Magento (Adobe Commerce) vs. Shopify: Differences, pros and cons in 2024

We compared Magento (Adobe Commerce and Shopify based on their unique pricing, features, strengths, weaknesses and use cases. In the end, we named Shopify as best for small businesses and Magento (Adobe Commerce) as best for business-to-business (B2B) and business-to-consumer (B2C) brands. In this guide, we break down why so you can decide on the best solution for your business needs.

Shopify vs. Magento (Adobe Commerce): Overview

Shopify and Adobe Commerce (formerly Magento) are both excellent commerce platforms with distinct strengths. So, how do you decide which is best for your business? Consider your needs and priorities. What is your budget? Do you prioritize ease of use, or are you looking for maximum functionality and flexibility? Your answers will determine which platform may work best for you.

What is Shopify?

Shopify is an e-commerce platform that a business can use to sell products, both online and through brick-and-mortar locations. It has been used by millions of businesses, making it one of the most popular options. 

With Shopify, you can handle all the tasks necessary for a successful operation, including:

• Build an online store.
• Market products to customers.
• Payment processing.
• Inventory management.
• Shipping integration.

Due to its easy-to-use interface and many helpful standard features, Shopify is an excellent choice for many retail businesses. 

What is Magento (Adobe Commerce)?

Magento is now Adobe Commerce, from the same company that gave us the pervasive PDF file format as well as Photoshop and many other widely used design tools. Adobe Commerce is a multichannel commerce platform for businesses that have B2C (business to consumer) or B2B (business to business) operations, or both.

With its advanced tools for selling products online and in physical stores and for managing warehouses, Adobe Commerce is designed for businesses that have more complex operations or are looking to go to the next level.

Shopify vs. Adobe Commerce: Pricing

Winner: Shopify

Right off the bat, Shopify and Adobe Commerce have a glaring difference in terms of pricing. While Shopify, as with most e-commerce platforms, clearly lists its plans with its prices, Adobe Commerce requires you to get in contact with a sales representative to find out how much it will cost you to use its service. For a small business owner who wants to quickly compare e-commerce services, this can be frustrating.

We do know, however, that Adobe Commerce plans are not cheap. Michael Nemeroff, CEO and co-founder of Rush Order Tees, says they can amount to “hundreds of dollars in overhead costs.”

Shopify plans, on the other hand, start out at a very low cost, although they can get quite expensive:

• Basic plan: $39 per month.
• Shopify plan: $105 per month.
• Advanced plan: $399 per month.
• Retail: $89 per month. 
• Shopify Plus: $2000 per month.

Shopify Basic covers the needs of many small e-commerce businesses, including a customizable online store, at $29 per month when billed annually. The higher-tier plans, though expensive, may end up being more cost-effective for businesses with consistently high monthly revenue. This is because these plans offer discounts on transaction fees and shipping costs. 

When considering Adobe Commerce’s lack of price transparency, Shopify’s lower-cost options and potential cost savings with its higher-tier plans, Shopify gets the pricing win.

Shopify vs. Adobe Commerce: Design and user interface

Winner: Shopify

Shopify is known for its simpler approach to design and user interface versus the more complex Adobe Commerce. Nemeroff says, “Small businesses will appreciate the simplicity in setting up and managing a Shopify store, as compared to doing so with Adobe Commerce.”

On the software rating platform G2, users rate Shopify’s ease of use as 8.9 out of 10, much higher than Adobe Commerce at 7.2. As for ease of setup, Shopify looks even more favorable, rating at 8.8 versus Adobe Commerce at 6.2.

For businesses wanting to get started selling right away with minimal fuss, Shopify is the one to go with.

Shopify vs. Adobe Commerce: Features

Winner: Adobe Commerce

Shopify and Adobe Commerce both offer all the necessary features for commerce businesses, including built-in site-building capabilities, marketing assistance and automation, integrated payment processing and inventory and shipping tools. 

Optional add-ons to Shopify plans include:

• Access to influencers to help market your brand.
• Pop-up chat marketing features.
• Integration of multiple sales channels, including TikTok, Instagram and Etsy.

Adobe Commerce takes things to a more advanced level with its Adobe Developer App Builder. With this tool, you can have a developer build custom apps that will integrate seamlessly with the Adobe Commerce software. And if you want a more off-the-shelf option, there’s the Adobe Commerce extensions marketplace.

Shopify has its own app store with many third-party apps to add functionality to your online store. But if you want to more easily build your own custom tools just for your business, Adobe Commerce is the one to go with.

Adobe Commerce is designed around B2B as much as B2C. With an easy-to-use portal for B2B clients, Adobe Commerce lets your customers self-manage their company accounts. While Shopify also has B2B functionality, its platform is not specifically designed for it.

Many businesses would be satisfied with either platform’s features, but those that are looking to max out their options should choose Adobe Commerce.

Shopify vs. Adobe Commerce: Security

Winner: Adobe Commerce

Shopify and Adobe Commerce both offer basic security features, including SSL certificates and payment processing that is PCI compliant. That said, Adobe Commerce has more advanced security, such as:

• Web application firewall.
• Virtual private cloud.
• AES-265 algorithm encryption.

When it comes to ensuring high security in an insecure world, Adobe Commerce is clearly the better option.

Shopify vs. Adobe Commerce: Payment integrations

Winner: Shopify

Adobe Commerce and Shopify both provide native payment processing as well as the option to use third-party payment processors. Both in-house options accept various payment methods, including major credit card networks like Visa and Mastercard, as well as Paypal, Apple Pay and Google Pay.

Keep in mind that Shopify charges additional fees if you use an outside payment processor. These extra fees are not cheap, adding between 0.5 to 2.0% to the standard transaction fees, depending on the Shopify plan.

That said, it may make the most sense to use Shopify’s in-house payment options. The standard online credit card transaction fees for the Basic plan are 2.9% plus $0.30, which matches that of many standard processors, including Stripe and Amazon Pay. Transaction fees are discounted with the higher-tier Shopify plans, down to 2.4% plus $0.30 for the Advanced plan.

As for Adobe Commerce’s transaction fees, once again, the company is not transparent about them other than to say that it offers “competitive pricing for transactions with rates based on processing volume.”

For Shopify’s transparency in pricing and available discounted transaction fees, we give Shopify the win on payment integrations.

Shopify vs. Adobe Commerce: Customer support

Winner: Shopify

Both companies’ reviews on Trustpilot are some of the lowest we have seen. With many comments complaining of poor customer service for both companies, Shopify has a rating of 1.6 out of 5 stars on Trustpilot, while Adobe’s general company rating almost bottoms out at 1.2 stars.

Users on the software review platform G2 tell a somewhat different story from the extremely negative Trustpilot scores. They rate Adobe Commerce’s “quality of support” at 7.1 out of 10, whereas Shopify gets a much higher 8.4. 

Shopify only offers support by email and live chat, but phone support is exclusive to the Shopify Plus plan. Adobe offers robust support plans that provide support online and by phone, and even the option of “prioritized phone” support. Like Shopify, these plans are available at an additional cost, but again, it’s unclear how much they cost.

Due to Adobe’s lower ratings on customer support, and lack of transparency about the costs of its support plans, Shopify gets the win here.

Which is best for your business?

Winner: Shopify

For most small and medium-sized businesses deciding between Shopify and Adobe Commerce, the choice is clear. Shopify has the advantage in many areas, including:

• Pricing.
• Ease of use.
• Payment integrations.
• Support.

Larger businesses or those that are looking to scale up quickly, may prefer Adobe Commerce for its expanded capabilities. As Nemeroff notes, “Shopify may be more ideal and cost-effective for a small e-commerce business.” In contrast, “Adobe Commerce is designed to help companies scale and create more complex and customized management systems. It’s suited best for larger businesses with long-term plans to expand.”

If you don’t need the extra capabilities of Adobe Commerce, your business will probably benefit most from using Shopify. With its attractive pricing and high marks for ease of use, it’s a solid choice.

Frequently asked questions (FAQs)

Is Adobe Commerce better than Shopify?

Adobe Commerce may be better than Shopify for larger businesses with more complex operations. However, most smaller businesses will generally prefer Shopify due to its ease of use and cost-effectiveness.

How is Adobe Commerce different from Shopify?

Adobe Commerce is designed for larger businesses, including those with B2B operations as well as B2C. It allows for greater customization and flexibility. In contrast, Shopify is primarily designed for smaller businesses and B2C businesses, with its simpler design and easy-to-use interface.

Can you integrate Shopify and Adobe Commerce online stores?

While it may be technically possible to integrate an online store based on Shopify and one based on Adobe Commerce, it’s not easy to do. Adobe Commerce supports integration through APIs and batch-file import, which requires advanced technical knowledge to implement.

E-commerce platform vs. e-commerce hosting: What's the difference?

An e-commerce platform is the software used to create an online store, along with all the associated tools and functionalities. In contrast, e-commerce hosting refers to where the store’s website and data live. Many e-commerce platforms include hosting as part of their services packages.