Online Shop or AI Website With Sales? How to Decide

Online shop or AI website with sales? We hear this question a lot. Both routes can sell products online, but they are not the same thing. On one side is saldiaShop, our full e-commerce platform. On the other is saldiaBuild, our AI website builder, which can also sell via its Ecom module. This article positions both honestly so you can pick the right tool – without us talking one up and the other down.

The one question that decides everything

Before you compare prices and features, answer a single question: Is selling a side purpose of your website – or your core business?

Put concretely: do you sell a few things on the side from your website – a coaching package, three or four products, a service? Or do you need a searchable catalogue with many items, attributes and filters – and a back office to process orders on an ongoing basis?

If the answer is "on the side", saldiaBuild with the Ecom module is probably the faster, simpler route. If it's "this is my business", the path leads to saldiaShop. You can read the rest of this article as the reasoning behind that one answer.

saldiaBuild with the Ecom module: selling on the AI website

saldiaBuild is our AI website builder: you describe in natural language what you need, and the AI creates a complete, multi-page website in minutes – with structure, fully written copy and images. The site is built as a static page, which makes it fast and secure. Swiss hosting and SSL are included, and your data stays in Switzerland.

With the Ecom module (live) you can sell directly on this AI-generated website. This is ideal for a few products or services: you list a manageable selection and visitors can buy it. Payment processing runs through saldiaPay with TWINT, credit cards, PostFinance Pay and QR invoice in CHF.

One point we want to be honest about: saldiaBuild does not yet have an order back office for managing and processing orders – no order management with status, no shipping handling, no inventory or customer management. Such a back office is planned, but not yet available. The booking and CMS modules are announced ("coming soon"). saldiaBuild is new to the market and has been live since early June 2026. Support comes from Switzerland and is provided in German.

saldiaShop: the full e-commerce platform

saldiaShop is our professional e-commerce platform for the typical, serious online shop – with no coding skills required. Through a central interface you manage products, categories, logistics, marketing and SEO.

The strength of saldiaShop is depth. When your range grows, or when your business relies on customers finding the right item through product attributes, filters and categories, saldiaShop shows its advantages: many products, structured attributes, searchable catalogues. On top of that comes a full back office for editing and managing orders – order status, shipping, customer management, inventory. More than 50 apps in the marketplace cover shipping, accounting (bexio), marketplaces (Galaxus) and marketing. Swiss hosting is included, billed in CHF.

Here too, online payments run through saldiaPay – with the same Swiss payment methods as saldiaBuild. So this is not a difference between the two, but a shared trait.

The shared payment layer: saldiaPay

A common misconception: some think only one of the two products can accept Swiss payments. That is not the case. Both saldiaShop and saldiaBuild use saldiaPay to take money online – TWINT, credit cards, PostFinance Pay and QR invoice, all in CHF. saldiaPay is the shared Swiss payment layer for both. When deciding between the products you can set this criterion aside; the difference is not in taking payments, but in the depth of selling and in order management.

saldiaShop and saldiaBuild compared directly

The table below contrasts the differences. Prices are billed annually and may change; the current details on the product page are always authoritative.

Criterion	saldiaBuild (with Ecom module)	saldiaShop
Core idea	AI-generated website, selling as an add-on	Full e-commerce platform
Ideal for	A few products or services	Many products, a growing range
Catalogue, filters, attributes	Simple, no deep catalogue structure	Searchable catalogue with filters and categories
Order back office (status, shipping, inventory)	Not yet available (planned)	Full back office included
Marketplaces and ERP	Not included	Galaxus, bexio, 50+ apps
Payments	saldiaPay (TWINT, cards, PostFinance, QR)	saldiaPay (TWINT, cards, PostFinance, QR)
Swiss hosting	Included, data stays in CH	Included
Prices (billed annually)	Free CHF 0; from CHF 9/month (easyBasic)	from CHF 19/month (easyBasic); online payments +CHF 5

Which route suits you?

Both products are strong – just for different jobs.

• saldiaBuild with the Ecom module fits when the website takes centre stage and selling involves just a few items or a service. You want to start quickly and simply, without catalogue complexity, and you accept that ongoing order management via a back office is not yet possible. For a beautiful, quickly generated Swiss website with simple selling, this is an excellent route.
• saldiaShop fits when selling is your core business – many products, filters, categories, plus logistics, marketplaces, ERP and a back office to process orders every day. If you want to run a serious, scalable online shop, this is the right place.

And if your focus is more on the website itself and you don't want to sell (or barely do), it's worth a look at our kit saldiaSite, where you design yourself via drag and drop. But as soon as selling is involved, the decisive question returns: side purpose or core business?

Frequently Asked Questions (FAQ)

Online shop or AI website with sales – which is better for me?

It depends on the depth of selling. If you sell a few products or a service on the side, saldiaBuild with the Ecom module is often enough. If you need a searchable catalogue with many items and filters plus a back office for order management, saldiaShop is the right choice. The key question is: is selling a side purpose of your website or your core business?

Can I really sell online with saldiaBuild?

Yes. The Ecom module in saldiaBuild is live, and you can sell directly on your AI-generated website. Payments run through saldiaPay with TWINT, credit cards, PostFinance Pay and QR invoice in CHF. It is especially suited to a few products or services. However, ongoing order management via a back office is not yet available in saldiaBuild.

Does saldiaBuild have a back office for managing orders?

Not yet. An order back office with status, shipping handling and inventory and customer management is planned for saldiaBuild but not yet available. If you need to process orders seriously and continuously, saldiaShop is the right place today, as it includes a full back office.

Do both products need saldiaPay for payments?

Yes. Both saldiaShop and saldiaBuild use saldiaPay to accept online payments – with TWINT, credit cards, PostFinance Pay and QR invoice in CHF. The payment layer is therefore identical and not a distinguishing feature. The difference lies in the depth of selling and in order management.

What do saldiaShop and saldiaBuild cost?

saldiaBuild starts with a Free plan for CHF 0; paid plans begin at easyBasic from CHF 9 per month (billed annually). saldiaShop starts at easyBasic from CHF 19 per month (billed annually), with online payments costing +CHF 5. Both offer higher plans and an Enterprise plan on request. Prices may change.