The best Magento al­tern­at­ives

Magento is an eCommerce software that lets users design an online store and integrate it into an existing website. Magento is available as a paid en­ter­prise solution and also as a free open source platform in the Community Edition. Magento is one of the most widely used online store systems and benefits from a large number of ex­ten­sions and plugins that users can add to expand their stores with special features.

One dis­ad­vant­age is the cost of the en­ter­prise platform, which, depending on the scope of the online store, can add up to six figures according to some reports. Sellers who want to set up an online store should check out the com­pet­it­ors and explore which solution works best for them. This way, they may find a suitable al­tern­at­ive to Magento. Check out the top online store al­tern­at­ives in this overview.

Below is a brief overview of the most important features of the online store providers presented in the article. (Updated: November 2021)

In general, there are two types of online store or eCommerce solutions among Magento al­tern­at­ives:

• Paid providers who divide their offering into packages. For beginners, many providers have a low-cost basic option that combines vital features and functions to get up and running. More extensive solutions feature options for including an unlimited number of products or in­tro­du­cing discount and loyalty systems.
• Free open source systems are easy enough to manage when designing a basic store. Ad­di­tion­al functions usually incur added charges, for example, when pur­chas­ing and in­teg­rat­ing different ex­ten­sions or plugins or special designs that allow users to design their store in­di­vidu­ally.

With the IONOS Website or Online Store Builder users can choose from different online store packages for a quick and simple start to manage their web store in­teg­ra­tions or add a com­pre­hens­ive eCommerce solution to sell an unlimited number of items. As a special feature, IONOS adds access to dominant mar­ket­places such as Facebook or Amazon Shopping. Numerous design templates and simple con­fig­ur­a­tion of in­di­vidu­al elements via drag-and-drop make designing a pro­fes­sion­al online store as easy as 1-2-3.

Ad­di­tion­ally, the com­bin­a­tion of the Website Builder with the Online Store Builder comes with a per­son­al­ised domain and free email address alongside other functions such as an in­teg­rated shipping assistant for a selection of the most important delivery services.

Costs are low at max £50 to £75 per month. The starter version is available for as little as £1 per month and is suitable for both beginners and pro­fes­sion­als.

Suitable for: Beginners, advanced, and pro­fes­sion­als

Shopify is another Magento al­tern­at­ive that provides different packages with an in­creas­ing range of functions as costs rise. The starter package is available at just $29 (approx. £22) per month while Shopify’s powerful eCommerce solution sets you back $299 (approx. £250) per month. As with other online store solutions, sales via mar­ket­places and social networks are an integral part of Shopify’s offering.

The advantage of Shopify is that there are no re­stric­tions on the number of products. Even the lowest-priced package lets users add all their products while com­pet­it­ors tend to charge more when adding more products. The option is suitable for both beginners and pro­fes­sion­als, although available options can seem a bit over­whelm­ing for beginners.

Suitable for: Beginners, advanced, and pro­fes­sion­als

Big­Com­merce too provides access to an eCommerce solution and users can choose one of three packages. Basic functions are included in the starter package, while more extensive packages allow for online stores with added features for customers such as storable shopping trolleys or in­teg­rated Google ratings.

Much like Shopify, Big­Com­merce users can sell an infinite number of different products in their online store starting at $29.95 (approx. £22) per month. However, pricing at Big­Com­merce is also linked to sales within a certain period of time. Depending on sales, companies may slide into higher-priced packages. Ac­cord­ingly, the provider is aimed at large store operators.

Suitable for: Advanced and pro­fes­sion­als

Unlike other al­tern­at­ives to Magento, Strik­ingly is actually a website tool used to design simple one-pagers via the editor. The provider em­phas­ises the sim­pli­city of the ap­plic­a­tion, that even in­ex­per­i­enced users can use it to create a func­tion­al website in no time. The basic version of the editor is free.

After creating a website with Strik­ingly, users can add a store for just $8 (approx. £6) per month, making it a re­l­at­ively in­ex­pens­ive option. However, the scope of the store is limited. Web operators can only offer five products at a time in the ‘limited’ version. Strik­ingly is par­tic­u­larly suitable for beginners without an existing website.

Suitable for: Beginners

PrestaShop is a European open source eCommerce platform, available free of charge. As with many open source solutions, PrestaShop has its own community, which means that users rely on the community for support issues related to its use and in­teg­ra­tion.

Store operators can choose from a catalogue of different templates for the design of their store when using the Magento al­tern­at­ive. Premium layouts incur one-off fees. Being an open source product, PrestaShop can be cus­tom­ised with various add-ons, some of which incur one-off charges. This can make it difficult for newcomers to estimate final costs in advance. Users will need to configure their desired functions them­selves using the add-ons provided. Therefore, PrestaShop is less suitable for newbies.

Suitable for: Advanced and pro­fes­sion­als

Woo­Com­merce is another open source Magento al­tern­at­ive that is based on the WordPress content man­age­ment system. Its advantage is also one of its dis­ad­vant­ages: WordPress users can integrate Woo­Com­merce into their existing website in­fra­struc­ture and manage it via WordPress. Since Woo­Com­merce is a WordPress plugin, the in­teg­ra­tion relies on the CMS. Woo­Com­merce is not suitable for websites created with other CMSs.

Being open source, Woo­Com­merce is available free of charge. Similar to PrestaShop, costs are incurred when users want to use ad­di­tion­al features in the form of Woo­Com­merce plugins or wish to add design templates. Costs are hard to estimate until you get started. By the way: WordPress also offers a com­pre­hens­ive eCommerce system in a service package as part of its website hosting. The package features search engine op­tim­isa­tion, among other tools, and costs around $50 (approx. £40) per month. Woo­Com­merce is an intuitive option for existing WordPress users.

Suitable for: Beginners with ex­per­i­ence of WordPress, advanced and pro­fes­sion­als

Volusion’s range of functions and pricing is similar to that of Shopify’s and Big­Com­merce’s. Store operators can get started with the basic model at $29 (approx. £22) per month and receive useful functions in return, such as in­teg­ra­tion of various payment functions like Google or Stripe. There are no trans­ac­tion costs. Up to 100 products can be added in the online store at any one time.

As the scope of the service package increases, so does its pricing. Maximum costs can be as high as $299 (approx. £250) per month. In return, users can add an unlimited number of products, can integrate Amazon and eBay, and offer their customers a loyalty plan. The al­tern­at­ive to Magento is suitable for users who already know what they want from their store. Features are briefly described but seem muddled to those starting out.

Suitable for: Beginners, advanced, and pro­fes­sion­als

OpenCart is an open source eCommerce platform that claims to offer users a quick and stream­lined way to get their online store rolling.

Being an open source solution, OpenCart is a free Magento al­tern­at­ive. Ad­di­tion­al features can incur fees, for example when adding payment options or special design templates. Even though OpenCart ad­vert­ises a quick start, basic knowledge of website creation is a must in order to operate the ap­plic­a­tion more pro­fes­sion­ally.

Suitable for: Advanced and pro­fes­sion­als