Free Ecommerce Platforms and Digital Product Stores
Which ecommerce platforms a startup can open an online store or sell digital products with for free today, how many products the free plan allows, the transaction fee on each sale, whether a card is needed and what the first paid plan costs, read from each provider's own page.
Free allowances read on each provider's own pages, all checked on or after . Ecommerce platforms change their free plans from time to time: confirm the terms on the provider's page before you rely on it.
Ecommerce platforms a startup can sell with for free today include Big Cartel (Free Gold plan: 5 product listings), Payhip (Free forever, all features), WooCommerce (Free plugin, no monthly subscription), Lemon Squeezy (All features, no monthly charges), and Shopify (3-day free trial, no card needed). Each of the 10 free plans below links to the provider's page that states it, with its main limit, its transaction fee, whether a card is needed and what the first paid plan costs.
Selling a product online takes a store: product pages, a checkout, payments and delivery. Online store builders host the whole store, and digital product platforms sell downloads, courses and memberships. Several have a free plan or no monthly fee, and take a fee on each sale instead.
The headline rarely tells you how far it goes. Free plans cap products or templates, take a percentage of every sale on top of card processing, or keep a custom domain for paid plans. Each platform below shows what is free, its main limit, its transaction fee, whether a card is needed and what the first paid plan costs, quoted from the provider's own page with the date we read it.
Which platforms we picked and the order they appear in are our editorial choices; the terms are the providers'. Some of these providers pay us a referral commission when someone signs up through our link: those links are labeled, and they play no part in which platforms are listed or where.
Online store builders with a free plan
Sell physical or digital products from your own store, free to start.
- 1
Big Cartel
Makers and artists selling a few products
The Gold plan is free with no credit card, for 5 product listings and one template. Platinum is $15/mo after a 7-day free trial, for more products.
- Payment card
- No card needed (source: bigcartel.com)
- First paid plan
- Platinum: $15/mo after 7 days free (source: bigcartel.com)
Start free at Big CartelTerms read on bigcartel.com on Big Cartel: the free allowance and how to start - 2
WooCommerce
WordPress sites that want full control of their store
WooCommerce is free to download and use, with no revenue share. Products and orders are unlimited, but hosting costs $25 to $350 a month for most stores.
Start free at WooCommerceTerms read on woocommerce.com on WooCommerce: the free allowance and how to start - 3
Shopify
Stores that want a full platform after a short trial
Shopify starts with a free 3-day trial, and the page says no credit card is required. Paid plans follow the trial.
- Payment card
- No card needed (source: shopify.com)
Platforms for selling digital products
Sell downloads, courses and memberships, with no monthly fee to start.
- 1
Payhip
Digital products and courses with no monthly fee
Payhip's free plan is free forever, with unlimited products and revenue, and takes a 5% transaction fee. No credit card is required to start.
- Transaction fee
- +5% transaction fee per sale (source: payhip.com)
- Payment card
- No card needed (source: payhip.com)
- First paid plan
- Plus: $29/mo, 2% transaction fee (source: payhip.com)
- 2
Lemon Squeezy
Software and digital sellers who want no monthly bill
There are no monthly charges for ecommerce features. The only cost is a 5% + 50¢ transaction fee per sale, and no card is needed to sign up.
- Transaction fee
- 5% + 50¢ per transaction (source: lemonsqueezy.com)
- Payment card
- No card needed (source: lemonsqueezy.com)
Start free at Lemon SqueezyTerms read on lemonsqueezy.com on Lemon Squeezy: the free allowance and how to start - 3
Ko-fi
Creators selling shop items, memberships and tips
Setting up a Ko-fi page is free, with no monthly charges. Ko-fi takes a 5% service fee per payment, plus PayPal or Stripe fees, and the free tier has no advanced features.
- Transaction fee
- 5% service fee per payment (source: ko-fi.com)
- First paid plan
- Gold: $12/month, 0% service fee (source: ko-fi.com)
- 4
Polar
Software and AI products that bill customers
Polar's Starter plan is free to start, with standard support. Each sale carries a 5.00% + 50¢ transaction fee, and the Pro plan is $20 a month.
- Transaction fee
- 5.00% + 50¢ transaction fee per sale (source: polar.sh)
- First paid plan
- Pro: $20/month (source: polar.sh)
- 5
Crevio
Solo sellers of a few digital products or courses
Crevio's Starter plan is free, with up to 2 active products and a 5% transaction fee. No credit card is required, and Pro is $16 a month billed yearly.
- Transaction fee
- 5% transaction fee per sale (source: crevio.co)
- Payment card
- No card needed (source: crevio.co)
- First paid plan
- Pro: $16/month, billed yearly (source: crevio.co)
Start free at CrevioReferral linkTerms read on crevio.co on Crevio: the free allowance and how to start - 6
Gumroad
Creators who want a simple store with no monthly fee
Gumroad doesn't charge a monthly fee. Direct sales take 10% + $0.50 per transaction, and sales through its Discover marketplace take 30%.
- Transaction fee
- 10% + $0.50 per sale, direct links (source: gumroad.com)
- 7
Podia
Course sellers who want to test the full platform first
Podia offers a 14-day free trial of everything, with no credit card needed to start. After the trial, the Mover plan is $42 a month billed yearly and charges a 5% transaction fee.
- Transaction fee
- 5% fee on the Mover plan (source: podia.com)
- Payment card
- No card needed (source: podia.com)
- First paid plan
- Mover: $42/mo, billed yearly (source: podia.com)
Also useful for selling online
Referral links, picked for fit and ordered by fit (70%) and what a signup earns us (30%), at no cost to you. They never change this page's ranking.
Compare the top options
How this comparison is built
The list covers ecommerce platforms and digital product platforms a founder can use for free today without applying to a program. The order and the "best for" notes are our editorial reading of each platform's terms. Every term comes from the platform's own pricing or help page on the date shown, never from a third-party list; follow each link for the full conditions. A cap on products, a fee on every sale instead of a subscription, a custom domain or the platform's branding kept for paid plans can matter more than the headline, so the comparison quotes them wherever the provider states them. Some of these platforms pay StartupPerks a referral commission, and their links are labeled as referral links; that decides neither whether nor where a platform appears, and no platform pays for a placement on this page.
Read the full methodologyCommon questions
What is the best free ecommerce platform?
It depends on what you sell. By the terms each provider states, Big Cartel's free Gold plan includes 5 product listings, WooCommerce is a free plugin with unlimited products and no revenue share, and Payhip is free forever with a 5% transaction fee per sale.
Is Gumroad free?
Gumroad has no monthly fee and charges per sale: 10% plus $0.50 on direct links, and 30% on sales through Gumroad Discover.
What does Lemon Squeezy charge?
Lemon Squeezy has no monthly charges and takes 5% plus 50 cents per transaction.
Is Shopify free?
No. Shopify offers a 3-day free trial with no card needed, then a paid plan.
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