Shift4Shop (formerly known as "3dcart") is one of the internet's oldest e-commerce software platform suppliers. They've been in the market for over 20 years, which is longer than some of their primary competitors combined! However, being elderly isn't necessarily a good thing, especially in a fast-paced industry like eCommerce.
The following summarises our Shift4Shop review: Shift4Shop is a free and easy-to-use eCommerce platform (for US-based business owners) either moderately cheap (for store owners outside the US). The eCommerce themes from Shift4Shop aren't the most flashy, although they might help sell various products. Nevertheless, shift4Shop is easily one of the top eCommerce platforms of 2021, based on its features and solid foundation.
Who owns Shift4Shop? In November 2020, a payments firm called "Shift4 Payments" purchased the e-commerce platform known previously as 3dcart and now "Shift4Shop." In addition, shift4 Payments is a publicly-traded company on the New York Stock Exchange with a market capitalization of more than $5 billion at the time of writing. Given these factors, it's plausible to think Shift4Shop is highly secure.
How simple is Shift4Shop to use?
To answer the above question in a single word, exceedingly. Shift4Shop has put a lot of effort into building the back-end of the e-commerce platform in such a method that anybody can use it to start an e-commerce business.
Adding products to your store, selecting a theme for your e-commerce firm, and deciding which payment methods to give your consumers are all simple tasks. Furthermore, I appreciate the Shift4Shop store builder because nothing extra will cause you confusion while you develop your business.
Themes and templates on Shift4Shop in 2021.
Since Shift4 Payments took over the e-commerce platform now known as Shift4 Shop, one of the most delicate things they've done is making all of the store themes/templates accessible. That's because the pricey Shift4Shop themes may previously cost up to $199.99 each.
Shift4Shop also appears to be introducing new store themes. And, in my opinion, this is a good thing because some of the older themes are so antiquated that using one of them could decrease your conversion rate.
While the new Shift4Shop themes are an upgrade over the old ones, it's important to remember that they're not suitable for all types of stores. In addition, because Shift4Shop themes are highly focused on showing a wide selection of products on your homepage, this could be an issue if you don't sell a wide range of products.
When it comes to using the Shift4Shop themes, it's nice to know that it's simple to try out different options and that Shift4Shop's themes adjust to different screen sizes automatically. The latter implies that your clients may easily purchase items from your store, regardless of whether they use an ancient computer or a sophisticated smartphone.
At the time of writing, Shift4Shop has 110 free themes available. Thus, shift4Shop can be an excellent alternative for people wishing to construct an online store on the cheap, thanks to its extensive range of free themes.
Shift4Shop plans and pricing in 2021.
In 2021, Shift4Shop will provide three different regular programs for regular store owners (in addition to these, they also have, for example, an enterprise plan). The most affordable Shift4Shop plan is named "Basic Store" and costs $29.00 per month when paid monthly, while the most costly regular plan is called "Pro Store" and costs $229.00 per month when paid monthly.
All of Shift4Shop's regular plans have decent features (for example, the ability to add an unlimited number of products to your store). However, because switching plans is simple, it might be a good idea to start with a low-cost plan and upgrade later if you require more features than your current plan provides.
Update on the $19/month plan: Before becoming Shift4Shop, 3dcart promoted a $19/month package dubbed "Startup." That package isn't listed on Shift4Shop's pricing and plans page, although it appears that overseas clients can still select it when creating an account. However, probably, the plan won't be available for long.
Free plan.
Shift4Shop offers a free plan titled "End-To-End Ecommerce" in addition to the regular premium plans. Despite being free, this plan is the most advanced Shift4Shop plan in terms of functionality. The reason it's free is that those who choose this plan must use Shift4 Payments as their store's payment option in the Payments, a payment firm, own Shift4Shop.
It's worth noting that, while the End-to-End Ecommerce plan is free, Shift4Shop charges a transaction fee of 2.9 per cent + 30 cents on each sale you make with it. That cost is the same as what Shopify charges its $29/month customers. As a result, the transaction fees charged by Shift4Shop can be considered to be relatively reasonable.
Unfortunately, at the time of writing, the free Shift4Shop plan is only available to retailers based in the United States.
Dropshipping plan.
Shift4Shop includes a specialized dropshipping plan in addition to the programs mentioned above. This plan can be an excellent method to get started with e-commerce for many people, with rates starting at $9.99/month when paid monthly and even lower (per month) when choosing a more extended subscription. However, because the free Shift4Shop plan also allows for dropshipping. Therefore, those in the United States would be advised to opt for the free plan over the dropshipping plan.
Shift4Shop's customer service.
Shift4Shop's customer service, in my opinion, is excellent: they provide customer assistance via live chat, for example, and when I used it, I received informative and pleasant service within a few minutes of asking my query.
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