Undeniably, the future of retail growth in the United Arab Emirates (UAE) is e-commerce. Over the last five years, there has been a dramatic increase in the e-commerce revenue in this country – from $2.5 billion to more than $10 billion. As a result, the demand for e-commerce platform in UAE has also experienced a noticeable rise. Any e-commerce businesses, regardless of their scale, will need a powerful platform to start and grow. If you are going to open an online store, this article will help you figure out the most popular e-commerce platform in UAE.

1. Magento 

Magento is a prevalent e-commerce platform in UAE for retailers who want to build a solid foundation for their e-businesses. Up to now, there has been more than 50% of UAE e-commerce websites built on Magento, especially Magento 2.

If you want to set up a small store, you can go with the free version (Magento Open Source). However, if you see yourself expanding over the years, Magento Commerce might be a wiser choice. Since the premium comes with more vigorous functionalities, you will be charged a relatively expensive annual fee, approximately $22,000. It will power your site comprehensively, from accounting, product, catalog, orders, content, customer support, SEO & marketing, security, analytics and reporting, to payment and shipping, and so on.

Here are some substantial advantages of using Magento platform:

• Themes and templates have numerous options to choose from
• Add-ons & widgets are updating and evolving
• SEO and mobile-friendly website design by default
• Easy for the developers to customize according to merchants’ needs
• Easy for the store owners to use and manage

In order to develop a state-of-the-art online store, Magento is the best option.

 

2. WooCommerce

WooCommerce is the fastest growing, open-source platform for developing e-commerce sites not only in UAE but also throughout the world. It is a perfect blend of WordPress, e-commerce and existing plugins.

In fact, WooCommerce is just a plugin for WordPress websites, it is very powerful, equipped with almost all the ingredients that other platform offers. Infinite design options and payment gateways provide more flexibility to customers. WooCommerce is suitable for small to medium size business, therefore, if you are looking for an enterprise level solution this might not be a good choice.

This platform is free, but you might need to install some plugins (either free or paid) to enhance its functionalities.

 

3. BigCommerce

BigCommerce is one of the best e-commerce platforms that is widely used these days. Because of being a Saas-based shopping cart, it provides an extremely easy interface to the users. BigCommerce does not charge any fee for use of their payment system.

The theme store of BigCommerce includes a wide range of beautiful themes which are both free and premium, a good start for a new online store.

You will have to pay a monthly fee for using BigCommerce. The price is different for each business level:

• Standard: ~$25/month
• Commerce Plus: ~$80/month (recommended)
• Commerce Pro: ~$250/month

However, in case the limit crosses for your revenue, you are obliged to upgrade to a higher plan.

 

4. Wix

Thanks to the simple interface and affordable prices, Wix also appears in the list of the most well-known platforms in UAE.

Multiple template options with creative design are available. You can freely customize the design with the drag-and-drop interface without strong technical skills.

Although Wix is providing a free plan that never expires, you cannot sell anything online on it. Hence, let’s consider the following pricing plans:

• Unlimited: $12.50/month
• Combo: $ 8.50/month
• E-commerce: $16.50/month (recommended)

 

5. Shopify

The last favorite e-commerce platform in UAE is Shopify, which offers a wide variety of features to develop a robust online enterprise. Though this platform is can be used for all types of business, it seems to be more appropriate for the small ones.

Shopify has excellent functionalities such as managing inventory, organizing products into categories, tracking customer and order details, managing multiple staff login, setting multi-lingual store, etc.

Shopify is available at $29, $79 and $299 on a monthly basis and each comes with a certain list of features. There is also an enterprise-level solution for big retailers that starts around $2,000 per month.

Moreover, it’s worth noting that you will have a 14-day free trial without a credit card.

 

Other Less Common E-commerce Platforms In UAE

There are many other platforms to compare with the above list of outstanding e-commerce platforms in UAE, for example:

• MonsterCommerce
• OpenCart
• VirtueMart
• SquareSpace
• Prestashop
• osCommerce
• Drupal

 

Which E-commerce Platform In UAE Is Right For You? 

Although the articles show you the top 5 e-commerce platforms in UAE, only you can decide which one would be the most suitable for your online store. However, if it’s still hard for you to choose, just go with the Magento platform, a perfect solution for businesses at all levels.

Last but not least, after opting for the right platform, you should consider hiring a Magento development company in UAE to start your project. They not only can help you to build a great online store but also streamline the process for you.