Easy Digital Downloads vs WooCommerce

Choosing between Easy Digital Downloads vs WooCommerce gets confusing because both can sell a PDF, and both are free to install. The cost of a wrong choice shows up later, when you move orders and customers because your catalog changed or your extensions got expensive.

For me, it comes down to one question: will you ever ship a physical product? If every product is a download, I'd pick Easy Digital Downloads. If you sell physical goods now or may add them, I'd pick WooCommerce.

Stackless is relevant to both, because I lead this Gatilab plugin and it comes in 2 editions: Stackless for EDD and Stackless for WooCommerce. It adds subscriptions, licensing and checkout tools to either one, so this choice doesn't change what I'm selling you.

Quick Comparisons

This table shows the differences that usually decide the choice. Plugin numbers come from WordPress.org on November 2, 2026.

When Easy Digital Downloads Is the Better Pick

Easy Digital Downloads suits a store where every sale ends with a file, a license key or access to something. It treats every product as a download, so your checkout and admin don't carry shipping and stock settings you never use.

These stores are the best fit:

• Plugin and theme sellers: Software Licensing is an official extension, and the EDD team describes selling software as a main use.
• Ebook, template and audio sellers: the free plugin covers unlimited products and file delivery.
• Marketplaces for digital goods: Frontend Submissions and Commissions come in the same Professional pass.

The catch is the fee. EDD's Stripe integration adds 3% on Lite and Personal, so the free version is less free than it looks. My guide to Easy Digital Downloads pricing covers each pass.

When WooCommerce Is the Better Pick

WooCommerce is the safer choice when your catalog isn't purely digital. It has shipping zones, stock and physical order handling in the core plugin, and it still sells downloads through its downloadable product settings.

These stores are the best fit:

• Physical or mixed catalogs: a T-shirt and an ebook can sit in one cart.
• Stores that need unusual integrations: WooCommerce has far more installs, so more shipping, tax and marketplace tools are built for it.
• Owners who may hire help: more developers and agencies work with WooCommerce every day, which I think makes hiring easier.

The catch is that its extensions are billed one by one, usually per site. That adds up quickly, and my post on what WooCommerce extensions cost each year has the math.

What Each Job Costs Per Year

Both core plugins are free, so the real comparison is the yearly cost of the jobs your store needs. These are full renewal prices for 1 site.

A pass covers everything in its tier, so these EDD numbers don't add up the way the WooCommerce ones do. Take a plugin seller who needs subscriptions and license keys:

• Easy Digital Downloads: the Professional pass costs $599 a year and covers 2 sites.
• WooCommerce: Subscriptions and Kestrel API Manager cost $478 a year for 1 site.

WooCommerce is cheaper for one site, and the second site changes that. Each WooCommerce extension is usually licensed per site, and the EDD pass already covers 2.

How Stackless Changes the Math

Stackless replaces most of those yearly bills on either platform. Each edition costs $99 once or $39 a year for unlimited sites at launch prices, which rise to $399 and $69 when the deal ends.

• Stackless for EDD: 40 modules on the free plugin, including subscriptions and software licensing.
• Stackless for WooCommerce: 43 modules, including subscriptions, software licensing and multi-currency.
• Both: 5 built-in gateways with no Stackless fee, and every module keeps working if your license ends.

Each edition is its own product and license, so you buy the one that matches your store. Neither has abandoned cart emails, and neither imports live subscribers from another plugin, so a store that depends on those should weigh that first.

Can You Run Both?

Yes. EDD's documentation says the two have no technical conflict and can run on the same domain.

I wouldn't do it for one store, because you'd have 2 carts, 2 customer lists and 2 sets of reports. It is wise to pick one and keep the other for a separate site if you truly need both.

FAQs on Easy Digital Downloads vs WooCommerce

Is Easy Digital Downloads better than WooCommerce for digital products?

For a store that only sells digital products, I think so, because there are no shipping or stock settings to work around. WooCommerce sells digital products well too, so a store that may add physical products should still start there.

Can Easy Digital Downloads sell physical products?

Yes, in a limited way. Simple Shipping is included from the Professional pass at $599 a year, but it doesn't match WooCommerce's built-in shipping and stock tools.

Is WooCommerce cheaper than Easy Digital Downloads?

It depends on the job. WooCommerce has no extra fee on Stripe and cheaper single extensions, while an EDD pass bundles many extensions together. I'd add up the exact jobs you need for the number of sites you run.

Final Remarks

If you're still unsure, I'd look at your next 12 months of products. If they are all downloads, I'd start with Easy Digital Downloads and try the Stackless for EDD demo store. If even 1 of them ships in a box, I'd start with WooCommerce instead.