Website cost
How much does an e-commerce website cost in India?
From a monthly Shopify plan to a custom store with payments, shipping and an admin panel: what each option costs, and what you keep paying after launch.
Sumit KumarSoftware engineer, Vashi· 7 min read
Quotes for an online store in India range from a few thousand rupees to several lakh, often for what sounds like the same thing: “a website where customers can buy my products”. The difference is in what happens after the customer taps “Buy”: how payments are confirmed, how orders reach the courier, and how your team manages it all.
I build online stores for Indian brands, including one with Razorpay payments, Shiprocket shipping and an admin panel. Here is what each kind of store costs in 2026, what you pay every month after launch, and which features actually move the price.
The short answer
Cost by option
| Option | Typical cost | Best for |
|---|---|---|
| Store builder (Shopify and similar) | Monthly plan + apps | Testing products, launching in days, running it yourself |
| WooCommerce on WordPress | ₹15,000 – ₹60,000 | Businesses already on WordPress, with someone to maintain it |
| Custom store, freelance developer | ₹30,000 – ₹1,50,000 | Brands with steady orders that want their own store and admin panel |
| Custom store, agency | ₹1,50,000 and up | Large catalogues, ERP integrations, teams working in parallel |
| Marketplace (multi-vendor) | Quoted per project | Platforms where other sellers list products |
If you are still deciding between a platform and your own store, I compared them in Shopify vs a custom website.
What a ₹30,000 custom store should include
At the entry level of a custom build, you should still get a complete, working store:
- A product catalogue with categories, variants (size, colour) and stock
- A cart and checkout that work well on phones
- Online payments through an Indian gateway (UPI, cards, netbanking), confirmed on the server
- Shipping through a courier aggregator such as Shiprocket, with tracking for customers
- An admin panel to add products, see orders and update their status
- Order emails to the customer and to you
- Basic SEO: product titles and descriptions, a sitemap, and fast pages
Ask any developer for this list in writing. A low quote often turns out to be missing the payment confirmation, the shipping integration or the admin panel.
Features that raise the price
- Number of products and how they vary. Fifty products are entered by hand; five thousand need bulk upload and good filtering.
- Custom design. A design made for your brand, rather than an adapted layout.
- Cash on delivery rules. Limiting COD by pincode or order value, and confirming COD orders before shipping.
- Customer accounts. Order history, saved addresses, wishlists.
- Coupons and offers. Discount codes, buy-x-get-y, first-order offers.
- GST invoices. Automatic invoices with your GSTIN and the right tax per item.
- WhatsApp or SMS updates. Order and shipping messages beyond email.
- Unusual experiences. Video or reels-style browsing, product customisers, subscriptions, B2B pricing.
- Integrations. Billing software, inventory systems, a separate warehouse.
What you pay after launch
| Cost | How it is charged | Notes |
|---|---|---|
| Payment gateway | A percentage of each payment | Compare current rates for UPI, cards and netbanking; some plans differ by method |
| Shipping | Per parcel, by weight and distance | COD orders usually cost extra, and returns cost shipping again |
| Hosting | Monthly | A small store needs modest hosting; it grows with traffic |
| Domain | Yearly | Around ₹700 to ₹1,500 a year for .in or .com |
| Platform and apps | Monthly | Only on platforms like Shopify; a custom store has none |
| Maintenance | Per request or monthly | Small fixes, new features, updates |
My prices
My custom online stores start at ₹30,000, including the catalogue, cart, Razorpay payments, Shiprocket shipping and an admin panel. You own the domain, hosting accounts and code. The final price depends on the features above, and you get a written scope and price before any work starts.
For example, Ferrea Fashion's store has reels-style product browsing, confirms orders only after Razorpay confirms the payment, and books shipping through Shiprocket, with an admin panel for products and orders. See it and other projects in my work.
Before you hire anyone
Send every developer the same details so their quotes are comparable:
- How many products you have, and whether they have sizes or colours
- Whether you offer cash on delivery, and where you ship
- Your courier setup today, if any
- Whether you need GST invoices
- Two or three stores you like, and what you like about them
- Your launch date and budget range
Then ask who owns the code and accounts, what you pay every month, and what a change costs after launch. If you want a quote from me, send me those details. I build stores for brands across Navi Mumbai and Mumbai, and remotely across India.
Questions people also ask
How much does an e-commerce website cost in India?
A custom online store with a catalogue, cart, online payments, shipping and an admin panel costs about ₹30,000 to ₹1,50,000 with a freelance developer, and more with an agency. Platforms like Shopify cost less upfront but charge a monthly plan plus apps.
What is the cheapest way to start an online store in India?
A store builder such as Shopify, or selling through Instagram and WhatsApp with payment links. Both cost little upfront. Move to your own store once orders are steady and platform fees add up.
What are the monthly costs of an online store?
Payment gateway fees on each order, shipping per parcel, hosting, and on platforms like Shopify a monthly plan and app fees. A custom store has no platform fees.
How long does it take to build an e-commerce website?
A custom store usually takes 2 to 4 weeks, depending on the number of products, the design and the integrations. A store builder can go live in days.
Do I need GST to sell online in India?
Rules depend on what and where you sell, so check with a chartered accountant. Your store can generate GST invoices with your GSTIN if you are registered.