Medusa vs Shopify Plus: Headless Commerce You Own vs Enterprise SaaS
Medusa is an open-source, MIT-licensed commerce engine you can self-host with no platform or GMV fees; Shopify Plus is Shopify’s enterprise plan, starting at $2,300 per month on a three-year term. Shopify Plus is faster to launch and has a huge app ecosystem. Medusa wins when your commerce logic is unusual — B2B pricing, marketplaces, subscriptions, complex catalogs — or when you want to own the backend and stop paying a platform tax on revenue.
Prices are vendor list prices as of September 2026 — see sources below. Updated .
Medusa vs Shopify Plus at a glance
| Dimension | Medusa | Shopify Plus |
|---|---|---|
| Licensing | MIT (excluding marked Enterprise Edition materials) | Proprietary SaaS |
| Platform price | Self-hosted: no license fee. Medusa Cloud from $29, $99, or $299/month | From $2,300/month (3-year term) or $2,500/month (1-year term) |
| Revenue-based fees | None — 0% GMV fee on Medusa Cloud | Variable platform fee for higher-volume businesses; 0.20% per transaction with a third-party gateway |
| Architecture | Headless — any frontend, fully customizable backend | Hosted platform with Liquid themes or headless via Hydrogen |
| Custom commerce logic | Unrestricted — modify modules and workflows in code | Within Shopify Functions, apps, and API limits |
| Speed to launch | Slower — requires development | Fast — themes and apps out of the box |
| Ecosystem | Growing set of plugins and integrations | Thousands of apps and agencies |
The honest answer
Choose Medusa if…
- You need B2B pricing, marketplace, subscription, or catalog logic Shopify cannot model cleanly
- Revenue-linked platform fees are a significant cost at your volume
- You want full control of the backend, checkout logic, and data
- You have a development team or partner to build and maintain it
Choose Shopify Plus if…
- You are a direct-to-consumer brand with standard catalog and checkout needs
- Speed to launch matters more than flexibility
- You want a large app ecosystem without custom development
- You do not have, or want, engineering resources for your store
A worked example
Shopify Plus at its lowest listed rate ($2,300 per month on a three-year term) is $27,600 a year before any variable platform fee, app subscriptions, or the 0.20% fee that applies when you use a third-party payment gateway. Medusa has no license or GMV fee: you pay for hosting — from $29 to $299 a month on Medusa Cloud, or your own infrastructure — plus the cost of building and maintaining the store.
Run your own numbers in the cost calculator →What migration involves
Products, variants, customers, and order history can be exported from Shopify and imported into Medusa. The real work is rebuilding the storefront and re-implementing what Shopify apps were doing for you — reviews, subscriptions, search, and so on — either with Medusa plugins or custom modules. URL redirects must be mapped carefully to protect search rankings during the move.
If you decide to switch
Medusa deployment & customization
We deploy Medusa on your own cloud, customize it to your workflow, and migrate your data.
Custom Inventory & Order Management Software
Custom inventory and order management software for multi-location stock, purchasing, fulfillment, and reorder rules that fit how you operate.
Medusa vs Shopify Plus — common questions
Is Medusa a good alternative to Shopify Plus?+
How much does Shopify Plus cost compared to Medusa?+
Does Medusa charge transaction fees?+
Will moving from Shopify to Medusa hurt our SEO?+
Sources
Vendor pricing changes. Figures reflect each source as of September 2026; check the vendor before deciding.
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