Shopify is a fully managed SaaS platform with lower technical barriers and predictable costs starting at $29/month, while Magento is a self-hosted open-source solution requiring developer expertise but offering unlimited customization and lower long-term costs for high-volume stores. Shopify suits most merchants; Magento suits enterprise retailers needing complete control.
Magento vs Shopify — Side-by-side comparison on A Versus B
Open-source e-commerce platform requiring self-hosting and developer expertise.
Cloud-based SaaS e-commerce platform with managed hosting and user-friendly interface.
Hosting & Infrastructure. Starting Monthly Cost. Customization Flexibility. Technical Expertise Required. App Marketplace Size. Time to Launch. Monthly Cost (Mid-Size Store, $500K Revenue)
Choose Shopify if you want to launch quickly (under 1 week), need minimal technical overhead, and value 24/7 support and automatic updates with predictable costs. Choose Magento if you're an enterprise retailer generating $1M+ in annual revenue, require deep customization, have in-house development teams, and want to minimize per-transaction fees and monthly platform costs.
Magento: $125-200 (required) | Shopify: $100-150 (optional)
Magento: Enterprise segment leader (~5-10%) | Shopify: ~30% of all online stores
Magento: $10-80 (hosting only) | Shopify: $5-39 (all-inclusive)
Magento: Custom quote (est. $833-4,166/mo) | Shopify: $2,300+ (Shopify Plus)
Magento: 2-8 weeks | Shopify: Hours to 1 day
Magento: $1,500-$3,000+ (with hosting/dev) | Shopify: N/A
Magento: Core + 5,000+ extensions | Shopify: Hosting, SSL, domain, support included
Magento: Unlimited (1M+ in production) | Shopify: N/A
Magento: 10 (unlimited) | Shopify: 6 (limited to Liquid)
Magento: 47,000+ Certified Developers | Shopify: N/A
Magento: Self-managed or Adobe Commerce (managed) | Shopify: N/A
Magento: Expert (PHP/MySQL/Linux required) | Shopify: N/A
Magento: 100,000+ (tested) | Shopify: N/A
Magento: 1,000+ native | Shopify: Separate subscriptions required
Magento: 600+ (official marketplace) | Shopify: N/A
Developer Resources (Stack Overflow Tags)
Magento: 28,000+ questions | Shopify: N/A
Magento: 8 (advanced developer skills) | Shopify: 2 (minimal technical knowledge)
Magento: Unlimited | Shopify: 100+ (Shopify Plus)
Magento: N/A | Shopify: 2.0% (third-party gateways) / 0% (Shopify Payments)
Magento: N/A | Shopify: Fully Managed SaaS
Magento: N/A | Shopify: Native AI-driven commerce agents built-in
Magento: N/A | Shopify: Phone, Email & Chat
Magento: N/A | Shopify: Yes ($2,300+/month)
Typical Seller Monthly Revenue Threshold
Magento: N/A | Shopify: $5,000+ (lower barrier)
Magento: N/A | Shopify: 0% (on Shopify Payments)
Magento: N/A | Shopify: Advanced (Liquid code access)
Magento: N/A | Shopify: ~300 (optimized for sales)
Base Monthly Subscription (Starter Plan)
Magento: N/A | Shopify: Included in subscription
Monthly Active Buyers (Marketplace Access)
Magento: N/A | Shopify: Self-driven traffic
Magento: N/A | Shopify: Zero (must generate own traffic)
Magento: N/A | Shopify: 5 days (with traffic setup)
Magento: N/A | Shopify: Complete (10/10)
Magento: N/A | Shopify: 100% direct access to customer emails and data
Magento: N/A | Shopify: Unlimited products
Magento: N/A | Shopify: Moderate; app-dependent for advanced needs
Magento: N/A | Shopify: Good GraphQL API; limited headless options
Magento: N/A | Shopify: $0-20M GMV (optimal fit)
Magento: N/A | Shopify: Low; point-and-click setup
Magento: N/A | Shopify: 2.9% + $0.30 (Shopify Payments)
Magento: N/A | Shopify: Extensive (9/10)
Magento: N/A | Shopify: All product types
Magento: N/A | Shopify: $5 (Starter plan minimum)
Magento: N/A | Shopify: 10+ (online store, POS, social, marketplace, B2B, wholesale)
Magento: N/A | Shopify: Unlimited with advanced sync
Magento: N/A | Shopify: $5 (Starter Plan)
Magento: N/A | Shopify: $2,300+ (Shopify Plus enterprise)
Magento: N/A | Shopify: Ongoing regular updates
Magento: N/A | Shopify: $105 (Shopify Plan)
Magento: N/A | Shopify: None (paid plans only)
Magento: N/A | Shopify: Mobile-optimized by default
Magento: N/A | Shopify: 6 (Liquid templating limits)
Magento: N/A | Shopify: Shopify manages all compliance
Magento: N/A | Shopify: Unlimited (pricing tier independent)
Magento: N/A | Shopify: $468 + transaction fees ($2,900)
Magento: N/A | Shopify: 6,800 verified apps
Magento: N/A | Shopify: 1-2 hours to launch
Magento: N/A | Shopify: Theme/app API limited (Liquid template language)
Magento: N/A | Shopify: Level 1 (fully managed)
Magento: N/A | Shopify: No (requires apps)
Magento: N/A | Shopify: Limited (basic automation)
Magento: N/A | Shopify: Full REST & GraphQL APIs
Magento: N/A | Shopify: 100+ sales channels (Amazon, Facebook, TikTok, eBay, etc.)
Magento: N/A | Shopify: Included in all plans
Magento: N/A | Shopify: 99.99% guaranteed
Magento: N/A | Shopify: 24/7 dedicated support team
Magento: N/A | Shopify: Built-in tools with limitations on code-level access
Magento: N/A | Shopify: Possible but complex; vendor lock-in concerns exist
Magento: N/A | Shopify: 0% (Shopify Payments)
Magento: N/A | Shopify: $468 (plan) + $0 (fees)
Magento: N/A | Shopify: Must drive own traffic
Magento: N/A | Shopify: 100% - you own all customer records
Profit Margin Retention (Example: $100 sale)
Magento: N/A | Shopify: $71 (after $29 monthly allocation)
Magento: N/A | Shopify: Unlimited - custom domain, full HTML/CSS
Magento: N/A | Shopify: 2-4 hours (24/7 chat)
Magento: N/A | Shopify: 2.9% + 30¢ (Shopify Payments)
Magento: N/A | Shopify: 6-8 native, 120+ via apps
Magento: N/A | Shopify: 2 requests/second (standard)
How to choose between Magento and Shopify
Magento vs Shopify — Structured Comparison Data
Machine-readable comparison dataset for Magento vs Shopify. Contains 154 attribute comparisons, 5 FAQ pairs.
Magento vs Shopify — Attribute Category Vocabulary
Taxonomy of attribute categories used to classify comparison data for Magento vs Shopify.
Which platform is cheaper for a $500K/year online store?
Magento is significantly cheaper at this scale. A mid-size Magento store with hosting ($150/month), SSL ($10/month), and extensions ($100/month) costs ~$260/month or $3,120/year. The equivalent Shopify store would use Shopify Plus at $2,300/month ($27,600/year) plus 2.0% transaction fees (~$10,000/year), totaling ~$37,600 annually—12x more expensive.
Can I migrate from Shopify to Magento later?
Yes, but it requires effort. Shopify allows CSV exports of products, orders, and customer data. However, you'll need a developer to map Shopify's data structure to Magento's architecture, rebuild customizations, and reimplement apps. Expect 3-8 weeks of development time and $5,000-20,000+ in costs, depending on store complexity.
Is Magento secure enough for PCI DSS compliance?
Magento can be PCI DSS Level 1 compliant, but YOU are responsible for maintaining security. This requires regular patches, SSL certificates, firewalls, and security audits. With Shopify, PCI DSS compliance is managed by Shopify's infrastructure—you inherit compliance automatically. For non-technical teams, Shopify's built-in security is significantly safer.
Which has better app support and integrations?
Shopify has 10,000+ vetted apps in its App Store, while Magento has ~5,000+ extensions. However, Shopify's ecosystem is more curated and app quality is more consistent. Magento's flexibility means custom integrations are possible but may require developer work. For quick, plug-and-play integrations, Shopify wins.
What is the typical cost per transaction on each platform?
Shopify charges 2.0-2.9% + $0.30 per transaction via Shopify Payments. On a $50 order, that's ~$1.30-1.75. Magento has zero platform transaction fees, but you pay payment gateway fees directly (typically 2.2% + $0.30 with Stripe). The real advantage for Magento emerges at 10,000+ monthly transactions.
How to Choose Between Magento and Shopify
Hosting & Infrastructure: Magento has Self-hosted (your servers), while Shopify has Fully managed cloud (Shopify-hosted).
Starting Monthly Cost: Magento has $0 (software only) + hosting from $5-50+, while Shopify has $29/month (includes hosting).
Customization Flexibility: Magento has Unlimited (open-source codebase), while Shopify has Limited to Shopify's architecture.
Technical Expertise Required: Magento has Advanced (PHP, MySQL, server management), while Shopify has Minimal (drag-and-drop interface).
App Marketplace Size: Magento has ~5,000+ extensions, while Shopify has ~10,000+ apps.
Time to Launch: Magento has 4-12 weeks (setup, development), while Shopify has 2-5 days (templates, quick setup).
Consider: Monthly Cost (Mid-Size Store, $500K Revenue)
Monthly Cost (Mid-Size Store, $500K Revenue): Magento has $100-300 (hosting + extensions), while Shopify has $299/month (Shopify Plus).