Selling online seems like an attractive proposition, considering a large number of success stories that have been witnessed in this domain in the recent years. However, the challenges are big and the competition daunting because of the ever-increasing number of sellers in the market. Success greatly depends on the look and feel of your online store and the quality of experience that it caters. These factors are determined by the platform you choose for building the e-commerce store. If you are looking for the best open-source platforms, then Magento and PrestaShop definitely emerge as winners. Now that you have shortlisted these two, the choice between them is going to be confusing. Let’s help you with a complete Magento and PrestaShop review so that you can choose the one that is just right for you.
Magento vs Prestashop: Similarities
1. Open Source Platforms
Both Magento and PrestaShop are open source platforms, which means that you do not need to incur any licensing costs for them. The best thing about open-source is that the source code can be customized according to your needs. The platforms offer pre-built themes and features to help you in building a store with the right look and feel.
2. Basic E-commerce Features
There are some basic e-commerce features that every online store needs. These include shopping carts, storefront themes, order management, product catalog management, and more. On magento vs prestashop comparison, you will realize that both come with essential functionality out-of-the-box and enable you to get the store up and running easily. However, Magento takes a lead in this regard with extras such as cross-selling and up-selling support. Magento 2, its latest version, takes the platform features a notch higher. Therefore, magento ecommerce development services make the first choice for merchants when they look for a store with a complete array of e-commerce features.
3. Plugins and Extensions
Plugins and extensions are essential to add additional functionalities to the e-commerce website and customize it according to your requirements. Both these platforms offer an extensive array of plugins and extensions that empower them with customization and flexibility. All you need is a basic store to start with and you can enhance it with amazing capabilities.
4. Support
Being open-source, both the platforms have extensive community support from expert developers across the world. There is ample technical documentation available for both of them, in addition to forums for open discussions. If you have any questions or challenges related to Magento or Prestashop themes or any other aspects, you can avail help at these forums and communities.
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Magento vs Prestashop: Differences
1. Enterprise Edition
As already said, both the platforms are open-source but Magento does have a an Enterprise edition, which is the premium edition that does not come free. It brings a host of additional features other than the ones available in the Community edition. These include customer segmentation and merchandising that can help you to handle and run larger stores. This version also brings 24/7 support and account management. PrestaShop, on the other hand, does not come with such an advanced edition.
2. Hosting
Hosting is critical for running an e-store well and also delivering good user experiences. The challenge is even greater for larger stores which require powerful servers. PrestaShop brings a free hosted solution in addition to the open-source version that you can host. The free hosted solution is much like Shopify and Bigcommerce, where you get hosting as a bonus, though it may gradually have some limitations as your business grows. With Magento, you will require hosting services to maintain your business infrastructure.
3. Pricing
Both of them are free to download but you may have to invest for getting extra plugins and extensions for additional functionalities. With Magento, you will have to pay for hosting as well as for magento development services so that you can get advanced features for your store. The same goes for PrestaShop as you may need to use premium themes and paid extensions for this platform too. The cost goes up as you install more add-ons to the website. The other pricing disparity between the two comes in the form of the availability of the premium Enterprise edition in Magento.
The Takeaway
Seeing this comparison, it can be said that both the platforms are quite similar in some aspects and differ considerably in others. The choice depends on the specific requirements of your business. The best thing to do is to take Magento and PrestaShop demo to get a quick look at what these platforms can actually do for you. Though these are comparable in terms of features, Magento continues to be a more widely used option. Over the years, sellers have been comparing it with a range of platforms such as magento vs opencart, Shopify, WooCommerce, and more. Despite the advent of numerous e-commerce software, Magento continues to be a dominant leader.