With so many people and businesses vying for attention in Hong Kong, eCommerce platforms have become essential for businesses looking to reach a global audience. 

There are many eCommerce platforms to choose from, but how do you decide which is best? We selected our top 5 list based on the following criteria: 

  • Ease of use – The platform should be easy to navigate and understand, as this will save time for your employees and allow them to get their work done faster.
  • Features – The platform should have features for analytics, customer support, marketing, and integration with other online platforms.
  • Cost – Helps decide whether the online platform is within your budget. If the platform has a free trial period, use this period to test if the platform is suitable for your business.
  • Customer support – A good platform has customer support that is always available to help you resolve any issues you may have.

These four criteria will help you decide the best online store platform for your business. To help you with your search, we’ve put together a list of the 5 most popular eCommerce platforms in Hong Kong: 

  • Shopify
  • Shopline
  • Boutir
  • Wix
  • WooCommerce

Let’s look at each of these in more detail.

Shopify

Shopify is one of the most popular eCommerce platforms on the planet. It’s incredibly easy to get started with, and it has a vast range of features that make running an online store a breeze. It is well-rounded and can accommodate a variety of businesses. 

Shopify has a robust support system and an easy-to-use marketing and analytics dashboard to help you grow your business. 

Features

Shopify has the following features:

  • 24/7 support
  • Analytics
  • Marketing & SEO
  • Mobile App
  • Products
  • Shopping cart
  • Store management
  • Storefront
  • Web hosting

These features help in customizing your store’s appearance, marketing, and managing almost every aspect of your business such as orders and finances, and even has live analytics of how your store is performing. 

Pros

  • Easy to use: Whether you have zero experience or are a seasoned pro, Shopify makes it easy to get up and running with an online store.
  • Wide range of features: Shopify has everything you need to start and grow your business, from a custom eCommerce platform to payment processing tools.
  • Customizable: You can create a completely custom Shopify store design
  • 24/7 customer support: No matter what kind of question you have, customer support is always available to help around the clock

Cons

  • Shopify transaction fees are high when using third-party payment gateways 
  • The multi-currency feature is only available if you’re using Shopify payments
  • Full reporting is only available on the more expensive plans (Shopify, advanced, and Shopify plus) 
  • Shopify payments is only available in some countries

Pricing

Shopify has five pricing plans:

  • Lite: Costs $9 per month and allows you to use the buy button on other sites like Facebook.
  • Basic: Costs $29 monthly, and it’s ideal for new eCommerce businesses
  • Shopify: Costs $79 per month, and it’s perfect for growing businesses
  • Advanced: Costs $299 per month, and it’s the best plan for scaling businesses
  • Shopify plus: Customized plan ideal for high volume businesses

Shopify offers a 14-day free trial. If you choose to pay upfront for one year, you get a 10% discount, two years 20% discount, and 25% discount for three years. 

Shopline

Shopline is an eCommerce platform that offers custom templates to help you easily build your online store. You can easily migrate your store from other platforms and instantly customize your storefront with your brand colors and fonts.

Features

  • Crossborder support
  • Customer relations
  • Data and information security
  • Omni-channel integration
  • Omni-channel marketing
  • Operational management
  • Payments and logistics integration
  • Performance analysis
  • Store set-up

These features allow you to build your online business easily, integrate with other channels, and analyze how your business is performing. 

Pros

  • Easy to use
  • Plenty of themes to choose from
  • No extra plugins are required

Cons

  • The only customization possible is modifying colors, product images, and banners
  • Doesn’t support integration with third-party apps 

Pricing

Shopline has five pricing plans:

  • Lite: $12 per month and it’s meant for social commerce
  • Starter: $29 per month and it’s best for startups
  • Essential: $69 per month
  • Standard: $149 per month
  • Premium: $259 per month

If you choose to pay yearly, you get two months free on the essential, standard, and premium plans.

Shopline offers a 14-day free trial which you can use to test and see how well it performs.

Boutir

Boutir is an eCommerce platform based in Hong Kong that allows users to create online stores from a mobile app. Boutir app is available on the App Store and Google Play. The app can be used on Facebook or a website.

Boutir app allows users to upload product images from a phone camera, phone library, Instagram, and Dropbox. You can also upload product videos from YouTube and link social media accounts to your online store.

Features 

  • Facebook pixel
  • Publicity banner
  • Discount pricing
  • Logistics automation
  • Self-served Ads for Google and Facebook

Boutir features make it possible to market your business, provide various logistics (e.g., SF express and Hong Kong post) and payment methods, and get analytics reports.

Pros 

  • Beginner-friendly
  • No transaction fees
  • Integrates with local payments options like AliPay and PayMe
  • Boutir academy provides helpful information on how to use the App

Cons

  • Limited customization because there is only one template.
  • Limited integrations options with third-party apps hindering scalability 

Pricing

Boutir has three plans:

  • Starter: HKD 118 per month
  • Business: HKD 398 per month
  • Business plus: HKD 688 per month

Paying annually can save you 30% on the business plan and 36% on the business plus plan. Boutir’s starter plan is limited to 30 transactions per month, best used for testing the platform.

Wix

Wix is a web-based eCommerce platform that has a drag-and-drop interface. It comes with an easy-to-use online builder where you can create an online store with all the bells and whistles of an eCommerce store. 

The highly customizable platform allows you to modify its look and feel, add products, create categories, customize the checkout process, manage orders, and much more.

Features

Wix has various features under the following categories:

  • Cart & checkout
  • eCommerce apps
  • Marketing & SEO
  • Payments
  • Products
  • Store analytics
  • Store management
  • Storefront & eCommerce website
  • Wix Owner app

The built-in SEO tools ensure that your site ranks highly in search engines like Google and Bing. You can also use multi-lingual support to ensure that visitors worldwide can find your products quickly. 

Pros

  • Beginner-friendly
  • Supports physical and digital products
  • Multilingual
  • Good search engine optimization (SEO) capabilities

Cons

  • Lacks a stock management feature that alerts users when stock levels are low
  • It’s not possible to migrate your online store to another platform

Pricing

Wix has three premium eCommerce plans:

  • Business basic: $17 per month
  • Business unlimited: $25 per month
  • Business VIP: $35 per month

The basic plan has limited features compared to the unlimited and VIP so it’s ideal for small businesses with a few transactions.

WooCommerce

WooCommerce is a free plugin that lets you create a fully functional WordPress website that functions as an online store. It comes with various features, like creating your products, tracking your sales, and even processing credit card payments. 

WooCommerce can be used to create just about any type of eCommerce website, but it’s most helpful in selling digital products, such as ebooks and templates.

Features

  • Pre-installed payment gateways
  • Automatic taxes
  • Inventory management
  • Integrated marketing and SEO
  • Flexible shipping options
  • Define tax rates
  • Built-in analytics and reporting

With WooCommerce built-in tax features, you can calculate taxes for major countries and states. Tax automation is also possible by using extensions such as Freshbooks, Taxjar, and Xero.

Pros

  • Free
  • No limits on customizations
  • Flexible so you can sell physical or digital products
  • No transaction fees

Cons

  • Not beginner-friendly
  • Might have to pay for some plugins
  • Self-hosted

Pricing

Woocommerce is a free WordPress plugin, but does not include other website necessities such as a domain name, hosting, and other addons. 

Conclusion: eCommerce and BINERY

There are many eCommerce platforms to choose from in Hong Kong, but the one that will work best for your business depends on how you want to style your website, your available budget, and what kind of user experience you’re looking for.

With an online store up and running, you might need to look for a professional to help you manage your accounting records. BINERY is a professional offering reliable accounting services to hundreds of Hong Kong eCommerce businesses. Get in touch today!