E-commerce platform costs explained

The six costs behind every platform

Most platforms combine a few of these cost types. Two platforms with the same monthly price can differ by hundreds of euros once you add the rest.

1. Subscription

The fixed monthly or annual fee. It is the easiest number to compare, and often the smallest part of the bill for a growing store.

2. Transaction or commission fees

A percentage of each sale charged by the platform itself. Some platforms charge it on every plan, some only when you use an outside payment provider, and some not at all. Because it grows with your sales, it matters more than the subscription once you pass a few thousand euros a month.

3. Payment processing fees

What the card processor charges to move the money, usually a percentage plus a fixed amount per transaction. You pay this on almost any platform. The question is who the processor is and whether the platform adds its own fee on top. Cash on delivery orders don't carry card fees, but your courier may charge a cash-on-delivery fee.

4. Apps and extensions

Features not included in the plan, such as subscriptions, reviews, advanced filters or invoicing connectors. They are billed monthly or yearly, per app.

5. Hosting and maintenance

On hosted platforms this is included. On self-hosted software you pay for the server and for someone to handle updates, security and plugin compatibility. Your own time counts as a cost too.

6. Order allowances

Some plans include a number of orders per month and charge more once you go above it. This cost is invisible at launch and appears exactly when the store starts doing well.

How to calculate your total monthly cost

Use one formula for every platform you consider:

1. Subscription per month (convert annual prices to monthly).
2. Plus platform fee: commission percentage × monthly sales.
3. Plus card processing: card rate × card sales, plus the fixed fee × number of card orders.
4. Plus apps and extensions, converted to a monthly amount.
5. Plus hosting and maintenance, if the software is self-hosted.
6. Plus any order-allowance step-up, if your order count passes the included amount.

Do the calculation at today's volume, then again at two or three times that volume. Percentage fees and order allowances scale with growth; subscriptions don't.

A worked example: €6,000 in monthly sales

Our hypothetical store sells about €6,000 a month with an average order of €60, so roughly 100 orders a month. To show the effect of percentage fees, we first assume every order is paid online by card. Lei amounts are converted at roughly 5 lei per euro, so check the current BNR rate for your own calculation.

The table compares cost models, not complete feature sets. Each figure links to the platform's own page.

Reading the table

Shopify. On Basic, monthly billing in Romania is 139 lei, and the pricing page lists a 2% fee when you use a third-party payment provider instead of Shopify Payments. With Shopify Payments that fee disappears and the card rate is 1.9% + 1.25 lei per online transaction (international cards 3% + 1.25 lei). Shopify also states that you aren't charged third-party transaction fees for manual payments, so cash-on-delivery orders don't carry the 2%. For a Romanian store with many COD orders, the real percentage cost is lower than the table's all-card assumption.

Storenest. The Starter plan costs 0 € a month and every plan carries a 3% fee per transaction. At this volume that is 180 € a month. The model suits stores that want no fixed cost at the start. Ask them whether card processing is included in the 3% and how it applies to cash on delivery.

Gomag. Subscriptions start at 7 € (Basic, 200 products) and 37 € (Advanced, 2,000 products), in EUR excluding VAT, per the pricing page. Prices include an average of 350 orders a month, and each extra 350 orders adds 67 € a month automatically. At 100 orders this store sits well inside the allowance. The page doesn't mention a sales commission, so ask directly.

WooCommerce. The core is free with 0% revenue share. WooCommerce's own pricing page puts hosting at $25–350 a month for most stores and extensions at $29–299 a year each. Three paid extensions add about $7–75 a month. If you use WooPayments, Romanian cards cost 1.40% + 1.00 lei per transaction, about 104 € here, with 21% VAT applied to fees. In return you own the code and data and get the full WordPress ecosystem, while maintenance is your job.

Omniterra. The Start plan costs €29/month with 0% platform commission. Card payments go through your own Stripe account, and Stripe charges its own processing fees. Couriers may charge their own cash-on-delivery fee. We charge no percentage. The Free plan (€0/month) has 0% commission too, but its limit of 50 orders a month is below this store's 100 orders, so Start is the right fit here.

We're not the only option without a sales commission. MerchantPro, for example, states it charges no commission on sales and also has a free plan.

What changes when sales triple

At €18,000 a month (300 orders), fixed subscriptions stay the same while percentage fees triple. The Shopify third-party fee becomes 360 € on card sales, and the Storenest fee becomes 540 €. Gomag's allowance of 350 orders still covers 300 orders, but one more step would add 67 € a month. WooCommerce hosting may need a bigger plan as traffic grows. This is why you should always calculate at two volumes.

Questions to ask any platform before you sign

• Is there a commission or transaction fee on sales, and on which plans?
• Does that fee apply to cash-on-delivery or bank-transfer orders?
• Which payment processors can I use, and what do they charge?
• Is there an extra fee if I use my own payment provider?
• How many orders, products and staff accounts does my plan include, and what happens when I pass the limit?
• Which features I need are paid apps or extensions, and what do they cost per year?
• Who handles hosting, updates and security, and is it included?
• Are prices shown with or without VAT?
• What does the annual discount require, and can I cancel?
• Can I export my products, customers and orders if I leave?

If you're comparing platforms because you plan to move, read how to migrate without losing SEO. Starting from zero? See how to start an online store in Romania. For detailed side-by-sides, see Omniterra vs Shopify and Omniterra vs Storenest. When you're ready, compare our plans and pricing or start free with 0% commission.

Shopify, WooCommerce, Storenest, Gomag and MerchantPro are trademarks of their respective owners. Omniterra is not affiliated with them.