Shopify vs WooCommerce for Maltese Shops: How to Choose

Shopify vs WooCommerce is the first question almost every Maltese business asks before opening an online shop. Most comparisons online are written for the US or the UK, and many are written by people paid to recommend one side. This guide looks at the questions that matter for a shop based in Malta: taking payments in euro, charging VAT correctly, delivering to Gozo and the rest of the EU, and who keeps the shop running after launch.

We build shops on both platforms, so we don’t need you to pick one in particular. Here’s how we help clients decide.

The real difference: rented shop or owned shop

The easiest way to think about it is renting versus owning premises. Shopify is like a unit in a well-run shopping centre. Security, cleaning and the building are handled for you. You pay rent every month and follow the centre’s rules about what you can change.

WooCommerce is a free plugin that turns a WordPress website into a shop. It’s like owning your own premises. You can change anything, and nobody takes a cut of your rent. But you’re responsible for the building: hosting, software updates, backups and security, either yourself or through someone you pay to do it.

Every other difference below follows from this one.

Shopify vs WooCommerce at a glance

Taking payments in Malta

Payments are where Malta-based shops used to struggle, and where things are much simpler now.

• Shopify offers its own payment service, Shopify Payments, to businesses in Malta. It takes cards, Apple Pay and Google Pay in euro, and payouts go to your bank account. If you use another provider instead, Shopify adds its own transaction fee on top of that provider’s fees, so most Shopify shops use Shopify Payments.
• WooCommerce works with payment plugins. Stripe and PayPal both serve businesses in Malta and have official plugins. There’s no extra platform fee on each sale; you pay the payment provider’s fees only.
• Your bank’s own card gateway may be an option on either platform. Ask your bank whether it supports Shopify or WooCommerce before you choose, especially if you want payouts handled locally.

Before you decide, compare the payment provider’s fees on the kinds of orders you expect, and check how soon money reaches your account. These matter more over a year than the platform itself.

VAT: what each platform does and doesn’t do

If you sell to consumers, prices on a Maltese shop are normally shown including VAT. If you also sell to consumers in other EU countries, the EU’s e-commerce VAT rules (in force since July 2021) may mean charging VAT at the customer’s country’s rate once your cross-border sales pass the EU-wide threshold. Many businesses then declare that VAT through the EU’s One-Stop Shop (OSS), which in Malta you register for with the Commissioner for Revenue.

• Shopify calculates tax for you once you set up your tax registrations, including rates for other EU countries. It doesn’t register you, file returns or pay the tax for you.
• WooCommerce charges whatever tax rates you set up. You enter the rates yourself, or add an extension that keeps EU rates up to date and records the customer’s country as evidence.
• Business customers with a VAT number may need different treatment. Both platforms can handle this with the right settings or an extension.

Delivery to Malta, Gozo and abroad

Both platforms use delivery zones, so you can set different rates and options for each. A typical Maltese shop needs at least these:

• Malta, with your own delivery, a courier or MaltaPost.
• Gozo, usually with its own rate or delivery days.
• Click and collect from your shop or warehouse, if you have one: on an island this size, many customers are happy to pick up.
• EU countries, if you ship abroad, and perhaps the rest of the world.

The difference is in the extras. Shopify has delivery apps in its app store, often with a monthly fee. WooCommerce has shipping plugins, and a developer can also connect your shop directly to a local courier’s system if it offers one. Whichever you choose, show the delivery cost before the checkout, not at the last step: surprise delivery charges are one of the most common reasons people abandon a basket.

Running the shop day to day

Adding products and orders

Shopify’s admin is clean and has a good phone app, which helps if you pack orders between serving customers. WooCommerce uses the WordPress dashboard: a little busier, but familiar if you already have a WordPress site. Both can import products from a spreadsheet, so a large catalogue doesn’t need to be typed in by hand.

Updates and security

This is the biggest practical difference. Shopify updates itself. A WooCommerce shop needs WordPress, WooCommerce and every plugin kept up to date, tested and backed up. If nobody does this, a shop can become slow, break after an update or get hacked. If you choose WooCommerce, decide on day one who looks after it, so updates are done well before busy weeks like Black Friday. We offer updates and backups after launch for exactly this reason.

Content and SEO

Both platforms can rank well on Google. WooCommerce has the edge if content is a big part of how you sell, because it sits on WordPress, which is built for articles, guides and landing pages. Shopify’s blog is more basic, and its page addresses follow a fixed pattern (such as /products/ and /collections/) that you can’t change. That’s rarely a problem, but it matters if you’re moving an existing shop and want to keep your old addresses.

What affects the cost of each platform

We don’t publish prices, and comparing the two on a headline figure misses most of the costs anyway. Think about these factors instead:

• Platform subscription (Shopify), which rises with the plan you need.
• Hosting (WooCommerce), which must be good enough for a shop, not the cheapest shared plan.
• Payment fees on every sale, plus Shopify’s extra fee if you don’t use Shopify Payments.
• Apps, themes and extensions. Many Shopify apps and some WooCommerce extensions charge yearly or monthly. They add up quietly.
• Upkeep: updates, backups and fixes for WooCommerce; app management and changes for Shopify.
• The build: how many products, how much custom design, and what the shop needs to connect to, such as stock or accounting software.

Some shops in Malta can claim tax credits on the build through Malta Enterprise’s Micro Invest scheme. See our Micro Invest guide.

Which one suits your shop?

Choose Shopify if you want to start selling soon, don’t have anyone to look after a website, sell a fairly standard range of products, and are happy to work within Shopify’s way of doing things.

Choose WooCommerce if you already have a WordPress site, rely on content to bring in customers, need unusual features (made-to-order products, bookings, complex pricing rules for trade customers), or want full control and no platform fee on each sale.

If you’re still unsure, list the five things your shop must do that a basic shop doesn’t. Then check how each platform handles them. The answer is usually clear by the third item.

Switching platforms later

You’re not locked in forever. Products, customers and often order history can be moved between Shopify and WooCommerce in either direction. The risky part is your Google rankings: every product and category address that changes needs a redirect to its new one. Plan the move page by page, and your customers and Google barely notice.

FAQ

Shopify and WooCommerce questions

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Is Shopify Payments available in Malta?

Yes. Malta is on Shopify’s list of countries where Shopify Payments is available, so you can take cards, Apple Pay and Google Pay in euro and get paid into your bank account.

Is WooCommerce really free?

The plugin is free. Running a shop on it isn’t: you still need good hosting, a domain, possibly paid extensions, payment fees and someone to keep it updated and backed up.

Which is better for SEO, Shopify or WooCommerce?

Both can rank well. WooCommerce has more flexibility because it runs on WordPress, which helps if you publish a lot of guides and articles. Shopify covers the basics well but has fixed page address patterns and a simpler blog.

Does Shopify or WooCommerce handle EU VAT?

Both can charge the right VAT if they’re set up correctly. Shopify calculates tax once your registrations are entered; WooCommerce uses the rates you set or an extension. Neither files returns for you, so agree the set-up with your accountant.

Can I move from Shopify to WooCommerce, or the other way round?

Yes. Products and customers can be moved in either direction, and order history usually can too. The important part is redirecting every old product and category address so you keep your Google rankings.

Which platform is easier to run day to day?

Shopify, for most people, because hosting, updates and security are done for you. WooCommerce is just as easy to use for orders and products, but it needs someone to look after updates and backups.