Free online store · India

Create a free online store in India, and know what free actually means.

You can create a SmolBusiness store, list your products and start taking orders without entering a credit card. That is genuinely free, and it stays free while you are small. What matters more than the word is where the cost sits when you grow: there is no commission on any sale, so the platform never takes a percentage of what your customers pay you. Instead you start with a one-time grant of 50 credits (and 50 more for sharing your store link on Instagram), and a paid order spends a few of them based on its value. When they run out you top up with a credit pack or move to a paid plan. Either way the cost is tied to order count and size rather than to your revenue, and nothing is ever deducted from a sale.

Try out for free

No credit card needed · UPI ready · Cancel anytime

₹0

To create your store and go live

0%

Commission on every sale, on every plan

50

One-time credits when you sign up

No card

Nothing to enter before you start

Free here versus free elsewhere

Free is a word that does a lot of different jobs. These are the questions worth asking whichever tool you pick.

SmolBusinessA typical free tier
Cut taken from a sale0%, including on the free planOften where the free tier makes its money
Card needed to startNo. Phone number and an OTPCommonly required for a trial
Who holds your customers' moneyNobody. They pay your UPI directlyThe platform, until it settles to you
What happens when free runs outTop up credits or move to a paid planVaries. Sometimes the store is switched off
Product limitNone on listingsFrequently capped on a free tier
Branding on your storefrontYour name, theme and accent colourOften a platform badge on free plans

How the free plan actually works

Most free tiers are free until the first sale. This one is not, so it is worth being precise. You get 50 credits once, when you sign up, and 50 more for putting your store link in your Instagram bio and a story. They do not refill each month. A paid order spends credits on a band set by the order value, and small orders cost nothing at all.

CostCredits chargedOrders 50 signup credits cover
Order up to ₹1490 creditsUnlimited, these are free
Order ₹150 to ₹4995 credits10 such orders
Order ₹500 to ₹99910 credits5 such orders
Order ₹1,000 to ₹2,49915 credits3 such orders
Order above ₹2,49920 credits2 such orders

The bands and the 50-credit signup grant are the live values from the platform's pricing configuration. The right-hand column is simply 50 divided by each band, rounded down, assuming every order falls in that band. Real orders mix bands, so you land somewhere between these figures. Credits are only charged when an order is actually paid, and orders up to ₹149 never cost anything.

What free includes, and what it does not

Included at no cost

  • ✓Your own themed storefront on a shareable link, with browse, cart and checkout.
  • ✓Unlimited product listings with photos, prices, variants and stock counts.
  • ✓UPI checkout paying a QR built from your own UPI ID, with zero commission on any sale.
  • ✓Order management, payment verification, and order tracking your buyers use themselves.
  • ✓Coupons, verified-purchase reviews, and the seller analytics dashboard.
  • ✓Both the mobile app and the web dashboard, over the same store.

Not included, on any plan

  • ✓Cash on delivery. There is no COD anywhere in the platform.
  • ✓Storefront search and filters, which are not built yet.
  • ✓Barcode scanning and in-app support chat.
  • ✓A large third-party app ecosystem or marketplace integrations.
  • ✓Order updates by SMS. Buyer updates go out over WhatsApp and email.
🆓

Free to create and go live

No credit card at signup and nothing to cancel. Sign up with a phone number and your storefront exists from that moment.

🏦

The money is yours immediately

Customers pay a QR built from your own UPI ID, so payment goes bank to bank. There is no settlement wait and nothing held on your behalf.

💸

Zero commission, including on free

No cut on any order at any plan level. The free tier is not funded by taking a slice of your sales.

🔗

A storefront, not an order form

Product pages, cart, checkout and order tracking on a link you put in your bio. Point your own domain at it later if you want one.

🔒

Checkout is phone-verified

Buyers confirm their number by OTP before an order is created, so fake orders cannot sit on your stock.

📊

See what is selling

A seller analytics dashboard covering sales, orders and products, so you can tell which listings are worth restocking.

Creating your free store

  1. 1

    Sign up with your phone number

    Phone plus an OTP. No password to invent, no credit card, nothing to cancel later if you decide against it.

  2. 2

    Name your store and add your UPI ID

    Your store gets its own link straight away. The UPI ID you paste becomes the payment QR customers scan at checkout, so the money goes where it already goes today.

  3. 3

    Add your products

    Photos, prices, variants and stock counts, with AI drafting descriptions and captions so listing does not eat your whole evening.

  4. 4

    Pick a theme and check it on a phone

    Three themes are available and you set your own accent colour. Open the finished store on your own phone, because that is what nearly every buyer will use.

  5. 5

    Share the link

    Into your Instagram bio. Customers browse, check out, pay your UPI and upload the screenshot. You verify the payment, ship, and they track the order themselves.

Questions, answered

Can I really create an online store for free in India?
Yes. You can create your store, list products and go live without entering a credit card, and there is no commission on any sale. You get 50 credits once at signup, and a paid order spends credits on a band based on its value, so small orders cost nothing and larger ones spend more of the grant.
What does the free plan include?
Your own themed storefront on a shareable link, unlimited product listings, UPI checkout, order management and payment verification, coupons, verified-purchase reviews, seller analytics, and both the mobile app and web dashboard. There is zero commission on your sales at every plan level.
How many orders can I take on the free plan?
It depends on order value, because credits are charged on a band. Orders up to ₹149 cost 0 credits and never touch the balance. The 50 signup credits cover about 10 orders in the ₹150 to ₹499 band, or about 2 orders above ₹2,499. Real order values mix bands, so you land in between. After that you top up with a credit pack or move to a paid plan.
What happens when I run out of credits?
You can top up with a one-time credit pack or move to a paid plan. Credits from a top-up pack never expire. The 50 free signup credits are a one-time grant and do not refill; only paid plans grant credits each monthly cycle. Nothing is deducted from your sales either way.
Is there a commission on my sales?
No, on any plan. Customers pay a QR built from your own UPI ID, so their money goes straight to your bank and the platform never sits in the middle to take a share of it.
Do I need a GST number or a business bank account?
Not to get started. If your UPI ID receives payments today, it works at checkout. You can start with a personal UPI ID and change it later in your store settings.
How fast can I go live?
Minutes for the store itself. Signing up, adding your UPI ID and putting up your first products is quick. Photographing and listing a full catalogue is what actually takes an evening, on any platform.
Is there any catch with the free plan?
The honest limits are these: there is no cash on delivery anywhere in the platform, storefront search and filters are not built yet, and buyer updates go out over WhatsApp and email rather than SMS. What free does not do is take a percentage of your sales.

Create your free store now.

No credit card, live in minutes, zero commission on your sales.

Try out for free
Related:Online store builder IndiaEcommerce store builder IndiaUPI store IndiaWhatsApp checkout store

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SmolBusiness is a no-code ecommerce website builder for Instagram sellers and small businesses in India. Create an online store in minutes, sell online on your own store link, and take UPI payments directly with zero commission. No website, developer, or hosting needed.

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