Ecommerce platforms · November 2026 Edition
Shopify vs Big Cartel
One of fourteen models named Shopify first on the direct prompt; zero named Big Cartel. Shopify was named by fourteen of the fourteen models and Big Cartel by nine and Shopify carries 73 labels and Big Cartel 10, so the shares are not directly comparable.
Ottawa, Canada, founded 2006. Named in seven categories this edition.
founded 2005. Named in two categories this edition.
First-choice share19%3%Of first choices across the direct, paraphrase, budget and scale prompts, 0 to 100.
Negative rate14%10%Negative labels as a share of the product's labels, 0 to 100.
Rank in category#2#4A position in a field of 13; printed, not drawn.
Labels7310A count; the two differ.
The two percentage rows are drawn on one 0 to 100 track, Shopify reading right to left. Rank and label count are printed, not drawn.BigCommerce B2B Edition was named alongside these two in fourteen of the fourteen direct answers. BigCommerce B2B Edition vs Shopify · BigCommerce B2B Edition vs Big Cartel · Shopify vs WooCommerce
Share is the count of first choices across the direct, paraphrase, budget and scale prompts over all fourteen models, for a mid-market B2B company; rank is within the category; every quote names the model and the prompt it came from. Both figures come from the ecommerce platforms page.
By framing
How many of the fourteen models made each the first choice, per way of asking, and how many argued against it.
ShopifyFirst choices, of fourteen modelsBig Cartel
Direct10
Paraphrase50
Comparative120
Budget-constrained321 against Shopify
Scale-constrained20
Negative109 against Shopify · 1 against Big Cartel
Bars are first choices, 0 to 14 each sideModels that argued againstA model can name both, so the two sides of a row do not sum to fourteen.
Every model, every framing
The eighty-four answers behind the chart above, one cell each: where Shopify and Big Cartel stood in it.
| Model | Direct | Paraphrase | Comparative | Budget-constrained | Scale-constrained | Negative |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Claude Haiku 4.5 | | | | | ||
| GPT-5.4 mini | | | | | ||
| Gemini 3.5 Flash | | | | | | |
| Perplexity Sonar | | | | | | |
| Grok 4.20 | | | | | | |
| Mistral Small | | | | | | |
| DeepSeek V4 Flash | | | | | | |
| Llama 4 Maverick | | | | |||
| Qwen 3.7 Flash | | | | | | |
| Kimi K2 | | | | | | |
| GLM 4.7 FlashX | | | | | | |
| MiniMax M2.5 | | | | | | |
| GPT-6 Luna | | | | | | |
| Muse Glimmer 30B | | | | | |
Shopify Big Cartel first choice named as an alternative argued againstblank: not namedEach cell is one answer, Shopify on the left and Big Cartel on the right.The direct prompt
The plain question, one answer per model, grouped by where Shopify and Big Cartel stood in it.
Shopify first, Big Cartel not the choice
1 of 14 modelsBig Cartel was named in the answer but not as the choice, or not at all.Claude Haiku 4.5Shopify alternatives: BigCommerce B2B Edition, NetSuite Commerce, SAP Commerce Cloud
Neither was the first choice, one was named
11 of 14 modelsThe answer put something else first and named one of the two as an alternative.GPT-5.4 miniBigCommerce B2B Edition alternatives: Adobe Commerce, Salesforce B2B Commerce, Shopify, Spryker, commercetools
Gemini 3.5 FlashBigCommerce B2B Edition alternatives: OroCommerce, Sana Commerce, Shopify
Perplexity SonarBigCommerce B2B Edition alternatives: OroCommerce, SAP Commerce Cloud, Salesforce B2B Commerce, Shopify
Grok 4.20BigCommerce B2B Edition alternatives: Adobe Commerce, OroCommerce, Shopify
Mistral SmallBigCommerce B2B Edition alternatives: OroCommerce, Shopify
DeepSeek V4 FlashBigCommerce B2B Edition alternatives: Adobe Commerce, OroCommerce, Shopify
Qwen 3.7 FlashAdobe Commerce alternatives: BigCommerce B2B Edition, Shopify
Kimi K2BigCommerce B2B Edition alternatives: Adobe Commerce, Shopify
GLM 4.7 FlashXBigCommerce B2B Edition alternatives: Shopify
GPT-6 LunaBigCommerce B2B Edition alternatives: Adobe Commerce, Shopify, commercetools
Muse Glimmer 30BBigCommerce B2B Edition alternatives: OroCommerce, Sana Commerce, Shopify, Shopify B2B, Virto Commerce
Neither was named
2 of 14 modelsThe answer made no first choice from these two in this category.Llama 4 MaverickBigCommerce B2B Edition
MiniMax M2.5BigCommerce B2B Edition alternatives: OroCommerce
Bold names in an answer are the products the judge labeled a first choice; a model naming several gives each of them that label. The full answer text for every row is in the record.
By buyer segment
The same question asked on behalf of a different buyer. Each standing is computed within its segment and they are never added together. The figures above are the mid-market standing, which is the one the category orders by.
Small business
Shopify leads by thirty-four points.
Shopify34%#1 of 8Big Cartel0%#– of 8Mid-marketThe figures above
Shopify leads by sixteen points.
Shopify19%#2 of 13Big Cartel3%#4 of 13Enterprise
Shopify leads by thirty-one points.
Shopify31%#1 of 11Big Cartel0%#– of 11What the models said about Shopify
Every negative label with a quote, up to three, then the highest-weighted positives, up to three. Five of six in this category shown.
“it has some limitations, such as higher long-term costs and limited deep customization... if you sell regulated products, Shopify may not be the best choice” Llama 4 Maverick · negative prompt · soft negative
“Additional costs, high plan fees and customization difficulties that require hiring professional help are all fairly common complaints.” Muse Glimmer 30B · negative prompt · soft negative
“If you want the easiest onboarding and don't need heavy customisation: *Shopify Plus* or *BigCommerce B2B Edition* are solid starting points.” MiniMax M2.5 · paraphrase prompt · first choice
“Shopify ranks highest overall for most small and mid-sized ecommerce businesses due to speed, ecosystem strength, and marketing capabilities” Claude Haiku 4.5 · comparative prompt · first choice
“otherwise Shopify Starter at $5/mo is the cheapest fully-hosted, reliable option to start selling without added transaction fees” Muse Glimmer 30B · budget prompt · first choice
What the models said about Big Cartel
Every negative label with a quote, up to three, then the highest-weighted positives, up to three. Four of five in this category shown.
“It's not recommended for businesses planning to grow significantly.” Mistral Small · negative prompt · hard negative
“Start with Freewebstore or Big Cartel Gold.” GLM 4.7 FlashX · budget prompt · first choice
“Start with Big Cartel (free for small stores)” MiniMax M2.5 · budget prompt · first choice
“Best free/open-source option: Big Cartel or OpenCart for very small stores, but they're more limited” GPT-5.4 mini · budget prompt · alternative
Also compared
Comparisons are drawn for the top eight products in each category, each against each. The output is the models' output; nothing here is a recommendation by the index.