How can I tell what ecommerce platform a site is using?

merlene-wez · December 29, 2023, 7:23pm

Hi everyone! I’m currently exploring various e-commerce platforms for a project, and I’ve come across several websites with features and designs that really appeal to me.

I’m curious to know what platforms these sites might be using. Could anyone offer advice or tools on how to identify the e-commerce platform used by a specific website?

Any tips on distinguishing features or characteristics that point to popular platforms like Shopify, Magento, WooCommerce, etc., would be greatly appreciated. Thank you!

berna-partal · January 4, 2024, 1:39pm

Hello! It’s great to hear that you’re exploring various e-commerce platforms.

Identifying the platform a specific website is using can be an insightful process.

Here are some comprehensive tips and tools you can use to determine the e-commerce platform of a website:

Use Browser Extensions: Extensions like ‘Wappalyzer’ or ‘BuiltWith’ are incredibly useful. They can analyze the website you’re visiting and provide a breakdown of the technology used, including the e-commerce platform.
Inspect the Page Source Code: Often, the CMS can be identified by looking at the website’s source code. Right-click on the webpage and choose ‘View Page Source’ or ‘Inspect’. Look for lines with specific CMS names or URL structures unique to certain platforms (e.g., paths like ‘/products/’ for Shopify).
Examine URL Structures: Different e-commerce platforms have characteristic URL patterns. For example, Magento sites might have URLs containing ‘/catalog/’, while Shopify sites often use ‘/collections/’ or ‘/products/’. Observing these patterns can give you a good hint.
Look for Platform-Specific Features: Each platform has unique features. For instance, Shopify often has a distinct checkout process, Magento sites might show certain types of layered navigation, and WooCommerce sites are generally built on WordPress, so they might have certain WordPress-specific features.
Check for Platform Footprints in HTML/CSS: Sometimes, the platform can be identified by certain HTML classes, IDs, or even specific CSS file names. This requires a bit more technical knowledge but can be quite revealing.
Utilize Online Tools: Websites like BuiltWith.com and CMSDetector.com allow you to input a site’s URL, and they’ll analyze it to identify the CMS. These tools are quite comprehensive and can provide a wealth of information about the technologies used.
Look for Branding in the Footer or Terms and Conditions: Some websites might mention the platform they’re using in the footer or in their terms and conditions.
API Endpoints and Network Calls: For the more technically inclined, examining API endpoints and network calls in the browser’s developer tools can also reveal platform-specific patterns.
Community Assistance: If you’re unsure, post the URL in web development forums or communities. Many experienced developers can quickly identify a CMS by its characteristics.

→ A little reminder: Some sites may use custom-built solutions or heavily modify existing platforms, which can make identification more challenging. However, the above methods should cover most cases.

Good luck with your project!

fatih · January 10, 2024, 10:41am

Hello, about your aim, I can provide the process with BuiltWith.

BuiltWith is a powerful tool that can provide a wealth of information about the technologies used on websites, including their e-commerce platforms.

I followed the steps below, and it can help you as well.

→ Visit the BuiltWith Website: Start by going to BuiltWith. This is the main page where you’ll enter the URL of the e-commerce site you’re interested in.

→ Enter the Website URL: In the search bar on the BuiltWith homepage, enter the e-commerce site URL you want to investigate. Make sure you enter the full URL (including ‘http://’ or ‘https://’) for the most accurate results.

→ Analyze the Report: Once you enter the URL and press enter or click on the lookup button, BuiltWith will process the request and provide a detailed report. This report will include all the technologies detected on the site.

→ Identify the E-commerce Platform: In the report, look under categories like ‘E-commerce’, ‘Webshop’, or similar headings. BuiltWith categorizes the technologies, so it should be relatively straightforward to find the e-commerce platform section.

→ Explore Additional Details: BuiltWith not only identifies the platform but also provides additional insights like plugins used, analytics and tracking tools, hosting information, and more. This can be useful to get a comprehensive understanding of how the website is built.

→ Comparing with Other Sites: If you’re looking at multiple sites, you can repeat this process and compare the results. This can help you understand common technologies and platforms used in your area of interest.

Also, BuiltWith has a Chrome Extension that you can use practically on the websites that you wonder about.

Using BuiltWith can give you a quick and fairly accurate understanding of the e-commerce platform used by a website, and it’s a great starting point for your research.

merlene-wez · January 10, 2024, 11:14am

Thank you so much for your valuable answers

How about finding the site used for this website: NewsletterSearchEngine.com?

Can you urgently help me with that?

perihan-uramis · January 10, 2024, 11:53am

Hello,

Yes, of course.

From the previous techniques that everyone has touched upon. Here is what I experienced:

A. With BuiltWith

Step 1– I added the extension from the Chrome Web Store by clinking on the Add to Chrome.

Here is the link if you have an issue while finding: BuiltWith Chrome Extension

Step 2- Then, you need to go to your target website and click on the extension that you pinned or didn’t pin

You can clearly view the CMS by scrolling down the extension-provided information.

There are other details of Newslettersearchengine.com that are possible as well if you want to take a glance at them.

B. From the Page Source of the Website

Though this method is more difficult than the previous one, you can still access the CMS of a target website.

Now, you need to find the page source of Newslettersearchengine.com by right-clicking and choosing the “View Page Source” option.

Later, you should check the CMS from the page source by searching with “CTRL + F” or “CMD + F”.

Try writing the CMS you know to find the right one that matches.

For this, you can get inspiration from headless CMS platforms, of course.

There are other content that Popupsmart can help you with. You can check the following:

I hope I can provide enough information that can help you.

Don’t hesitate to share your questions and the process! Good luckk!