SparkLayer vs PortalSphere
A PortalSphere alternative for B2B wholesale growth.
PortalSphere is a capable starting point for Shopify wholesale. When your operation needs rep ordering, quoting, ERP integration, or a platform beyond Shopify, SparkLayer is the natural next step.
See SparkLayer running on your store. Like magic.
Or try one:
Join 3,500+ brands, distributors, and manufacturers of all sizes.
Easy to use, looks beautiful, and it’s reduced the opportunity for error.
SparkLayer allowed us to grow our business and offer everything we want.
SparkLayer gave us a proper wholesale experience on the store we already had — no rebuild required.
SparkLayer transformed our website into a true wholesale experience for our customers.
All comparisons
Why wholesale brands choose SparkLayer over PortalSphere
PortalSphere covers the fundamentals of Shopify wholesale well. But as your operation adds sales reps, negotiated pricing, ERP connections, or new sales channels, you need a platform built for that depth. Here is where SparkLayer goes further.
Built for complex wholesale.
PortalSphere is focused on wholesale for Shopify merchants. SparkLayer extends that foundation with advanced B2B capabilities from day one - every feature, from the buyer account area to pricing rules and rep ordering, is designed around how wholesale actually works. Trusted by 3,500+ wholesale brands since 2021.
Everything in one platform.
PortalSphere covers pricing, MOQs, and wholesale upsells, then stops. SparkLayer adds what structured B2B operations depend on: a Sales Agent Portal for rep-assisted ordering, a Quoting Engine for negotiated pricing, and an AI Intelligent Cart for automated PO processing - none of which PortalSphere offers.
Works on any platform.
PortalSphere works on Shopify only. SparkLayer works on Shopify, BigCommerce, Wix, and WooCommerce - and SparkLayer Ignite extends the same B2B experience to any custom platform. Switching from PortalSphere never means switching the store you already run.
A team that knows wholesale.
SparkLayer's team works exclusively with B2B wholesale brands, so every onboarding, support interaction, and product update is built around real wholesale use cases. PortalSphere launched in December 2024; SparkLayer has been building B2B tools since 2021. Read our story.
Choosing between PortalSphere and SparkLayer comes down to this: a solid Shopify wholesale app, or a complete B2B platform built to scale your business.
PortalSphere versus SparkLayer for wholesale brands.
Trusted by 3,500+ brands worldwide, SparkLayer is a top-rated Shopify app built specifically for B2B, delivering advanced wholesale functionality in one unified platform.
| FeaturesWhat to consider for your B2B store |  PortalSphere |
 SparkLayer |
|---|---|---|
| Sales Agent Portal | No dedicated Sales Agent Portal | Reps log into your storefront and place orders on behalf of any buyer account |
| Quoting Engine | Not available | End-to-end RFQ workflow from quote request to order conversion |
| AI Intelligent Cart | Not available | Reads emailed POs, spreadsheets, and PDFs and builds the cart automatically |
| ERP integration | No publicly documented native ERP integrations | Native connectors for Brightpearl, NetSuite, Cin7, Linnworks, Sage, and more |
| Wholesale upsells | Built-in AI-driven upsells for wholesale buyers | Not available natively |
| Platform support | Shopify only | Shopify, BigCommerce, Wix, WooCommerce, and any platform via SparkLayer Ignite |
| Order limits | No order caps | Starter 50/month, Growth 100/month, Pro 150/month, Enterprise custom |
| Shopify B2B Companies | Compatible | Compatible |
| Mixed-tax support | Not documented | Line-item tax support added August 2024 |
| Free plan | 14-day trial only | Free plan with no time limit |
| Pricing model | Revenue-based, scales with your monthly sales | Flat subscription from $49/month |
| Reviews | 4.7 stars, 17 reviews (launched Dec 2024) | 4.9 stars, 362 reviews (launched 2021) |
Scroll the table sideways for the detail on each row.
You keep the Shopify store you already run, and simply layer on the complete B2B experience your wholesale operation needs with SparkLayer.
SparkLayerSmall enough to start with. Deep enough that you won’t outgrow it. 3,500 brands, distributors and manufacturers run wholesale on SparkLayer.
Haircare
United States
Adding B2B automation to a world leading haircare brand
"Everyone at Living Proof has said that SparkLayer is easy to use and looks beautiful, and they love having all this information at their fingertips. It was very time-consuming having to manually do things before, and it’s reduced the opportunity for error as there is less manual input needed."
Read Customer Story
Food & Drink
United Kingdom
30% increase in B2B average order value since going live
"SparkLayer couldn’t have been easier to setup. It allowed us to get B2B ordering up and running in a matter of weeks with very little technical effort, and negligible cost. We were so impressed with SparkLayer that we immediately decided to launch B2B ordering in the US and are currently working on doing the same in Australia."
Read Customer Story
Entertainment
United Kingdom
How Asmodee UK modernised their B2B eCommerce strategy
"Implementing SparkLayer meant we were able to prove the value of taking B2B online quickly to our internal stakeholders. It also meant that we have rapidly been able to provide a differentiated and improved customer experience for our customers."
Read Customer Story
10x B2B growth
“Since we started using SparkLayer, we’ve transformed how we serve B2B customers. We’ve seen 10x growth since launch by simply removing friction.”Nature’s Path Read the story
Sports & Recreation
Australia
The summit of success with multi-country, multi-store B2B sales
"We've been using SparkLayer for years now. SparkLayer's customer service team responds quickly to requests. We're always pushing for new features, and the responsiveness and roadmap have been impressive"
Read Customer Story
Food & Drink
United States
Nature's Path 10x B2B growth and a 400% AOV surge
"Since we started using SparkLayer, we’ve transformed how we serve B2B customers. We’ve seen 10x growth since launch by simply removing friction. Businesses that already loved our products finally had a clear, customised and direct way to order in bulk."
Read Customer Story
Fashion
United Kingdom
From manual tasks to real-time control - a true success story
"It's absolutely super fast - you change something and it translates immediately to the website; I don’t have to wait for a sync or anything. And the support is top-notch, another level - somebody in the Support team replies super fast whenever I need urgent help."
Read Customer Story
Homeware
United Kingdom
Driving efficiency and building a scalable B2B future
"SparkLayer has provided a solid foundation for growing our B2B channel with the added benefits of a cost-effective solution and an evolving B2B platform that will scale with nkuku's B2B growth plan."
Read Customer Story
Food & Drink
United Kingdom
How SparkLayer fuelled Rave Coffee's B2B success
"We went with SparkLayer because we wanted something that worked - and worked fast. We didn't want to invest a ton of hours in development… That's why it was the best solution. I knew that SparkLayer would be set up quickly and had all the tools there already."
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Food & Drink
United States
900% B2B growth and 75% less admin for Nutrition Faktory
"SparkLayer allowed us to grow our business - to offer everything we wanted to but couldn’t before. The trifecta that primarily led us to try SparkLayer was working off cost instead of retail pricing, the ease of setting different price levels, and the simplicity of different payment terms."
Read Customer Story
Sales agent ordering
“Using the Sales Agent feature, I get better results from the team - and they have a nicer time using it… SparkLayer has made what we wanted possible.”Scott Taylor, Managing Director, Watersports World Read the story
Sports & Recreation
United States
50% reduction in manual tasks and elimination of customer complaints
"The onboarding team did everything for me, like putting in the B2B page and setting up the basics, so that I could just go in and add the price list. It was pretty simple and worked right out of the gate. We were live in 2 days, and there was no downtime."
Read Customer Story
Food & Drink
United Kingdom
24-hour setup plus 140% weekly time savings - Paleo Ridge’s B2B upgrade
"We went through many iterations of websites - we had to put in a lot of customisation to be able to offer our B2B customers what we wanted to offer. We need to be futureproofing ourselves, and there’s peace of mind in working with SparkLayer as we know they also prioritise this."
Read Customer Story
Beauty & Cosmetics
New Zealand
Bringing B2B self-service to a rapidly growing brand
"I genuinely can't believe how good this solution is, offering brands an easy way to service their B2B customers without having to build anything new."
Read Customer Story
Food & Drink
Germany
From cafés to clicks - a seamless shift to B2B online ordering
"A lot of our customers have their own personalised coffee - they have their own house blend. Each customer can see the specific order rules for their account, like free shipping, minimum order requirements - it's just all very straightforward. And in terms of saving time, it works really well for us!"
Read Customer Story
Personal Care
United Kingdom
Self-serve, scalable, and seamless B2B.
"What I was able to do is essentially set up SparkLayer to be my little ERP - I now process orders for bigger customers through SparkLayer as well. Thanks to SparkLayer, we get the time back to speak to our customers about the fun and important things. When it comes to order management and tracking, the systems can do that talking for us."
Read Customer Story
Home & Garden
United Kingdom
Horti House’s journey to scalable success.
"It’s been really important to give customers options based on what they need, and to allow customers to change between price lists dynamically. We needed a user-friendly website which customers can navigate as if they’re just doing their shopping, so SparkLayer has been invaluable here. We’ve been using the Sales Agent tool since day one."
Read Customer Story
Sports & Recreation
Australia
Ashtabula’s 40-hour weekly savings with SparkLayer
"The support desk has been really responsive, and that's really refreshing - a real credit to SparkLayer. We certainly feel like if we have a problem, we can ask a question and we can get an answer. We really appreciate the human touch that we've had with SparkLayer."
Read Customer Story
Industrial
United States
Building a scalable B2B channel for Schneider Electric
"The big step was giving our distributors across Latin America a system that actually worked the way they needed. Before, it felt like we were trying to fit B2B into something that wasn’t built for it. Now, with SparkLayer and Latech, we’ve got a platform that’s simple, scalable, and easy to manage."
Read Customer Story
Homeware
Holland
Reducing manual tasks by 50% and winning back customers
"There are a lot of people who we didn't originally plan to migrate as customers because they hadn't ordered since 2022 that suddenly came out of the woodwork when we said we had a new platform… I think it rejuvenated our B2B from the old very technical boring system to a more beautiful system."
Read Customer Story
Homeware
United Kingdom
Consolidating and automating DTC & B2B operations
"Being able to offer a Shopify website experience to our B2B customers is a real game changer for our business. The end users are provided with a much improved UX, our internal team can maintain the site with ease, and moving forward we look forward to benefiting from the ever evolving SparkLayer functionality!"
Read Customer Story
40+ hours a week back
“We're a small team, so to basically claw back a full-time person in time is quite significant for us”Bevan Read, Co-Founder, Ashtabula Read the story
Industrial
United Kingdom
Driving 139% revenue growth in just 12 months
"Some of our products have to be bought in pack sizes because it makes more sense for the warehouse, as they're not having to split up boxes. We also have a lot of variants of products, like our wires, which come in different sizes and in different packs as well. This saves the warehouse team precious time - and time is money!"
Read Customer Story
Technology
United States
4x faster processes and 75% less manual work
"In my quest to find a B2B platform, when SparkLayer said they had sales reps, when they said they had multiple price lists, we set up the call. When I was talking to the two founders of the company and was able to tell them where our pain points were, how we're looking to architect it, and what features we needed, they were very receptive."
Read Customer Story
Fashion
Denmark
From manual wholesale orders to 73% AOV growth
"I thought the B2B engine that Shopify had was way too expensive for our needs, and then I tested out SparkLayer and really liked it. It was very simple to set up - I think they have exceptional customer service. So very quickly, we got SparkLayer, and it's been part of what we've been doing from the beginning."
Read Customer Story
Fashion
United States
Saving hours per week - Twillory's tale of wholesale success
"SparkLayer definitely saves time because we have a lot of customers who are not used to ordering online - they like to send us their order and then we put it in. What we really like is that we're using our native themes with SparkLayer so that this looks like our normal website. It saves us hours a week on putting in orders because that really took us forever."
Read Customer Story
Food & Drink
Ireland
Brewing up B2B success with SparkLayer and Shopify
"From five star hotels to independent coffee shops, Bewleys serve over 600 million cups of tea and coffee worldwide every year. SparkLayer has enabled us to rapidly grow their B2B channel and empower our sales teams."
Read Customer Story
Pharmaceutical
Germany
Prioritising customer experience, self-sufficiency, and ROI
"I don't know of any app that has a similar function to SparkLayer's Sales Agent. We use the Sales Agent function in the team for customers who don't want to order via the online shop but by phone or email - it helps us with the centralised documentation of processes."
Read Customer Story
Sports & Recreation
United Kingdom
Accelerating performance and adapting with automation
"We don't have to waste time being developers rather than distributors. Using the Sales Agent feature, I get better results from the team - and they have a nicer time using it… SparkLayer has made what we wanted possible; it's rare to be working with a company that actually cares. "
Read Customer Story
Food & Drink
United Kingdom
From 0 to 40 customers in one day - Firepot’s 3-hour set-up
"What I see is the fact that we can grow with a system like this, where it's flexible and gets improved constantly. The most impressive bit was the speed of it - I got it up and running in 3 hours. I’ve probably installed 50 other platforms - and I think SparkLayer is a really good system. Best app I've ever used."
Read Customer Story
Sports
USA
Riding the wave of growth for B2B expansion
"We looked at a range of other platforms and tested other software suites but they just weren't really doing it for us; there was always something that came up short. Then we tested SparkLayer - it was really intuitive and simple and going in the right direction."
Read Customer Story
50% fewer manual tasks
“I think SparkLayer rejuvenated our B2B from the old very technical boring system to a more beautiful system”Sarah van Waardenburg, eCommerce Manager, SNURK Read the story
Homeware
United Kingdom
Cutting B2B ordering time in half for luxury bathroom business
"Adding SparkLayer is certainly a massive timesaver, without a doubt. They're always willing to listen to our feedback and put our ideas on their future roadmap. For me, that's partnership. True partnership"
Read Customer Story
Workwear
Australia
Delivering an automated B2B customer experience
"SparkLayer has allowed us to streamline our B2B business by simplifying our ordering process. Based on extensive research and testing, it by far exceeds all other options on the market. We couldn’t be happier to have partnered with the team at SparkLayer."
Read Customer Story
Homeware
USA
Scaling for B2B success and simplifying complexity
"SparkLayer has provided a well-thought-out and efficient solution for our complex business. SparkLayer's team has been great to work with - the customer service from set-up to post-launch has been great and they are always able to answer our questions."
Read Customer Story
Fashion
USA
Automating operations and reaching new B2B customers
"The SparkLayer platform provides a turnkey Shopify solution, granting the merchant an array of wholesale/bulk order functionality not available through the standard Shopify B2B channel. SparkLayer provided 10-star support throughout the entire process. HIGHLY recommend"
Read Customer Story
Packaging
Holland
Reducing B2B order processing times by over 50%
"TakeAware required a solution that could automate many manual processes, enabling us to concentrate on growing our business. As a result, we have experienced multiple time savings. The number of repeat orders has significantly increased, resulting in an enhanced overall brand experience. "
Read Customer Story
Sales agent ordering
“Sales Agent adoption has been pretty solid so far - our larger accounts especially are using it more as they can do it all really quickly on their own!”Dan McNamara, President, VEIA Read the story
Sports & Outdoors
USA
Tripling online B2B customers and automating operations
"With SparkLayer, we were able to implement and build our new B2B store, train our sales reps, and deploy our new solution within 6 months. Within just two months of deployment, we have tripled the number of B2B customers using it"
Read Customer Story
Footwear
Australia
Reducing ongoing B2B website maintenance costs by over 50%
"We recently switched from WooCommerce and WordPress to SparkLayer and Shopify for our B2B ecommerce needs, and the results have been nothing short of remarkable. SparkLayer has proven to be a game-changer for our B2B eCommerce needs."
Read Customer Story
Food & Drink
New Zealand
How sales agents functionalty helped speed up B2B sales
"Sales Agent Ordering has been an incredible feature in showcasing this system to our customers, while also prompting an order during a sales call visit. Customers have enjoyed the ease of use, navigation, and experience of using our new online wholesale store!"
Read Customer Story
Healthcare
United States
Pioneering a new approach to B2B healthcare ordering
"The ease of implementation and intuitive use of SparkLayer has been remarkable. We've seen tangible benefits in sales growth, order efficiency, and overall customer satisfaction. SparkLayer has not only met but exceeded our expectations, proving to be an invaluable partner."
Read Customer Story
Beauty & Cosmetics
Canada
Self-sufficient, scalable, and streamlined
"Everything checked the boxes that we needed! We’ve been using the Sales Agent feature since day one. It’s so much easier for our Sales Reps to place orders for their customers, and the shopping lists are great. We were just lucky that we came upon SparkLayer!"
Read Customer Story
Signage
New Zealand
From manual to magical: transforming the B2B process
"As a creative business, we wanted to design a minimal yet functional store to capture our B2B audience. SparkLayer's powerful integration allowed us to build exactly this and allowed us to create a store we are proud to display to our B2B customers."
Read Customer Story
Technology
France
Helping power Cosmo Connected's wholesale expansion
"The Sparklayer team has been very reactive to help us quickly build our new B2B system. Sparklayer is easy to install and it now saves us a lot of time so we can focus on growing our business."
Read Customer StoryReady to replace PortalSphere? Whether you are outgrowing PortalSphere's feature set or planning ahead for a more structured wholesale operation, SparkLayer gives you a complete B2B platform built specifically for wholesale growth.
Move beyond a Shopify-only wholesale app and give your B2B channel a platform built to scale with it.
- Rep ordering, quoting, and AI cart built in from day one
- Top-rated app with a 4.9-star rating
- Works on Shopify, BigCommerce, Wix, WooCommerce, and beyond
- Loved by 3,500+ wholesale brands worldwide
- Free plan available with no time limit
Questions & Answers.
What are the main limitations of PortalSphere?
PortalSphere does not include a Sales Agent Portal, Quoting Engine, AI Intelligent Cart, or ERP integrations. It is also Shopify-only, so brands on BigCommerce, Wix, or WooCommerce cannot use it. For brands with sales teams, negotiated pricing, or ERP-connected operations, these are significant gaps.
Is SparkLayer a better PortalSphere alternative for growing wholesale brands?
Yes. SparkLayer is the stronger choice for brands that need rep ordering, quoting, ERP integration, or multi-platform support. PortalSphere covers pricing, MOQs, and wholesale upsells well, but does not offer the depth SparkLayer provides for structured B2B operations.
Is SparkLayer more cost-effective than PortalSphere?
SparkLayer charges a flat monthly subscription from $49/month regardless of sales volume. PortalSphere charges a revenue-based fee that scales with your monthly sales. For fast-growing wholesale brands, a flat subscription provides more predictable costs as revenue grows. SparkLayer also has a free plan with no time limit, which PortalSphere does not offer.
Can I use SparkLayer without upgrading my ecommerce platform?
Yes. SparkLayer works on all Shopify plans including Basic, Grow, and Advanced with no Plus upgrade required. It also works on BigCommerce, Wix, and WooCommerce, so you are not locked into a single platform.
Does SparkLayer include a Sales Agent Portal?
Yes. SparkLayer's Sales Agent Portal lets reps log into your storefront as any buyer account, see live pricing, and place orders on their behalf in real time. PortalSphere has no equivalent feature.
Can SparkLayer replace PortalSphere for catalog and pricing management?
Yes. SparkLayer supports unlimited price lists with volume breaks, account-specific rates, and minimum order rules. B2B Catalogs can be assigned directly to customer accounts with full visibility controls. Both go beyond what PortalSphere offers on pricing and catalog management.
Does SparkLayer handle tax correctly for B2B orders?
Yes. SparkLayer added line-item tax support in August 2024. See the full tax and shipping documentation for how tax rules apply across B2B orders and mixed-catalog setups.
Does SparkLayer include built-in B2B quoting?
Yes. SparkLayer's Quoting Engine handles the full RFQ workflow from quote request to order conversion. PortalSphere has no quoting feature.
