Magento has two versions. Since the launch of Magento 2, this is the standard free version Magento Open Source (formerly Community). But there is also a paid variant: the Magento Commerce (previously Enterprise) version. This is the commercial version with corresponding licensing costs. But what are the main differences between these two versions? And how do you know which one suits you best? Difficult! Especially when you have to find out for yourself without technical knowledge. But I’d like to help you with that. In this blog article, I list the properties perversion for you.

Magento Open Source

Previously this version was called Magento Community. The version is free for everyone to download. Then you can start immediately after installation. The biggest advantage of this open source solution compared to a SaaS solution (Software as a Service), where you depend on the provider for further development, is the large degree of freedom that this offers. In addition, many functionalities worldwide are being developed for this version by many developers. And in addition, this free version already offers many options as standard, for example:

• A responsive webshop
• Dashboard with bestsellers, live sales overview and the average order value
• Content management
• Promotional options, such as discount codes and abandoned shopping cart overviews
• Product & catalog management
• Sales overviews, including insight into invoices, shipments, and payments

Sounds good, right? And yes, we do know that every webshop, situation, and customer is unique. That is why it is also possible to solve certain specific requirements through customization or available plug-ins.

Magento Commerce

During Magento 1 this edition had the name Magento Enterprise. Incidentally, not only the name has changed, the earnings model is different. Previously you paid a fixed $ 18,000 per year per server. At Magento 2 Commerce price agreements are made per customer on the basis of the annual turnover. But why would you choose an edition for which you have to pay license fees every year? Our advice is certainly to consider that well. Are you a relatively small E-commerce player with a turnover of less than $ 5,000,000 per year? Then you can work fine with the open source variant. Of course, there is a gray area and it is situation dependent. But are you looking for a directive? Then use a turnover of $ 5 million per year as a turning point. But fun (or not) that license costs; what do you get in return?

Support

You receive technical support from Magento. At least your developers receive that support. Especially useful in the case of technical challenges that are solved more efficiently. You also have a permanent account manager at your disposal. This will keep you informed of important releases.

Features

The complete feature list is quite long and can be downloaded in full through Magento.com. Below is a selection of, in our opinion, interesting functionalities:

• First of all you can easily determine price promotions per store, product category, consumer segments or product. Especially useful for temporary promotional periods
• A rewards points module is available. Allows you to give customers points for completing a particular activity. Think of filling in a review or creating an account. You can then decide for yourself what the customer receives in exchange for his or her points.
• You can easily use graduated prices or discounts.
• Manage multiple websites and stores from 1 admin. From here, multiple rights and roles can be assigned. Handy when you have multiple labels. In addition, all user activities are logged, so that it can be determined who has made a certain change.
• The option of return credits. This is a possibility to give a discount or a voucher when an item is returned.
• You can determine a minimum or maximum number of products that can be added to the shopping cart.
• The options for generating interesting data reports such as: best-selling products, coupon usage, best viewed products and low inventory.
• Strongly improved search engine via Solr or Elastic search.

Mobile Software Development Kit

Do you have plans for developing an app? Then this option is a nice extra! For both Android and IOS this function is available, making it easier and faster to develop a native app.

Magento 2 Commerce B2B features

And there is more! For Magento 2 Commerce is not just about individual functionalities, but about the whole. Every functionality can also be custom developed. But honest? It is only really interesting to buy Magento Commerce license when you sell B2B. This is because a large number of interesting features are available as standard. I will list the most important features for you:

• Commerce offers the possibility to create customer profiles for companies.
• An organization can create multiple users via the main account. A company structure can also be created, so teams or departments get their own environment. Users and rights can then be determined for each user.
• It is possible to set a credit limit per customer (group). The company can then order on account up to the set limit.
• A different range can be determined for each company by setting up a company-specific catalog.
• Customer-specific prices can be set. Handy in case there are differences in price, for example due to volume discounts.
• Customers have the option to request quotations through their account. All customer communications can also be consulted here. As an administrator, you can easily create, adjust and manage quotations.
• Quick order functionality allows quick order lists to be uploaded or repeat orders placed.

Conclusion

The Magento Commerce version is really interesting for B2B platforms! When you only sell B2C, you can do well with the open source edition. If you intend to use multiple specific Commerce features, it may be worthwhile to purchase the paid version. Therefore always work out two scenarios. What are the costs for Open Source with customized functionalities versus the costs of Commerce? And how long do you want to progress with your new platform? Set 6 years, then you can write off the customization functionalities over these 6 years. Do you want re-platforms in three years? Then your choice may be completely different. Seeking advice from E-commerce specialists is of course always a good idea. So please contact me if you have any questions. The coffee is ready!

What does a Magento website cost? Usually it is one of the many common questions that I hear during a conversation.

I try to give an appropriate answer so that anyone who is not familiar with the online world gets an idea of how much work and money it costs. In this article I write about the components that determine the costs of a Magento website.

Magento website

The costs of a Magento website start from € 3000. Here you get a website built on the basis of an existing Magento template.

A website made with more attention to design and development starts from € 3,000 and can amount to € 20,000 – € 100,000.

Read more about let Magento making | Magento B2B website or Magento 2

To map the costs we will go through 9 steps:

Magento Community of Enterprise

Magento community is free and anyone can download it from the official Magento website . Magento Enterprise has annual license fees. In this article I focus on Magento Community.

Custom design or based on a template

Do you want a unique website? A tailor-made design can achieve the desired result. For this, a designer must receive a briefing, create wire frames and then design the final visual designs in Photoshop, Sketch or Illustrator.

These designs are then developed by a developer. In contrast, you can opt for existing Magento templates from € 100. However, these templates can also be used by your competitors.

Magento Installation & configuration

Magento must be installed on a server. For this it is important to go through the right installation for a stable Magento website.

Unlike WordPress, Magento has an extensive back-end where various components have to be configured. Think of setting up e-mails, VAT, and various links.

Extra functionalities

Does your target group have a certain wish that is not standard available in Magento? Then you can use existing extensions.

If the right extensions are not available, they must be developed to suit your needs. Custom development is expensive. Developing a simple extension can easily take 1-2 days.

However, there are hundreds of extensions that contain useful functionalities. Think of ” One Step Checkout ” and ” Improved Layered Navigation”.

Magento extensions

Extension costs vary. A simple extension starts from € 100 and can be up to € 1,000 euros. The number of extensions you want to use in your website will determine the costs of the website.

Links and integrations

In addition to linking the website with payment methods such as iDeal and Credit Cards, Magento can also be linked to other systems. Think of linking with PostNL or a fulfillment company.

Magento can also be linked to ERP packages, such as Exact, SAP, Afas, Microsoft Dynamics and more. These integrations start from a fixed amount per month or a one-time implementation amount and annual fee.

Add product data

Would you like to import your products from another system to Magento? This is extra work to import and test. Depending on the data supplied, a developer can be busy for about 1-2 days.

Hosting

Not every hosting is suitable for Magento. A fast and secure hosting for Magento starts from € 30- € 100. This can increase depending on the number of visitors to the website and the space needed for products.

Maintenance and updates

Your Magento website needs maintenance. Think of installing security patches, updates and other things that improve your website.

Are you looking for a team of Magento experts? Do you want to have a Magento website made?

We are Elitech Systems. A team of Magento Experts. We are happy to help you! Feel free to contact us to get acquainted.