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E-Commerce · head to head

BigCommerce vs CJ Dropshipping

BigCommerce logo

BigCommerce

E-Commerce

Hosted e-commerce platform that charges no transaction fee and no surcharge for third party gateways

From
$29.95/month
Rated
-
Full reviewWebsite
CJ Dropshipping logo

CJ Dropshipping

E-Commerce

Sourcing and order fulfillment platform for dropshipping and e-commerce sellers

From
Free
Rated
-
Full reviewWebsite

The short version

  • Only CJ Dropshipping has a free tier, so it costs nothing to try first.
  • Each has a real cost: BigCommerce plans are gated on annual online sales, so a strong year pushes you into a higher tier and a higher subscription even though your traffic, catalogue and resource usage are unchanged.; CJ Dropshipping shipping times can still be lengthy for products sourced from suppliers without CJ warehouse stock in the destination region.
  • They diverge on capability: BigCommerce covers No platform transaction fee, CJ Dropshipping covers Product Sourcing.
  • Prices and features above were last checked on 30 August 2026.

Where they differ

Only the attributes on which BigCommerce and CJ Dropshipping actually diverge.

Attributes where BigCommerce and CJ Dropshipping differ
AttributeBigCommerceCJ Dropshipping
Starting price$29.95/monthFree
Pricing modelsubscriptionfreemium
Free tierNoYes
PlatformsWebweb, api
Founded20092014

Identical on both: 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 BigCommerce

  • No platform transaction fee
  • Stencil theme framework
  • Multi-storefront
  • Faceted search
  • B2B capabilities
  • Headless support
  • Built-in tax integrations
  • Multi-currency

Only in CJ Dropshipping

  • Product Sourcing
  • Store Integration
  • Order Fulfillment
  • Global Warehousing
  • Custom Packaging & Branding
  • Shipment Tracking
  • Chrome Extension

What people use each for

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

BigCommerce

  • A merchant whose volume makes a percentage transaction fee the largest line in the platform decisionnot CJ Dropshipping
  • A retailer needing several branded storefronts sharing one catalogue and one back officenot CJ Dropshipping
  • A B2B seller who needs company accounts and customer-specific price lists without custom developmentnot CJ Dropshipping
  • A team going headless who wants a managed commerce back end rather than a self-hosted onenot CJ Dropshipping

CJ Dropshipping

  • Finding and importing trending products without holding inventorynot BigCommerce
  • Fulfilling dropshipping orders placed on Shopify or WooCommerce storesnot BigCommerce
  • Sourcing custom-branded or private-label products for a storenot BigCommerce
  • Storing bulk inventory in overseas warehouses to reduce shipping timesnot BigCommerce
  • Print-on-demand product creation and fulfillmentnot BigCommerce

Where each one falls short

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

BigCommerce

  • Plans are gated on annual online sales, so a strong year pushes you into a higher tier and a higher subscription even though your traffic, catalogue and resource usage are unchanged.
  • There is a documented ceiling on the number of variants a single product can have, which breaks configurable, made-to-measure and heavily optioned catalogues and forces awkward workarounds such as splitting one product into several listings.
  • The application marketplace is much smaller than the largest competitor's, so a specific integration or niche feature is more often a custom build, and custom builds are the line item that quietly exceeds the platform cost.
  • Theme customisation past the visual settings means Stencil, Handlebars templates and a local command line workflow, so changes that look small to a marketing team still require a developer and a deployment.
  • Migrating out moves products and inventory reasonably well and moves the things that matter badly, since customer passwords cannot be exported in usable form, order history rarely transfers intact, and reviews and URL structure have to be rebuilt with a redirect map you must produce yourself or lose the search traffic.

CJ Dropshipping

  • Shipping times can still be lengthy for products sourced from suppliers without CJ warehouse stock in the destination region.
  • Quality control depends on individual third-party factories and suppliers, which varies across product categories.
  • Platform navigation and account verification steps have been reported as confusing or slow by some sellers.
  • Pricing and fees for sourcing agents and custom services are not transparently listed and often require direct negotiation.

Pricing, plan by plan

BigCommerce

$29.95/month
  • Standard$29.95/month
    • Unlimited products
    • 2 staff accounts
    • Basic reports
  • Plus$79.95/month
    • All Standard features
    • Up to 5 staff accounts
    • Advanced reports

CJ Dropshipping

Free

No published plan breakdown. See the CJ Dropshipping review.

Which should you pick?

Choose BigCommerce if

  • You need no platform transaction fee.
  • You also want stencil theme framework.
BigCommerce review

Choose CJ Dropshipping if

  • You need product sourcing.
  • You want to start without paying.
  • You work on web, api.
  • You also want store integration.
CJ Dropshipping review

Questions people ask

Is BigCommerce or CJ Dropshipping better?
Neither clearly leads. BigCommerce starts at $29.95/month and CJ Dropshipping at Free, and user ratings are close enough to be indistinguishable. Choose on capability and platform support.
Which is cheaper, BigCommerce or CJ Dropshipping?
CJ Dropshipping has a free tier; the other does not. Paid plans start at $29.95/month for BigCommerce and Free for CJ Dropshipping.
Does BigCommerce or CJ Dropshipping run on more platforms?
BigCommerce runs on Web. CJ Dropshipping runs on web, api.
Can I use CJ Dropshipping for free?
Yes. CJ Dropshipping has a free tier, so you can try it without paying. BigCommerce starts at $29.95/month.
What is BigCommerce best used for?
BigCommerce is most often used for a merchant whose volume makes a percentage transaction fee the largest line in the platform decision, a retailer needing several branded storefronts sharing one catalogue and one back office, a b2b seller who needs company accounts and customer-specific price lists without custom development, a team going headless who wants a managed commerce back end rather than a self-hosted one. Of those, a merchant whose volume makes a percentage transaction fee the largest line in the platform decision and a retailer needing several branded storefronts sharing one catalogue and one back office are not what CJ Dropshipping is typically brought in for.
What can BigCommerce do that CJ Dropshipping cannot?
BigCommerce covers No platform transaction fee, Stencil theme framework, Multi-storefront, Faceted search. CJ Dropshipping covers Product Sourcing, Store Integration, Order Fulfillment, Global Warehousing.

Answered from the vendors’ own pages

BigCommerce: Does BigCommerce charge transaction fees?

No, and it does not surcharge third party payment gateways either. Revenue affects the price through plan sales thresholds instead.

CJ Dropshipping: Is CJ Dropshipping free to use?

Yes, creating an account and using core sourcing and listing features on CJ Dropshipping is free, with no mandatory monthly subscription; costs instead come from product prices, shipping, and per-service fees, as reported by third-party reviews.

Source
BigCommerce: What happens when I exceed my plan's sales threshold?

You move to the next plan tier. Model this at your projected growth rate, because the increase is driven by revenue rather than by usage.

CJ Dropshipping: How does CJ Dropshipping make money if it's free to join?

CJ Dropshipping earns primarily through commissions and service fees on sourcing, warehousing, order fulfillment, shipping, and print-on-demand, rather than a flat subscription, as reported by third-party reviews.

Source
BigCommerce: Is the app ecosystem large enough?

It covers the common integrations. For anything niche, assume a development project rather than an install, and price that in before comparing subscriptions.

CJ Dropshipping: What fees does CJ Dropshipping charge for fulfillment?

CJ charges weight- and location-based inbound/outbound handling fees, per-SKU inspection fees, labeling fees, and storage fees after a free period (30-90 days), on top of shipping costs that vary by route and speed.

Source
BigCommerce: How hard is it to leave?

Products export cleanly. Customer passwords, order history, reviews and SEO URLs do not. Build the redirect map before you cut over, not after traffic drops.

CJ Dropshipping: Does CJ Dropshipping have paid membership tiers?

In addition to its free tier, CJ Dropshipping offers optional paid membership tiers reported around $15.99-$59.99/month that add extra sourcing requests, VIP product access, and priority support, per third-party reviews.

Source
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