Is Sharetribe Right for Your Business? 10 Questions to Ask

Should you use Sharetribe to build your marketplace business? 

First and foremost, there's no such thing as a one-size-fits-all solution in business. 

While thousands of Sharetribe users swear by the platform's cost-effectiveness, usability, flexibility, and scalability, it's your sole responsibility to find a platform that perfectly suits your specific objectives.  

That said, here are 10 questions you need to ask if you need to decide if Sharetribe is the right marketplace platform for your business

Should You Go with Sharetribe? 10 Questions You Need to Answer

1. What marketplace type do I need to create? 

If you did some research on marketplace platforms beforehand, you may have come across a few options like Shopify, WordPress, Cocorico, Arcadier, and of course, Sharetribe.

Most of these platforms lean toward specific marketplace types in terms of out-of-the-box features. 

Shopify and Magento, for example, are designed for online stores, whereas WordPress can be retooled for a wider range of marketplace types with the right plugins. 

Moving on to Sharetribe vs Cocorico and Arcadier, the latter two are appropriate for traditional product and rental marketplaces. Sharetribe, on the other hand, have the tools for just about any kind of marketplace you can think of, including but not limited to: 

• Product marketplaces
• Service marketplaces
• Rental marketplaces
• Job marketplaces
• Matchmaking or networking websites

2. What technical skills and resources do I have? 

How knowledgeable are you (or your team) on marketplace development?

It goes without saying that different ecommerce marketplace software have different barriers to entry. 

Some are designed to enable the creation of fully-functional marketplaces without writing a single line of code. Others like Magento, however, require a deeper understanding of the core technologies and programming languages (e.g., PHP, CSS, HTML, and XML). 

Then, there are marketplace platforms that are flexible enough to cater to both technical and non-technical founders. 

With Sharetribe, your marketplace project can be completed in a matter of hours — thanks to the ready-to-use Web Marketplace Template and the no-code editor. But if you're looking to build a custom marketplace from top to bottom, Sharetribe can also grant direct access to the web template's code via your own development server.  

3. What is my budget? 

For startup founders, every cent counts especially in the early stages of your marketplace. 

It takes money to make money with a digital marketplace app or website — including the initial overhead costs of development and marketing. As such, you need to be prudent with your decisions in terms of software purchases, marketing strategy, talent acquisition, and more. 

Looking at Sharetribe, it's worth pointing out that you need a minimum of $39 per month to start constructing your marketplace. With the "Build" plan, you get to work with the no-code editor, the code-based dev environment, and all basic marketplace features. 

However, you need to upgrade to the "Lite" plan, which starts at $139 per month (or $99 per month with annual billing), to take your marketplace live and start generating sales. This is in line with the price of other paid Sharetribe alternatives, like Arcadier and a decked-out WordPress marketplace. 

If you're looking for a free solution and don't mind to get your hands dirty with a lot of coding, consider open-source marketplace platforms like Cocorico and Bagisto.

4. When do I need to launch? 

If you need to launch as soon as possible, Sharetribe is arguably one of the best choices for you. 

Sharetribe is built to have 90% of what you need to get your marketplace up and running. You'll have a functioning signup forms, user profiles, payments, messaging, bookings, and other essential marketplace features ready right off the bat. 

In contrast, building a self-hosted marketplace with WordPress or an ecommerce website with Shopify can take days or weeks to set up all the features you need. 

5. Do I need scalability? 

Trusted by thousands of marketplace founders worldwide, scalability won't be an issue with Sharetribe. 

You can customize every single aspect of your marketplace with code from day one. Or, you can use the pre-configured web template to launch your marketplace ASAP.

It all depends on how scalability fits your strategy at this time. 

In addition, Sharetribe's scalability manages risk effectively by not pigeonholing upgrades inside a rigid pricing model. The platform is structured to let you access and pay for features at the right stage of your marketplace project. 

6. Do I need community support? 

It's one thing to get learning resources and tutorials, being a part of an active developer community is another. 

Community features like message boards allow you to ask about a problem and receive a response from real users who used to face the same issue. While Sharetribe doesn't have a forum, they offer something infinitely better — an active Slack channel where you can interact with roughly 3,000 experienced developers in real time. 

7. What customization features do I need? 

Sharetribe allows both minimal personalization through the no-code editor and in-depth customizations via the web template development environment — but there's no in-between. 

If you're used to quickly activating a third-party theme or installing a drag-and-drop page builder, Sharetribe has limitations in those regards. 

On the other hand, platforms like WordPress allows you to use page builders like Elementor and Divi, which also allows some light coding for customization.

However, drag-and-drop page builders, themes, and other third-party customization apps add bloat to a website's infrastructure, negatively affecting performance. Code-based customization doesn't come with this issue, which is why it's ultimately a better long-term approach for marketplace websites.

8. What payment options should I support? 

Another important consideration when choosing a marketplace platform is the supported payment channels. 

Ecommerce platforms like Shopify support a wide range of payment options, including PayPal, Apple Pay, and card-based payments. 

Sharetribe can also work with any third-party payment channel, but it only supports Stripe right out of the box. You'll need to use code to integrate your chosen payment gateway via privileged transitions or custom events. 

9. Are there any better Sharetribe alternatives?

So, is Sharetribe undeniably at the top of the pyramid in the marketplace development landscape? Should you look at other Sharetribe alternatives that provide a better fit for your business? 

The answer is, it depends on your priorities. 

You definitely can't go wrong with Sharetribe, especially if you're looking at price, flexibility, scalability, and ease of use. But it's always a good idea to explore your options to make sure you lay the right foundations for your marketplace.

Here are some Sharetribe alternatives you should check out:

• WordPress
• Magento
• Shopify
• CS-Cart
• Mirakl
• Marketplacer
• Arcadier
• Cocorico
• Bagisto

10. Should I work with marketplace development agencies? 

Want to skip the early learning stages and build a marketplace website or app tailored to your business?

If you're serious about your marketplace idea, working with verified Sharetribe freelancer or agency will get you there faster. You can browse the Sharetribe Expert Network to look for the right development partner. 

Filter developers based on price range, region, and total projects completed to ensure you're in the right hands. 

The price range of verified Sharetribe development agencies is between $500 to upwards of $10,000. Your final bill will depend on your project's scope and negotiations between you and your chosen expert. 

Fast-Track Your Sharetribe Project with Pros

Eager to create and launch your Sharetribe marketplace?

Want to make sure you get it right the first time? 

Whether you're starting from scratch or scaling up an existing marketplace, our team at Horizon Labs is more than happy to help. 

Click here to schedule your discovery session and request for a small demo project today. 

Good luck!

Frequently Asked Questions

How do I know if Sharetribe is right for my business?

Sharetribe fits best when you're building a marketplace that connects buyers and sellers, want to launch quickly, and value the option to customize later. If your model is a standard single-seller store rather than a marketplace, other platforms may fit better.

What types of marketplaces work best on Sharetribe?

Service marketplaces, rental marketplaces, and product marketplaces that connect independent sellers with buyers are all strong fits, because Sharetribe's transaction engine is built for exactly these buyer-seller flows.

What are the limitations of Sharetribe?

The no-code console covers common cases but has limits; anything highly custom — bespoke search, unusual transaction flows, or deep integrations — requires development work on the Sharetribe Developer Platform. For most founders that flexibility is a strength rather than a blocker.

Can I customize Sharetribe as my marketplace grows?

Yes. The Developer Platform gives full code access, so a Sharetribe marketplace can be extended and optimized as your volume and feature needs grow, rather than hitting a hard ceiling.

Ready to build?

Horizon Labs helps founders decide on and build the right marketplace platform. Book a free intro call — we'll even scope a small pilot project so you can see the quality of our work before you commit.