Item: Magento Open Source
Rating: 7
Author: .Kim Murphy

Overall Satisfaction with Magento Open Source

Use Cases and Deployment Scope

We use the open-source version of Magento for many of our web design clients who want a fast and affordable eCommerce platform with some flexibility is its customization potential. The open-source code allows us to customize the features and functionality of the shopping cart so they work in specific ways the client may require. Online purchasing is made simple and affordable from the client's point of view.

Pros and Cons

Pros

Magento is perfect if our web design client likes a specific pre-made template and wants a fast solution.
Magento allows us to customize its open-source code to create additional features and functionality.
Magento saves small businesses time and money if they only need a simple solution.

Cons

Magento is not easy for a layman who is not tech-savvy to manage the website.
Magento is one of the only modern shopping carts in which one must manually clear the cache and "reindex".
Magneto has a lot of technical glitches - more than most of the other shopping carts we work with. Most are minor.

Return on Investment

Magneto improves our client's ROI by streamlining online orders and payments.
Bulk catalog changes via .csv files enhance productivity and management time.
Magento's compatibility with QuickBooks improves ROI by improving efficiency.

Alternatives Considered

OpenCart and Shopify

OpenCart is a better shopping cart platform then Magento for larger corporate clients who may want a ton of customizations and very specific functionality. Although Magento is "open-source", its code is not as easy to understand and modify as OpenCart. Shopify is a better platform then Magento only for smaller sites which only have a few products to sell, and are very low budget. Some of the simple startup Shopify layouts look better and are both easier and quicker to setup then Magento. For Medium businesses, Magento is a good solution.

Other Software Used

OpenCart, CakePHP, ASP.NET

Likelihood to Recommend

Magento Open Source is well suited for small or medium-sized businesses who don't have a lot of money or time to start their online store. If our web design client can select a specific pre-made template beforehand, and they do not want a ton of complex or extremely specific functionalities, then we suggest Magento Open Source to the client. If the client is a large retailer wanting very specific features, then OpenCart or complete custom code might be a better choice.

Magento Open Source Feature Ratings

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Use Magento Open Source If You Are A Medium-Sized Business Who Wants A Simple And Affordable Website