How to Start an Online Store in India
The practical sequence — platform, payments, logistics, tax and launch — for selling online in India.
How do I start an online store in India?
Decide what you will sell and how it will be delivered, choose a platform suited to your catalogue and technical capacity, set up a payment gateway and courier arrangements, configure GST correctly, prepare product content and photography, then launch with a small range and expand. Product content and logistics usually take longer than building the store.
The store itself is rarely the hard part. Photography, product data, delivery arrangements and returns are where most of the work and most of the delay sit.
Which platform should I use?
Shopify if you want to launch quickly without managing infrastructure, for a monthly fee. WooCommerce if you want full control and no platform commission and have technical capacity. Custom builds only where product or pricing rules genuinely do not fit either.
Marketplaces are worth considering as a first test — they provide existing demand and let you validate whether products sell before investing in your own store.
What do I need for payments?
A payment gateway account, which requires business documentation including GST registration in most cases, a bank account and business proofs. Offer UPI, cards and netbanking as a minimum. Consider cash on delivery, which still carries substantial order share in many categories.
Gateway approval can take days to weeks depending on documentation and category, so start it early rather than at launch.
How does GST work for an online store?
GST registration is generally required for selling through marketplaces and commonly needed for gateway approval. Products carry HSN codes and applicable rates, and invoices must include required details. Configure this in the platform and verify against a real invoice before launch.
Rules change and vary by product category and turnover. Confirm your specific obligations with a chartered accountant rather than relying on general guidance.
How should I handle shipping and returns?
Set up courier arrangements or an aggregator covering your delivery areas, decide shipping charges and free-shipping thresholds, and write a return policy you can actually honour. Shipping cost shown late in checkout is the single largest cause of cart abandonment.
Returns are an operational cost, not a marketing question. A generous policy increases conversion and increases returns; decide deliberately which trade you want.
What is the most common mistake?
Launching with a large catalogue of poorly photographed products with copied descriptions. A small range done properly — good photography, original descriptions, complete specifications — sells better and teaches you more about what customers actually want.
Product photography is usually the highest-return investment for a new store, and it is the one most often postponed.
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