Best Open Source Ecommerce Platform in 2026 (Self-Hosted)

Building an online store on Shopify or BigCommerce means monthly fees, transaction cuts, and a storefront you rent rather than own. Open source ecommerce flips that: self-host your store, pay no per-sale fees, customize every pixel and workflow, and keep full control of your catalog, customers and checkout.

This guide ranks the best open source ecommerce platforms in 2026 — from modern headless commerce frameworks for developers to complete all-in-one store platforms for merchants. Star counts are pulled live from our directory so you can see which projects have real momentum.

TL;DR — the short answer

• Best modern headless platform → Medusa — the flexible, developer-first commerce engine.
• Best all-in-one for merchants → WooCommerce — turn WordPress into a store.
• Best enterprise headless → Saleor — high-performance GraphQL commerce.
• Best Laravel store → Bagisto — full-featured PHP/Laravel ecommerce.
• Best framework for developers → Sylius / Vendure — build a bespoke store.

Key takeaways

Why open source ecommerce?

• No transaction fees or monthly rent. You keep 100% of every sale — no Shopify-style cut or subscription.
• Total ownership. Your catalog, customers, orders and checkout run on your infrastructure, fully portable.
• Unlimited customization. Modify the storefront, checkout flow and backend to fit your business exactly — impossible on locked SaaS.
• Headless freedom. Serve your store to web, mobile and marketplaces from one commerce backend.

The trade-off: you handle hosting, PCI-compliant payments, and maintenance. For growing stores, escaping per-sale fees and platform limits usually makes it well worth it.

Headless vs. all-in-one — which do you need?

• Headless commerce (Medusa, Saleor, Vendure) = a commerce backend + API. You build the storefront with a framework like Next.js. Best for custom experiences, mobile, and multi-channel selling.
• All-in-one (WooCommerce, PrestaShop, OpenCart) = backend and storefront together. Best for merchants who want to launch fast without building a frontend.

Choose headless for a bespoke, scalable store; all-in-one to get selling quickly with less engineering.

How we evaluated

• Adoption — GitHub stars, pulled live from our directory (community size and staying power).
• Maintenance — recency of the last commit; everything here was updated in 2026.
• Fit — headless vs. all-in-one, and the stack/use case each nails.
• Extensibility — themes, plugins, and how far you can customize.

Quick comparison

The best open source ecommerce platforms, ranked

1. Medusa — the modern headless commerce engine

Best for: developers building a custom, scalable storefront (a true Shopify alternative). Skip if: you want a ready-to-use store without building a frontend.

Medusa is the fastest-rising open source commerce platform — a flexible, modular, headless engine you pair with any frontend (Next.js is first-class). Modules for carts, orders, payments and fulfillment, plus a great developer experience, make it the go-to for teams building bespoke commerce.

• Key features: modular architecture · headless API · Next.js starter · multi-region/currency · plugins
• Pros: genuinely modern & flexible · excellent DX · rapid momentum · self-hostable
• Cons: you build the storefront; more engineering than an all-in-one
• Stars: 33K · Language: TypeScript · Last updated: 2026-04
• 🔗 Details & alternatives →

2. Bagisto — full-featured Laravel ecommerce

Best for: PHP/Laravel teams wanting a complete, ready-to-run store. Skip if: you're not on the Laravel stack.

Bagisto is a free, full-featured ecommerce platform built on Laravel. It ships everything a store needs out of the box — catalog, cart, checkout, multi-store, multi-currency, admin — making it a strong all-in-one choice for Laravel shops.

• Key features: multi-store & multi-currency · catalog & inventory · admin dashboard · themes · Laravel-based
• Pros: complete out of the box · easy for Laravel devs to extend · active community
• Cons: tied to the PHP/Laravel ecosystem
• Stars: 27K · Language: PHP · Last updated: 2026-04
• 🔗 Details & alternatives →

3. Saleor — enterprise headless commerce

Best for: high-scale, GraphQL-first stores that need performance and flexibility. Skip if: you want a simple all-in-one shop.

Saleor is a high-performance, composable, GraphQL-native commerce platform built for scale. Its API-first architecture and enterprise features make it a favorite for ambitious, custom storefronts that need to handle serious volume.

• Key features: GraphQL API · composable/headless · multi-channel · enterprise-grade · extensible apps
• Pros: high performance & scalability · modern architecture · strong for complex catalogs
• Cons: enterprise-oriented; you build the frontend and integrations
• Stars: 23K · Language: Python · Last updated: 2026-04
• 🔗 Details & alternatives →

4. Spree — headless commerce on Rails

Best for: Ruby on Rails teams building customizable stores. Skip if: you're not using Ruby/Rails.

Spree is a mature, modular open source commerce platform for Ruby on Rails, now with a headless architecture and admin. It's a proven choice for Rails shops that want deep customization and a solid, long-standing community.

• Key features: headless API · modular design · multi-store · admin dashboard · Rails-based
• Pros: mature & flexible · strong Rails ecosystem · self-hostable
• Cons: requires Ruby/Rails expertise
• Stars: 15K · Language: Ruby · Last updated: 2026-04
• 🔗 Details & alternatives →

5. WooCommerce — turn WordPress into a store

Best for: merchants who want the easiest path to a customizable store. Skip if: you want a headless, framework-based build.

WooCommerce is the most widely used open source ecommerce solution — a plugin that turns WordPress into a full online store. With WordPress's vast theme and plugin ecosystem behind it, it's the pragmatic default for merchants who want flexibility without heavy engineering.

• Key features: WordPress integration · huge extension ecosystem · themes · payments · content + commerce
• Pros: easiest for non-developers · enormous ecosystem · content-marketing friendly
• Cons: performance depends on hosting/plugins; ties you to WordPress
• Stars: 10K · Language: PHP · Last updated: 2026-04
• 🔗 Details & alternatives →

6. EverShop — a TypeScript store platform

Best for: teams wanting a modern, all-in-one Node/TypeScript store. Skip if: you need a large plugin marketplace today.

EverShop is a modern, modular ecommerce platform built in TypeScript with a GraphQL API. It offers an all-in-one store experience on a contemporary JS stack — a nice middle ground between headless frameworks and traditional shops.

• Key features: TypeScript/Node · GraphQL API · modular · admin panel · Next.js storefront
• Pros: modern JS stack · clean architecture · all-in-one yet extensible
• Cons: younger project with a smaller ecosystem
• Stars: 10K · Language: TypeScript · Last updated: 2026-05
• 🔗 Details & alternatives →

7. PrestaShop — the universal traditional shop

Best for: merchants wanting a complete, ready-made store with a big module marketplace. Skip if: you want a modern headless architecture.

PrestaShop is a long-established, universal open source store platform. It ships a complete storefront and admin plus a large marketplace of modules and themes, making it a dependable all-in-one for merchants across Europe and beyond.

• Key features: complete storefront + admin · module & theme marketplace · multi-language/currency
• Pros: full-featured out of the box · big ecosystem · merchant-friendly
• Cons: traditional architecture; customization can get complex
• Stars: 9K · Language: PHP · Last updated: 2026-04
• 🔗 Details & alternatives →

8. Sylius — the Symfony commerce framework

Best for: developers building a fully bespoke store on Symfony/PHP. Skip if: you want a ready-to-use shop rather than a framework.

Sylius is a headless, API-first commerce framework built on Symfony. Rather than a ready-made store, it gives developers clean, tested building blocks to craft an exactly-right commerce experience — favored for custom, quality-focused builds.

• Key features: Symfony-based · API-first/headless · fully customizable · tested components · multi-channel
• Pros: superb for bespoke stores · high code quality · flexible
• Cons: it's a framework — significant development required
• Stars: 8K · Language: PHP · Last updated: 2026-04
• 🔗 Details & alternatives →

9. OpenCart — lightweight and simple

Best for: small merchants who want a straightforward store without complexity. Skip if: you need advanced headless or enterprise features.

OpenCart is a lightweight, easy-to-use shopping cart system that's been a reliable choice for small stores for years. It covers the essentials — catalog, cart, checkout, extensions — without the weight of larger platforms.

• Key features: simple admin · catalog & checkout · extensions & themes · multi-store · lightweight
• Pros: easy to set up · low overhead · good for small shops
• Cons: fewer modern/headless capabilities; smaller-scale focus
• Stars: 8K · Language: PHP · Last updated: 2026-04
• 🔗 Details & alternatives →

10. Vendure — Node/TypeScript headless commerce

Best for: Node teams building a custom, GraphQL-based storefront. Skip if: you want an all-in-one merchant platform.

Vendure is a headless commerce framework built on Node.js and TypeScript with a GraphQL API. It's a clean, extensible foundation for developers who want a type-safe, modern backend to power a custom storefront.

• Key features: Node/TypeScript · GraphQL API · plugin system · admin UI · headless
• Pros: type-safe and modern · extensible · great for custom JS storefronts
• Cons: developer-focused; you build the frontend
• Stars: 8K · Language: TypeScript · Last updated: 2026-04
• 🔗 Details & alternatives →

11. Solidus — the flexible Rails platform

Best for: Rails teams needing maximum control and customization. Skip if: you want an out-of-the-box store.

Solidus is a free, open source ecommerce framework for Rails focused on flexibility and long-term maintainability. A community-driven fork with a strong governance model, it's trusted by stores that need deep customization and stability.

• Key features: Rails-based · modular & extensible · API · admin · strong community governance
• Pros: highly customizable · stable & well-governed · production-proven
• Cons: requires Rails expertise; framework rather than ready store
• Stars: 5K · Language: Ruby · Last updated: 2026-04
• 🔗 Details & alternatives →

12. Shopware — European mid-market commerce

Best for: mid-market merchants (especially in Europe) wanting a powerful platform. Skip if: you want the simplest lightweight shop.

Shopware is an open commerce platform popular with mid-market and larger merchants, particularly in Europe. It combines a flexible, API-friendly architecture with rich merchandising features for ambitious stores.

• Key features: flexible/API-friendly · rich merchandising · B2B capabilities · extensions · headless-ready
• Pros: powerful for mid-market/B2B · modern architecture · strong in Europe
• Cons: more complex; larger footprint than lightweight carts
• Stars: 3K · Language: PHP · Last updated: 2026-04
• 🔗 Details & alternatives →

How to choose

Decide headless-vs-all-in-one first, then match your stack:

• Custom, scalable storefront → Medusa (modern favorite), Saleor (enterprise/GraphQL), or Vendure (Node).
• Launch fast as a merchant → WooCommerce (on WordPress), PrestaShop or OpenCart.
• Build on your framework → Bagisto/Sylius (PHP), Spree/Solidus (Rails), EverShop/Vendure (TypeScript).
• Mid-market/B2B in Europe → Shopware.

Write down your must-haves (headless? your stack? B2B? multi-region?) and the shortlist gets clear fast.

Frequently asked questions

What is the best open source ecommerce platform in 2026? For a modern custom store, Medusa leads. For merchants wanting an easy all-in-one, WooCommerce. For enterprise-scale headless, Saleor. The best choice depends on whether you want a developer-built headless store or a ready-to-use merchant platform.

Is there a free open source alternative to Shopify? Yes — Medusa, Saleor and Vendure are modern headless Shopify alternatives, while WooCommerce, PrestaShop and Bagisto offer all-in-one stores. All are free to self-host with no per-sale fees.

Are open source ecommerce platforms really free? Yes — the software is free to download and self-host. You'll pay only for hosting, a domain, and payment processing fees (which go to the payment provider, not the platform). Some offer paid cloud or enterprise editions.

Headless vs. all-in-one ecommerce — which is better? Headless (Medusa, Saleor) gives you a custom, multi-channel storefront but requires building the frontend. All-in-one (WooCommerce, PrestaShop) lets merchants launch quickly without engineering. Choose based on your team's development capacity and how custom the experience needs to be.

Can I handle payments securely on a self-hosted store? Yes — every platform here integrates with major payment gateways (Stripe, PayPal, etc.) that handle PCI-compliant processing, so sensitive card data goes through the provider, not your server. You still handle your store's general security and updates.

The bottom line

Open source ecommerce lets you own your store and keep every dollar of every sale. Go headless with Medusa, Saleor or Vendure for a custom build; choose WooCommerce, PrestaShop or OpenCart to launch fast as a merchant; or build on your framework with Bagisto, Sylius or Spree. All are free, self-hostable, and yours to control.

Browse open source alternatives to popular software, or explore the full directory of open source projects.