How Long Does It Take to Build an E-commerce Website?

Custom e-commerce vs Shopify — real timelines for every online store type.

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Week-by-week timeline

Design & catalog

Week 1

✓Product data model and variant structure
✓Storefront design
✓Cart and checkout UX
✓Admin and inventory setup

🏁 Approved design and data model

Development

Weeks 2–3

✓Product catalog and search
✓Cart and checkout (Stripe)
✓Inventory management
✓Order management

🏁 Functional store in staging

Launch

Week 4

✓Product photography integration
✓SEO setup
✓Email transactional setup
✓Production deployment

🏁 Live store

What affects the timeline

Catalog size

100 products: 1–2 days of data entry. 10,000 products: requires import pipeline and data normalization — add 1–2 weeks.

Product complexity

Simple products (one SKU): 1 day. Products with variants (size, color): 2–3 days. Configurable products (custom text, engravings): 3–5 days. Subscription boxes: add 1–2 weeks.

Shopify vs custom

Standard products: use Shopify ($29–$299/month) — it's faster. Complex data models, B2B pricing, or marketplace features: go custom — Shopify's limitations become blockers.

Timeline comparison

Option	Timeline	Notes
Shopify (standard products)	1–2 weeks	Best for standard product catalogs
Custom Next.js + Stripe	2–4 weeks	Complex products, marketplace, no transaction fees
WooCommerce	2–4 weeks	WordPress-based — more setup, plugin dependencies
Medusa.js (open source)Us	3–6 weeks	Shopify alternative with full code ownership

Frequently asked questions

When should I choose custom over Shopify?

Custom when: subscription boxes, B2B pricing tiers, rental/deposit products, multi-vendor marketplace, or custom checkout UX. Otherwise, Shopify is faster and cheaper to launch.