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E-Commerce · head to head

Algolia vs Sellfy

Algolia logo

Algolia

E-Commerce

The best Search and Discovery Platform for your business

From
Free
Rated
-
Full reviewWebsite
Sellfy logo

Sellfy

E-Commerce

Ecommerce platform for creators and entrepreneurs

From
$22/month
Rated
-
Full reviewWebsite

The short version

  • Only Algolia has a free tier, so it costs nothing to try first.
  • Each has a real cost: Algolia the free tier allows 10,000 search requests and 50,000 records a month; Sellfy every plan caps annual sales volume: $10k on Starter, $50k on Business and $200k on Premium
  • They diverge on capability: Algolia covers Instant search, Sellfy covers Physical & digital products.
  • Prices and features above were last checked on 30 August 2026.

Where they differ

Only the attributes on which Algolia and Sellfy actually diverge.

Attributes where Algolia and Sellfy differ
AttributeAlgoliaSellfy
Starting priceFree$22/month
Pricing modelUnknownsubscription
Free tierYesNo
Founded20122013

Identical on both: platforms (Web), user rating (Not yet rated), category (E-Commerce).

What each one covers

Drawn from each product's published feature list. An absence here means we hold no record of it - not that the product lacks it.

Only in Algolia

  • Instant search
  • Typo tolerance
  • Faceted search
  • Geo search
  • AI recommendations
  • A/B testing
  • Multi-language
  • React

Only in Sellfy

  • Physical & digital products
  • Membership/subscription sales
  • Email marketing
  • Marketing automation
  • Affiliate program
  • Mobile app
  • Multi-currency support

Both cover

  • Analytics

What people use each for

The jobs each tool is most often brought in to do.

Algolia

  • Site searchnot Sellfy
  • Mobile app searchnot Sellfy
  • Voice searchnot Sellfy
  • Product discoverynot Sellfy
  • Federated searchnot Sellfy

Sellfy

  • Selling digital downloads, subscriptions or print on demand goods from a hosted storefrontnot Algolia
  • Running a small creator store without building a sitenot Algolia

Where each one falls short

Documented limitations, not opinions. Every one is a constraint you would hit in normal use.

Algolia

  • The free tier allows 10,000 search requests and 50,000 records a month
  • Billing is metered on two axes at once, search requests and indexed records, so a large catalogue with light traffic still costs
  • AI features require Grow Plus, where additional searches cost $1.75 per 1,000 against $0.50 on Grow
  • The Elevate tier requires an annual contract and is quote-only

Sellfy

  • Every plan caps annual sales volume: $10k on Starter, $50k on Business and $200k on Premium
  • Exceeding the cap forces a plan upgrade rather than an overage charge, so growth is a step change in cost
  • Maximum file size per digital product is tied to the plan, at 10 GB, 15 GB and 20 GB
  • Email marketing credits are metered per plan, from 2,000 to 50,000
  • Cart abandonment, upselling and the affiliate programme all require the Business plan
  • Payment processing fees from PayPal or Stripe are charged on top of the subscription

Pricing, plan by plan

Algolia

Free
  • BuildFree
    • Free tier
  • Grow$0.5/month minimum
    • 10k searches and 100k records included
    • Usage-based overage pricing
  • Grow Plus$undefined/mo
    • AI features
    • 10k searches per month
    • $1.75 per 1k search overages
  • Elevate$50000/year
    • Enterprise tier
    • Annual commitment

Sellfy

$22/month
  • Starter$22/month
    • From $22/month with annual billing (or $39/month with monthly billing)
    • Basic e-commerce features for digital and physical products
  • Business$null/month
    • Mid-tier option with expanded capabilities
  • Premium$null/month
    • Highest tier with up to 20GB per digital product file storage

Which should you pick?

Choose Algolia if

  • You need instant search.
  • You want to start without paying.
  • You also want typo tolerance.
Algolia review

Choose Sellfy if

  • You need physical & digital products.
  • You also want membership/subscription sales.
Sellfy review

Questions people ask

Is Algolia or Sellfy better?
Neither clearly leads. Algolia starts at Free and Sellfy at $22/month, and user ratings are close enough to be indistinguishable. Choose on capability and platform support.
Which is cheaper, Algolia or Sellfy?
Algolia has a free tier; the other does not. Paid plans start at Free for Algolia and $22/month for Sellfy.
Does Algolia or Sellfy run on more platforms?
Both run on Web, so platform support will not decide this one for you.
Can I use Algolia for free?
Yes. Algolia has a free tier, so you can try it without paying. Sellfy starts at $22/month.
What is Algolia best used for?
Algolia is most often used for site search, mobile app search, voice search, product discovery. Of those, site search and mobile app search are not what Sellfy is typically brought in for.
What can Algolia do that Sellfy cannot?
Algolia covers Instant search, Typo tolerance, Faceted search, Geo search. Sellfy covers Physical & digital products, Membership/subscription sales, Email marketing, Marketing automation. Both handle Analytics.

Answered from the vendors’ own pages

Algolia: What are Algolia's pricing tiers?

Algolia offers a free Build plan, Grow starts at $0.50/month with usage-based pricing, Grow Plus adds AI features at higher cost, and Enterprise (Elevate) requires annual commitments starting around $50k/year.

Source
Sellfy: How much does Sellfy cost?

Sellfy starts at $22/month for the Starter plan with annual billing ($39/month with monthly billing). Higher tiers (Business and Premium) are available but specific pricing requires contacting sales or visiting the pricing page.

Source
Algolia: Does Algolia include AI-powered search features?

Yes. Algolia's AI mode enables natural language search queries where customers can type conversational questions and AI recognizes intent. Premium plans include AI Synonyms, AI Ranking, and Advanced Personalization.

Source
Sellfy: Does Sellfy charge transaction fees?

No, Sellfy charges zero transaction fees on sales, unlike competitors such as Gumroad which charges 10%. If revenue exceeds a plan limit, a 2% fee may apply unless you upgrade to a higher tier.

Source
Algolia: What platforms and services integrate with Algolia?

Algolia integrates with Shopify, Contentful, WordPress, Adobe Commerce/Magento, BigCommerce, commercetools, and Salesforce. Direct payment integrations like Stripe are limited.

Source
Sellfy: Does Sellfy offer a free trial?

Yes, new users can access a 14-day free trial with no credit card required. During the trial you can customize store design and add product types, but upgrading to a paid plan is required to start selling.

Source
Algolia: How many customers does Algolia serve?

Algolia serves more than 18,000 customers across 150+ countries, processing over 50 billion monthly search queries.

Source
Algolia: What are Algolia's rate limiting policies?

Algolia has a limit of 10,000 indexing operations per unit. Exceeding limits returns HTTP 429 errors. Backend implementations must handle their own rate limiting as Algolia cannot provide per-user rate limiting.

Source
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