The Short Version
Both EKM and Shopify are legitimate ecommerce platforms, but they serve different stages of business growth. EKM is a UK-built platform with strong personal support and a managed approach — ideal for businesses getting online for the first time. Shopify is a global platform built for scale, with a vastly larger app ecosystem, more powerful developer tools, and a checkout that converts at the highest level in the industry.
We say this as a Shopify Partner agency that has migrated stores from EKM to Shopify — so we have seen both platforms from the inside. This comparison is based on that hands-on experience.
Pricing
This is where the biggest change has happened. In September 2024, EKM removed all their tiered pricing plans and moved to a single offering.
EKM — Evolve Plan
£299.75 + VAT per month (billed annually). This covers up to £300,000 in annual sales. If your turnover exceeds £300k, you pay an additional £100 for each extra £100k up to £1 million, then £100 per additional £1 million after that. There is also a 0.6% transaction fee on payments not processed through EKMPay, their in-house payment gateway.
The Evolve plan includes a dedicated Ecommerce Manager, design support, marketing guidance, and proactive store improvements. EKM positions this as a managed service, not just a platform — which justifies the price point for businesses that want a hands-off approach.
Shopify
Basic: £25/month. Unlimited products, 2 staff accounts, 2% transaction fee on third-party payment gateways.
Standard: £65/month. Unlimited products, 5 staff accounts, 1% transaction fee.
Advanced: £344/month. Unlimited products, 15 staff accounts, 0.5% transaction fee, advanced reporting, and computed shipping rates.
There are no turnover caps on any Shopify plan. A business doing £300k/year on Shopify Basic pays £25/month. The same business on EKM pays £299.75 + VAT (£359.70/month). That is a significant difference — over £4,000 per year.
If you use Shopify Payments (powered by Stripe), the third-party transaction fee is waived entirely. Card processing rates start at 2% + 25p on Basic.
Where EKM Is Stronger
EKM deserves credit in several areas:
UK-based support. Every EKM customer gets a dedicated Ecommerce Manager based in the UK. You can call them. They know your store. For non-technical business owners, this is genuinely valuable and something Shopify does not offer at any price point below Shopify Plus.
Evolution Mode. EKM's specialist team proactively reviews your store and suggests design, functionality, and marketing improvements. This managed approach means you are not left to figure everything out on your own.
Simplicity. EKM is a single plan with everything included. There is no decision paralysis about which plan to choose, which apps to install, or which theme to buy. For a business owner who wants to sell products online without thinking about technology, that simplicity has real value.
UK shipping integrations. Royal Mail, DPD, Hermes, and other UK carriers are integrated natively. Shopify has these too via apps, but EKM's are built in.
Where Shopify Is Stronger
App ecosystem. Shopify's app marketplace has over 8,000 apps covering email marketing (Klaviyo, Omnisend), loyalty programmes, subscriptions, reviews, advanced analytics, accounting integrations, and virtually anything else a growing ecommerce business needs. EKM has around 40 built-in features. The gap is enormous.
Theme flexibility and design. Shopify's theme architecture (Liquid templating, JSON templates, sections everywhere, metafields) gives developers and designers near-total control over the storefront. EKM templates are functional but rigid — customisation beyond the template parameters is limited.
Checkout conversion. Shop Pay, Shopify's accelerated checkout, converts up to 36% better than guest checkout according to Shopify's published data. Shopify's checkout is the most optimised in the industry. EKM's checkout works, but it has not received the same level of investment.
Multi-channel selling. Shopify connects natively to Facebook, Instagram, TikTok, Google Shopping, Amazon, and eBay. EKM offers ChannelGrabber for cross-platform selling, but Shopify's integrations are deeper and more actively maintained.
International selling. Shopify Markets lets you sell in multiple currencies, languages, and tax jurisdictions from a single store. EKM is built for UK commerce. If your business has any international ambition, Shopify is the clear choice.
API and developer tools. Shopify's Admin API, Storefront API, and embedded app framework are enterprise-grade. Custom integrations with ERP systems, POS platforms, warehouse management, and third-party services are significantly more capable on Shopify. EKM's API is limited by comparison.
Scalability. Shopify handles millions of transactions across brands like Gymshark, Allbirds, and Heinz. The platform architecture is designed for high-volume operations. EKM serves small businesses well, but businesses processing hundreds of orders per day or managing large catalogues will encounter limitations.
Market share. According to 6sense, Shopify holds a 20.38% share of the global ecommerce platform market with over 912,000 customers. EKM holds 0.03% with approximately 1,500 customers. The size of each platform's ecosystem directly affects the availability of developers, agencies, apps, themes, and community support. A larger ecosystem means more choice and more competition driving quality up and prices down.
Quick Comparison
| EKM (Evolve) | Shopify (Basic–Advanced) | |
|---|---|---|
| Starting price | £299.75 + VAT/mo | £25/mo |
| Turnover cap | £300k (then tiered fees) | None |
| Transaction fee | 0.6% (non-EKMPay) | 0–2% (waived with Shopify Payments) |
| Products | Unlimited | Unlimited |
| Apps / integrations | ~40 built-in features | 8,000+ apps |
| Themes | Template-based, limited customisation | 100+ themes, full code access |
| Dedicated support contact | Yes — Ecommerce Manager | No (unless Shopify Plus) |
| UK phone support | Yes | No |
| Multi-currency | Limited | Yes (Shopify Markets) |
| Multi-channel | Via ChannelGrabber | Native (Meta, Google, Amazon, TikTok) |
| POS | No | Yes (Shopify POS) |
| API quality | Basic | Enterprise-grade |
| Accelerated checkout | No | Shop Pay |
| Market share | 0.03% (~1,500 customers) | 20.38% (912,000+ customers) |
| Free trial | 28 days | 3 days (then £1 first month) |
Who Should Stay on EKM
If you are a small UK business doing under £100k in annual sales, you value having a dedicated account manager you can call, you do not need advanced integrations or multi-channel selling, and your current EKM store is working well enough — there is no urgent reason to move. EKM's managed approach has genuine value for business owners who want to focus on their products rather than their platform.
Who Should Move to Shopify
If any of these apply, it is probably time:
You have outgrown EKM's feature set. You need email marketing automation, subscription tools, loyalty programmes, or advanced analytics that EKM does not support.
The pricing no longer makes sense. If you are paying £299.75 + VAT for EKM and could run the same business on Shopify Basic at £25/month, that is over £4,000/year in savings — money better spent on marketing, stock, or a proper theme build.
You want to sell internationally. Multi-currency, multi-language, and international shipping from a single store is a Shopify strength that EKM cannot match.
You need custom integrations. If your business requires connections to ERP, warehouse management, accounting software, or custom workflows, Shopify's API makes this possible. EKM's does not.
You are fighting the platform. If your weekly experience involves working around EKM's limitations rather than growing your business, the platform is holding you back.
How We Handle EKM to Shopify Migration
We are a Shopify Partner agency that has migrated stores from EKM. The process covers product data export and restructuring, customer data migration, 301 redirect mapping to preserve your search engine rankings, domain transfer and DNS configuration, and a custom Shopify theme build.
A typical EKM to Shopify migration takes two to three weeks. We deliver the finished Shopify store for you to review before you pay the balance. Fixed price: £4,999.
The cost is typically recoverable within six to twelve months through improved conversion rates, lower platform fees, and access to more effective marketing tools.
Last updated: April 2026. Pricing verified against ekm.com and shopify.com.