About WooCommerce
Overview
WooCommerce is the open-source commerce platform for WordPress. It gives merchants control over their checkout, data, and costs, and lets them choose any payment provider, any feature set, and any host.
Woo, the company behind WooCommerce, began as WooThemes in 2008 and launched the WooCommerce plugin in 2011. Automattic acquired the company in 2015. The page reports more than 4 million online stores built with WooCommerce.
Key Benefits
- The free core platform includes unlimited products, orders, and APIs.
- There is no revenue share and no platform fee, so costs track infrastructure rather than sales volume.
- Merchants choose and change payment gateways or BNPL providers without penalties or forced bundles.
- Open-source code lets teams customize storefronts and checkout without a ceiling.
- Hundreds of extensions and themes add new features to a store.
- Merchants sell online and offline, locally or globally, and sync sales across channels.
How It Works
Merchants download WooCommerce for free and run it on WordPress with the host of their choice. They pick a payment processor, then add extensions and themes as needed to extend the store. Developers can build custom stores for clients on the open-source codebase.
Use Cases
- Small-batch food brands sync sales across their site, TikTok, Amazon, and retailers.
- Ecommerce directors at alcohol retailers speed up checkout and payouts with WooPayments and Apple Pay.
- Global consumer brands build highly customized sites and optimize checkout conversion.
- Agencies and developers build custom stores for clients.
- Subscription businesses run recurring billing with WooCommerce Subscriptions.
- Regulated or complex retailers build custom user flows on an open platform.
Why Choose This Product
WooCommerce does not lock features behind higher-priced plan tiers, and it lets merchants negotiate processor rates directly as volume grows. Merchants still pay for hosting, extensions, and payment processing fees, which they choose and control.
WooCommerce Pros & Cons
- Free, open-source core with no monthly subscription
- 0% revenue share and no platform fees
- Choose any payment gateway, host, or extension
- Unlimited products, orders, and APIs
- 30-day money-back guarantee
- Hosting costs $25โ$350/month for most stores
- Extensions cost $29โ$299/year each
Key Features
Open-Source Platform
WooCommerce is open-source commerce software for WordPress that gives merchants full control of checkout, data, and costs.
Flexible Payments
Merchants can use any payment gateway or BNPL provider and run multiple gateways at once to maximize conversion.
Extensions and Themes
Hundreds of trusted extensions and themes add new features and change the look of a store.
Unlimited Products
The free core platform includes unlimited products, orders, and APIs.
Multichannel Selling
Stores sell online and offline and autosync sales across their site, TikTok, and marketplaces like Amazon.
Global Selling
Merchants can sell in unlimited markets with no fee for localized selling.
Subscriptions
WooCommerce Subscriptions handles recurring billing with no subscription processing fees.
WooPayments
WooPayments offers card processing and Apple Pay support, with faster deposit times reported by merchants.
Cost Estimator
A free tool estimates the total cost of ownership for a WooCommerce store.
Unlimited Variants
Products have no variant limits, unlike several competing platforms compared on the pricing page.
WooCommerce Pricing
View full pricing โPricing extracted from the product website and may change. Check the source for current details.
Frequently asked questions about WooCommerce
Is WooCommerce free?
Yes. The core WooCommerce platform is free to download and use with no monthly subscription. You pay for hosting, payment processing fees, and any extensions you choose to add.
Does WooCommerce take a revenue share?
No. WooCommerce charges 0% revenue share and does not lock features behind higher-priced plan tiers.
How much does hosting cost for WooCommerce?
The pricing page lists hosting at roughly $25 to $350 per month for most stores, scaling with traffic and performance needs.
How much do WooCommerce extensions cost?
Extensions are added a la carte and cost between $29 and $299 per year each.
Can I use any payment provider with WooCommerce?
Yes. You can choose and change payment solutions without fees or restrictions, use any gateway or BNPL provider, and run multiple gateways at once.
Who is behind WooCommerce?
Woo is the company behind WooCommerce. It began as WooThemes in 2008, launched the WooCommerce plugin in 2011, and joined Automattic in 2015.

