What are the costs of running an e-commerce website?

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An e-commerce website is a website that allows people to buy and sell products or services online. In order to set up and run an e-commerce website, there are a number of costs that you need to be aware of.

Domain name

The first cost is your domain name. This is the web address that people will use to find your website. You will need to register your domain name with a domain name registrar such as GoDaddy or Namecheap. The cost of registering a domain name varies depending on the registrar you use and the extension you choose (.com, .net, .org, etc.), but typically it will cost you around $10-15 per year.

Web hosting

The next cost is web hosting. This is where your website files will be stored and accessed from. You will need to sign up for a web hosting plan with a company such as Bluehost, HostGator, or InMotion Hosting. Shared hosting plans typically start at around $5 per month, but you may need to upgrade to a VPS or dedicated server if you get a lot of traffic to your site. You can expect an upgrade if you expect more than 100 concurrent users on your website. You can check out our article about software management to see how scaling web services work.

SSL certificate

If you want to accept payments on your e-commerce website, then you will need to purchase an SSL certificate. This encrypts the data that is being sent between your website and your customer’s browser, which helps to protect against fraud. SSL certificates typically cost around $50-100 per year.

With the advocacy of free services like let’s encrypt these costs usually disappears, but it might be worth investing in this part.

Also, proxy services like Cloudflare can help you with CDN (Cloud Delivery Network) and provide SSL certificates as part of the CDN service. You can also use Cloudflare as a Domain name provider!

Payment gateway

In order to accept credit card payments on your eCommerce website, you will need to sign up for a payment gateway such as PayPal or Stripe. Payment gateways typically charge a monthly fee plus a per-transaction fee.

Shopping cart software

In order to sell products on your e-commerce website, you will need to install shopping cart software such as WooCommerce, Magento, or Shopify. Shopping cart software typically costs around $30-100 per month, depending on the features you need.

Product photos

Another cost to consider is product photos. If you are selling physical products on your eCommerce website, then you will need high-quality photos of those products. You can either hire a professional photographer or take your own photos if you have the proper equipment. Product photos typically cost around $50-100 per product.

However, if you have a large number of products, you may want to consider 3D product configuration software, which lets you create virtual versions of your products and display them on your website. This can save you a lot of money in the long run because you don’t have to pay for product photos every time you add a new product to your website.

Shipping

If you are selling physical products on your eCommerce website, then you will need to factor in shipping costs. Shipping costs will vary depending on the size and weight of your products, as well as your shipping destination.

You can register yourself as an Amazon re-seller and have this cost reduced at the cost of reduced autonomy.

Marketing

Finally, don’t forget about marketing costs. You will need to promote your e-commerce website through SEO, social media, email marketing, and other channels in order to drive traffic and sales. Marketing costs can vary widely depending on the strategies you use but typically range from $50-500 per month.

Conclusion

These are just some of the main costs that you need to be aware of when setting up and running an eCommerce website. Of course, there are other potential costs such as hiring developers or designers, but these are typically not required unless you are building a custom website or adding complex features. Overall, you can expect to spend anywhere from $100-$1000 per month on setting up and running a basic eCommerce website.