By User Media on
Online store in Colombia: required consumer link before selling
Set up catalog, payments, delivery, and terms for an online store that gives customers the details they need before buying.
An online store should not open with terms and a payment button alone. An online store in Colombia must let people buy with clear information and, under Law 2439 of 2024, include a visible link to the website of the Superintendence of Industry and Commerce (SIC), Colombia’s consumer-protection agency. The SIC clarified this requirement on August 27, 2025.
What should I define before building an online store in Colombia?
Launching starts with deciding what a person buys and how they receive it. Before choosing a platform, the catalog needs items, variations, total price, availability, and delivery time. It also helps to define who prepares each order, which areas you serve, and what information reaches customers after payment.
A complete product page keeps payment from becoming the first explanation. A clothing store with 40 products can list size, color, total price, availability, and delivery time for each item, so customers understand the order before checkout. Photos need to show the product rather than promises: product photography for an online store helps organize that decision.
The domain and structure should support the operation already in place. When a business needs custom pages, integrations, or a specific flow, the scope changes from a standard installation. digital consulting to set priorities can separate what is essential for launch from improvements that can come later.
Which platform fits a first store: Shopify or WooCommerce?
The right platform depends on how much technical control and operation your store needs. Shopify packages the platform in a subscription; WooCommerce runs on WordPress and needs the site, hosting, and updates to be ready. The choice depends on the catalog, integrations, and who will maintain the operation.
Shopify lists three plans and different fees when external payments are used. For Colombia, Basic, Grow, and Advanced cost US$19, US$49, and US$299 per month billed yearly (US$25, US$65, and US$399 billed monthly); with an external payment provider, it lists fees of 2%, 1%, and 0.6%. Shopify lists these current Colombia prices and fees.
| Shopify plan | Monthly, billed yearly | External payment |
|---|---|---|
| Basic | US$19 | 2% |
| Grow | US$49 | 1% |
| Advanced | US$299 | 0.6% |
WooCommerce needs a compatible technical foundation before the store is installed. For version 10.8 or later, WooCommerce recommends WordPress 6.9 or later, PHP 8.3 or later, MySQL 8.0 or MariaDB 10.6, HTTPS, and at least 256 MB of WordPress memory. WooCommerce documents these requirements. In that case, WordPress for a manageable store should also account for maintenance.
How can I take online payments from a Colombian store?
Payment depends on the available gateway and the experience your customer receives. Colombia is not on Shopify Payments’ list of supported countries, so the platform itself says to use an external payment provider. Shopify explains this alternative for countries outside its list. That provider, its fees, and its connection process belong in the decision.
The gateway needs to confirm payment and create an order you can fulfill. For an accessories business, the useful path is payment, confirmation email, order creation, and shipping calculation. That path turns payment into an operation your team can follow from purchase through dispatch.
What information and terms should I show before selling?
People need to know who sells, what they buy, what they pay, and when it arrives. In Colombia, the Consumer Statute requires identity and contact details, essential characteristics, price in Colombian pesos including taxes, delivery, payments, availability, and offer terms. Article 50 of Law 1480 of 2011 details this minimum information.
Visible terms belong beside the catalog, not only after payment. In a home-goods store, consumer-rights access, delivery, and withdrawal terms can sit alongside the catalog and product pages. The SIC link must be visible and easily identifiable, as the agency clarified in 2025.
Product photos and details also help Google understand the offer. Google says that pairing Product structured data—information readable by search engines—with a Merchant Center feed maximizes eligibility for shopping experiences; it can show price, availability, shipping, and returns. Google Search Central explains this pairing.
When do I need to issue electronic invoices?
Your tax situation, rather than having a store, determines whether you must invoice. DIAN states that parties responsible for invoicing must do it electronically; selling goods or providing services requires an invoice except for express legal exceptions. DIAN explains who must issue electronic invoices.
The timetable starts from specific events and deserves review before launch. When forming a company, becoming responsible for VAT or consumption tax, among other permanent-calendar events, DIAN says electronic invoicing must be enabled and started within the following two months. DIAN publishes when that period starts. Exceptions and your own case need confirmation with DIAN or a tax professional.
How do I organize shipping and test a purchase before opening?
Opening comes when a test order travels the full path without surprises. Shipping should be calculated for the areas you serve and communicate its cost and delivery date before purchase. Then, a test order confirms that payment, order, emails, and operations work as your team expects.
Payment tests protect the live site and reveal operational failures. WooCommerce recommends testing orders with the gateway’s test mode or sandbox only in a staging environment, a private site copy, to avoid complications from test payments on a live site. WooCommerce describes this testing practice.
- Confirm that every product page shows total price, availability, delivery, and terms.
- Check identity, contact information, and the visible SIC consumer-rights link.
- Review whether your case must issue electronic invoices before enabling sales.
- Connect the gateway and test the path in test mode and staging.
- Complete an order: payment, email, order, shipping, and follow-up support.
- Publish only when your team can fulfill the flow you tested.
The final review combines what the customer sees with what the business must do. For Google shopping experiences, its primary images are recommended at 1500 × 1500 pixels or more, without promotional text, watermarks, or overlays, and it suggests at least five additional images. Google Merchant Center publishes these image guidelines.
Frequently asked questions about online stores in Colombia
Can I create a free online store in Colombia?
A free version can test an idea, but it does not define the full cost. Even when a tool offers an entry plan, the operation may need a domain, hosting, a gateway, a theme, extensions, logistics, and applicable taxes. The actual cost depends on the store’s choices and its current providers.
How much does it cost to create an online store in Colombia?
Cost brings together technology, catalog work, payments, and the operation behind the button. Shopify lists monthly fees from US$19 for its Basic plan billed yearly (US$25 billed monthly), but that figure does not automatically include the other components. The amount changes with platform, design, integrations, payment fees, domain, hosting, and logistics.
How long does an online store take to launch?
Timing depends on the catalog, payments, shipping, integrations, and their reviews. A store with few product pages and defined operations has a different scope from one with many products, variations, and connected processes. A reasonable date comes from counting unfinished pages, validations, and the complete test order.
What if someone wants to return an online purchase?
For distance purchases, the right of withdrawal may be exercised within five business days. SIC states that the provider must return the money within 30 calendar days, with applicable legal exceptions. SIC explains withdrawal and its exceptions. Published terms should match the product and the specific case.
Do you need a store ready to receive orders?
User Media can help define, design, and test a store that connects catalog, payments, terms, and operations. Let’s talk about your online store.
