Shopify vs Magento: Which Ecommerce Platform is the Best in 2024?

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Looking for the best ecommerce platform for your online business? With the half dozen or so go-to options, Adobe Commerce (Magneto) and Shopify are among the top options for online entrepreneurs.

Shopify and Adobe Commerce (Magneto) each offer unique features and capabilities. The two solutions support thousands, and in the case of Shopify, millions of online brands across the globe, facilitating the growth of ecommerce worldwide. Both platforms allow online retailers to build and customize ecommerce storefronts, as well as allow you to run and grow your business. However, one may be more suitable than the other based on your needs.

In this article by Ecommerce Pro, we conduct an easy-to-understand comparison of Shopify vs. Adobe Commerce (Magneto) so you can decide which platform is best for your online store. For established ecommerce businesses, you can also use this guide to help you decide on an ecommerce migration from one platform to another.

Let’s get started with an overview of both Shopify and Adobe Commerce (Magneto).

Ready to migrate from Adobe Commerce (Magneto) to Shopify or Shopify Plus? Get the seamless support your brand needs to make a smooth transition—Get in touch with Ecommerce Pro-Shopify Migration Agency today.

What is Shopify?

Shopify is a fully hosted ecommerce platform known for its ease of use and quick setup. The platform was founded in 2006. Today, Shopify powers over 4.8 million online businesses around the world, and it is also the most widely used ecommerce platform in the United States.

Shopify is designed to cater to businesses of all sizes and stages, running on a subscription-based model that caters to all budgets and operations. Shopify is known for its scalability, able to keep up with your growth as you go from startup to enterprise, and anything in between.

What is Adobe Commerce (Magneto)?

Adobe Commerce (Magneto) was founded in 2008 and acquired by Adobe in 2018, rebranding it under the Adobe name. Adobe Commerce (Magneto) powers over 200 thousand online stores today.

The platform is a powerful, open source ecommerce solution that allows brands the freedom and leeway for extensive customization, providing access to the underlying code for design and development. Adobe Commerce (Magneto) appears to be focused on the needs of enterprise-level businesses with complex requirements and access to technical expertise. Made with enterprises in mind, Adobe Commerce (Magneto) is the more expensive option due to licensing fees, hosting costs, and additional development work.

Shopify vs Adobe Commerce (Magneto)

1. Ease of Use

Shopify: 
Shopify is an ecommerce platform that has always been well-known for its easy-to-use interface. Shopify was designed specifically to be easy to navigate and work with, even if you have no technical expertise. The technical bar users have to hurdle is low, making it easy for anyone to use their drag-and-drop builder, and follow through on step-by-step set-up instructions. This makes Shopify accessible to anyone, regardless of technical expertise. Shopify is a great choice for businesses that are looking to get up and running quickly.

Adobe Commerce (Magneto): 
In contrast, Adobe Commerce (Magneto) requires a higher level of technical knowledge to set up and even manage. But this is due to its extensive customization option. While you’ll get a fully customized shop with Adobe Commerce (Magneto), it may very well necessitate the involvement of a developer or a developer team to fully harness the powerful capabilities of the platform. This makes Adobe Commerce (Magneto) more suited to enterprises with access to more technical resources, and less so to the casual ecommerce entrepreneur.

2. Customization and Flexibility

Shopify: 
While Shopify provides extensive customization and freedom in design regarding the look and function of your store, it’s somewhat limited compared to the full-customization you can get off the bat with an Adobe Commerce store. With Shopify, you need to pick out a website theme (design template for your store) that you customize. For further customization, you need to rely on one of Shopify’s many apps available for download through the Shopify App Store. With apps, you can add new features and integrations for your store.

Adobe Commerce (Magneto): 
Adobe Commerce (Magneto), on the other hand, excels in customization and full-on flexibility. The platform is open source, giving you access to modify the underlying code as you please. This is great for large enterprises that have complex needs and businesses that require a highly tailored online brand experience.

3. Cost

Shopify: 
Cost is an important consideration, and the multitude of Shopify users are often drawn in by the affordable subscription-based model Shopify has to offer. Shopify subscription-based plans range from the lowest $29 to $299 per month, plus transaction fees when you use other payment methods that are not Shopify Payment. These subscription fees are quite affordable to small to medium-sized businesses, offering merchants a clear and predictable monthly expense that won’t break the bank. As small businesses grow, they have the option to jump to a higher pricing tier, depending on the ecommerce functionalities they need.

Adobe Commerce (Magneto): 
Adobe Commerce (Magneto) is generally more expensive than Shopify as it is not fully hosted and you may incur some development costs. The price of an Adobe Commerce-powered online store can include licensing fees, hosting costs, and potentially significant development and design costs.  Web hosting alone can cost you up to $14.99 to $39.99 per month, with sources reporting that a basic online store can be developed for under $5,000, and large Adobe Commerce (Magneto) Cloud stores costing at least $200,000.This should be fine for enterprise-level businesses that have the resources and are in need of extensive customization options.

4. Scalability

Shopify: 
The Shopify platform is highly scalable, with plenty of room for growth as it is designed to be suitable for businesses of all sizes, from small startups to enterprise-level businesses. As your business grows, you can upgrade your plan to access more features and support when your business is ready. For enterprise-level ecommerce businesses, you can look into Shopify Plus, a powerful enterprise-level ecommerce solution powering some of the world’s top brands. Many of today’s enterprise-level businesses have also been making the switch, opting to migrate to Shopify Plus for its powerful enterprise capabilities.

Adobe Commerce (Magneto): 
Adobe Commerce (Magneto) also offers excellent scalability, but it is particularly well-suited for businesses that are already considered large enterprises with complex needs. Adobe Commerce (Magneto) is a powerhouse for handling large traffic and transactions, making it ideal for businesses expecting to handle lots of customers and substantial growth.

5. SEO and Marketing Tools

Shopify: 
Shopify provides pretty robust SEO and marketing tools out-of-the-box, including SEO-friendly features, like fast-loading websites, as well as access to changing meta-details of every page. For marketing integrations, you can download marketing apps from the Shopify App Store, where you can include email marketing integration and social media management tools—basically, anything you need to enhance the SEO and marketing capabilities of your brand and its website.

Adobe Commerce (Magneto):
The powerful Adobe Commerce (Magneto) platform also offers more advanced SEO and marketing tools, particularly through its integration with other Adobe products like Adobe Analytics and Adobe Experience Manager. Its robust nature allows brands to access powerful technical SEO capabilities, as well as deep insight tools and marketing automation for businesses that need a sophisticated marketing strategy.

6. Support and Community

Shopify:
Shopify has a robust overall support and community, offering merchants 24/7 support through phone, chat, and email. Shopify has great support running around the clock, every day of the week, to help you with any issues. Updates to apps, themes, and security are also rolled out automatically, taking away some of the more technical concerns on running your site. Because of Shopify’s millions-strong merchant base, there are extensive resources and documentation that cover all aspects of Shopify, from setting up your store to managing your products and orders. There are also plenty of online forums and helpful Shopify resources like the Ecommerce Pro Blog to help you along your Shopify journey.

Adobe Commerce (Magneto): 
Adobe Commerce (Magneto) provides support primarily through its partners and developer community. The platform has a strong community of developers and users who contribute to forums and resources. However, official support is generally more limited. There is the Adobe Commerce Help Center where you can get access to to support tools and self-service troubleshooting. From here, you can also gain access to one of their certified solution partners.

Conclusion

When it comes to the choice between Shopify and Adobe Commerce (Magneto), it all comes down to  your business's size, budget, and technical capabilities.

Shopify is a great choice overall for businesses of all sizes, from small startups to medium-sized businesses. Enterprise-level online businesses also have the option of Shopify Plus to power their operations, a proven choice of many big-name brands.

On the other hand, Adobe Commerce (Magneto) is less suited to small to medium businesses that are working with a small budget or are in need of something more user-friendly for those with little technical knowledge. Adobe Commerce (Magneto) is better suited for large enterprises with complex requirements and is fully equipped with the resources to leverage Adobe Commerce’s powerful suite of advanced customization and integration capabilities.

Shopify Migration Partners: Ecommerce Pro

Struggling with your current ecommerce platform? Migrate to Shopify with the help of Ecommerce Pro—Shopify Migration Agency.

We specialize in ecommerce migration to Shopify and Shopify Plus, having helped hundreds of clients worldwide migrate their businesses to the Shopify platforms. Our full team of Shopify Experts will ensure your online business receives the intuitive solutions necessary to get settled into your new ecommerce platform of choice.

With our team of certified Shopify migration experts overseeing and guiding your website’s migration, we guarantee a smooth and efficient migration from your old ecommerce platform to Shopify. With Ecommerce Pro managing the transition, you’ll be up and running in record time.  

Ready to migrate to Shopify or Shopify Plus?

Get in Touch

At Ecommerce Pro - Shopify Migration Agency, we help entrepreneurs and business owners build better and more successful Shopify businesses. Have a question or a project in mind? Get in touch with us today!