Choosing the Best Ecommerce Shopping Cart

by Tiara Rea

A lot of customers at Lunarpages use ecommerce features to enhance their sites. Since we offer four different shopping cart software alternatives, many people wonder which one works best and what the major differences are between each. So, I’m here to help you choose the perfect shopping cart! :)

The Agora Shopping Cart features design integration for cascading style sheets/CSS, templates and HTML, PERL, and even JavaScript. You can also take charge of merchandising and inventory management by generating unique product pages, adding unlimited options for each product to vary by size, color, weight, etc, adding unlimited categories and sub-categories, and even classifying taxes, best selling items, and discount codes. This makes order processing and order management incredibly easy, since you can generate creative order confirmation emails, HTML order forms, and handle multiple payment processing gateways. With the ability to view order logs by date, year, status, etc, and support for various shipping arrangements, many customers prefer Agora to the competition. Of course, you also get it as a one-click installation through the Lunarpages cPanel. ;)

Since they’ve been in business for over 6 years, OsCommerce is one of the leading E-Commerce shopping systems in the world and probably the best known as well, serving over 12,000 storefronts and 150,000 webmasters. Their software runs on any operating system or machine, so it’s Windows and Linux-friendly and compatable with Macs too. There is a one-click installation for OsCommerce via Fantastico through the Lunarpages cPanel, and since it works on a template-based structure, integration into your website and everyday updating is simple. Like Agora, osCommerce supports unlimited categories, subcategories, products, and invoices, and also allows webmasters to add, remove, or edit any of the features easily. Their administration area is secured with sensitive login and from there you can create newsletters, backup your information, and send out packaging lists or invoices directly from the interface. OsCommerce also supports an address book, product reviews, shipping, and payment through multiple payment gateways like Authorize.Net and PayPal.

CubeCart is a professionally audited shopping cart system, which offers a variety of extras along with the most common shopping cart features. It is 100% template driven, where the HTML code you create can be completely separated from the PHP code that runs the application on the server. This makes CubeCart a favorite for webmasters who want ease of use and simple maintanence. There are various layouts to choose from, XHTML and CSS are fully-functional, it supports unlimited product images, has an HTML image gallery pop-up, enables currency support for a various countries, and includes email marketing tools, multiple tax classes, and various languages, such as German, Chinese, and Slovakian. Plus a one-click installation, because Lunarpages likes to make things that easy.

ZenCart’s motto of “the art of ecommerce” aptly suits them, as the software speaks for itself. Acclaimed for being newbie-friendly, many customers choose ZenCart as their option for its customization, XHTML and template systems, and of course its ease of use. Again, we offer a one-click installation through cPanel, so that makes it quicker than ever to get this fully-functional shopping cart up and running. Considered one of the most helpful systems around, ZenCart’s FAQs are one of the other many reasons customers flock to Zen. Among the other outstanding reasons to give them a try are no HTML knowledge necessary to add, delete, or edit product catalogues, security guarantee, the inclusion of an advanced template system for CSS, HTML, and image functionality, multiple pricing and payment options, product quantity limitations, one-time fee additions, sorting by any method, store layout is easily customizable, customer authorization keys, WYSIWYG page editor, and even advertising banners, which is one of their neatest features.

So Which Shopping Cart Works Best?

As always, the best way to find out which one will best suit your site and personal tates is to give each of them a shot! You can visit their websites and read up on their support, ease of use, and creative elements, because what works for one person doesn’t necessarily fit another. It’s ultimately up to you to do your homework to find out which works best for your customers and website.