Moving a Website from Shopify to WooCommerce: A Practical Guide

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[vc_row][vc_column][vc_column_text]Helping your eCommerce business move forward will sometimes mean switching from one service provider to another. The platform that hosts your website is one of the most important tools in your possession.

You may have started with Shopify due to the popularity and the reputation of the platform. Eventually, however, you found out that Shopify wasn’t the right choice for you and that you want to switch to an alternative.

WooCommerce is one such highly popular option. Is it possible to make an easy switch from Shopify to WooCommerce? The Hosting Review team has worked on a practical guide you can use to accomplish the task. Here’s what you’ll have to do.[/vc_column_text][/vc_column][/vc_row][vc_row el_id=”Shopify to WordPress Migration: The Basic Steps”][vc_column][vc_column_text]

Shopify to WordPress Migration: The Basic Steps

[/vc_column_text][vc_column_text]There are several possibilities for migrating from Shopify to WordPress. First, we’ll examine the strategy that doesn’t involve the acquisition of additional tools to accomplish the goal.

The first thing you need to do is export all of your Shopify eCommerce store data in the form of a CSV file. Luckily, Shopify has such an option enabled and you can learn more about exporting product data in the Shopify support center. There are also publications about exporting information on orders and customers

Once you have all of your stored data exported, you will have to import it in WordPress. When your information is available in a CSV file, you can use the native WooCommerce CSV importer to finalize the process.

To use the import tool, you need to have WooCommerce installed on your WordPress website before you get started with the migration. This process has certain limitations. There will be some manual work and data inputting you will need to go through on your own after the migration is finalized.

The WooCommerce importer cannot enter information about the product title and the product SKU, for example. This is something you’ll need to address separately.[/vc_column_text][/vc_column][/vc_row][vc_row el_id=”Tools and Plugins That Simplify the Migration”][vc_column][vc_column_text]

Tools and Plugins That Simplify the Migration

[/vc_column_text][vc_column_text]If you don’t want to do any manual data entry when switching from Shopify to WooCommerce, you should definitely explore a range of additional tools. WordPress has various data import plugins you can install to eliminate the need for manual adjustments.

WP All Import is one of the most popular choices. It comes with a 30-day money-back guarantee, giving you a chance to test out the functionalities before you decide if you’d like to keep the tool. WP All Import has a WooCommerce add-on that imports products, orders and customer information from another platform like Shopify. 

Through the use of WP All Import, you can create that allows you to map out all of the product fields you need to have featured on your website. The creation of such a template makes all of the Shopify information appear right where it should be. You’ll be free from having to make adjustments on your own upon the completion of the migration.

Cart2Cart is another tool that simplifies the switch from Shopify to WordPress and WooCommerce. The tool enables migration from just about any eCommerce platform to any other. There’s a demo you can use to see how the process goes and what capabilities the tool has.

The cost of Cart2Cart migration depends on the number of products, customers and orders. Here’s an example we created to give you some idea – for a Shopify store that has 200 products, 100 customers and 100 orders, the cost of migration is set at 69 dollars. Cart2Cart will complete the exportation and importation in less than an hour.

When using such a tool, you’ll have all the essential information migrated. For products, that information includes:

  • Product name and title
  • SKU
  • Description
  • Manufacturer
  • Tax class
  • Status
  • Meta information
  • Price
  • Weight and other product dimensions
  • Tags
  • Product variations
  • Images

As far as orders go, you will get the following types of data imported: ID, date, order status, product info, price, quantity, discounts, shipping price, billing address, order comments, etc.

A final tool you may want to explore for the purpose of migration is LitExtension. It works in a manner similar to Cart2Cart. When it comes to price, the cost of migration when using the same specs as above is 59 dollars (10 dollars less expensive than Cart2Cart). LitExtension also has a free demo you can test out. It enables migration to and from Shopify, BigCommerce, PrestaShop, WooCommerce, OpenCart and 3DCart.[/vc_column_text][/vc_column][/vc_row][vc_row el_id=”Manual Verification Will Still Be Required When You’re Done!”][vc_column][vc_column_text]

Manual Verification Will Still Be Required When You’re Done!

[/vc_column_text][vc_column_text]There is one very important thing you need to remember when moving a website from Shopify to WooCommerce. Even if you use a migration tool that handles all fields and types of information, you will still need to do a manual check after the process is completed.

Import and export tools work with data. They don’t really pay attention to formatting or the appearance of information. While all of the data could be migrated successfully from Shopify to WordPress, there could be some issues with how listings appear. Hence, you need to do a quick check once the process is done.

It’s really up to you to decide how you’re going to make the switch from Shopify to a WordPress-based ecommerce website. Doing the task by hand and without relying on tools will save you money. Keep in mind, however, that entering information manually can be an incredibly time-consuming process, especially if you have a larger online store.

WordPress offers data import plugins and there are third-party tools you can also employ for the purpose. The cost of using such solutions is very low and you will save a ton of time. If you opt for one of these plugins, you can get your website up and running in no time.[/vc_column_text][/vc_column][/vc_row]