Insights from helping 300+ businesses sell online, comparing the top Australian ecommerce platforms.
Andy Crebar
|
CEO of Wolf IQ
20+ years of building businesses through digital marketing, and today helping hundreds of Aussie businesses grow online.
Written By
Andy Crebar
CEO of Wolf IQ
20+ years of building businesses through digital marketing, and today helping hundreds of Aussie businesses grow online.
Table of Contents
If you want to sell products online, you need to be found by active buyers.
You can do that by buying clicks directly, or invest in a strong SEO presence that ranks your website in search engines and AI overviews.
The thing is, there are 80,000+ online retailers competing for visibility in Australia, and the technical capabilities of your ecommerce platform directly determine whether you'll be seen or remain invisible.
The ecommerce platform you use is one of the most important decisions you'll make.
This guide will walk you through the best ecommerce platforms for Australian businesses in 2026.
Top 3 Ecommerce Platforms for SEO in 2026
E-commerce Comparison Matrix | WolfIQ
WooCommerce
Shopify
BigCommerce
SEO Control
⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐(Excellent)
⭐⭐⭐(Good)
⭐⭐⭐⭐(Very Good)
Ease of Use
⭐⭐(Moderate)
⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐(Excellent)
⭐⭐⭐(Good)
Customisation
⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐(Excellent)
⭐⭐⭐(Good)
⭐⭐⭐⭐(Very Good)
Pricing
Free(Hosting & plugins extra)
From $29/month
From $30/month
Transaction Fees
None
0%(with Shopify Payments)
None
Best For
Flexibility & Control
Speed to Market
Scalability
Just starting out? Shopify offers the fastest path to market.
You can have a professional-looking store up and running in a matter of days, without needing to hire a developer. The trade-off is less SEO flexibility, but for many businesses, the ease of use outweighs this limitation.
Building a long term SEO moat? WooCommerce is the clear winner.
The combination of WordPress's powerful blogging capabilities and WooCommerce's ecommerce functionality gives you everything you need to build a content-rich online store that ranks well in search engines.
Best mix of both worlds? BigCommerce offers the best balance.
It has everything you need (features, scalability, and SEO), and the lack of transaction fees means it becomes more cost-effective as your sales volume increases.
What Makes an Ecommerce Platform SEO-Friendly?
Choosing one with strong SEO capabilities can mean the difference between being found by customers or being invisible in search results.
Here are the 10 things you need to consider.
SEO Factors Table | WolfIQ
#
Title
What’s important?
Why you need it?
1
Site Speed & Mobile Responsiveness
Fast loading and seamless experiences across devices
Full control over title tags and meta descriptions
Allows keyword-optimised search result previews
Increased click-through rates.
4
Built-in Blogging
Content marketing for industry authority
Attracting users beyond product searches
Builds authority & organic traffic.
5
XML Sitemap Generation
Automatic roadmap of all products and pages
Ensures search engines index content immediately
Faster, complete site indexing.
6
SSL Certificates
Confirmed ranking factor (HTTPS)
Protects customer payment info and signals safety
Customer trust & data security.
7
Schema Markup Support
Enables "Rich Snippets" (stars, pricing, stock)
Helps products stand out in search results
Enhanced visibility & visual pop.
8
Image Optimisation
Alt text editing and file size compression
Rank in Google Image Search
Accessibility & image search traffic.
9
301 Redirects
Manages broken links effortlessly
Preserves SEO authority when URLs change
Preserves SEO ranking power.
10
Merchant Centre Integration
Connects product data directly to Google
Powers Shopping campaigns and organic listings
Access to high-converting Shopping ads.
Ecommerce Platform Deep Dives
1. WooCommerce: The Best for Flexibility and Control
WooCommerce is an open-source ecommerce plugin for WordPress.
It gives you complete control over your online store, with unmatched flexibility and customisation options.
Because it's built on WordPress, you get all the SEO benefits of the world's most popular content management system.
WooCommerce Strengths vs Weaknesses
Strengths
Weaknesses
Complete SEO Control: With WooCommerce, you have full control over your URLs, meta tags, and other on-page SEO elements. You can also use powerful SEO plugins like Yoast SEO to further enhance your SEO efforts.
Content Marketing Powerhouse: Because WooCommerce is built on WordPress, you have access to the best blogging platform in the world. This makes it easy to create and publish high-quality content to attract organic traffic.
Unlimited Customisation: With thousands of themes and plugins available, you can customise your WooCommerce store to look and function exactly how you want it to.
Requires More Technical Expertise: WooCommerce is not as beginner-friendly as some other platforms. You'll need some technical knowledge to get it set up and running smoothly.
Performance Depends on Hosting: The performance of your WooCommerce store will depend on the quality of your hosting. You'll need to choose a reliable hosting provider to ensure that your store is fast and secure.
WooCommerce is best for businesses that want complete control over their online store and are not afraid of a little technical tinkering.
2. Shopify: The Best for Ease of Use
Shopify is a hosted ecommerce platform that is known for its ease of use. It's a great option for businesses that want to get up and running quickly, without having to worry about the technical side of things.
Shopify Strengths vs Weaknesses
Strengths
Weaknesses
Easy to Use: Shopify is very easy to use, even for beginners. You can create a beautiful online store in minutes, without any coding knowledge.
Fast and Secure: Shopify takes care of all the technical aspects of your store, including hosting, security, and performance. This means you can focus on running your business, without having to worry about your website.
Excellent Support: Shopify offers 24/7 support, so you can always get help when you need it.
Limited SEO Customisation: Shopify's SEO features are not as flexible as WooCommerce's. You have limited control over your URLs, and you can't use powerful SEO plugins like Yoast SEO.
Transaction Fees: Shopify charges a transaction fee on every sale, unless you use their own payment gateway.
Shopify is best for businesses that want a simple, easy-to-use ecommerce platform and are willing to sacrifice some SEO flexibility for convenience.
3. BigCommerce: The Best for Growing Businesses
BigCommerce is a hosted ecommerce platform that is designed for growing businesses. It offers a good balance of ease of use and advanced features, with no transaction fees.
BigCommerce Strengths vs Weaknesses
Strengths
Weaknesses
No Transaction Fees: BigCommerce does not charge any transaction fees, regardless of which payment gateway you use. This can save you a lot of money as your business grows.
Advanced SEO Features: BigCommerce offers a good range of SEO features, including customisable URLs, meta tags, and 301 redirects.
Scalable: BigCommerce is a highly scalable platform that can handle a large number of products and orders.
Can Be Expensive: BigCommerce's plans can be more expensive than Shopify's, especially for smaller businesses.
Less User-Friendly Than Shopify: BigCommerce is not as user-friendly as Shopify, and it can take some time to get used to the interface.
BigCommerce is best for growing businesses that need a scalable ecommerce platform with advanced SEO features and no transaction fees.
If you're not sure where to start, or need help setting up your ecommerce store for long-term SEO success, an experienced ecommerce SEO agency can help you avoid common mistakes and set you up for success.
Which Platform is Right for You?
Get in touch with our team for a free consultation.
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