SHSelfHostIndex

Magento Open Source vs Smartstore

A side-by-side comparison of two self-hosted e-commerce platforms options — licensing, setup difficulty, resource needs, and what each one replaces.

Not the right match-up?
MA Magento Open Source Enterprise-grade open-source commerce platform VS SM Smartstore Modern open-source .NET commerce platform
FeatureMagento Open SourceSmartstore
CategoryE-commerce PlatformsE-commerce Platforms
LicenseOSL-3.0AGPL-3.0
LanguagePHPC#
Setup difficultyHardMedium
Min. RAM4,096 MB1,024 MB
Deploymentdocker, bare-metal, sourcedocker, bare-metal, source
GitHub stars★ 12,164★ 1,508
First released20082010
ReplacesShopify Plus, BigCommerceShopify, Magento

Why pick each one

Choose Magento Open Source if…

  • Powerful for large catalogs
  • Robust enterprise features
Magento Open Source details

Choose Smartstore if…

  • Polished modern UI
  • Good plugin model
Smartstore details

Frequently asked questions

Is Magento Open Source or Smartstore better?

Neither is universally better. Magento Open Source has the larger community, while Smartstore is simpler to set up (medium difficulty). Choose based on the comparison table above and your own setup.

Are Magento Open Source and Smartstore free and open-source?

Yes. Magento Open Source is licensed under OSL-3.0 and Smartstore under AGPL-3.0. Both can be self-hosted at no software cost.

Can I run Magento Open Source and Smartstore with Docker?

Magento Open Source: yes. Smartstore: yes.

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