WordPress or Shopify to sell in Quebec?

WordPress (with WooCommerce) and Shopify are the two giants of online commerce in Quebec. Together, they capture over 75% of Quebec stores. But which one should you choose for your project? This honest comparison, based on the Quebec context, will help you decide.

On the menu: GST/QST taxes, bilingualism, Canada Post, transaction fees, design, 3-year costs, and our recommendations by business type.

WooCommerce (WordPress) at a Glance

WooCommerce is a free WordPress plugin that turns a site into an online store. It's the world's most-used e-commerce solution, with over 6 million active stores. You keep full control over code, data, and hosting.

Shopify at a Glance

Shopify is a Canadian SaaS platform (headquartered in Ottawa) hosting over 4.8 million stores worldwide. Everything is included: hosting, payments, security, updates. You pay a monthly subscription and focus on selling.

Quebec Context: The Differences That Matter

GST/QST Tax Management

• Shopify: Canadian taxes integrated natively. GST, QST, and HST are calculated automatically based on shipping province.
• WooCommerce: taxes configurable manually or via plugins (e.g. WooCommerce Canadian Taxes). More complex but fully customizable.
• Winner: Shopify for simplicity, WooCommerce for flexibility (per-product taxes, exemptions, etc.).

French/English Bilingualism

• WooCommerce: excellent with WPML or Polylang. Content, product pages, and emails can be fully bilingual.
• Shopify: good with Shopify Markets or Langify, but with limits (partially translated transactional notifications, some non-translated apps).
• Winner: WooCommerce for complete and natural bilingualism.

Canada Post Shipping

• Shopify: native Canada Post integration (live rates, prepaid labels, tracking).
• WooCommerce: available through paid plugins (Canada Post Shipping, ELEX, etc.).
• Winner: Shopify for immediate integration.

Transaction Fees

This is an often-underestimated factor. On $250,000/year volume, fees can reach $5,000 to $10,000 per year — the cost of a complete site.

• Shopify: 2.4% to 2.9% + $0.30 per transaction depending on the plan. Additional 2% fee if you don't use Shopify Payments. No fees on annual volume.
• WooCommerce: no fees to WooCommerce. You only pay your processor (Stripe 2.9% + $0.30, Square 2.7%, Moneris ~2.5%). Significant savings at high volume.
• Winner: WooCommerce at high volume (> $200,000/year).

Design and Flexibility

• WooCommerce: total flexibility. You can customize everything — design, features, integrations, AI, etc.
• Shopify: great themes, but customization limited to what the platform allows. Modifying checkout, for example, is only possible with Shopify Plus ($24,000 USD/year).
• Winner: WooCommerce for unique designs and bespoke features.

Total 3-Year Costs

Estimate for a store doing $200,000 in annual sales:

Shopify (standard Shopify plan)

• Plan: $105 USD/month × 36 = $3,780 USD (~$5,100 CAD).
• Transaction fees: 2.7% × $600,000 = $16,200.
• Premium apps: $50 × 36 = $1,800.
• Custom theme + setup: $5,000.
• Estimated total: ~$28,000 CAD.

WooCommerce (WordPress)

• Managed hosting: $50 × 36 = $1,800.
• Stripe fees: 2.9% × $600,000 = $17,400.
• Premium plugins: $600/year × 3 = $1,800.
• Full site + setup: $8,000.
• Maintenance: $100/month × 36 = $3,600.
• Estimated total: ~$32,600 CAD.

At this volume, costs are quite close. Above $500,000/year, WooCommerce becomes significantly more economical thanks to lower transaction fees.

Security, Updates, and Maintenance

• Shopify: everything is managed. No updates required. Bank-level security included.
• WooCommerce: you (or your agency) are responsible for WordPress, WooCommerce, plugins, and themes updates. Monthly maintenance is essential.
• Winner: Shopify for peace of mind.

Law 25 and Privacy

Both platforms can comply with Quebec's Law 25 but require proper configuration:

• WooCommerce: compliance possible with plugins (Complianz, Cookiebot, CookieYes), often free.
• Shopify: compliance via paid apps (Pandectes, Consentmo). Additional monthly cost.
• For Canadian-stored data, Shopify Plus offers Canadian datacenters. With WooCommerce, choose OVH Canada or WP Engine Canada.

Recommendations by Business Type

• Small business starting (< 50 products): Shopify, to start fast without technical hassle.
• SMB with strong content (blog, guides, media): WooCommerce, which combines commerce and content naturally.
• Store with deep customization needs: WooCommerce.
• High-volume store (> $500,000/year): WooCommerce or Shopify Plus depending on your technical tolerance.
• International brand, multi-country: Shopify Markets for simplicity, or Hydrogen (Shopify + Next.js) for performance.
• B2B with complex catalog and per-client pricing: WooCommerce, more flexible for advanced rules.
• Perfect FR/EN bilingual: WooCommerce.

Conclusion

There's no absolute winner between WordPress (WooCommerce) and Shopify to sell in Quebec. Shopify wins on simplicity, fast setup, and technical peace of mind. WooCommerce wins on flexibility, perfect bilingualism, and high-volume savings.

Our advice: choose Shopify if you want to focus 100% on selling, and WooCommerce if you want a site that blends commerce, content, and custom branding.

At H1Site, we develop both. We advise you honestly based on your project, without bias. Let's discuss your online store.