Magento and Adobe Commerce
Magento and Adobe Commerce give you the freedom to build eCommerce solutions around your unique business logic, whether you're running a global B2C storefront, a complex B2B operation, or a composable architecture with multiple systems in play.
Total freedom to implement your unique business logic without compromise
Freedom to build. Flexibility to scale. From open source to SaaS.
Magento Open Source and Adobe Commerce (formerly Magento Commerce) are built for flexibility. Whether you're launching a complex B2B portal, scaling a multi-brand ecosystem, or designing a highly customized product experience—this platform lets you go beyond templates and plugins.
Unlike SaaS-first platforms with fixed boundaries, Magento’s modular architecture and open APIs let you define and build exactly what your business requires. Adobe Commerce extends that with powerful built-in features, cloud hosting, and enterprise-level performance.
Today, Adobe is evolving the platform even further with new SaaS-native options that offer faster performance, AI-powered content capabilities, and a versionless, low-maintenance experience designed to support both modern storefronts and composable commerce strategies.
At Eltrino, we have developers who were working on Magento itself since its earliest versions. We design and deliver highly customized stores on Open Source, Adobe Commerce, and the latest SaaS-based Adobe Commerce variants—tailored to your workflows, integrations, and long-term growth plans.
Magento Open Source
Fully customizable. Developer-driven. Ideal for growing brands
Magento Open Source is a powerful, self-hosted eCommerce platform that gives merchants complete control over every aspect of their storefront codebase, integrations, business logic, and customer experience. It’s the foundation of Adobe Commerce and remains a go-to solution for companies that value flexibility over pre-packaged functionality.
With no licensing fees, it’s ideal for mid-sized businesses, early-stage brands, or digitally mature companies that want to invest in building something tailored to their operations, especially when paired with** modern frontend solutions** like Hyvä or Vue Storefront
Why to choose Magento Open Source?
- Powers over 120,000 live stores globally
- Ideal for fully custom UX, headless architecture, or tailored checkout flows
- No vendor lock-in, host and scale on your own terms
- Thousands of extensions, themes, and integrations available
- Supported by a massive open-source community of over 300,000 developers
- Trusted by High-Traffic Retailers
Magento Open Source isn’t just for small brands, it’s the foundation for some of the world’s busiest online stores:
- HarborFreight.com – over 40 million visitors per month
- Sinsay.com – over 25.9 million monthly visits
Adobe Commerce (On-Prem / Cloud)
Enterprise-ready platform with advanced B2B out-of-the-box, cloud or on-premise, and personalization tools.
Adobe Commerce is the commercial version of Magento, built for businesses that need more than just core eCommerce functionality. It extends Magento Open Source with a wide set of enterprise-grade features ranging from B2B capabilities and advanced promotions to visual merchandising, performance monitoring, and business intelligence.
It can be deployed either on your own infrastructure (on-prem) or on Adobe’s managed cloud environment (PaaS) giving you flexibility to meet internal policies, compliance requirements, or scalability needs.
Why choose Adobe Commerce?
- Rich out-of-the-box features: visual merchandising, content staging, gift cards, returns management, and more
- Native B2B suite: customer-specific catalogs, quote requests, approval workflows, company accounts
- Flexible deployment options: host it yourself or use Adobe’s managed cloud infrastructure
- Supports data sovereignty and on-prem hosting for industries with strict regulatory or infrastructure requirements
- Deep integration with Adobe tools like Analytics, Target, and Experience Cloud
Trusted by:
Enterprise and mid-market brands like Nike, Helly Hansen, Moschino, Nestlé, Cox & Cox, Canon, Olympus, Liverpool FC use Adobe Commerce to power complex commerce environments across multiple regions, channels, and customer types.
Adobe Commerce as a Cloud Service (SaaS)
Versionless SaaS built for performance, personalization, and continuous innovation.
Adobe Commerce as a Cloud Service is the latest evolution of the Magento platform—reimagined as a fully managed, versionless SaaS solution. It’s designed for enterprise-grade B2C and B2B eCommerce operations that demand speed, stability, and scalability.
Powered by Adobe’s cloud-native infrastructure, this platform delivers high-speed storefronts that significantly boost organic traffic and conversion rates. It removes the burden of upgrades, patching, and manual maintenance—so teams can focus on growth, not infrastructure.
Why Adobe Commerce SaaS?
- ⚡ Optimized performance: lightning-fast storefront delivery improves SEO, user experience, and conversion
- 🔁 Versionless architecture: new features and security updates are delivered continuously, with no upgrade downtime
- 🧠 AI-powered content & merchandising: built-in generative AI tools enhance product discovery and personalization
- 📦 Scalable catalog management: handle complex data structures and high-SKU volumes with ease
- 💰 Lower total cost of ownership: reduced DevOps, hosting, and operational complexity
- 🔄 Simplified migration path from Adobe Commerce (on-prem/cloud)
🧩 Adobe Commerce Optimizer
For businesses that want the speed and intelligence of Adobe’s frontend experience without replacing their current eCommerce engine Adobe Commerce Optimizer offers a modular alternative. It plugs into any backend system and delivers the same high-performance storefront, merchandising engine, and AI-driven features as the full SaaS platform.
Please Note! This section was written based on Adobe statements about SaaS version and Adobe Optimizer. Adobe Commerce as a Cloud Service and Adobe Commerce Optimizer will be generally available in June 2025.
Magento Open Source vs Adobe Commerce
Which edition fits your business best? Here’s what to consider.
Magento Open Source and Adobe Commerce share the same foundation but serve different business needs. Below are the most common questions we hear and how the two versions compare:
💡What does Adobe Commerce include that Open Source doesn’t?
Adobe Commerce adds a suite of enterprise-grade features out of the box, including:
- Visual merchandiser & content staging
- B2B functionality (company accounts, quotes, shared catalogs)
- Gift cards, store credits, RMA, customer segmentation
- Business Intelligence dashboards
- Adobe integrations (Target, Analytics, Experience Cloud)
- Advanced promotions and customer personalization
These features can be added to Open Source through custom development and third-party modules. Can it be more cost-effective than Adobe commerce? It depends and requires estimation for each case.
💼 Is Open Source only for small businesses?
Not at all. Magento Open Source powers major online retailers, including high-traffic sites like Harbor Freight (40M+ monthly visits). It’s ideal for companies that want full control, prefer custom over prebuilt, or need to align with internal DevOps, security, or hosting policies.
🧩 Can I start on Open Source and upgrade to Adobe Commerce later?
Yes. You can migrate from Open Source to Adobe Commerce (or even to Adobe SaaS) when your business needs evolve. Many companies start with Open Source, validate product-market fit, and upgrade once advanced capabilities (e.g. multi-brand B2B, complex personalization) become a priority. We often recommend this phased approach if:
- You're still validating product-market fit
- You have in-house dev capacity and want cost control
- You plan to scale into B2B or need advanced features in 12–24 months
🔄 Do companies migrate from Adobe Commerce to Magento Open Source?
Yes — and in our experience at Eltrino, we’ve seen more migrations from Adobe Commerce to Open Source than the other way around. While Adobe Commerce offers powerful native features, we’ve worked with several businesses that chose to move back to Open Source due to:
- High recurring license costs that no longer aligned with ROI
- A shift toward custom-built features or headless architecture
- A desire for more control over infrastructure and release cycles
- Replacing Adobe tools with 3rd-party or in-house solutions (e.g., BI, personalization)
For companies with strong internal development capabilities or specific performance/control needs, Open Source can be a better long-term fit — especially if they’re no longer reliant on Adobe-native features.
Some companies also find that as their needs evolve, greater flexibility in choosing their own modules, support strategy, and infrastructure partners becomes more important. Magento Open Source offers the freedom to build and maintain your store without being locked into bundled solutions or pricing structures that may no longer fit.
Migration from Open Source to Adobe Commerce is still a common path when a business needs:
- Faster time-to-market using built-in B2B or content tools
- Deep integration with other Adobe Experience Cloud products
How much does Magento Open Source cost to run?
Magento Open Source is free to use there are no licensing fees. However, you’ll need to budget for:
- Hosting (cloud or on-prem)
- Development and maintenance (in-house or via partner)
- Extensions and third-party tools (optional)
- Ongoing support and optimization You only pay for what you build and host, making it cost-efficient for dev-led teams or those who want full ownership of infrastructure.
What’s the total cost of running Magento Open Source?
| Category | Approximate Cost (per year) |
|---|---|
| Hosting (cloud or VPS) | $500 – $5,000+ |
| Development & Support (partner or in-house) | $15,000 – $100,000+ |
| Extensions / Modules | $500 – $5,000 |
| Maintenance / DevOps | $5,000 – $25,000 |
| Estimated TCO | $20,000 – $130,000+ annually |
| 💡 Ideal for businesses that want full ownership, flexibility, and are comfortable managing or outsourcing development. |
How much does Adobe Commerce cost?
Adobe Commerce pricing is based on your annual gross merchandise value (GMV) and starts at around $22,000/year. The cost includes:
- Software license
- Adobe support
- Access to Commerce-only features (e.g. B2B suite, BI, content staging) If you choose Adobe Commerce Cloud (PaaS), the hosting is included, but you're still responsible for application-level DevOps.
How much does Adobe Commerce cost annually?
Adobe Commerce pricing starts around $22,000/year for smaller businesses (based on GMV) and can exceed $100,000+/year for large enterprises.
| Category | Approximate Cost (per year) |
|---|---|
| Adobe Commerce License | $22,000 – $125,000+ |
| Hosting (self-hosted) | $5,000 – $15,000 (if not on Adobe Cloud) |
| Adobe Commerce Cloud (PaaS) | Included in license (if selected) |
| Development & Support | $25,000 – $150,000+ |
| Maintenance / Extensions | $5,000 – $20,000 |
| Estimated TCO | $50,000 – $250,000+ annually |
| 💡 Adobe Commerce makes sense for businesses needing built-in features like B2B modules, visual merchandising, or Adobe ecosystem integration—and have the GMV to justify the license cost. |
Is Adobe Commerce worth the price?
It depends on your needs. Adobe Commerce justifies the investment if:
- You need complex B2B workflows
- You want faster launch cycles with built-in features
- Your team lacks capacity to build and maintain key functions in Open Source For businesses with advanced needs and revenue scale, the cost often balances out by reducing development time and offering more robust tools out of the box.
💡 At Eltrino, we help merchants assess not just what’s possible with each platform — but what’s sustainable and cost-effective in the long run.
Magento Open Source vs Adobe Commerce – Comparison Table
| Feature / Capability | Magento Open Source | Adobe Commerce (On-Prem / Cloud) |
|---|---|---|
| License Cost | Free | From ~$22K/year (depends on GMV & business size) |
| Hosting | Self-hosted (you choose infrastructure) | Self-hosted or Adobe-managed Cloud (PaaS) |
| Performance | Depends on setup (Hyvä, caching, infra tuning) | Optimized with Fastly CDN & New Relic in Cloud offering |
| Upgrades & Maintenance | Manual | Adobe-managed in Cloud version; still manual On-Prem |
| B2B Features | Not included natively (custom development required) | Included: company accounts, shared catalogs, PO, quotes |
| Content Staging & Visual Merchandiser | Not included | Included |
| Customer Segmentation & Personalization | Not included | Included |
| Built-in BI / Reporting | Basic | Advanced (Adobe Commerce BI tools) |
| Gift Cards, RMA, Store Credits | Not included | Included |
| Multi-site / Multi-brand Support | Yes (fully supported with customization) | Yes (natively supported with admin tools) |
| Third-party Integrations | Supported | Supported |
| Adobe Ecosystem Integration | Not available | Integrated (Adobe Analytics, Target, Experience Cloud) |
| Support | Community support + optional partner SLA | Adobe support included with license |
| Ideal For | Custom-driven projects, dev-led teams, cost control | Enterprise needs, faster time-to-market, feature-rich use cases |