Switching eCommerce platforms can feel overwhelming, but it doesn’t have to be. If you’re ready to gain more control over your online store, learning how to migrate from Shopify to WooCommerce might be the move you’ve been looking for.
Thinking about moving your online store from Shopify to WooCommerce? You’re not alone. Many store owners reach a point where they want more flexibility, lower running costs, and complete ownership of their website, something Shopify’s hosted setup doesn’t fully allow.
Shopify is an excellent platform to launch your online store. It offers a beginner-friendly interface and comes with numerous easy customization options. While Shopify offers a good starting point, many store owners eventually seek greater flexibility and control over their online stores. That’s where WooCommerce comes in – a powerful, open-source platform that puts you in charge.
WooCommerce allows you to run an eCommerce store for free. It offers a wide range of free and paid plugins and extensions that enable you to upgrade your store site. If you’re considering making the switch, this article walks you through everything you need to know to migrate from Shopify to WooCommerce.
Key Takeaways:
- Shopify and WooCommerce are two popular eCommerce platforms that have their own advantages and disadvantages.
- WooCommerce offers more customization options, control, and scalability compared to Shopify, making it a better long-term solution for growing eCommerce businesses.
- With the WooCommerce Import Export Suite plugin from WebToffee, you can seamlessly import data from your old eCommerce platform to WooCommerce.
What is WooCommerce?

WooCommerce is a free, open-source eCommerce plugin built for WordPress, the world’s most popular website platform. In simple terms, it turns any WordPress website into a fully functional online store, letting you sell physical products, digital downloads, subscriptions, or even services directly from your site.
Why WooCommerce Is Popular
What makes WooCommerce especially appealing is its blend of simplicity and power. You can install it with just a few clicks and immediately start adding products, setting prices, and configuring payment options.
At the same time, WooCommerce is highly customizable and scalable. You can:
- Choose from thousands of WordPress themes
- Integrate multiple payment gateways
- Add advanced features using plugins
- Customize checkout fields and workflows
- Create subscriptions or membership systems
- Integrate marketing and automation tools
It’s beginner-friendly but also robust enough for developers to build advanced eCommerce setups. Whether you’re just starting out or looking to scale your business, WooCommerce gives you the freedom to grow at your own pace, without hefty monthly fees.
WooCommerce at a Glance
- Type: Open-source eCommerce plugin for WordPress
- Launch Year: 2011 (by WooThemes, now owned by Automattic)
- Active Stores: Over 5 million worldwide
- Cost: Free core plugin; pay only for hosting and premium extensions
- Ownership: 100% self-hosted. You control your data and setup
- Best For: Businesses that want flexibility, customization, and full store ownership
Here’s what makes WooCommerce popular among online store owners:
- Easy to Set Up: You can install it in minutes from the WordPress plugin library and start adding products right away.
- Full Ownership & Control: Unlike Shopify, which is a hosted platform, WooCommerce runs on WordPress, meaning you have complete ownership of your store and data. You control your hosting, files, and configurations, so your store truly belongs to you. No more limitations on what you can or can’t modify.
- Highly Customizable: WooCommerce is incredibly flexible. With thousands of free and premium plugins and themes, you can tailor everything from your storefront’s design to the checkout process. Whether you want to add custom shipping rules, new payment gateways, or unique product layouts, WooCommerce makes it possible without platform restrictions.
- Cost-Effectiveness: Shopify charges monthly subscription fees plus transaction costs for most payment gateways. With WooCommerce, you pay only for hosting and the specific extensions you need. This often results in lower long-term costs, especially for growing stores with large product catalogs or high sales volumes.
- SEO Advantages: Because WooCommerce is built on WordPress, it inherits WordPress’s SEO-friendly foundation. You can easily optimize product pages, blog posts, and metadata using plugins like Yoast SEO or Rank Math, helping your store rank higher in search results and attract more organic traffic.
- Flexible Shipping & Tax Settings: You can set up shipping zones, rates, and tax rules that fit your business model.
- Secure & Scalable: Scalability: Whether you’re running a small boutique or an expanding enterprise, WooCommerce grows with you. You can scale your hosting, integrate advanced marketing tools, and handle thousands of products without worrying about platform-imposed limits.
- Supports Multiple Payment Options: WooCommerce integrates with PayPal, Stripe, Razorpay, and hundreds of other payment gateways.
- Community Support: WooCommerce benefits from an active community of developers, users, and experts. This community support ensures that you have access to a collection of various resources, tutorials, and assistance, making the migration and store management smoother and more efficient.
What Data Can You Migrate from Shopify to WooCommerce?
When migrating from Shopify to WooCommerce, you can transfer most of your essential store data. However, the type and completeness of migration may depend on the method or tool you use (manual CSV import vs automated migration tools).
Here’s a detailed breakdown of what can typically be migrated:
| Data Type | What Gets Migrated |
|---|---|
| Products | Simple products, variable products, SKUs, prices, stock levels, descriptions, product status |
| Product Images | Featured images, gallery images, variant images |
| Categories & Tags | Product categories, subcategories, tags |
| Customers | Names, email addresses, billing & shipping addresses, phone numbers, account details |
| Orders | Order history, purchased items, order status, payment method, transaction dates |
| Coupons | Coupon codes, discount types, expiry dates, usage limits |
| Reviews | Product reviews and ratings |
Migrating from Shopify to WooCommerce may seem overwhelming at first, but breaking it down into clear steps makes the process much easier to manage.
Let’s start with the most important phase — preparation.
Pre-Migration Checklist
Before you begin transferring any data, it’s important to prepare properly. A well-planned migration reduces errors, prevents data loss, and protects your SEO rankings. Here’s what you should do before starting the actual move:
Backup Your Shopify Store
Always start with a backup. Export all essential data including:
- Products
- Customers
- Orders
- Discount codes
- Blog content (if applicable)
Even if you’re using an automated tool, keeping a local backup ensures you can restore data if something goes wrong.
Audit Products, Customers, and Orders
Take time to review your store data:
- Remove discontinued or duplicate products
- Check for missing SKUs or incomplete descriptions
- Review customer records for outdated entries
- Confirm order statuses are accurate
Cleaning up your data before migration makes the import process smoother and reduces unnecessary clutter in your new WooCommerce store.
Identify Important URLs for SEO
Your current Shopify URLs may already be ranking on Google. Make a list of:
- High-traffic product pages
- Category/collection pages
- Blog posts
- Landing pages
You can use Google Search Console or analytics tools to identify top-performing URLs. These will need proper 301 redirects after migration to avoid losing search rankings.
Prepare a Redirect Mapping Sheet
Since Shopify and WooCommerce use different URL structures, you’ll need to map old URLs to new ones.
Create a simple spreadsheet with:
- Old Shopify URL
- New WooCommerce URL
This will help you implement accurate 301 redirects later and prevent broken links.
Choose Your Hosting Provider
WooCommerce requires reliable hosting. Choose a provider that offers:
- WordPress optimization
- SSL certificate
- Daily backups
- Good uptime and speed
- Scalable resources
Good hosting ensures your new store performs well from day one.
Install WordPress
Once hosting is ready:
- Install WordPress
- Install WooCommerce
- Complete the basic setup (store location, currency, tax, shipping)
You don’t need to fully design the store yet. Just make sure the foundation is ready for data import.
Manual vs Automated Migration: Which Option Is Right for You?
When migrating from Shopify to WooCommerce, there are two main approaches you can choose from. The right option depends on your store size, technical comfort level, and how much time you’re willing to invest.
Here’s a clear comparison to help you decide:
| Feature | Manual CSV Export/Import | Automated Migration Services (Cart2Cart, LitExtension) | Migration Plugins (WebToffee Import Export Suite) |
|---|---|---|---|
| Cost | Free (mostly) | Expensive (based on store size) | Affordable one-time/plugin cost |
| Ease of Use | Requires technical knowledge | Very easy – mostly automated | User-friendly with guided setup |
| Data Accuracy | Risk of mapping errors | High accuracy | Automated mapping with control |
| Time Required | Time-consuming | Fast | Fast and structured |
| Product Variations | Manual mapping required | Automatically handled | Automatically mapped |
| Images Migration | May require manual handling | Automatically migrated | Automatically imported |
| SEO URL Handling | SEO URL Handling | SEO migration options available | Redirect-friendly structure support |
| Control Over Data | Full control but manual effort | Limited control during automation | Controlled automation |
| Best For | Small stores (under 100 products) | Large stores with complex data | Growing stores wanting value + automation |
When to Choose Each Option
Manual Migration: Best if you have a small store and are comfortable working with spreadsheets. It’s budget-friendly but requires careful field mapping and extra SEO work.
Automated Services: Ideal for large stores with thousands of products and complex data structures. It reduces risk but can become costly depending on your store size.
WebToffee Migration Tools: A practical middle ground. You get automation without high service fees. Field mapping is simplified, data import is structured, and you maintain control over your store setup — making it a cost-effective option for growing businesses.
If you’re looking for a balanced solution that combines affordability, automation, and control, the WebToffee Import Export Suite can help streamline your Shopify to WooCommerce migration while keeping the process efficient and manageable.
Import Export Suite for WooCommerce – All-in-One Migration Plugin (Recommended)
If you need a single plugin for the entire data migration process, you can try out our WooCommerce Import Export Suite plugin by WebToffee, which can be the perfect solution for you.
It lets you import and export products, orders, users, and coupons on your WooCommerce store. So you don’t have to install multiple plugins for the migration process.

The Import Export Suite for WooCommerce is a premium plugin available in the WooCommerce marketplace. You can also purchase this import export suite plugin from our website. After purchasing the plugin, install and activate it on your WordPress dashboard.
Free Plugins for Specific Data Types
If you prefer using dedicated plugins for each data type, WebToffee offers several free options:
- Products: Use the Product Import Export for WooCommerce plugin to migrate your product catalog from Shopify.
- Orders: To move customer orders, try the Order Export & Order Import for WooCommerce plugin.
- Users/Customers: For migrating your Shopify store’s users and customers, the Export and Import Users and Customers plugin is the right choice.
You can either use these individual plugins for specific data types or opt for a comprehensive all-in-one import export suite that handles everything in one go.
When migrating your store from Shopify to WooCommerce, it’s important to transfer your data in the correct order to ensure a smooth transition. The recommended sequence is:
Users/Customers > Products > Orders
You can export these data from Shopify and then import them to WooCommerce.
Step 1: Migrate Shopify Customers to WooCommerce
When migrating data to WooCommerce, first, you need to export your customer/user data from your Shopify store.
A: Export Customers from Shopify
From your Shopify admin dashboard,
- Go to Customers and click on the Export button in the top right corner.

- Choose All customers to export.
- Select the CSV for Excel, Numbers, or other spreadsheet programs option for export format.
- Then, click on Export customers to export the CSV file.

The user data will be exported to a CSV file and sent to the admin’s email. Download the CSV file from the admin email and then save it on your local storage.
B: Import Customers into WooCommerce
- Now, go to your WordPress dashboard and select WooCommerce > Import Export Suite.
- Click on the Import tab and User/Customer as the post type to import and proceed to the next step.

- In the next step, select Advanced Import as the import method and import file location as Local storage.

- Upload the CSV file you downloaded from your mailbox, and proceed to map the import columns.
C: Map Shopify Columns to WooCommerce Fields
The Shopify user column fields are different from the WooCommerce user/customer fields, so you have to map the columns in the CSV file with WooCommerce fields.
Select the column name field corresponding to each column.
For example:
- WooCommerce field user_email → Shopify column Email
- WooCommerce field first_name → Shopify column First Name
- WooCommerce field last_name → Shopify column Last Name

Similarly, you can map other column fields too. After mapping relevant column fields, proceed to the next step.
In the next step, keep the options as it is and click on Import/Schedule > Import, and then import the user data to your store.

The user data will be imported into your WooCommerce store.

If you need to edit any information, you can go to Users > All Users from the sidebar menu.

Note: When importing Shopify users to WooCommerce, the user passwords will not be transferred to the WooCommerce.
Step 2: Migrate Shopify Products to WooCommerce
Now, let’s migrate products from Shopify to WooCommerce. You can either use the default export tool in Shopify to export product data, or you can use any third-party apps. If you are using a third-party app, you export products with filters and advanced options.
We will be using the StoreRobo Product Import Export app to export product data. It will let you export custom metadata with images.
A: Export Product Data from Shopify
- Install the StoreRobo Product Import Export App on your Shopify website.

- Then go to the Home page of the app, choose Shopify CSV as the export template, then click on Proceed.

In the next step, you have the option to choose different filters for exporting data. You can skip this part as you are exporting entire product data from your store site.
Then, you can choose the column fields to be exported from your store.

- After choosing the required column fields, click on Export to export the product data. This will take some time, depending on the number of products you want to export. Once the process is finished, you will be able to download the exported CSV file.

B: Import Product Data into WooCommerce
Now, go to the WooCommerce Import Export Suite plugin.
- Select Product as the post type to import.

- Choose the Advanced Import method, upload the CSV file you exported earlier, and then proceed to the next step.

- Here, you have to map WooCommerce column fields with the columns in the input file.

After mapping the column fields, proceed to the next step.
Disclaimer: This plugin only supports importing simple products from Shopify to WooCommerce. Additionally, Shopify CSV files store product images in separate columns, while WooCommerce requires images in a single column. As a result, some fields may be missing during the import process.

You can keep the options as it is and click on the Import/Schedule button to import the products to WooCommerce.

Step 3: Migrate Shopify Orders to WooCommerce
Now that your products are migrated, let’s move on to transferring orders from Shopify to WooCommerce. This process ensures your store history, customer purchases, and sales records remain intact after the migration.
A. Export Orders from Shopify
- Go to the Orders section on your Shopify store and click on Export.
- Choose the export range: All orders or the current page
- Select CSV for Excel, Numbers, or other spreadsheet programs.

The orders will be exported and sent to your email address. Download the order CSV file and save it on your local storage.
B. Adjust Order Status Fields
Before importing, you need to align Shopify’s Fulfillment Status with WooCommerce’s Order Status, since both platforms use different systems.
You need to edit the Fulfillment Status column in the CSV file manually.

- In Shopify, the status is based on shipping progress.
- In WooCommerce, it’s based on payment status.
Use the table below to know how to change the fulfillment status in the CSV file to match the WooCommerce order status.
| Shopify Fulfillment Status | WooCommerce Order Status |
| Fulfilled | Completed |
| Unfulfilled | Pending payment / Processing / On hold / Cancelled / Failed |
| Partially fulfilled | Processing / On hold |
| Scheduled | Processing / Pending Payment |
| On hold | On hold |
If you need any further assistance, refer to the Shopify order status guide and WooCommerce order status guide.
C: Import Orders into WooCommerce
Now, go to the WooCommerce Import Export Suite plugin and select Order as the post type to import.

- Choose Advanced Import as the import method and upload the order CSV file from your local storage. Then, proceed to the next step.

- Map the WooCommerce order fields with Shopify order fields.

Note: When importing Shopify orders to WooCommerce, certain order data fields, such as item details, may be missing. Advanced mapping is required to ensure accurate data import.
- After mapping the order fields, proceed to the next step.

- You can leave the options as it is and click on the Import/Schedule button to import the orders.

Now, you have successfully migrated Shopify orders to WooCommerce. Similarly, you can migrate product reviews and coupons from Shopify to WooCommerce using this plugin.
If you have experienced any issues while migrating data to WooCommerce, check the Import Log in the WebToffee plugin. It highlights any skipped or mismatched data for quick troubleshooting.

Once your WooCommerce store is live, the work isn’t completely done. The first few weeks after migration are critical. This is when you monitor performance, fix small issues, and ensure your traffic and sales remain stable.
Here’s what you should do immediately after launch:
1. Submit Your Sitemap to Google
After migration, your URL structure has changed. To help search engines discover and index your new pages:
- Generate a fresh XML sitemap using an SEO plugin (like Rank Math or Yoast).
- Log in to Google Search Console.
- Submit the new sitemap under the “Sitemaps” section.
- Request indexing for key product and category pages.
This speeds up crawling and helps Google understand your updated structure.
2. Monitor 404 Errors
Broken links can hurt both user experience and SEO.
- Check Google Search Console for crawl errors.
- Use a redirect plugin to track 404 pages.
- Add additional 301 redirects if you find missed URLs.
- Monitor frequently during the first 2–3 weeks.
Catching and fixing errors early prevents ranking drops.
3. Reconnect Analytics & Tracking Pixels
Migration can disconnect tracking tools. Make sure you:
- Reinstall Google Analytics (or GA4).
- Verify Google Tag Manager (if used).
- Reconnect Facebook Pixel, TikTok Pixel, or other ad trackers.
- Test conversion tracking by placing a test order.
Accurate tracking ensures your marketing campaigns continue to perform correctly.
4. Test Email Marketing Integrations
If you use email automation tools (like Mailchimp, Klaviyo, Omnisend, etc.):
- Confirm WooCommerce is properly connected.
- Test abandoned cart emails.
- Test order confirmation emails.
- Verify customer sync is working correctly.
You don’t want automation to stop after migration.
5. Optimize Site Speed
Speed affects both conversions and SEO.
After launch:
- Enable caching.
- Optimize images.
- Use a CDN if possible.
- Test performance using tools like PageSpeed Insights.
WooCommerce performance depends heavily on hosting quality and optimization setup.
6. Check Structured Data (Schema Markup)
Structured data helps Google display rich results like:
- Product ratings
- Price
- Availability
Use tools like:
- Google Rich Results Test
- Schema validation tools
Make sure your product pages show proper schema markup.
7. Monitor Traffic for 2–4 Weeks
It’s normal to see slight ranking fluctuations after migration.
During the first month:
- Track organic traffic trends.
- Monitor keyword rankings.
- Compare conversion rates before and after migration.
- Watch for unusual traffic drops.
If redirects are properly configured and technical setup is clean, traffic usually stabilizes quickly.
No, if the migration is handled correctly. To protect rankings:
– Set up 301 redirects
– Update and submit your sitemap
– Preserve page titles and meta descriptions
– Maintain URL structure where possible
– Temporary ranking fluctuations are normal for 2–4 weeks.
No, customer passwords cannot be migrated. Shopify and WooCommerce use different encryption systems. Customers must reset their passwords after migration.
No. Keep your Shopify store active until your WooCommerce site is fully tested, redirects are set up, and traffic has stabilized. Cancel only after everything is confirmed working properly.
Yes, product reviews can be transferred. You can use:
– Migration services
– Import/export plugins like WebToffee Import export suite and Product Import Export plugin.
– CSV-based import tools
Preserving reviews helps maintain trust and SEO value.
Common mistakes include:
– Not setting up 301 redirects
– Ignoring SEO metadata
– Skipping data backup
– Incorrect product field mapping
– Not testing checkout before launch
Proper planning prevents most issues.
Conclusion
Shopify and WooCommerce are both leading eCommerce platforms that allow store owners to create a fully functional eCommerce website. While Shopify is a hosted SaaS platform, WooCommerce is a free plugin for the WordPress content management system. Both have their own advantages and features.
This article has outlined the steps to transfer data (users, products, and orders) from Shopify to WooCommerce. When migrating your online store, you may also need to set up payments and redesign the website.
If you find this article to be helpful, please leave your feedback in the comments section.
Disclaimer: Shopify CSV files and WooCommerce formats differ, with unique data fields on each platform. Ensure all fields are properly mapped for an error-free data transfer. However, some fields may still be missed during the import from WooCommerce to Shopify, so manual verification is recommended.
Comment (1)
Itay D.
April 11, 2023
Thank you. You helped me a lot. Here is my website: https://www.buybag.co.il