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Why people choose OpenCart
It installs in minutes on the cheapest shared hosting, the admin is simple enough for anyone, and there are thousands of low-cost extensions. For a very small catalogue with simple prices and a founder doing everything themselves, that is a rational choice and we would not argue with it.
Where the ceiling is
The extension quality varies wildly, many rely on modifying core behaviour, and the architecture was never designed for the kind of integration a B2B business needs. Once you want ERP sync, per-customer pricing and a search that handles part numbers, you are writing most of it yourself against a codebase that does not want to help you.
The real cost of 'cheap'
We have migrated shops off OpenCart where the accumulated custom patching cost more than a Shopware licence would have over five years. The platform did not cost money; the workarounds did. That bill arrives slowly and nobody notices which line item started it.
When OpenCart is right
Under 500 products, one price for everyone, no ERP, no team, and a business that is not planning to double. If any one of those is false in your three-year plan, do not start here — the migration later costs more than the difference today.
| Criterion | Shopware 6 | OpenCart |
|---|---|---|
| Setup effort | Project | Minutes |
| Hosting | Real server | Shared hosting |
| Extension quality | Reviewed store | Highly variable |
| ERP integration | Designed for it | DIY |
| Growth ceiling | High | Low |
- OpenCart is right under ~500 products with one price for everyone.
- Free platform, expensive workarounds.
- If your 3-year plan breaks the ceiling, do not start here.
Frequently asked questions
For a very small catalogue with one price for everyone, no ERP and a founder doing everything themselves — yes, and we would not argue with it. It installs in minutes on the cheapest hosting and the admin needs no training. The honest boundary is roughly 500 products, no customer-specific pricing, and a business that is not planning to double.
Because the platform costs nothing and the workarounds cost everything. Extension quality varies, many modify core behaviour, and each patch makes the next update harder. We have moved shops off OpenCart where five years of accumulated patching had cost more than a licence would have. That bill arrives slowly, and nobody can point at the line item that started it.
You will write most of it yourself, against a codebase that was not designed to help. There is no extension model that keeps your changes safe across updates, so ERP sync, per-customer prices and a search that copes with part numbers become custom code fighting the core. It is possible. It is just the most expensive way to get there.
When the workarounds have become the system. If updates get avoided because someone patched the core, if a new requirement means touching code nobody understands, or if the three-year plan contains an ERP or a second customer group, the migration is cheaper now than later. If none of that is true, stay. Migrating a healthy small shop is spending money to feel modern.
We do this for a living — Shopware, Node.js, React, ERP integration and automation for B2B.
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