Shopware vs Vendure
A side-by-side comparison of two self-hosted e-commerce platforms options — licensing, setup difficulty, resource needs, and what each one replaces.
Shopware
Flexible open-source commerce for growing brands
VS
Vendure
Headless commerce framework built on Node.js
| Feature | Shopware | Vendure |
|---|---|---|
| Deploy effort | Under-an-hour setup | Under-an-hour setup |
| Health score | 88 · Excellent | 92 · Excellent |
| Category | E-commerce Platforms | E-commerce Platforms |
| License | MIT | MIT |
| Language | PHP | TypeScript |
| Setup difficulty | Hard | Medium |
| Min. RAM | 2,048 MB | 1,024 MB |
| Deployment | docker, bare-metal, source | docker, bare-metal, source |
| GitHub stars | ★ 3,430 | ★ 8,468 |
| First released | 2010 | 2019 |
| Replaces | Shopify, Magento | Shopify, commercetools |
What are Shopware and Vendure?
Shopware
Shopware is an open-source e-commerce platform from Germany built with Symfony and Vue.js. The community edition offers a modern admin, headless API, and a rich extension ecosystem.
- Modern Vue.js admin
- Headless API capabilities
- Rule-based merchandising
- Strong extension store
Vendure
Vendure is an open-source, headless commerce framework written in TypeScript on top of NestJS and GraphQL. It is designed to be highly extensible for building custom B2B and B2C storefronts.
- GraphQL-based headless API
- Plugin-driven extensibility
- Admin UI included
- Multi-vendor marketplace support
Shopware vs Vendure: key differences
Shopware is written in PHP, while Vendure is built with TypeScript. Vendure is the lighter option, starting around 1,024 MB of RAM against 2,048 MB for Shopware. Shopware is the more established project (first released 2010), while Vendure arrived in 2019. Vendure has the considerably larger community, at 8,468 GitHub stars versus 3,430.
Why pick each one
Choose Shopware if…
- Polished merchant experience
- Powerful B2B suite available
Watch out for
- Heavy resource needs
- Complex for small shops
Choose Vendure if…
- Strong TypeScript developer experience
- Well-documented plugin system
Watch out for
- Requires building your own storefront
- Less out-of-the-box than hosted SaaS
Frequently asked questions
Is Shopware or Vendure better?
Vendure is the stronger all-round pick: it has both the larger community and the simpler medium setup. Consider Shopware if its specific feature set fits your needs better.
Are Shopware and Vendure free and open-source?
Yes. Shopware is licensed under MIT and Vendure under MIT. Both can be self-hosted at no software cost.
Can I run Shopware and Vendure with Docker?
Shopware: yes. Vendure: yes.
Which is lighter on resources, Shopware or Vendure?
Vendure has the smaller minimum footprint at 1,024 MB of RAM, compared to about 2,048 MB for Shopware. Real-world usage depends on library size, user count, and enabled features.