WHICH CMS ARE OPTIMAL FOR ONLINE STORE? WHY?

CMS (Content Management System) - site content management system; a set of scripts and programs that allows you to add / change content on the site pages (pictures, texts, videos, products, categories, etc.); "Engine" of the site.

CMS for an online store provides an opportunity for the site owner or his managers to perform a number of functions:

 • publish / edit the content of the site without having any programming skills;

 • provide information to users;

 • manage goods, track sales;

 • send e-mail to registered users;

 • edit the location of blocks on the site, change the design, upload contacts and maps.

The word "engine" of the site appeared in the vocabulary of programmers, and already entrepreneurs. This is because the CMS is really the engine of the online store - the main link between the user and the web resource.

What are the CMS for online stores

All CMS for an online store can be broken down according to several criteria. In terms of accessibility, there are free and paid platforms out of the box. You can also order an online store on a self-written or authored engine, which is developed by separate web studios. Another option is modified CMS.

By design, all CMS are divided into platforms for blogs, news sites, e-commerce. Today, almost every engine developer is trying to make it universal and adaptable for any type of activity. This can be achieved by improving extensions and add-ons for the CMS.

We will tell you about the most popular engines for online stores and for what purposes each was originally developed.

Free CMS for an online store

Such CMS for an online store can be downloaded for free on the official websites of the developers. They are presented as open source, so third-party developers can always "finish" such an engine.

After installing the CMS itself, you will need to install the template. Here, the question of free is being questioned, since the price of templates can be quite high.

The disadvantages of free CMS include a long response from the support service and infrequent updates. In the first case, the solution is to register in communities or on thematic forums, of which there are many today.

Paid engines

Popular paid CMS for online stores are good because they are constantly updated, new templates are created and a technical support service is available.

Many people say that paid CMS are better at handling the load, high traffic, but this is a myth. Free platforms can handle volume content and high traffic just as well.

Author's CMS for an online store, written by hand by web studios with closed source code

Such CMS systems for an online store are more reliable than in the first version. The code is written personally by the web studio. The source code is closed. When choosing this engine, you can also encounter nuances. For each change, the web studio has the right to request a certain amount, and if you want to hire an outsourced programmer, he may simply not understand the self-written engine.

The advantage of this platform is full customization, flexibility, and powerful technical support. The disadvantage is a very high cost.

Modified engines

This option can be called the "golden mean" between free and authoring engines, both in functionality, customization, and in price. The web studio is based on boxed platforms. These are mainly such popular classic engines as Opencart, Wordpress, osCommerce. Further, the developers are working on Russification, adaptation to modern SEO requirements and integration with payment systems within the country. The source code is being improved for security, all weak points are eliminated. After modifications, the CMS for an online store in Ukraine is served as a finished product with an indication of the platform that was taken as a basis.

The advantages of this option are:

 • CMS adaptation to new SEO algorithms, trends in web design and in general to changes in the digital market;

 • a huge selection of plugins, modules, extensions (the cost of which is already included in the final price of the product);

 • possibility of revision;

 • high security;

 • developer's responsibility for his product;

 • technical support;

 • stylish templates and themes for the online store (the cost is also included in the final price of the finished product).

Modified engines are paid. Some companies charge an annual fee for the maintenance and support of such a store, while others offer to buy an online store with a one-time payment.

SoloMono online stores are developed on a modified osCommerce CMS. To evaluate the possibilities and functionality, you can test the online store for 14 days for free.

An overview of the most popular platforms for online stores

The most common CMS for online stores in Ukraine are OpenCart, WooCommerce (add-on to wordPress), VirtueMart (add-on to the Joomla engine), PrestaShop, Magento, osCommerce.

OpenCart

Popularity

This platform ranks first in the ranking of all CMS. 45% of all online stores in Ukraine are developed on the OpenCart platform.

Terms of Use

The OpenCart engine is free to use and licensed under the GNU General Public License v3. The source code is open.

Installation and configuration

You can figure it out on your own in installation and configuration, a lot of information and detailed guides have been published on the network, this will really take some time. It also takes some programming experience to set up the engine.

Technical support

If you have installed OpenCart from the site's office for free, then answers to your questions can be obtained in the official or in the Russified community of the platform. Also, the answers can be found on thematic forums, which can also take time.

In the event that you order a paid ready-made solution based on CMS OpenCart from web studios, then technical support is carried out quite quickly.

Functionality

Online stores powered by OpenCart are functional. If something is missing in the basic solution, it can always be supplemented with modules. Modules can be free or paid. After installation, in the administrative panel, you can see the following sections: Catalog, Add-ons, Design, Sales, Buyers, Marketing, System, Reports. Each section contains an additional list of subsections, which will allow you to customize the store individually for your requirements and niche.

Weak Sides

In the basic version of the platform, a complex and multi-stage order form with the need to fill in numerous fields is installed by default. The problem is solved by installing a module with a simplified order form. Many users note the function of downloading pictures as a disadvantage: the difficulty in finding the desired picture of the product, as well as the impossibility of mass uploading of photos. This is a serious problem for an online store.

SEO Ready

OpenCart is an SEO friendly platform with the ability to add meta tags for both categories and products.

An example of an OpenCart store

WooCommerce (ecommerce add for WorPress)

Popularity

Plugin for CMS WordPress occupies the 2nd position in Ukraine among online stores.

Terms of Use

The plugin, as well as the WordPress platform, can be downloaded free of charge, it is freely available on the open source network. There are also paid solutions that developers can install for commercial use.

Installation and configuration

The ease of installation and configuration has made WooCommerce extremely popular with developers. Even if you, as a business owner, cannot install an engine with a plug-in, specialists will gladly do it remotely for a symbolic price. There is a lot of information on installing and configuring the plugin on the network, it would be time to figure it out.

Technical support

Technical support is provided on a voluntary basis in the WordPress community. If you are looking for a faster response time, it is better to find web developers who provide a full package of services along with ready-made online stores on WP.

Functionality

The so-called basic WooCommerce configuration will not be enough to create a functional online store with a priority of growth and scalability. This will require the installation of plugins. When you install, you need to constantly test the download speed, since plugins and WooCommerce itself put a load on the server.

What functions does the e-commerce platform provide: mailing, collecting customer data, tools to increase sales - promotions, discounts, coupons, bonuses to customers, own analytics system, loading and unloading goods via csv files.

Weak Sides

Of the weak points, we can note the CNC setting. When installing WooCommerce, the product prefix is ​​added to the URL with the product by default, which can be removed only with the installation of third-party extensions.

By default, WooCommerce has 2 payment options: PayPal and Stripe. For Ukraine, these are not the most popular options, so you will have to install additional extensions.

When you upgrade from WooCommerce, many extensions may simply stop working and require reinstallation. This platform is more focused on the Western market. This applies to both localization, payment systems, product cards, delivery services, Russification, and in general all extensions. Impossibility of customization without layout skills.

SEO Ready

WordPress provides SEO promotion capabilities by default. By installing the All In One SEO Pack plugin, you can customize meta tags for each page, set up micro-markup and even adjust the speed of mobile pages (AMP).

Sample site on WooCommerce

VirtueMart

Popularity

Ranked third after WooCommerce. The add-on was developed in order to create an online store based on CMS Joomla and Mambo

Terms of Use

VirtueMart is available for free download and use and operates under the GNU GPL license.

Installation and configuration

Installing and configuring VirtueMart is extremely simple. Following instructions from open sources, even a beginner can install and configure the engine.

First you need to download the extension and install it in the Joomla admin panel. The setup is intuitively simple, you need to check the boxes on the proposed items. The language is also switched here.

Technical support

There are no official Russified or Ukrainianized communities. Answers to questions can be found in the official English-speaking community on Twitter or on the forum. You can also search the web for our open forums and communities. This will take some time and you need to be prepared for this.

Another option is to purchase a finished product from a web studio that develops ready-made solutions for online stores on Joomla. Technical support is included in the package of services, the only question is the cost of such a solution.

Functionality

The extension provides a lot of opportunities: multilingualism, multicurrency, creating different groups for buyers and setting different prices for different groups, which allows you to develop an individual loyalty program.

Several properties and attributes can be set for goods, goods are imported and exported by loading csv files (an additional extension is required), it is possible to generate sales reports.

Weak Sides

VirtueMart is not a suitable solution for medium to large online stores. CMS creates a heavy load on the server, so if you plan to further scale your still small project, it is better to choose a more suitable CMS.

Many programmers complain about the quality of the code, which is why the performance of online stores on VirtueMart is greatly reduced. However, according to the developer himself, everything was fixed in the latest version of the extension.

Some extensions on VirtueMart cost up to $ 50. Extensions are created both by the developers themselves and by volunteers. The latter do not always worry about updating them and working correctly with other add-ons. Also, one of the weak points is a limitation in the functionality of the order page, you can remove something in the settings, but you cannot add it.

SEO Ready

When installing a standard extension, there will be very few opportunities for promoting online stores. For full-fledged work, you need integration with modules.

Template on VirtueMart

PrestaShop

Popularity

This CMS for online stores is the 4th most popular in Ukraine.

Terms of Use

CMS for online stores is available for free download and use. Distributed under the Open Software License

Installation and configuration

In general, the installation and configuration of CMS PrestaShop is similar to the installation of other engines on the server. It all comes down to uploading the archive to hosting, unpacking, assigning administration rights, etc. Detailed guides on installation and configuration can be found in open sources.

Technical support

PrestaShop has an official community, including a forum in Russian. The official website also contains a tutorial resource and gallery.

Functionality

A serious enough platform to create a medium to large online store. Developed in the Smarty framework, which allows you to customize templates for different niches. PrestaShop handles the load in the form of many modules, products and content, however, for full-fledged work, you need to choose a certain hosting.

Multilingual and multicurrency allows you to create online stores all over the world. The management of products and the catalog is also well organized: discounts and promotions, coupons, blocks with recommended products and bestsellers, product comparison, customer comments, import via csv files, personalization in the design of product cards.

Each user can be added to a separate group for which the price display can be configured. For each group of clients, you can set up your own e-mail distribution. A cool addition is the management of abandoned shopping carts, for which there are separate tools.

Weak Sides

There is only one free template in PrestaShop and this one is presented for the purpose of getting familiar with the platform. The rest of the templates and themes on the official website are paid. The same goes for extensions. There are about 50 free extensions for PrestaShop, this is not always enough even for a small online store. The price of one extension can range from $ 50-60.

As for the integration of payment systems, in PrestaShop you can pay by bank transfer, PayPal, Stripe, ApplePay, various e-wallets, bitcoin, etc. To integrate Ukrainian banking systems, you will need to find a remote programmer or use ready-made solutions from web developers.

SEO Ready

The basic set of CMS for online stores PrestaShop has everything you need for SEO promotion: the ability to edit the CNC, the ability to fill in the meta tags of the pages, integration with Google Analytics, auto-filling the alt attribute for images, editing the robots.txt file.

For the automatic generation of meta tags, there is an SEO Expert extension, which will especially appeal to owners of large online stores with a huge number of pages and products.

Magento

Popularity

This CMS is the 5th most popular in Ukraine. The platform was originally developed for e-commerce, the first release was in March 2008.

Terms of Use

CMS Magento is free to install and is an open source engine. In the basic version, 1 free template is installed in order to familiarize yourself with the platform.

Installation and configuration

Newbies will not have any special difficulties in installation, but in setting up the platform for Ukrainian projects, some programming knowledge will be required, since the CMS is intended for the target audience of America.

Technical support

In 2018, the company's management decided to close the Kiev office and focus on technical services in the United States. You can get answers to your questions about working with the engine in various communities.

Functionality

Already in basic installation, Magento has a fairly wide functionality: multi-currency, multilingualism, reporting system, tools to increase sales, differentiation of administration rights, user ratings and reviews, various options for displaying products, the ability to manage several online stores, advanced filtering options for searching for products, wishlist.

Weak Sides

In older versions, there is no visual constructor, which requires some knowledge in programming, so it will be difficult for beginners to understand without immersion in the subject. This was done in order to reduce the load on the server and maintain the performance of the resource. The updated version of Magento 2.3, the visual editor are already present.

For Russification of CMS, you will need to install a separate module. In general, there are not many Russified modules for Magento today, but perhaps it's just a matter of time.

If you need integration with 1C, then most likely have to contact third-party developers.

Also, among the weaknesses are the increased requirements for hosting due to the high load, therefore, a high-quality hosting platform should be chosen initially.

SEO Ready

Basic Magento installations are enough for initial SEO promotion:

 • Setting up meta-tags of pages;

 • Setting up the CNC;

 • Caching system;

 • Formation and updating of XML sitemap.

For deeper preparation of online stores for SEO, you will need the help of specialists.

osCommerce

Popularity

OsCommerce ranks 6th in popularity among CMS for online stores in Ukraine. The advantage of this platform is the original focus of the engine for e-commerce.

Terms of Use

The engine is available for free download and use. Released under the GNU General Public License.

Installation, configuration

Installing osCommerce boils down to downloading the latest distribution from the official website. To install the CMS for hosting, you will need to create a MySQL database and assign it administration rights. In general, setting up the engine is quite complicated and it will be difficult for beginners to figure it out. Alternatively, you can apply for the services of an outsourced specialist.

Technical support

A huge English-speaking community on the developer's official website will allow you to find all the answers to your questions. The only negative is the language barrier. As with any other engine, you can get technical support either from a host provider that works with the osCommerce CMS or from a web developer.

Functionality

In osCommerce, all functions are aimed specifically at working with e-commerce. Among the advantages are the correct file structure, optimized database, adaptability for mobile devices. The engine is adapted to different scales: from a small showcase store to a full-fledged hypermarket. Among the functions: setting taxes and tariffs, sorting and searching for goods by attributes, the ability to display both physical and digital goods with an indication of the version, multilingualism, multi-currency, synchronization with 1C.

The osCommerce community is so active that today the number of add-ons for online stores on osCommerce has reached 8000. This speaks of the good flexibility of the platform and the fact that it can be customized for any niche in e-commerce, even for the creation of marketplaces.

Weak Sides

To implement many solutions, you need to have a good knowledge of programming. This platform is not meant for beginners. There is also an acute shortage of free templates. Users report difficulties in product management.

osCommerce became famous for its vulnerability when, due to a hacker attack, all online stores developed on the engine were affected. This incident served as a strong motivation for the entire development team, who "patched" holes in the code and made the CMS invulnerable.

SEO Ready

In the basic configuration, the CMS is prepared for SEO optimization by filling in the meta-tags of the pages with the correct CNC. Additionally, you can install the module to speed up the promotion.

Note

The osCommerce platform is considered outdated today and needs some work, but it is still one of the most optimal CMS for creating an online store of any scale. Our team decided to implement our own project based on osCommerce - SoloMono osc. We offer a ready-made modern solution optimized for any country. Our technical support team quickly answers users' questions about setting up an online store.
An example of an online store on SoloMono osc

We offer:

 • for developers - our partner program

 • for owners of their own e-commerce projects - order an online store on one of 3 tariff packages

Conclusions

We examined the main CMS that are used in Ukraine, now you have to choose which CMS for an online store to choose for your project. Each programmer has his own favorite CMS and the choice is based on a subjective assessment, since a specialist may like the ease of editing the code or, for example, the ease of managing the admin panel. We recommend basing the following components when choosing a CMS for an online store in Ukraine:

 • Initially, the platform should be developed for e-commerce, and not for a blog, forum, business card website, etc .;

 • CMS must be prepared for SEO promotion;

 • When loading a large amount of goods and content, the speed should remain high.

You may be interested in the article "Is WordPress Suitable for Building an Online Store".