In a recent Business Bloomer Club Slack thread, a member raised an important question: how well does WooCommerce work within a WordPress multisite setup?
The discussion that followed uncovered some strong opinions, practical advice, and real-world experience from developers who’ve used (and struggled with) multisite.
If you’re currently running WooCommerce inside a multisite, or considering it, this post explores the pros, cons, and technical hurdles you might encounter—especially when it comes to staging, debugging, and local development.
Multisite and WooCommerce: A Tricky Pairing
Running WooCommerce on a multisite network isn’t something most developers recommend. While WordPress Multisite is part of core and fully supported, the consensus is that it often creates more problems than it solves—especially when WooCommerce is involved.
One of the main pain points is how WooCommerce relies on individual site configurations. Multisite, on the other hand, works best when all sites on the network share a similar setup. If each site runs different plugins or customizations, debugging becomes a nightmare. Even small conflicts can quickly ripple across the entire network.
There’s also the issue of staging. Turning off plugins to troubleshoot a WooCommerce issue may help, but it can disrupt all other sites on the network. That’s why developers often recommend creating separate staging environments for each site, even within a multisite. But this adds more layers of complexity, especially if you’re new to the concept.
When It Works: Treating Multisite as a Platform
There is a way to make it work—by treating your multisite install as a platform. In other words, all sites should use the same plugin stack and follow the same rules. This makes it easier to isolate bugs, test changes, and deploy updates without affecting individual site behavior too much.
When multisite is used this way, it can actually be helpful. For instance, developers who work on hosting or plugin testing often use multisite to check compatibility across multiple sub-sites. It’s fast and efficient—so long as all sites are predictable.
The issue arises when each site behaves like a solo project with unique plugins, themes, or business logic. At that point, it’s often simpler to just run multiple single-site installs.
Working Locally: Hardware and Tooling Challenges
A key challenge that came up in the Slack thread was local development. Some developers find multisite too heavy to run smoothly on local setups, especially when relying on Docker-based tools like Local.
But there’s hope: alternatives like Laravel Valet and Laravel Herd were mentioned as faster, more lightweight solutions for working with multisite projects locally. These tools don’t rely on Docker and tend to cause fewer issues across teams. Herd in particular was praised for its simplicity—spinning up a new secure site locally in just a few terminal commands.
Interestingly, the hardware you use might not be the limiting factor. Even lower-spec M1 MacBooks can handle WordPress multisite if the development environment is properly configured. The key lies in the tooling, not the RAM.
The Emotional Side of Multisite
There’s also a psychological factor. Managing a multisite network that includes WooCommerce can feel intimidating, especially when you’re new to the stack. Context switching between the global network and individual sites can make basic tasks more stressful than they need to be.
That said, the developer community can be a great support system. Even just having someone to confirm your frustrations, or suggest a tool you’ve never tried before, can go a long way toward building confidence.
Conclusion
WooCommerce on multisite can work—but it’s rarely the best option. If you treat the network like a consistent platform with identical sites, it may offer some benefits. But if your setup includes lots of custom functionality or client-specific requests, multisite introduces more complexity than value.
Local development tools like Laravel Herd can make things smoother, and staging environments are essential for troubleshooting. But at the end of the day, WooCommerce is often happier on a single-site install. If you’re hitting roadblocks, you’re not alone—and sometimes, the best solution is to simplify.
