Top Shopping Cart Plug-Ins For Websites

Due to the influx of online shoppers that have been flooding the Internet in recent years, online retailers have been sprouting up all over the Internet. This of course creates a demand for adequate shopping cart software plug-ins that can painlessly get the job done. Retailers also want the software to be quick to setup and easy to integrate into their website. Two of the top-performing shopping cart plug-ins are the WordPress e-Commerce plug-in and the JS AJAX PayPal Cart, due to their stability, customization options, and aesthetics.

The WordPress e-Commerce plug-in is probably the most used shopping cart plug-in, due to the overwhelming popularity of WordPress as a content management system. This plug-in allows for full customization of the products catalog, and easily integrates into any WordPress template. It also comes with a built-in shipping calculator, which determines accurate prices for shipping services automatically. Unlike many other shopping cart plug-ins available on the Internet, this one is completely free. The major downside to this plug-in is that it is only compatible with websites running WordPress, which alienates anyone who has a custom-built website or another content management system in place.

A good alternative to the WordPress e-Commerce plug-in is the JS AJAX Paypal Cart. Although this plug-in is not free and carries a budget price tag of $9.90, it's much more compatible since it isn't restricted to only WordPress usage. Due to being written with JavaScript and XML, this shopping cart plug-in can be used on virtually any type of web server or content management system; it can even be implemented on WordPress. Like the WordPress e-Commerce plugin, the JS AJAX Paypal Cart also includes automatic calculation of prices for shipping services. The major drawback of using this plug-in is the restriction of payment options that it offers; while the WordPress e-Commerce plug-in can be customized to allow numerous types of payment options, the JS AJAX Paypal Cart plug-in is only capable of offering PayPal as a payment option.

Since both of these plug-ins have the prerequisite shipping services calculator built into them, it's hard to say which is the better choice. If an online retailer is already running WordPress, utilizing the WordPress e-Commerce plug-in is probably the best choice. If using another content management system, JS AJAX Paypal Cart plug-in is the best bet due to the level of customization it offers for such a low price