Indian e-commerce crossed $70 billion in 2024 and is still growing. The infrastructure — UPI, fast logistics networks, widespread smartphone use — has never been better for a small business to sell online. What holds most owners back is not the technology. It is not knowing which choices actually matter.
Here is what does.
The Most Important Decision: Platform
Your platform choice determines your ongoing costs, flexibility, and how fast you can move. Three options cover 95% of small business cases in India.
Shopify
Best for: fashion, gifts, lifestyle products, anything where you want to get live fast.
Shopify costs ₹1,994–₹7,447/month depending on plan. That sounds high until you account for what it replaces: hosting, security, updates, payment integration, and basic analytics are all included. You trade flexibility for speed and reliability.
The catch: you pay Shopify a transaction fee unless you use Shopify Payments, which is not available in India. Use Razorpay or PayU — both have direct Shopify integrations, and the transaction fee goes away.
WooCommerce (WordPress)
Best for: businesses that need more control, already have a WordPress site, or want lower ongoing costs.
WooCommerce is free. Hosting costs ₹500–₹3,000/month for decent performance. You will need a developer for initial setup and occasional maintenance. Total cost of ownership is often lower than Shopify at scale, but the starting friction is higher.
Razorpay’s WooCommerce plugin is well-maintained and supports UPI, cards, net banking, and EMI out of the box.
Custom-built storefront
Best for: businesses with unique catalogue structures, complex pricing rules, or B2B ordering flows that neither Shopify nor WooCommerce handles cleanly.
This costs more upfront (₹2–8 lakh typically) but gives you complete control and no per-transaction or monthly platform fees. Makes sense once you are doing real volume.
Payment Gateways in India
Razorpay is the default recommendation for most Indian businesses. It covers UPI, cards, net banking, wallets, EMI, and Pay Later in one integration. Flat 2% fee on most transactions, no monthly charge, fast settlement.
PayU is a strong alternative with competitive rates for high-volume merchants. Worth negotiating if you are doing ₹50 lakh+ GMV per month.
CCAvenue is older but still widely used by businesses that need specific bank-level relationships or have compliance requirements around it.
One thing to do regardless of which gateway you choose: enable UPI Collect prominently. UPI is now the dominant payment method in India — customers who cannot pay via UPI will abandon the cart.
Logistics: Solve It Early
Most e-commerce failures in India are fulfilment failures, not product failures. Set up logistics before you start marketing.
- Shiprocket and Delhivery aggregate multiple courier partners. Good starting point — you get competitive rates and a single dashboard.
- Shadowfax performs well for same-day and hyperlocal delivery in metros.
- For high-value products, build a direct relationship with BlueDart or FedEx India.
Configure your return policy and reverse logistics before launch. Indian customers return 20–40% of fashion purchases online. A painful return process kills repeat purchase rates.
What to Skip Early On
Things that look important but can wait until you have real orders:
- Mobile app — a mobile-optimised website converts nearly as well for most categories. Build the app when you have 1,000+ monthly orders and the data to justify it.
- Advanced analytics and personalisation — Google Analytics 4 and Hotjar are free and tell you everything you need until significant scale.
- Inventory management software — a spreadsheet works until you hit 200+ SKUs or multiple warehouses. Do not buy software for problems you do not have yet.
What Cannot Wait
- GST registration — mandatory once turnover exceeds ₹20 lakh (₹10 lakh for some states). Get this done before launch.
- Clear product photography — the single biggest driver of conversion after price. Phone + white background + good lighting beats a cheap studio every time.
- A real returns policy, published — customers read it before buying. “No returns” is a conversion killer.
The Launch Checklist
Before you go live:
- Payment gateway tested end-to-end (not just sandbox)
- At least one test order placed and fulfilled
- GST number visible on checkout and invoices
- Mobile layout checked on three different Android phones
- Page speed above 70 on Google PageSpeed Insights
- Shipping rates configured for all states you sell to
Ready to Build?
We build e-commerce stores for Indian businesses with Razorpay integration, GST-compliant invoicing, and mobile-first design. See our e-commerce services or contact us if you want to talk through your specific requirements.