Medusa vs OpenCart
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?
| Feature | Medusa | OpenCart |
|---|---|---|
| Category | E-commerce Platforms | E-commerce Platforms |
| License | MIT | GPL-3.0 |
| Language | TypeScript | PHP |
| Setup difficulty | Medium | Easy |
| Min. RAM | 1,024 MB | 256 MB |
| Deployment | docker, bare-metal, source | docker, bare-metal, source |
| GitHub stars | ★ 35,640 | ★ 8,174 |
| First released | 2021 | 2009 |
| Replaces | Shopify, commercetools | Shopify, Wix Stores |
Why pick each one
Frequently asked questions
Is Medusa or OpenCart better?
Neither is universally better. Medusa has the larger community, while OpenCart is simpler to set up (easy difficulty). Choose based on the comparison table above and your own setup.
Are Medusa and OpenCart free and open-source?
Yes. Medusa is licensed under MIT and OpenCart under GPL-3.0. Both can be self-hosted at no software cost.
Can I run Medusa and OpenCart with Docker?
Medusa: yes. OpenCart: yes.