Quick answer: To start an online store in Pakistan, pick your products, choose a platform (Shopify if you want speed and simplicity, WooCommerce if you want lower monthly costs and full control), turn on cash on delivery plus at least one digital payment option, sign up with a courier that handles COD, and launch with a small, well-photographed catalogue. Most small stores can go live in two to four weeks.
Online shopping in Pakistan has grown fast, but it works differently from the guides written for the US or UK. Most customers still pay cash on delivery, popular international payment tools are not available to Pakistani sellers, and your courier matters as much as your website. This guide covers what actually works here.
Step 0: Decide what you’re selling before you touch a website
The platform is the easy part. These decisions matter more:
- What you sell and who buys it. A clothing brand, a skincare line and a hardware supplier need very different stores.
- Where you deliver. One city, all of Pakistan, or abroad too? This decides your courier and payment setup.
- How many products. 20 products and 2,000 products are different projects.
- Your margins after delivery and returns. With cash on delivery, some orders will be refused at the door. Price with that in mind.
If you already sell on Instagram, Facebook or WhatsApp, you have a head start: you know your best sellers and the questions customers ask. Your store should answer those questions before they’re asked.
Shopify vs WooCommerce for Pakistani businesses
These are the two platforms most Pakistani stores are built on. Both work well. The right choice depends on your budget, how hands-on you want to be, and how much you expect to grow. For the bigger picture on platforms and planning, see our website development guide for Pakistan.
| Shopify | WooCommerce (WordPress) | |
|---|---|---|
| What it is | A hosted store builder. You pay a monthly fee and Shopify runs the technical side | A free plugin that turns a WordPress website into a store. You arrange hosting yourself |
| Monthly cost | Basic plan about $39/month, or about $29/month billed yearly (2026 figures; check Shopify’s pricing page), plus paid apps | Hosting (often a few thousand rupees a month) plus any paid plugins |
| Setup speed | Fast. A simple store can be ready in days | Slower. Needs hosting, setup and configuration |
| Technical work | Very little. Updates and security are handled for you | You (or your developer) handle updates, backups and security |
| Pakistani payments | Through third-party gateways and manual methods | Through plugins for local gateways and manual methods |
| Content and SEO | Good, with some limits on URL structure and blogging | Excellent. WordPress is built for content |
| Flexibility | Limited to what themes and apps allow | Almost anything can be customised |
| Best for | Fashion, beauty and lifestyle brands that want to launch fast and keep things simple | Businesses that want lower running costs, more control, or a store plus a content-rich website |
A simple way to decide:
- Want to launch quickly, have a small team and don’t mind a monthly dollar fee? Go with Shopify.
- Want to avoid dollar subscriptions, need custom features, or already have a WordPress website? Go with WooCommerce.
Payments: what works in Pakistan
This is where most foreign guides go wrong.
Not available to Pakistani sellers:
- Shopify Payments. Shopify’s own payment system doesn’t operate in Pakistan, so Shopify stores here use third-party gateways or manual methods.
- PayPal and Stripe. Neither lets Pakistan-based businesses receive payments directly.
What Pakistani stores actually use:
- Cash on delivery (COD). Still the most popular option by far. Both Shopify and WooCommerce support it out of the box. Your courier collects the cash and sends it to you, minus their charges.
- Bank transfer, JazzCash, Easypaisa, SadaPay and NayaPay (manual). The customer pays and sends a screenshot or reference, and you confirm the order. No merchant account needed, but you check every payment yourself.
- Payment gateways. Services such as PayFast and Safepay let customers pay by card or mobile wallet directly on your checkout. They usually need business documents (CNIC, NTN and a business bank account) and take a fee per transaction. Check each provider’s current requirements and fees before you apply.
Our advice for a new store: launch with COD plus one manual option (bank transfer or a mobile wallet). Add a card gateway once orders are steady. Some stores offer a small discount for prepaid orders, which cuts refused deliveries.
Delivery and couriers
Your courier handles delivery and, with COD, your money too. Compare these before choosing:
- COD settlement speed: how quickly they pay you the cash they’ve collected. Faster settlement means better cash flow.
- Coverage: do they reach the smaller cities your customers live in?
- Return handling: what happens, and what you pay, when a customer refuses an order.
- Integration: can you book shipments from your store’s dashboard instead of copying addresses by hand?
Couriers commonly used by Pakistani online stores include PostEx, Leopards, TCS, Trax, M&P, BlueEx and Call Courier. Some, like PostEx, focus specifically on online sellers and offer early payment on COD orders. For Shopify, there are apps that connect several Pakistani couriers to your admin for one-click booking and automatic tracking. WooCommerce has similar plugins.
Start with one courier, track your delivery success rate for a month, and add a second one if needed.
10 steps to launch your store
- Register a domain name. A .com or .pk that matches your brand. Keep it short and easy to spell.
- Choose your platform: Shopify or WooCommerce, using the table above.
- Pick a clean, mobile-friendly theme. Most of your customers will shop on their phones. Test every page on a phone before launch.
- Add your products properly. Clear photos on a plain background, honest descriptions, sizes or specifications, and prices in PKR.
- Write your policies: delivery times, delivery charges, returns and exchanges. Unclear policies are a top reason for abandoned carts.
- Set up payments: COD plus at least one manual or gateway option.
- Connect your courier and run a few test orders end to end.
- Add trust signals: your WhatsApp number, real customer reviews, a contact page and social media links.
- Set up tracking: Google Analytics and the Meta Pixel, so you know where sales come from and can run ads later.
- Launch, then improve. Promote through your existing social pages, ask early customers for reviews, and fix whatever they find confusing.
How much does it cost?
It depends on the platform, number of products, design and features. A small store with a ready-made theme costs far less than a custom store with hundreds of products and integrations. For a full breakdown, see our guide to website development cost in Pakistan.
For reference, our own WooCommerce store packages start from PKR 120,000, with a custom quote for larger catalogues (see our pricing plans). Remember the running costs as well: platform or hosting fees, apps or plugins, gateway fees, courier charges and returns.
Common mistakes to avoid
- Launching without COD. Many Pakistani shoppers won’t buy without it.
- Poor product photos. Customers can’t touch the product, so the photos have to do the selling.
- Hidden delivery charges that only appear at checkout.
- Ignoring mobile. A store that’s awkward on a phone loses most of its visitors.
- No plan for refused COD orders. Confirming orders by phone or WhatsApp before dispatch reduces them a lot.
- Too many apps or plugins. Each one slows the store down. Add only what you need.
- Building a store with no way to get visitors. Plan your marketing (social media, Google, SEO) before launch, not after.
Frequently asked questions
Can I start an online store in Pakistan without registering a company?
You can start selling with COD and manual payments as an individual. Card payment gateways usually ask for business documents such as an NTN and a business bank account, so plan for registration as you grow.
Is Shopify available in Pakistan?
Yes, you can build and run a Shopify store from Pakistan. Shopify’s own payment system isn’t available here, so you use cash on delivery, manual payment methods or a third-party gateway.
Which is cheaper, Shopify or WooCommerce?
WooCommerce usually has lower monthly running costs, since you pay for hosting rather than a dollar subscription. Shopify costs more each month but needs less technical upkeep.
How long does it take to build an online store?
A small store with a ready-made theme can be live in one to two weeks. A custom design with many products, payment gateways and courier integrations usually takes three to six weeks.
Do I need a website if I already sell on Instagram?
Not on day one, but a website gives you a checkout, your own customer data, and a way to be found on Google. It also protects you if your social account is restricted.
Need help building your store?
SEO Prime Services is a Lahore-based team that builds WordPress and WooCommerce online stores for businesses across Pakistan, from planning and design to payments, courier setup and launch. Not sure which platform suits your business? We will help you weigh up the options before you spend anything. Take a look at our web development services or get in touch for a free consultation.
