Compare online shop platforms in Kenya
Choosing how to sell online in Kenya comes down to a few questions that matter here: Can customers pay by M-PESA? Can they order on WhatsApp? What do you actually pay per month and per sale? These pages answer them honestly — including where competitors genuinely beat us.
Quick Answer
For most Kenyan small businesses, Shops in Kenya is the best fit: built-in M-PESA checkout, WhatsApp ordering, 0% commission on sales, pricing in KSh from free to KSh 3,499/month, and free exposure in our public shop directory. Need a global app ecosystem? That's Shopify's strength. Want total server control? WooCommerce. See the full ranked list for the honest trade-offs.
Best online shop builders in Kenya (2026)
The ranked list: Shops in Kenya, Shopify, WooCommerce, Duka and marketplaces — with honest strengths and weaknesses for each.
Shops in Kenya vs Shopify
M-PESA, USD vs KES pricing, commission and app costs. When global scale beats local fit — and when it doesn't.
Shops in Kenya vs WooCommerce
Hosted vs self-hosted. The real cost of a 'free' plugin once hosting, SSL, plugins and maintenance are counted.
Shops in Kenya vs Wix
Website builders vs a shop platform built for Kenya: local payments, WhatsApp ordering and pricing compared.
Shops in Kenya vs Duka
Two Kenyan-made shop builders compared: free-plan limits, feature depth, POS, bookings, API and directory exposure.
Own online shop vs selling on Jumia
Marketplace traffic vs owning your customers. Commission rates, branding control and when to use both.
WhatsApp-only selling vs an online shop
Why selling in chat alone limits growth — and how an online shop makes WhatsApp work harder, not replace it.
How we compare fairly
These pages are published by Shops in Kenya — we compete in this list, and we say so openly. Every comparison names what the competitor does better, states verifiable facts (prices, payment methods, commission), and links to the competitor's own site where pricing changes often. If a fact on any page is outdated, tell us and we'll correct it.
Skip the comparisons — try the shop
Free plan, 30 products, no card required. Your shop can be live today.