Dokan Alternatives 2024: The Best Multivendor Marketplaces

Creating an online marketplace in 2024 has a lot of potential for growth. Vendors that want to sell online but don’t have the technical knowledge or means to set up an independent eCommerce store turn to online marketplaces to sell their products. Not to mention creators of marketplaces earn passive income for each sale with long term earning potential.

When you start researching multivendor marketplaces the first method for creating these platforms that pop up is Dokan. It is a go to platform for anyone who wants to build and manage an online marketplace. However, Dokan isn’t by any stretch the only multivendor platform creation tool you can use. There are quite a few alternatives to Dokan that offer similar features within roughly the same price range.

We have tested all the major competitors of Dokan and created this detailed comparison based on features, pros and cons, as well as prices of each alternative. Keep reading until the end to learn all about the major Dokan alternatives and how they compare.

What Is Dokan Multivendor Marketplace?

Dokan is one of the most popular multivendor marketplace solutions for WordPress platforms available today. It has everything you need to create and run your own online marketplace with no coding whatsoever. Dokan is offered by weDevs and has a wide range of plugins for automating various business operations. This plugin works in combination with WooCommerce and extends the eCommerce functionality by adding multivendor elements.

Dokan is designed to help you build a multivendor marketplace website within 30 seconds and the platform is ready to accept vendors as soon as you set it up. The best part about creating a multivendor marketplace using Dokan is that the creator has complete control over the marketplace.

However, vendors also get a dedicated frontend dashboard that makes it easy for them to manage their stores and products. So when you build an online marketplace using Dokan you don’t sacrifice convenience and control that is essential for the success of a marketplace.

The plugin covers every single aspect of building, managing, and scaling a multivendor marketplace making it a great option if you are planning on building an online platform. However, there are some other plugins that offer similar functionalities and serve as solid alternatives to Dokan. We will cover all the major Dokan alternatives in the next section.

Top Dokan Alternatives 2024

It is best to compare different options before choosing a plugin for creating your very first multivendor marketplace. After all, you will be using the plugin for creating and managing the marketplace for a long time. So without further ado here are the top Dokan alternatives for 2024:

1. WC Vendors Marketplace

WC Vendors Marketplace is another WooCommerce multivendor plugin that is available for WordPress. Similar to Dokan this plugin makes multivendor marketplace creation simple with no coding requirements. WC Vendors Marketplace plugin has support for selling both physical and digital products. In addition to products, you can also set up an auction or booking focused multivendor marketplace using WC Vendors.

WC Vendors Marketplace has a dedicated dashboard for admins and the ability to create unlimited vendor accounts. Admins control the access of vendors and their privileges on the marketplace and vendors get to customize their stores using a wide range of customization options. Here are some key features of WC Vendors Marketplace:

• Each vendor gets their own designated dashboard for managing their store and products.
• Admins can manage the stores and products on the marketplace.
• You can set up a wide range of marketplaces using WC Vendors Marketplace including physical product marketplaces, digital, subscriptions, variable, and auctions.
• Lets you earn commission using multiple different methods.
• Features an elaborate shipping system within the platform.

Pros

• Vendors can customize the frontend
• Simple dashboard support for admins and vendors
• Builtin SEO functionalities for vendors
• Supports multiple payment methods

Cons

• Vendor dashboard has basic options
• Marketplaces are known to be unstable

Starts at $99.50 per year for the basic plan.

2. YITH WooCommerce Multi-Vendor

YITH WooCommerce Multi Vendor is another WordPress plugin that shares many similarities with Dokan. The unique part about the YITH WooCommerce Multi Vendor plugin is that it allows admins to manage vendors’ accounts and their sales. This plugin is a great option for those who want to create a multi vendor marketplace where the admins have strict control over the stores’ owners.

While the setup process for this plugin is not as simple as Dokan if you have some marketplace managment knowledge you should be able to set your platform up fairly easily. But when it comes to marketplace management this plugin leans towards admins and gives them much more power compared to vendors. Here are the main features of YITH WooCommerce Multi Vendor:

• The super admin feature lets admins control the sales of each vendor.
• Vendors can issue refunds through the refund feature.
• Admins can switch to the vendor’s profile and add products as well as perform other actions.
• Advanced shipping options and analytics for vendors.
• Detailed reporting feature for admins.
• The vendor dashboard contains separate order managment systems in case a store has multiple vendors.

Pros

• Superior controls for admins
• Detailed commission system
• Seller verification

Cons

• Not enough control for vendors
• No way to make global announcements for all sellers at once

YITH WooCommerce Multi Vendor costs $99.99 for the base plan.

3. WooCommerce Product Vendors

WooCommerce Product Vendors is a strong competitor for Dokan because this multi vendor marketplace plugin was created by WooCommerce themselves. So naturally it is fully compatible with WooCommerce and functions flawlessly with WordPress.

You can set up a multivendor marketplace for physical products as well as digital downloads. It is also fully integrated with WooCommerce bookings making it ideal for booking based marketplaces as well. In short, this plugin lets you create a marketplace that earns commissions through a wide range of offerings.

WooCommerce Product Vendors give control to admins over who can make a store on their platform, set commission rates, and show ratings for each store. Some key features of WooCommerce Product Vendors include:

• Admins control who makes the store and what products they sell.
• Integrates with WooCommerce Bookings to give vendors a booking facility.
• Vendors control the shipping and product policies for their stores.
• Admins can set privileges for vendors.

Pros

• Gives marketplace admins complete control
• Supports automatic and manual withdraws for vendors
• Affiliated with WooCommerce

Cons

• Lacks frontend dashboards
• Limited features

WooCommerce Product Vendors costs $119 per year.

4. MultiVendorX

MultiVendorX is worth mentioning as a Dokan alternative because it comes with a free basic version for those who want to try their luck in the multivendor marketplace without spending too much money. MultiVendorX has premium versions as well that give admins a lot of control over the vendors and the marketplace in general.

Companies that use the MultiVendorX plugin report it as an ideal option for niche marketplaces, booking, rentals, subscriptions, and auction marketplaces. There are various templates and store layouts to choose from making this plugin ideal for those looking for advanced customization options. Store templates and advanced customizations are something that you can’t find in Dokan giving MultiVendorX an edge.

The vendor side of MultiVendorX is also filled with features and options for store owners including order management, checkouts, and customer management. Here are some salient features of MultiVendorX:

• Advanced store customizations and templates.
• Onboarding vendors is easy with simple vendor registration.
• Comes with both global and targeted commission systems.
• Dynamic shipping rates are calculated based on distance, weight, and product categories.

Pros

• Comprehensive product review management
• Supports multiple payment options

Cons

• Contains bugs

While the plugin is free to use it offers extensions that can cost up to $250.

5. WCFM Marketplace

WCFM Marketplace is another free multivendor marketplace plugin with features that rival Dokan. The great thing about WCFM is that it comes with a testing or demo option that lets you test the plugin as shop manager, vendor, admin delivery person, and vendor delivery. This makes it easier for you to decide whether WCFM Marketplace is the right solution for you or not.

This plan offers the full packages including plenty of store customizations and premium extensions that enhance the functionality of this plugin. Not to mention this plugin is highly admin focused and lets admins take control of the platform. At the same time, WCFM Marketplace has a dedicated Vendor App that makes customizations and store management easier for vendors.

It is the only multi vendor marketplace plugin out of all the options we have tested that strikes a perfect balance between features for admins and vendors. Here are the key features of this platform:

• Simple dashboards for both vendors and admins.
• A dedicated mobile app for vendors makes it easier for vendors to manage their stores on the go.
• A customizable commission system with various options for admins.
• Detailed order and store analytics for vendors.

Pros

• Dedicated mobile app
• Vendors get to customize their stores

Cons

• Unreliable customer support

The paid version of WCFM Marketplace costs $29.

Conclusion

Dokan multivendor marketplace gives you the power to create the next multivendor marketplace giant. But so do all the 5 Dokan alternatives we have mentioned in this article. Dokan is not the only way to create your marketplace with no coding knowledge.

All the alternatives we have covered were tested in detail and are currently available on WordPress for download. While all the plugins offer similar features each one has its unique strengths and weaknesses that you should consider when buying any of these plugins.