Magento Open Source vs Adobe Commerce: which to choose?

If you're getting started with Magento, you immediately face an important choice: Magento Open Source (free) or Adobe Commerce (paid)? In this guide we explain exactly what the differences are and which version best fits your situation.

Both versions share the same foundation, but Adobe Commerce adds enterprise functionality that is especially interesting for larger webshops or B2B operations. The question is: are those extra features worth the investment?

What's the difference?

Magento Open Source is the free, community-driven version of Magento. You download the code, install it on your own hosting, and are free to customize it as you wish. The software itself costs nothing, but you do pay for hosting, development and any extensions.

Adobe Commerce (formerly Magento Commerce or Enterprise Edition) is the paid version with extra features, official support and optional cloud hosting. Prices start around €22,000 per year and can go up to €125,000+ for large enterprise setups.

Both versions run on the same codebase. Adobe Commerce is essentially Magento Open Source with extra modules and services on top. This means migrating from Open Source to Commerce is relatively easy.

Feature comparison

Let's look at the concrete differences in functionality.

Features both versions have

Magento Open Source is already quite complete:

• Full product catalog system (simple, configurable, bundled, virtual products)
• Customer account management with order history
• Shopping cart and checkout functionality
• Multi-store support (multiple webshops from one backend)
• Multiple languages and currencies
• SEO optimization (URL rewrites, meta tags, sitemaps)
• Promotions and discount rules
• Email marketing templates
• Reports and analytics dashboard
• REST and GraphQL APIs for integrations
• Responsive Luma theme
• Layered navigation and filters
• Wishlist functionality
• Product reviews and ratings
• Newsletter management

This is already enough for most professional webshops.

Exclusive Adobe Commerce features

Adobe Commerce adds substantial extra functionality:

B2B functionality:

• Company accounts (hierarchical organization structures)
• Shared catalogs (unique prices per customer segment)
• Quick order (order directly via SKU or CSV upload)
• Request for Quote (customers can request quotes)
• Purchasing workflow with approval chains
• Credit management for B2B customers

Content and marketing:

• Page Builder (visual drag-and-drop editor for CMS pages)
• Content staging and preview (schedule content changes in advance)
• Visual Merchandiser (visually manage and sort categories)
• Customer segmentation (advanced customer targeting)
• Reward points program
• Gift registries
• RMA system (Return Merchandise Authorization)

Search and recommendations:

• Live Search powered by Adobe Sensei AI
• Product Recommendations based on behavior
• Visual Similarity search (search by images)

Performance and scalability:

• Advanced caching mechanisms
• Database optimizations
• Split database support (checkout/order on separate DB)

Support and services:

• Official Adobe support with SLA
• Security patches and feature updates
• Adobe Commerce Cloud hosting option
• Performance monitoring tools

Features comparison table

Feature	Open Source	Adobe Commerce
Products & catalog	✅	✅
Multi-store	✅	✅
APIs (REST/GraphQL)	✅	✅
SEO tools	✅	✅
Promotions & coupons	✅	✅
Basic B2B (customer groups)	✅	✅
Page Builder	❌	✅
B2B (quotes, company accounts)	❌	✅
Live Search (AI-powered)	❌	✅
Product Recommendations	❌	✅
Content Staging	❌	✅
Customer Segmentation	❌	✅
Reward Points	❌	✅
RMA system	❌	✅
Official support	❌	✅
Cloud hosting option	❌	✅

Comparing prices

Magento Open Source: free software, but hosting/development costs

The software is free to download, but you do have costs:

• Hosting: €50-200/month for good Magento hosting (Hypernode, Savvii)
• Development: €3,000-15,000 for initial setup and design
• Extensions: €0-2,000 one-time (payment gateways, shipping, marketing tools)
• Maintenance: €500-2,000/year for updates and support
• Total first year: approximately €6,000-20,000
• Annual costs thereafter: €1,500-5,000

Adobe Commerce: license + hosting/development

Adobe Commerce works with an annual license based on your Gross Merchandise Value (GMV - your gross webshop revenue).

Pricing structure (indicative):

• Up to €1 million GMV: approximately €22,000/year
• €1-5 million GMV: €35,000-60,000/year
• €5-25 million GMV: €60,000-125,000/year
• €25 million+ GMV: custom pricing

On top of this:

• Hosting: €100-500/month (or Adobe Commerce Cloud from €2,000/month)
• Implementation: €15,000-100,000+ (often more complex than Open Source)
• Extensions: comparable to Open Source
• Maintenance: €2,000-10,000/year

Total first year Adobe Commerce: €40,000-150,000+ Annual costs thereafter: €25,000-135,000+

Support and updates

Magento Open Source:

• Community support via forums and Slack channels
• No official support from Adobe
• Security patches are released for free
• Feature updates less frequent than Commerce
• You're responsible for implementing updates yourself
• Help via Magento partners/agencies (paid)

Adobe Commerce:

• Official support tickets with SLA (response within 4-48h depending on severity)
• Dedicated account manager from certain license tier
• Proactive security patches and feature updates
• Access to Adobe knowledge base and training
• Adobe Summit and other enterprise events

This difference is significant. With Open Source you depend on community support or paid partners. With Commerce you get direct help from Adobe for critical issues.

Hosting options

Magento Open Source:

• Self-hosted on own VPS/server
• Managed Magento hosting (Hypernode, Savvii, Antagonist)
• Cloud platforms (AWS, Google Cloud, Azure)
• Full freedom in hosting choice

Check our Magento hosting comparison for detailed overview.

Adobe Commerce:

• All Open Source options also possible
• Plus: Adobe Commerce Cloud (from €2,000/month)
  • Fully managed cloud platform
  • Auto-scaling during traffic spikes
  • 99.99% uptime SLA
  • Integrated staging/production workflows
  • FastTly CDN included
  • New Relic monitoring included

Adobe Commerce Cloud is premium but takes away a lot of technical burden. Often worth it for enterprise webshops.

Who is which version suitable for?

Choose Magento Open Source if:

1. Your webshop revenue < €2 million per year The costs of Adobe Commerce are hard to justify at lower revenues.

2. You mainly sell B2C (business-to-consumer) The B2B features of Adobe Commerce are then not needed.

3. Your budget is limited With €5,000-10,000 you can build a solid Open Source shop. Adobe Commerce requires at least €40,000.

4. You want flexibility Open Source gives full control over code and hosting.

5. You can use extensions for missing features Marketplace has solutions for many Commerce features (though not always as good).

Practical example: A fashion retailer with 2,000 products, €800k revenue, selling in Netherlands and Belgium. Open Source with Hypernode hosting (€99/month) and some premium extensions for €1,500. Total investment €12,000, annual costs €3,000.

Choose Adobe Commerce if:

1. Your webshop revenue > €5 million per year At this revenue, Commerce costs (€60k-125k) are a small % of your revenue. The extra features can give significant conversion boost.

2. You sell B2B Company accounts, quote system, and shared catalogs are difficult to properly replicate with extensions.

3. You need enterprise support SLAs and official support are critical for some businesses (medical, finance, etc).

4. You want Page Builder and Content Staging Marketing teams can manage content themselves without developer help.

5. You want AI-powered search and recommendations Live Search and Product Recommendations can increase conversion by 10-30%.

6. You manage multiple brands/countries Advanced multi-store features and customer segmentation are valuable.

Practical example: A B2B wholesaler in technical components, €8 million revenue, 500 customers with different pricing agreements. Adobe Commerce (€80k/year license) with company accounts, quote system, and shared catalogs. Implementation €60k, hosting €300/month. Total first year €145k. ROI within 6 months through efficiency gains.

Can I upgrade from Open Source to Adobe Commerce later?

Yes, migrating is relatively easy because both versions share the same codebase.

Migration process:

1. Purchase Adobe Commerce license
2. Backup your current Open Source installation
3. Install Adobe Commerce with same Magento version
4. Migrate database and files
5. Test all functionality
6. Activate new Commerce features

Costs: approximately €5,000-15,000 in development work, depending on customizations.

Note: Downgrading from Commerce to Open Source is technically possible but you lose access to all Commerce features. This can cause breaking changes.

Alternative option: Extensions for Open Source

Some Adobe Commerce features can be approximated with Open Source extensions:

• Page Builder: GrapesJS Page Builder (€200), PageBuilder by Magezon (€300)
• B2B features: B2B Suite by Amasty (€500), Company Accounts extensions
• Advanced Search: Algolia (€300/month), Elasticsearch configuration
• Product Recommendations: Clerk.io (€100-300/month), Nosto

This can save costs, but:

• Usually not as well integrated as native Commerce features
• Extra maintenance burden (multiple vendors)
• Support can be complex with conflicts
• Total costs can add up (€2,000-5,000/year)

Decision framework

Use this simple decision tree:

Step 1: What's your current/expected annual webshop revenue?

• < €1 million → Open Source
• €1-5 million → Probably Open Source, consider Commerce if B2B
• €5-10 million → Consider Commerce seriously

• €10 million → Probably Commerce

Step 2: Do you sell B2B with complex pricing/quote processes?

• Yes, B2B is core of business → Adobe Commerce
• No, only B2C → Open Source suffices

Step 3: Do you have budget for €40k+ first year investment?

• No → Open Source
• Yes → Consider Commerce if other factors are positive

Step 4: How critical is official vendor support?

• Very important (regulated industry, high risk) → Adobe Commerce
• Community support + partner is ok → Open Source

Practical tips for your choice

1. Start with Open Source if you're unsure You can always upgrade later. Start small, prove the concept, then scale up.

2. Calculate the TCO (Total Cost of Ownership) Look at 3-year total costs, not just first year. Include:

• License costs (Commerce)
• Hosting costs
• Development/customization
• Extensions
• Maintenance and updates
• Support/agency retainer

3. Test the features you need Adobe offers demos of Commerce. Test whether features like Page Builder and Live Search really add value for your use case.

4. Talk to Magento partners Agencies like Elgentos, Vendic, or Youwe have experience with both versions and can advise.

5. Check your extension requirements Some extensions are only for Open Source, others only for Commerce. Check compatibility beforehand.

6. Think about scalability Plan for 3-5 years growth. If you're growing quickly towards enterprise, consider Commerce now.

Frequently asked questions

Is Adobe Commerce really that much better than Open Source?

"Better" is relative. Commerce has more features, but for many webshops those aren't needed. It's mainly different, not necessarily better. Choose based on your specific requirements.

Can I get Adobe Commerce features without the license costs?

Partly, via extensions. But native Commerce features are often better integrated and supported. For core functionality (B2B, Page Builder) Commerce is the better option.

What if I can afford Adobe Commerce but don't need it?

Then don't buy it. Extra features you don't use add no value and make your stack more complex.

How often do I need to renew the license?

Adobe Commerce licenses are per year. You need to renew annually to continue receiving support and updates.

Can I use Commerce without Adobe Commerce Cloud?

Yes, you can self-host Commerce just like Open Source. Cloud is optional but often easier.

Making your choice

For most Dutch webshops, Magento Open Source is the right choice. It's powerful enough for professional operations up to €5 million revenue. The cost savings can be invested in good hosting, custom development, and marketing.

Adobe Commerce becomes interesting with:

• €5+ million revenue where license costs < 2% of revenue
• B2B operations with complex pricing and quote processes
• Enterprise requirements (SLAs, official support)
• Marketing teams that want to manage content themselves (Page Builder)

Still in doubt? Start with Magento Open Source. Build your webshop, get to know the platform, and upgrade to Commerce when you actually need the enterprise features.

Want to know more about Magento in general? Read our explanation of what Magento is. Also check the technical requirements for Magento hosting and our hosting provider comparison.