How much does an e-commerce cost in 2021-2022?

It is legitimate for you to ask yourself the question, but it may be simple, yet it is impossible to give a single valid answer. In fact, it depends. Each company is different and, depending on its size, status (early or well established), strategy, budget and deadlines, the figures obtained may be significantly different.

To be fair, the price of an e-commerce site can range from $ 5,000 to over $ 500,000. But putting forward a precise final cost for such a question turns out to be really complicated, because an e-commerce project involves many variables.

WHAT VARIABLES DETERMINE THE PRICE OF AN E-COMMERCE IN 2021-2022?

You have understood it: the price differences between an e-commerce and another depend on many factors, but mainly boil down to the scope of the project.

The size of your customer base determines the technology, hardware and software requirements. If you have a large customer base, you will need a compatible website and applications that can handle a lot of simultaneous traffic. These factors dictate which technology to use, as well as the type of network, servers, and other hardware required.

In addition, the more an e-shop includes a high number of pages, the more its creation costs, since the processes of coding, integration, tests, writing costs or even SEO referencing will be multiplied.

Therefore, the price of an e-commerce may vary depending on the circumstances, and your needs:

Do you have internal resources available and have the knowledge to deliver what you need?
How many pages?
How many products?
Will some products be available in multiple colors, sizes, etc. ?
Is your content ready or do you need an agency or provider to support it and optimize it for search engines?
Who will be responsible for maintaining your e-commerce after it goes online?
To determine more precisely how much it costs to create an e-commerce site , all these questions must be asked upstream.

As you can see, creating a merchant site is a complex project that covers different aspects and involves various topics. All these variables make the answer to the question “How much does the deployment of an e-commerce site cost?” Will depend on the careful consideration of your needs.

To help you see more clearly, you will find below the breakdown of the various main elements which influence the final cost.

E-COMMERCE PLATFORM

Overall, 7 main players share the e-commerce website creation market:

• WooCommerce: a CMS platform to transform your WordPress site into e-commerce.
• Squarespace: a CMS in SaaS mode allowing you to create a website with e-commerce features.
• Magento : a powerful open source CMS for creating a very personalized e-commerce.
• Prestashop: an open source CMS to create an e-shop adapted to the needs of VSEs / SMEs.
• Shopify: a CMS for creating an online store without specific technical knowledge.
• Drupal Commerce: an extension of the famous Drupal CMS, to add e-commerce functionality to its site.
• Wizishop: an e-commerce solution intended for inexperienced users.
• Among these CMS (Content Management System) solutions, it is a question of choosing the one that best corresponds to your current business.

All-in-one e-commerce solutions such as Shopify, Squarespace or Wizishop leave less room for customization, but allow a faster start.

With this type of solution, you are allowed to change the design of the site, but you cannot change most of the built-in features or functionality. Basically, an all-in-one e-commerce solution is like renting an apartment. You can live there, decorate it, and invite friends over, but you are not allowed to destroy walls or remove already built-in devices.

This is why these solutions are ideal for small businesses with a relatively small product catalog, simple requirements and wishing to launch their e-shop relatively quickly and at a lower cost.

Modular and scalable e-commerce solutions, such as Magento or PrestaShop, allow the development of an ultra-customizable e-commerce site.

SUMMARY OF THE MAIN CREATION COSTS OF AN E-COMMERCE SITE IN 2021-2022

This list will give you an idea of ​​the combined costs that might be applicable to your situation.

Design and construction:

between € 2,000 and € 5,000 for a very basic e-commerce site from a small agency or independent, probably built on Shopify or WordPress.
between € 20,000 and € 30,000 for a more sophisticated e-commerce site built for you by an agency.
around € 50,000 for more complex projects with a Magento-type solution.
100,000 € and more when you work with 360 ° agencies on complex technologies.
Domain name:
Between 5 and 15 € / year.
Hosting (unless you are using a hosted e-commerce solution like Shopify):
from 300 to 2,000 € / year depending on variables such as the e-commerce CMS used, the number of products, pages and anticipated traffic of the site.
SSL certificate:
from 9 to 500 € / year.
Copywriting and SEO:
from 50 to 500 € x number of pages to optimize.
Maintenance:
Between 3 and 10% of the revenues generated by e-commerce over one year.

WHAT ARE THE NEXT STEPS TO START CREATING AN E-COMMERCE?

Make a list of your requirements. Consider the specific features you need.
Prepare information about your brand and target customer.
Make a list of your business goals online.
Find examples of competitors whose online presence you like, and others whose online work you don’t like, so that you can provide examples for agencies or developers you consider working with.
Establish a budget that includes the creation of the e-commerce site as well as the management of maintenance after the launch.
Look for web agencies that have in-house designers and developers.
Provide your documents to final applicants and ask for their recommendations and estimates. Ask for a formal proposal.
Compare the estimates and interviews of the various selected agencies and check their references.

In conclusion, with so many variables to consider, budgeting for an e-commerce site development project for your business can be a bit confusing.

The creation of an e-commerce site can cost from 5 000 to 500 000 € , so it is important to know the factors that come into play in prices. The cost will ultimately be determined by how well you want your e-commerce site to work.