan ($35 per month) supports a roomy 2,500 products, offers one-to-one support for setting up the store, and gives you the ability to offer customers a live chat support option.
You can also edit existing orders if a customer wants to change quantity or product, for example.
The Unlimited plan ($99 per month) removes the inventory restrictions altogether and offers priority support.
The highest tier for Ecwid is much cheaper than that of any of the top-tiers on other services, so that's definitely worth considering.
Ecwid lets you offer customers a way to check out without having to create a profile, gives you an address book to save shipping addresses for future orders, and offers the option to save products to buy later.
The shipping calculator makes it easy for customers to see what the shipping costs will be.
I like the fact that Ecwid's storefront can be translated into different languages (based on the shopper's localization settings).
The best part about Ecwid? The pages are optimized for whatever screen and device you are using.
It doesn't matter if you look at it from a laptop, mobile phone, tablet, or desktop, the storefront will look great.
Setting Up an Ecwid Store
After looking at 3dCart and BigCommerce, I needed a few seconds to get used to Ecwid because it isn't a hosted service.
Setting up is easy but you have to be willing to get your hands dirty.
You sign up with a free Ecwid account, either by creating a username/password or linking to another account, such as Facebook or Google.
The Ecwid control panel has everything you need to manage your shopping cart.
To get your store up and running, you copy the integration code from the dashboard page and paste it into your website.
To do this, you log into your site—if you use Squarespace or Wix, for example—or your web host and modify the file for your website.
If you use a content management system (CMS) such as Drupal, Joomla, or WordPress, then you can just install the plug-in to simplify the process.
Once you save the file and load your site in the browser, you will see the Ecwid shopping cart live and ready to go.
If the thought of touching the website's source code makes you feel faint, then Ecwid will seem intimidating.
But it is a painless process and the video tutorial is very helpful.
Once you are up and running with Ecwid, you add products and categories through the control panel.
Add Products is under the Catalog page.
Product images and details such as size and color are saved under Product Options.
You can also set up currency, shipping rates, taxes, and payment options.
Most shopping cart software enforces a one-to-one relationship.
One store, one account.
With Ecwid, you can add the store to multiple sites but manage them from a single UI.
This can be handy if you sell from various sources and websites because you get a consolidated view of all the orders.
Since you are working with an existing site, there is nothing to muck around with regarding domains or site themes, which is nice.
The instructional materials (including tutorials and knowledge base articles) are helpful and the user forum is very active.
This is important because live human support is available only for the higher tiers.
User Experience
Ecwid lets you turn on drag-and-drop shopping for customers.
If the shopper likes something, then he or she can just drag the item into the shopping cart.
While not critical, it's a cool thing to have that I haven't seen before.
And customers will remember something like that.
The control panel is nothing like the slick dashboards for hosted services but it's easy and straightforward.
It feels like you're working in a normal software application: no hidden menus or weird navigation logic.
If you've used WordPress or any blogging platform, then you will understand the administrator UI.
Because Ecwid integrates with an existing site, it doesn't offer extra tools, such as blogs or email marketing tools.
Depending on your web host, you may already have the option to integrate with third-party apps such as Mailchimp for email marketing.
So, if you need these extra features, then you will need to install and manage them separately.
If you want to hook up third-party apps, you can use the Ecwid application programming interface (API).
Accepting Payments
Ecwid integrates with 30 payment gateways, including Authorize.Net, ePay, First Data Merchant Services, PayPal, and Stripe.
If you use a supported payment gateway, then just follow the setup instructions to create an account and link your bank account.
The knowledge base articles also help you turn on payments within Ecwid.
Ecwid partners with PayPal to handle in-person credit card transactions, for 2.7 percent of the transaction per swipe.
This is a nice feature and one I don't see very often with shopping cart software.
Our Editors' Choice Shopify also handles both in-person and online transactions.
You can accept bank transfer, cash on delivery, order by phone (which Volusion supports), as well as check and money orders.
Ecwid is a nice compromise as it isn't as manual or self-service as Magento, but it isn't as completely hosted and managed as Shopify.
It does more than GoDaddy Quick Shopping Cart, but you don't have a lot of third-party integration like BigCommerce offers.
You have the flexibility of getting your storefront with the least amount of overhead, but the support materials are thorough enough that being DIY isn't as scary as it could be.
I would recommend our Editors' Choice products Shopify or PinnacleCart to most merchants who need to set up a storefront and not devote too much time on the software itself.
But, if you already have a site with which you are happy, or if the selling part is just one part of a bigger operation, then Ecwid is definitely a good choice for shopping cart software.
The Bottom Line
Ecwid is a little different from its competition in that it eshews add-ons, instead choosing to focus on its core mission.
While this makes it a little harder to use than some, the trade-off is well worth it for those interested in customization and mobile optimization.
