Shopify or WooCommerce: which is better for selling in Pakistan?

Shopify is a rented, managed platform. Hosting, security and updates are handled for you, the admin app works well on a phone, and a staff member can learn to add products in an afternoon. The costs are a monthly subscription charged in dollars, often more for paid apps, and transaction fees in some setups. Shopify's own payment service is not offered to Pakistani businesses, so card and wallet payments run through a third-party gateway app, and you need to check that your chosen Pakistani gateway offers a working Shopify integration before committing.

WooCommerce is a plugin that turns a WordPress site into a store. The software itself is free, it runs on hosting you can pay for in rupees, and many Pakistani gateways and couriers publish WooCommerce plugins first. You have complete control over the design, the checkout and the data. The price of that control is maintenance: WordPress, the theme and every plugin need updating, backups need taking, and a badly chosen plugin can slow the store or open a security hole. Without someone looking after it, a WooCommerce store tends to decay.

A practical rule we use: a boutique in F-7 or a cosmetics brand that wants low upkeep, has a smaller catalogue and a card for the subscription often does well on Shopify. A furniture or textile seller in Rawalpindi with complex variations, custom orders, wholesale pricing or a strong preference for local billing often suits WooCommerce, provided maintenance is arranged. Both can take cash on delivery. We set up either under the Business bundle for small catalogues and recommend one only after seeing your products and who will run the store day to day.