If you’ve surfed the net for the best eCommerce engine for the online business, you might probably end up with 3DCart vs Shopify in mind. Both platforms are known for their advanced feature sets, simplicity, and affordable pricing, so many e-merchants find it hard to decide between them. The post will provide you with a quick rundown of their differences and similarities for you to choose the one that will give your store the right feel and functionality.
Shift4Shop (formerly 3dcart) and Shopify share a lot of similarities. Both are SaaS (software as a service) solutions that come packed with great usability and eCommerce features allowing to build a store that looks good and works well. They’re all-in-one shopping carts that provide hosting, security, and support for one monthly fee. A deeper look at pricing, features, apps, and support will help you decide.
What is the difference between Shopify and Shift4Shop (formerly 3dcart)?
Shift4Shop (formerly 3dcart) and Shopify have much of the same functionality and characteristics. So, choosing the best between them will depend on your level of skills, the available budget, and what key features are important to you.
If you take a look at a comparison on Google Trends, there's only one clear winner in terms of what store owners are searching for:
3dcart vs Shopify. Key Differences:
While Shopify is easy to get comfortable with for both technical nerds and for beginners, Shift4Shop (formerly 3dcart) is actually too tricky for newbies who are not very tech educated.
Shopify is at your service 24/7 which means you can reach them via numerous channels, like phone, email, and live chat. Shift4Shop (formerly 3dcart), contrastingly, prides itself on having responsive customer support based on client feedback, however, their technical help is quite limited.
Both Shopify and Shift4Shop (formerly 3dcart) have strong sales and marketing tools. Unlike Shopify, Shift4Shop (formerly 3dcart) has no mobile app, restricting users who are on the move.
The Shopify Theme Store hosts a collection of hundreds of premium and free ecommerce website templates, whereas Shift4Shop (formerly 3dcart) offers hundreds of free templates.
Shopify has thousands of integrations to help you improve your business, whereas Shift4Shop (formerly 3dcart) has hundreds of integrations.
Shopify has a more user-friendly interface, whereas Shift4Shop (formerly 3dcart) expects a certain level of skills to benefit from its features.
Shift4Shop (formerly 3dcart) vs Shopify: What is Shift4Shop (formerly 3dcart)?
Shift4Shop (formerly 3dcart) is a full-featured eCommerce solution that has all the required functionality to serve merchants of all sizes. There's a range of pricing options, allowing you to select a plan that fits your budget best. Being the foundation for tens of thousands of stores, Shift4Shop (formerly 3dcart) is one of the main players in the eCommerce landscape.
Originally founded in 1997, and now operating as Shift4Shop, the platform is used by store owners globally. It’s headquartered in Florida and has hundreds of employees. Best features include :
SEO. Shift4Shop (formerly 3dcart) includes a set of powerful instruments to get high ranking in search engines. Top features are SEO friendly URLs and Google sitemap XML generator, dynamic meta tags per product and alt tags for images, etc.
Statistics. 25 business reports and full integration with Google Analytics, nothing more to add. You will get any type of information in a convenient and easy-to-understand form.
Social Media Marketing. Apart from standard marketing tools like discounts and coupon codes Shift4Shop (formerly 3dcart) has one of the best range of SMM features in the industry. Attract new visitors by posting content directly from the admin panel to Facebook and Twitter. Add YouTube videos to your product description and start your company’s blog. Sell your products via Facebook and mobile devices. Make your clients resell products with an effective affiliate system and many others.
Despite all the advantages associated with the platform, Shift4Shop (formerly 3dcart) still has its drawbacks that e-merchants should consider before migrating:
Set up fee. Normally hosted solutions don’t take any extra money for the installation. However, if you decide to go with Shift4Shop (formerly 3dcart) you have to consider these additional costs.
Extensions. Shift4Shop (formerly 3dcart) comes with huge number of default features. However, it lack’s some of top-end functions. Unfortunately, there are not as many add-ons, so, it may be challenging to add extensive extra features.
3dcart vs Shopify. What About Shopify?
Launched in 2006, the platform is now used by millions of online stores. The secret of success lays in the powerful product management system and outstanding marketing features like mobile commerce capabilities, SEO optimization, and multiple shipment/payment options. Top functions include the following:
Usability. Even though hosted carts are all supposed to be intuitive and user-friendly Shopify is recognized as virtually the best platform in this case. The Admin panel is very simple and powerful. So you can create products, launch marketing campaigns, and get high profit easily.
Design. Shopify’s professional design has become a real legend in eCommerce. More than a hundred free default templates and the opportunity to alter them in the way you like (user-friendly editor or CSS/HTML files rewriting). Additionally, there are hundreds of free and paid themes available at the official App Store.
App Store. Shopify provides you with extra customization opportunities enabling you to get hundreds of extensions via the App Store.
But it is quite obvious that Shopify can’t only have pros, so here are some cons that you also need to pay attention to:
Transaction fee. Probably Shopify is the only solution that charges you with a 1-2% fee for each transaction unless you will purchase the most expensive pricing plan.
Facebook integration. The number of Facebook users is now over 3 billion so you simply cannot afford to ignore this marketplace.
Check out our infographic to get a better understanding of the migration process via Cart2Cart:
Final Thoughts
With all that being said, take time to consider all the advantages and disadvantages of these eCommerce solutions to make the right-your-size decision. And last but not least: we recommend you to play around with both platforms. Each of them offers a free trial period so you don’t have a reason not to try it by yourself and choose the best one for your specific business goals and objectives.
To conclude, the last barrier that may stand between you and your new Shift4Shop (formerly 3dcart) or Shopify store is the data migration procedure. If you already have a store that is powered by another shopping cart, then the data transfer process may seem like real trouble. To avoid any problems simply use the Cart2Cart migration service. To see how swift and accurate this process can be just click here to register an account and you’ll be on your way to creating a perfect store.
Monthly Update – September 2025
As September 2025 unfolds, the eCommerce landscape continues its rapid evolution, with Artificial Intelligence (AI) and headless commerce emerging as pivotal trends for online store owners. AI is no longer a futuristic concept but an integral part of enhancing customer experience, from personalized recommendations and dynamic pricing to advanced fraud detection and efficient customer service chatbots. Businesses leveraging AI are seeing significant improvements in conversion rates and customer loyalty. Concurrently, the adoption of headless commerce architecture is gaining momentum. This approach decouples the front-end presentation layer from the back-end commerce engine, offering unparalleled flexibility, speed, and customization capabilities. For merchants considering a platform migration, evaluating a solution’s AI integrations and its compatibility with a headless setup is crucial for future scalability and maintaining a competitive edge. This architectural shift allows for innovative shopping experiences across various touchpoints, ensuring your brand can adapt to emerging technologies and consumer behaviors without a complete re-platforming.
For more details, explore our FAQ section or schedule a call with a migration expert.
Comment by Sawan
Is it possible to directly link 3Dcart store with aliexpress like oberlo is doing for shopify stores?
Comment by Iryna Namaka
Hello Sawan, thanks for the question. Check more info on your question here. Hope you’ll get all the answers. Otherwise, contact us for more discussion. Always happy to hear from you!