TL;DR: The $39/month Basic plan isn't actually your problem. The problem is what happens three weeks after launch when you realize abandoned cart emails require an app ($29/month), your blog posts have no meta description control without another app ($15/month), and you can't add a gif 📖 Reading time: ~29 min What's in this article The Real Reason You're Looking for a Shopify Alternative The Contenders I Actually Deployed WooCommerce: Still the Default Answer for a Reason PrestaShop 8.x: More Powerful Than It Gets Credit For Medusa.js: The One for Developers Who Want Full Control Square Online: The Only Zero-Infrastructure Free Option Side-by-Side: What Actually Matters for a Small Store When to Pick What: Matching the Tool to Your Actual Situation The Real Reason You're Looking for a Shopify Alternative The $39/month Basic plan isn't actually your problem.…