A practical guide for Egyptian merchants — from mobile catalogs and local payments to shipping zones, VAT, and social commerce.
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Egypt's e-commerce market continues to grow, but success still depends on fitting local buying habits — not copying a Western checkout flow. Most customers discover products on Instagram or WhatsApp, pay with cards, Fawry, or cash on delivery, and expect Arabic-first pages that load fast on mid-range phones. This guide walks through the decisions that matter before you share your first store link.
Build a mobile-first product catalog
Your catalog is the foundation of every sale. Start with your best-selling or highest-margin products rather than uploading your entire warehouse on day one. Each product needs a clear title, price in EGP, and at least three photos on a neutral background.
Egyptian shoppers browse vertically on phones, so keep descriptions scannable: short bullet points for size, material, and delivery time work better than long paragraphs. Use Arabic as the primary language and add English where it helps export-minded customers or bilingual buyers in Cairo and Alexandria.
Mrfqy's product editor supports bilingual titles and descriptions, variant SKUs, and image galleries. You can also use the built-in AI copy assistant to draft descriptions faster — then edit them to match your brand voice before publishing.
Tip: Launch with 10–20 hero products, not 200. A focused catalog converts better and is easier to fulfill accurately.
Connect Paymob, Fawry, and cash on delivery
Payment choice directly affects conversion. Paymob covers Visa, Mastercard, Meeza, mobile wallets, and ValU installments — ideal for customers who want to pay online immediately. Fawry suits buyers who prefer paying at a nearby outlet with a reference code, which remains common outside major urban centers.
Cash on delivery (COD) is still essential for many Egyptian merchants. It builds trust for first-time buyers and for categories like fashion and home goods where customers want to inspect items. The trade-off is higher return rates and cash-handling overhead, so set COD fees or minimum order values if needed.
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In Mrfqy, you enable Paymob, Fawry, Kashier, and COD from the payments settings panel without custom code. Connect your merchant credentials, toggle methods on, and test a real 1 EGP transaction before announcing your store.
Enable at least cards plus COD on launch day. Add Fawry within the first week if you see checkout drop-off from customers outside Cairo.
Set up Bosta and Aramex shipping zones
Shipping surprises are the top reason Egyptian carts get abandoned. Define zones by governorate — Cairo and Giza often get flat rates, while Upper Egypt and remote areas need higher fees that reflect actual courier costs. Be explicit about estimated delivery days on the product page, not only at checkout.
Bosta is popular for fast domestic delivery and easy pickup integrations; Aramex works well for heavier parcels and some cross-border needs. Mrfqy lets you configure rate tables per zone and connect supported couriers from the shipping settings.
If you fulfill orders yourself, offer pickup or same-day delivery in your city as a separate zone. Many small brands win repeat customers by messaging delivery updates on WhatsApp after the order is marked shipped in the dashboard.
Show shipping cost before checkout. Hidden fees discovered at the payment step destroy trust built on Instagram.
Understand VAT and pricing transparency
Registered Egyptian businesses must account for VAT on applicable goods and services. Display whether your listed prices include VAT or exclude it — ambiguity causes disputes and accounting headaches after Ramadan sales spikes.
Keep invoices and order records aligned with what customers see at checkout. Mrfqy's order export includes line items, taxes, and payment method, which simplifies reconciliation with your accountant or ERP.
If you are still testing product-market fit as an individual seller, consult a tax advisor about registration thresholds before scaling paid ads. Compliance early is cheaper than retroactive corrections.
Launch through social commerce channels
Most Egyptian micro-brands do not launch with SEO — they launch with a Reel, a story link, or a WhatsApp broadcast. Your store URL should open directly to a product or collection, not a generic homepage, when shared from social apps.
Add Meta Pixel and other marketing pixels in Mrfqy so you can retarget visitors who viewed a product but did not pay. Pair that with abandoned-cart emails or messages if you collect phone numbers at checkout.
Pin your store link in Instagram bio, use UTM parameters on campaigns, and reply to DMs with direct product links instead of asking customers to search your catalog manually.
Mrfqy's free Starter plan has no time limit — enough to validate demand before upgrading to Pro at 999 EGP/month for advanced analytics and staff roles.
Putting it into practice on Mrfqy
Day one on Mrfqy Starter: register, choose a Bazaar or Minimal theme, and upload your first ten hero products with Arabic titles, EGP prices, and three photos each. Set governorate shipping zones with flat Cairo/Giza rates before you share any link — customers who see surprise fees at checkout will not return from Instagram.
Day two through five: connect Paymob for cards and wallets, enable COD for first-time buyers, and run two test orders (one card, one cash on delivery). Mark a test order shipped and message yourself on WhatsApp using the same copy you will send real customers. Add Fawry in week two if analytics show drop-off from customers outside Greater Cairo.
Week two onward: pin your store URL in Instagram bio with UTM tags, add Meta Pixel from marketing settings, and fulfill your first ten real orders manually to learn refusal patterns by governorate. Upgrade to Pro at 999 EGP/month when you need staff roles for a co-founder handling fulfillment or advanced analytics to compare Paymob vs COD conversion — not before you have order data to act on.
Launch checklist: 10+ products live, shipping zones set, Paymob + COD tested, store link in Instagram bio — all achievable on Starter before spending on Pro.
You can register on Mrfqy, pick a theme, add products, connect Paymob or Fawry, and share your store link in under an hour. Start with the free Starter plan, fulfill your first ten orders carefully, then scale payments and shipping zones as you learn what your customers actually prefer.
