The best options for open-source ecommerce development in 2023 and beyond!

Do you know, being a business owner what are your requirements to develop and run an ecommerce store?

The basic prerequisite must be a platform that allows you to create and run your online business efficiently. An ecommerce development platform is a force behind a successful venture. The right platform can bring you closer to your audience and make your business an utter hit.

Today, when you find yourself surrounded by myriad ecommerce development options, it is critical to choose the best fit for your business vision and budget. There are several open-source ecommerce development platforms, that are available free of cost. You can get them easily and start building your online store.

Peruse this article to know some of the effective open-source platforms for ecommerce development that are no lesser as compared to their premium counterparts.

Many experienced developers like to work on these open-source platforms because of the ease of working and customization options they provide with ample plugin choices.

Over time, technologies are offering more and more comfort in creating ecommerce stores. And for a start-up entrepreneur, an open-source platform is anytime a good choice because you start and scale your business within a limited budget.

How to choose an open-source ecommerce development platform?

Do you know, how you will compare and select the perfect option for your ecommerce? Here are a few criteria based on that you can choose any one platform.

• User Interface: Find out, if the user interface of the platform is clean, clutter-free, attractive, and organized. Furthermore, is the UI capable enough to hold your audience?
• Support and usability: Since support can be an issue with open-source platforms, therefore this is a critical criterion to compare for. Also, check if the platform is easy to work with and if the learning curve is difficulty level.
• Integrations: Is the platform compatible with third-party integrations? How smoothly do plugins, add-ons, and other extensions work with the platform?

What features to expect in an open-source platform?

An open-source ecommerce development platform must have following features to serve your audience perfectly.

• Flexibility: The open-source platform must offer an unprecedented level of customization options. Flexibility shouldn’t be an issue with the platform because it can be a major hindrance to scalability.
• Security: The platform must provide a robust security module. Security is a critical metric to have in an open-source platform.
• Speed: Have you checked the speed of the platform? Is it fast or average? Always check the performance of the platform before you start using it because speed is one of the crucial factors in SEO and ranking in SERPs.

So, these are a few important features that are ought to have in an open-source platform.

Best open-source ecommerce platforms

Drupal

Drupal is the most popular and one of the trusted open-source platforms to build incredible ecommerce solutions. This platform has all the required features, we’ve discussed above. It has in-built caching that provides insane speed and works well with SEO.

It has active community support that helps you with any kind of development support and ensures high-quality advancement standards.

Drupal Commerce has a robust security system that is backed by its community. There are modules for order management and product customization.

Supports all the major business extensions like PayPal, Mailjet, Avalara, etc. User guides and tutorials are available to understand the platform thoroughly.

Magento open source

Magento is also an open-source option for ecommerce development. The open-source version has features like catalogue management, integrated checkout, site search, payment, and shipping, with several other features. These are the features that make a perfect ecommerce store.

Though customization needs an expert to perform the task smoothly. Moreover, Support is also available for Commerce users only. You also get mobile-optimized stores with Magento open source. App marketplace provides extended functionalities. Starting an Magento ecommerce store is a good option because you get a renowned platform at no cost.

WooCommerce

WooCommerce is a plugin of WordPress. It helps you develop efficient ecommerce stores. This plugin is free however, you need to pay for hosting and domain name to install it on WordPress. Add this plugin to the WordPress account and get started with a fully functional ecommerce store. WooCommerce handles all aspects of store management, backup, installation, and optimization. With secure payment, configurable shipping options, and other critical features, WooCommerce offers an efficient ecommerce store solution.

It is extremely customizable and comes with customer support. Plenty of integrations work smoothly with WooCommerce web development. However, you need to have a little technical knowledge to maintain and update it. The WooCommerce platform is developer friendly. It is built with REST API; thus, it is extremely scalable, and you can integrate virtually with any service. Trusted community support is an additional advantage.

OpenCart

OpenCart is a PHP-based open-source platform that supports different types of extensions. You can enjoy an extraordinary shopping cart system and manage orders perfectly with an exceptional store management system. Ample theme designs and module options are available to expand the store, though you need to know a bit of coding knowledge for customization.

Multi-language support helps you in global and local optimizations of the store. It has many pre-installed payment options and works well with third-party integrations as well. The world’s best payment and shipping options are integrated with this open-source platform. With amazing community support, it is one of the best open-source ecommerce development platforms.

osCommerce

osCommerce is an open-source front-end solution with robust community support. The latest version uses PHP 8.1 and MariaDB 10.x to offer the fastest and most secure solutions. It is highly customizable and scalable yet needs professional support for customization. The platform is compatible with myriad third-party integrations. You can sell unlimited products with osCommerce solution. It is a mobile and SEO-friendly platform, which ultimately provides a higher ranking in search engines.

World’s first online shopping cart system since 2000, which is running successfully with significant satisfied customers. The platform gets regular updates to stay modern, safe, and secure. It is GDPR compliant. White-label and co-branding options are also there with this open-source platform. osCommerce App Store helps you to grow your business by outreaching the audience.

nopCommerce

nopCommerce open-source platform operating on ASP.net core. Since 2008, it is running successfully with approx. 2.5 million downloads. The platform can set up multiple stores and handle millions of products with thousands of visitors at a time. You can try its demo to start and get an idea of the admin panel and independent shop.

It has in-built mobile-friendly features. nopCommerce provides a sturdy security system (it is PCI DSS compliant) therefore, no threat of data leakage. Plenty of default payment options are there and you can go for more integrations as well. However, you have to pay for third-party integrations, domain, and hosting services. With unlimited customization and great support, nopCommerce solution is suitable for every business and industry irrespective of their size and niche.

Wrapping up

It can be challenging for small business owners or start-ups to find a perfect ecommerce development platform for business needs within circumscribed budget. But open-source platforms are a real saviour in such situations because they are easily available. And the cherry on top is, that these platforms are efficient, compatible, and responsive, they enable you to customize your site to your taste and whatnot. If you don’t have an apt ecommerce platform, you will not be able to run a thriving online business in this immensely competitive era.

The best way to predict the future is to create it. Thus, create an ecommerce store that will safeguard the future of your business.

If you need any assistance with the installation and configuration, Skynet Technologies could help you out. We have got power-packed ecommerce expertise to provide you with all the requisite knowledge and help you to set up your ecommerce store.

We offer the best ecommerce development services, ecommerce solutions, and other related web development services in the USA. We also provide ecommerce website maintenance services, migration, ecommerce SEO audits ecommerce application security audits. For more information, please visit our ecommerce website maintenance services!