Hosted ecommerce
A hosted platform bundles core infrastructure and software management into the service. This reduces hosting and update work but means operating inside the platform's rules and ecosystem.
Self-hosted ecommerce
A self-hosted stack gives you more control over hosting, code and architecture, while placing more maintenance, security and compatibility responsibility on you or your technical team.
Cost is not just the subscription
Hosted pricing is easier to see. Self-hosted software may be inexpensive at the license level but can require hosting, maintenance, developers and extension management.
Decision rule
Choose the model whose ownership burden fits your team. Technical control is valuable only if you have the capability and reason to use it.
Next useful step
Continue with a related guide based on where you are in the decision process.
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