Have you compared VTEX with Shopify Plus?
Both are popular ecommerce platforms that are trusted by businesses of all sizes. However, as business needs evolve and the market changes, many companies are choosing to migrate from VTEX to Shopify Plus.
If you are also thinking about the possibility of migrating, this article can help you understand the differences between the platforms and have more information to make the right decision for your business.
Let's analyze both platforms, explore the reasons why many companies migrate and how this change can boost the efficiency and growth of your e-commerce.
We have put together our best efforts to conduct impartial research and act with transparency. In addition, we have received feedback from the Vtex team on this article, which was updated on August 15, 2023.
What are the main problems faced by VTEX users?
We analyzed testimonials from VTEX platform users we had contact with, as well as from online forums and communities, and listed some of the main common complaints among users:
1) Cost/benefit: It is important to evaluate the total cost (or TCO - Total Cost of Ownership), which includes platform costs, required services and resources offered. Despite having features that already exist on other platforms in general, VTEX requires investments that are much higher than average. In platform costs alone, a brief comparison allows us to understand that VTEX has annual costs that can exceed 3 to 10 times the cost of similar or superior plans on Shopify, for example. In addition to platform costs, the high dependence on specialists even for simpler activities leads to recurring development costs. Cases that could be solved, for example, with a pre-existing plugin, often end up becoming an entire project in VTEX. The problem is not only the high investment, but also the fact that this high investment is not proportional to the benefits.
2) Stability and performance issues: This is a silent evil, and it was one of the most talked about in VTEX forums and store groups . Few feelings are worse than attracting hundreds (or thousands) of visitors to your website, and losing sales due to instability issues. We have found many reports of instability issues on pages and navigation of websites created in VTEX. In A recent example is Thiago Stabille (one of Wepink's partners, along with Virginia Fonseca), who reported how they had a million-dollar loss in just one day of the campaign. This type of problem negatively affects the experience of people visiting the website, the e-commerce conversion rate and, consequently, the brand's reputation.
3) Limited integrations: Despite being one of the main e-commerce platforms in the Brazilian market, the VTEX ecosystem has little appeal on the international scene. To stay up-to-date, you will want to take advantage of the best tools available on the global market, far beyond Brazil. Therefore, companies that want to take advantage of the benefits of more modern technologies (or that are planning to internationalize) find a limited range of native integrations with important solutions, reducing the possibilities for customization and advanced features in e-commerce. Building such integrations from scratch represents a cost and a risk that many companies (rightly) do not want to face, in addition to creating an increasing dependence on development services.
4) Limited customization: Retailers using VTEX have reported dissatisfaction with the lack of customization options for the interface. The content management system is limited and requires programming knowledge to make changes. The platform does not offer features such as a theme store, drag-and-drop interface editing, and real-time previews of changes. In addition to offering limited components, VTEX also has restrictions on creating new components. There is a lack of tools that allow companies to manage themes without the need for a technical team. This lack of autonomy is a common complaint, since most integrations and customizations require a VTEX specialist, which can result in more work and additional costs.
Shopify Plus vs Vtex Comparison:
Want to know the differences between VTEX and Shopify Plus? We've compared a few items that can help you understand which platform is best for your business!
Ecosystem and Support
Shopify Plus: The platform offers a global ecosystem of certified developers and partners, along with ongoing support via chat, email, or phone 24/7. To help with sales, it also provides an Account Manager specialized in e-commerce.
VTEX: The VTEX platform also provides technical support, however, it may not be as effective and personalized as the support offered by Shopify Plus, as there is no direct support from the platform. Official communication with the support team is done through the ticket system. If the merchant wants to receive priority service, it is necessary to purchase a support plan. In addition, the VTEX ecosystem is smaller, as it is a platform with a national focus.
Scalability
Shopify Plus: It has unlimited scalability with cloud-based SaaS software. The Shopify platform is designed to handle high volumes of traffic and sales. It offers high-speed performance and 99.99% uptime regardless of location. It has a user-friendly interface, with management of up to 10 stores in the same dashboard, customized reports and modern language technology.
VTEX : Vtex tends to present instability issues during times of high traffic and sales volume, such as Black Friday. This may be an important point to take into consideration if your store is undergoing an expansion process and has a lot of access.
Interface
Shopify Plus: One of the main positive points of Shopify is the usability and user-friendly interface that the platform offers. Both for those who manage the website using its admin panel and for those who browse the site. Even those who do not have much experience in the subject can set up a functional and attractive store.
VTEX: Despite having some customization features, the VTEX interface can only be managed with some technical knowledge in programming. This means that its use requires a high learning curve, as well as extra time and dedication to use all the platform's features.
Automations:
Shopify Plus: It has a wide variety of automations included, which generates a lot of autonomy. Some of the main automations are:
Shopify Flow App: It is an e-commerce automation platform that helps you automate tasks and processes in your store and apps. (Example: You can create order flows with different conditions, receive daily emails with a summary of out-of-stock products, add loyalty tags, and much more)Shopify App Scripts: These are code snippets that allow you to create personalized experiences for your customers in the cart and checkout. Example scripts: Discount by order of spend, by quantity, "Buy one get one free" discount, discounted shipping rates by customer tag, reorder payment gateways, and more.
App Launchpad: Allows you to create automated workflows that help manage promotions, launches, inventory, and other aspects of your business.
VTEX: The platform does not offer advanced automations with simplified configuration like Shopify Plus. It is possible to develop new APIs and create automations, but this requires knowledge in programming and development within the Vtex system.
Integrations and Advanced Features
Shopify Plus: Plus merchants have access to an app store with over 8,000 global Shopify-certified apps, built specifically for high-growth businesses. Plus also offers a theme store, with hundreds of responsive and certified themes to choose from and customize in a simple drag-and-drop style. You can add multiple themes to your account, maintain seasonal versions of your published theme, and test changes on a copy of your published theme.
VTEX: It has integrations with other systems, but because it has a smaller ecosystem than Shopify, the platform is more limited in terms of native integrations and important global solutions. Vtex, for example, does not have a theme store. All customizations and integrations must be developed by partners specialized in the technology, which can generate more costs and reduce the store owner's autonomy.
Payments:
Shopify Plus: The platform integrates with hundreds of payment methods worldwide. Shop Pay lets customers securely save their payment and shipping information for faster checkouts across any Shopify store, with top-notch fraud protection. You can customize your checkout to suit your business needs.
VTEX: The VTEX platform has over 300 payment methods in total. In addition, it offers some customization options through its Smartcheckout app, but if you have technical knowledge or access to a developer, you can make additional customizations through the online store's source code.
Prices:
Shopify Plus: The Plus plan has a monthly maintenance cost of US$2,000/month or 0.15% of sales (whichever is greater). There is no requirement for advance payment (voucher).
Shopify has announced that starting August 9, 2023 there will be a price change for new or upgraded accounts only for Shopify Plus. The Plus platform fee will remain at $2,000 per month, and the fee will be calculated as a percentage of GMV, and will be 0.18% for all B2B transactions and 0.25% for all DTC (direct-to-consumer) transactions.
Important Update: Shopify Pricing and Fee Changes (Updated 03/07/2024)
The monthly fee will increase to $2,500 per month if the person decides to stay on the current plan. In addition, changes are being introduced to the platform's variable fees. For online sales, the fee will be 0.40%. For business-to-business (B2B) sales, there will be a new fee of 0.18%. However, fees for in-store sales will not change.
Special Condition: Keep the standard 2023 rates, opting for a new 3-year contract before April 24, 2024. Interested? Come talk to us!
VTEX: VTEX's Enterprise plan starts at R$25,000 + a 0.5% fee on sales. In addition to these costs, there is a requirement to pay a voucher, estimated at R$1,200,000 per year.
Both platforms have other plans for lower volumes (which are not the focus of this article). Shopify's entry-level plan starts at $14 USD + 2% on sales, VTEX's entry-level plan starts at R$5,000 + 2.5% on sales. The final prices can be consulted directly with the platforms. Shopify and VTEX .
Shopify Plus Features
Shopify Plus offers advanced features for high-volume ecommerce businesses, including:
Configuration and customization features:
- Advanced control and customization for e-commerce setup
- Full eCommerce Customization via Dashboard in Shopify Plus
- JavaScript and CSS support
Performance and security features:
- Fully hosted next-generation SaaS eCommerce platform
- Unlimited bandwidth to focus on growing your business without limitations
- Support to process 8,000 orders per minute, per store
- Unlimited scalability with cloud SaaS software
- Advanced security with SSL certificates and PCI DSS Level 1 compliance
Management features:
- Easy management of multiple stores under a single account
- Launchpad tool for campaign management
- Automatic task management
- Real-time event dashboard to track campaigns
- Management of B2C, B2B, wholesale and POS/POS channels
- Easy review of orders before invoicing specific details
- Shopify Flow for custom, automated backend workflows
Integration features:
- Shopify App Store: Integrations with 8,000+ apps
- Customizable Discounts with Shopify Plus Scripts
Support resources:
- Team with dedicated Merchant Success Manager and Launch Engineer on the account.
Click here to learn more details about Shopify Plus.
We can help you!
If you're tired of dealing with the limitations of your current store and want to upgrade to Shopify Plus, our Shopify Agency is here to help! We're one of the first agencies to achieve the Shopify Plus Partner status in Latin America and we're among the best-rated in the Shopify ecosystem!
Your project can count on the expertise of our Shopify Agency in every step, including migration, planning, design, custom solution architecture, development and ongoing monitoring for the success of your Shopify Plus store.
Contact us today using our form and find out how Alce Rocks can boost your business growth with the Shopify Plus platform!
Did you like the feature comparison between the VTEX and Shopify Plus platforms?
How about taking a look at some more comparisons we’ve prepared for you? If you liked the feature comparison between the VTEX and Shopify Plus platforms, you can’t miss these:
If you have anything to add to this article, let us know! Your feedback is important and we are always open to improvements.