Amazon FBA vs Shopify – Which Should You Sell On In 2025?

If you’re an Amazon seller or thinking about diving into e-commerce this year, you’ve probably asked yourself: “Should I sell on Amazon FBA, or should I build my own store with Shopify?” It’s a great question, and with so many different e-commerce options for business owners these days, it’s more relevant than ever.

Both platforms have evolved. Amazon’s ecosystem is more competitive but still massively powerful. Shopify, on the other hand, gives you total control and branding freedom, but you’ll be responsible for driving your own traffic.

Let’s unpack the pros, cons, and ideal use cases for each so you can choose the best platform for your business goals this year.

What Is Amazon FBA?

Amazon FBA (Fulfillment by Amazon) is a program where you send your products to Amazon’s warehouses, and they take care of storing, picking, packing, shipping, and customer service. As a seller, your main job is to:

• Find products
• Source them
• Create high-quality listings
• Run PPC ads (if you want to drive more visibility)

FBA is perfect if you want to take advantage of Amazon’s massive audience and fulfillment infrastructure without having to deal with logistics yourself.

What Is Shopify?

Shopify is a platform that lets you build your own eCommerce website. You customize the store, upload products, manage inventory, and fulfill orders yourself (or with a third-party fulfillment partner). Shopify doesn’t bring you traffic; this is something that you have to do yourself through:

• Paid ads (Meta, Google, TikTok)
• SEO and content marketing
• Email and influencer marketing

In return, you have complete control over your branding, pricing, customer data, and user experience.

Amazon FBA vs Shopify: A Feature-by-Feature Comparison

Let’s break down the two platforms side by side based on the things that matter most to e-commerce sellers in 2025.

1. Traffic and Audience

Amazon FBA gives you access to a built-in audience of over 300 million shoppers. It offers trust, convenience, and high conversion rates because customers are already comfortable buying from Amazon. However, you’ll be competing with thousands of other sellers for visibility.

Shopify, on the other hand, doesn’t bring its own traffic. You’re responsible for driving visitors to your store through marketing, which can be challenging, especially for beginners. If you want immediate access to a large customer base, Amazon FBA has the advantage.

2. Ease of Getting Started

Amazon FBA can be complicated to get started, especially with product research and sourcing, and it often requires a higher initial investment of $2,000 to $5,000 or more. However, Amazon takes care of most of the heavy lifting once your inventory is sent in.

Shopify has a lower startup cost, around $500 to $1,500, and it’s simpler to set up a basic store. That said, you’ll need to handle fulfillment, ads, and marketing yourself, which can be a steep learning curve. Amazon is easier on fulfillment, while Shopify wins on lower startup costs.

3. Control and Branding

With Amazon FBA, your products are part of Amazon’s marketplace, which limits your branding control. Amazon owns the customer relationship and can remove your listings or reviews if you break the rules.

Shopify offers full control over your brand, website design, customer data, and marketing strategies. You can build a strong, independent brand, collect customer emails, and customize your store experience. If branding is important to you, Shopify is the clear choice.

4. Profit Margins

Amazon FBA comes with several fees, including FBA fees, referral fees, and storage fees, which can reduce profit margins. However, volume sales and Amazon Prime exposure can offset some of these costs. Shopify has lower platform fees and allows you to set your own pricing, but you’ll need to invest in paid advertising or other marketing strategies to drive traffic.

While Amazon has higher overhead, Shopify can have higher marketing costs. Both platforms balance out, depending on your business strategy.

5. Scalability

Amazon FBA scales easily once you find a winning product. Amazon’s infrastructure can handle thousands of orders per day, and tools like Seller Central and automated PPC campaigns help with growth.

Shopify can scale quickly too, but only if you have a strong marketing strategy to drive traffic. You’ll need to manage fulfillment, inventory, and customer service as you grow, which might mean hiring help sooner. Amazon is better for operational scalability, while Shopify offers more flexibility for scaling a unique brand.

6. Customer Trust

Amazon’s reputation gives FBA sellers a significant advantage. Shoppers are already comfortable buying from Amazon, and features like Prime badges, easy returns, and strong customer service build instant trust.

On Shopify, you need to establish trust from scratch. This means adding customer reviews, displaying trust badges, offering fast shipping, and building credibility with your audience. Amazon wins here, as it makes earning customer trust much easier.

7. Long-Term Potential

Amazon FBA is a great option for generating income quickly, especially if you have a high-demand product. However, you’re building on Amazon’s platform, which means your business is subject to their rules and policies. They can suspend accounts or change policies at any time.

Shopify gives you full ownership of your brand and customer relationships, making it easier to build a long-term asset. While it may take longer to become profitable, Shopify has a higher ceiling for growth and long-term success.

So, Which One Should You Sell on in 2025?

The short answer? It depends on your business goals, experience level, and resources.

Choose Amazon FBA if:

• You want fast access to millions of customers.
• You have capital to invest upfront.
• You prefer a more passive fulfillment process.
• You’re okay playing by Amazon’s rules.
• You want to test product ideas quickly.

Choose Shopify if:

• You’re focused on building a long-term brand.
• You want full control over your store, customer data, and experience.
• You enjoy marketing and customer acquisition.
• You’re willing to play the long game.
• You want to own your business 100%, without platform risk.

Can You Do Both?

You can absolutely use both Amazon FBA Shopify, and many smart sellers do. A common (and effective) strategy in 2025 looks like this:

1. Launch your product on Amazon FBA to validate the idea.
2. Use Amazon’s sales to generate cash flow and reviews.
3. Slowly build a branded Shopify store in the background.
4. Drive traffic from social media, influencers, and email to your site.
5. Eventually expand into retail, wholesale, or even international markets.

Amazon is your launchpad. Shopify is your brand’s forever home.

Final Thoughts

If you’re just starting out and want to get products in front of people quickly, Amazon FBA is a solid choice. If you’re ready to build something lasting that you truly own, Shopify might be your best bet. The smartest move if you have the resources is to use them together. Combine Amazon’s reach with Shopify’s freedom, and you’ll build a business that’s not just profitable, but future-proof.