As an owner of a startup e-business you would definitely like to know about which shopping cart would work best for your site. There are two options. The first option is installing one that comes free with the merchant account and the second one is a third party shopping cart. If you are a new business, it is always advisable that you start off with the free shopping cart that comes with your merchant account. Free shopping carts do have limitations but it is a good way to start of your business.

Third party shopping carts are offered by companies such as Yahoo and Microsoft. These shopping carts are charged and if you have a huge product list to sell then it is suggested that you opt for one of these. Microsoft’s shopping cart is called as BCentral and you can build an online store of about 10000 products. If you have a long product list and a flourishing e-business, then a shopping cart like BCentral is what you should opt for. Microsoft charges a fee of $25 per month for accessing this service. Yahoo charges a fee of $40 per month for offering shopping cart services to e-businesses. Though the figures look small, it needs to be avoided if your requirements can be met with a free cart. Miva Merchant, OSCommerce and Aqoracart are the free shopping carts that are generally given by the merchant. It is suggested you analyze your requirements and then choose your shopping cart.