Which Shopping Cart Should I use?
Last Updated: August 16, 2012
That is a common question that we get when clients call. There are so many shopping carts out there it is hard to know which one to use for your web site. That is why we have written this article to help you know the advantages and disadvantages of each cart. We will be reviewing:
Magento Shopping Cart Review
Spree Commerce Review
Oscommerce Shopping Cart Review
CRE Loaded Shopping Cart Review
Zen Cart Shopping Cart Review
X-Cart Shopping Cart Review
OSC Max Shopping Cart Review
Joomla & Virtuemart Shopping Cart Review
E-commerce Shopping Cart Feature Comparison Chart
It is important to know when selecting your shopping cart what features you need. All the shopping carts below feature the following:
- Customer management
- Product management
- Variety of payment and shipping modules
- Order receipt emails
- Ability to use SSL secure layers for ordering process
However the shopping carts vary when it comes to:
- Time it takes to modify the cart to look like a current web design
- WYSIWYG ability to modify product descriptions using different fonts, colors, etc.
- Ability to import/export from Excel spreadsheet
- Wholesale/Reseller Pricing
In this review we will be going over PHP/MySQL shopping carts that run both Linux and Windows servers. We will not be reviewing pay-per-month shopping carts. We feel these offer less value because they have expensive monthly fees. Also - they usually do not allow access to the source code of the system or much customization of the shopping cart. The following shopping carts below are open-source meaning that you can modify the source code and customize the shopping cart to your needs.
Magento
Website: http://www.magentocommerce.com
Magento is one of the newer shopping carts on the block but has already attracted a large following. The coding is based on the latest PHP 5 object oriented coding standards and the Zend framework.
Advantages +
+ Varian the company who backs the cart is very active in updating the code and fixing bugs
+ Multi-Store Capable
+ Nice default template
+ Free 40 hour developer course at their Magento U website
+ Huge amount of extensions available
Disadvantages -
- Has a steeper learning curve than other shopping carts given its complex nature
Spree
Website:
spreecommerce.com/
Spree is the newest shopping cart we are reviewing. If you are looking to launch a Ruby on Rails E-commerce website this will probably be the shopping cart of choice. This shopping cart is only a couple years old. Given that Ruby on Rails is not quite mainstream yet this shopping cart doesn't quite have the development community as the other shopping carts in our review. But it is actively developed and offers the many advantages that Ruby on Rails will give you - clean code, many gems are available that allow expandability, and the testing features that Ruby on Rails offers. For more details on advantages to using Ruby on Rails please see our blog post on the subject:
http://rental-software-ruby-rails-spree.blogspot.com/2012/08/10-reasons-why-we-switched-to-ruby-on.html
Advantages +
+ Nice looking default templates for admin and customer side
+ Very clean code
+ Great documentation on their website
+ A lot of potential for the future
Disadvantages -
- Newer so has less extensions available than other carts
- Hosting Ruby on Rails is not quite as easy as PHP/MySQL in shared hosting environments
Oscommerce MS 2.2 - The Cart That Started Them All
website:
http://www.oscommerce.com
Oscommerce is the basis for both Zen Cart and CRE Loaded. As such is it is simpler and does not have all of the contributions already added that Zen Cart and CRE Loaded do. It runs well though and is a good back to basics shopping cart.
Advantages +
+ Has the
most available number of contributions and modifications
+ Recent security update brings it up to date with MySQL 5 and PHP 5
Disadvantages -
- It can take a lot of time and money to install all the contributions you want (add-ons)
- No graphic template system meaning it is harder to modify the design
- Note actively updated anymore
CRE Loaded Chain Reaction Edition of Oscommerce
website:
http://www.creloaded.com
CRE Loaded is like Oscommerce but with many more contributions installed. Some of the nice contributions it has are Easy Populate which lets you populate your database from an Excel file, coupon codes, administrator access levels, template system, and an affiliate manager. CRE Loaded also has one of the Oscommerce templating systems installed which allows you to more easily integrate a design into the system and control which information boxes show on the left and right columns.
Advantages +
+ Many contributions from Oscommerce already installed
Disadvantages -
- Contributions from Oscommerce.com can be more difficult to install, but CRE Loaded has many of its own already converted
- Buggy code for some modules like multi vendor shipping
Additional Information
CRE Loaded comes in 3 verisons. The regular version is free. The Pro version adds better product attribute support and credit card encryption, and the B2B version adds seperate pricing level support.
Zen Cart - The Art of E-commerce
website:
http://www.zen-cart.com
Zen Cart has a very nice wide array of features based on Oscommerce but has gone its own path. You can not install contributions directly from the Oscommerce web site onto Zen Cart. Some of the nice features include product attributes managers, template system, html editor for regular web page contents, built in coupon code system, ability to select what credit cards you accept, and more. An issue with Zen Cart right now is the Easy Populate contribution which would let you import products from an Excel sheet does not work yet. So if you need this feature we recommend the other shopping carts.
Advantages +
+ No licensing fees
+ Stable
+ Many contributions from Oscommerce already installed
Disadvantages -
- not possible to use Oscommerce contributions, they must be converted to Zen Cart
- Admin interface is a little messy in certain areas because there are so many contributions installed
X-Cart
website:
http://www.x-cart.com
X-Cart is a commercial package, but one of the most competitively priced and easy to modify.
Advantages +
+ Commercially supported and has very few if any bugs
+ Uses Smarty Templates system which many programmers like to work with for laying out the web site
Disadvantages -
- Licensing fees for system
OSC Max
website:
http://www.oscdox.com
OSC Max is an excellent version of Oscommerce that has many useful contributions installed. It is just as easy to use in the admin as the default Oscommerce installation.
Advantages +
+ No licensing fees
+ The contributions installed are very useful
+ Has wholesale/Reseller pricing module already installed
+ Well-documented
Disadvantages -
- Personal preference - I don't like the mopics image module, you have to separately upload small and large images, but easily fixed by installing on the fly thumbnails module
Joomla & Virtuemart
website:
http://virtuemart.net
Installing and configuring Joomla & Virtuemart together was a snap. On the Virtuemart website they have a combined installer that installs Virtuemart with Joomla. This is the solution you would want if you have to have your CMS (Content Management System) combined with your shopping cart. Joomla we feel is the best CMS out there, but Virtuemart on the other hand is not the best shopping cart system. It is not a bad one though, it is just not as fully featured as the other solutions.
Overall we would say that Virtuemart is about equal with default Oscommerce, but not the loaded versions of Oscommerce: Zen Cart & CRE Loaded.
Advantages +
+ Easy to install
+ Combines well with the best CMS Joomla
+ Has the basic shopping cart features
Disadvantages -
- Lacks a lot of high-end shopping cart features
- Not as many add-on modules available
New Shopping Carts Comparison Chart August 16, 2012
| Cart |
Overall |
Website |
Special Notes |
Cost |
Ext |
Admin Order Creator |
1 Page Order Creator |
Easy To Host |
Quick Books |
Order Customer Import Export |
Nice Admin Template |
Docs |
Active Forums |
Nice Source Code |
| Magento |
 |
Link/ |
Zend |
free |
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
 Huge |
| Prestashop |
|
Link/ |
|
free |
|
 |
|
|
Wegbiligy |
|
|
|
|
|
| Spree |
|
Link/ |
ROR |
free |
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
| OpenCart |
|
Link/ |
pseudo MVC architecture |
free |
|
|
|
|
one is there for $25 looks not that good |
|
|
|
|
|
| Tomato Cart |
source code is bad old OSC stuff |
Link/ |
Offshoot OSC 3.0 |
free |
|
|
|
|
|
|
kinda weird |
|
|
|
| Batavi |
no extensions directory or real website |
batavi.org/ |
Offshoot OSC 3.0 |
free |
none seen |
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
| CS Cart |
paid |
cs-cart.com |
Limited Free Version |
free with paid options |
not really |
|
|
|
expensive third party solution |
|
|
|
|
|
| Virtuemart |
for Joomla sites |
Link/ |
Joomla Based |
free |
Extensions |
|
|
|
Webgiligy |
|
|
|
|
|
Shopping Cart Feature Comparison Chart October 2010
This feature comparison chart compares the out of the box features of each cart. Sometimes a cart will have an available add-on module to install the feature listed.
| |
Magento |
Oscommerce |
CRE Loaded |
Zen Cart |
X-Cart |
OSCMax |
VirtueMart |
| Free |
Yes |
Yes |
Yes, but has pay versions |
Yes |
No |
Yes |
Yes |
| Unlimited Products |
Yes |
Yes |
Yes |
Yes |
Yes |
Yes |
Yes |
| Supports SSL |
Yes |
Yes |
Yes |
Yes |
Yes |
Yes |
Yes |
| Edit Products |
Yes |
Yes |
Yes |
Yes |
Yes |
Yes |
Yes |
| Edit Customers |
Yes |
Yes |
Yes |
Yes |
Yes |
Yes |
Yes |
| Admin Can Edit Products In Order |
Yes |
No |
Yes |
Yes |
Yes |
Yes |
No |
| Spreadsheet Database Upload |
Yes |
No |
Yes |
No |
Yes |
Yes |
No |
| Product Attributes |
Yes |
Yes |
Yes |
Yes |
Yes |
Yes |
Yes |
| Multiple Product Images |
Yes |
No |
Yes |
Yes |
Yes |
Yes |
Yes |
| Coupons |
Yes |
No |
Yes |
Yes |
Yes |
Yes |
No |
| Different Pricing Per Customer Groups |
Yes |
No |
Costs Extra |
Yes |
Yes |
Yes |
Yes |
| Graphic Template System |
Yes |
No |
Yes |
Yes |
Yes |
Yes |
Yes |
| Live Shipping Quotes |
Yes |
Yes |
Yes |
Yes |
Yes |
Yes |
Yes |
| Google Checkout Pre-installed |
Yes |
No |
No |
No |
Yes |
Yes |
No |
| Paypal |
Yes |
Yes, but not IPN |
Yes |
Yes |
Yes |
Yes |
Yes |
| Paypal Pro |
Yes |
No |
No |
Yes |
Yes |
No |
No |
| Content Management System for Informational Pages |
Yes |
No |
Yes |
Yes |
Yes |
Yes |
Yes |
| SEO Tools for meta tags and URLs |
Yes |
No |
Yes, URLs cost extra |
Yes |
Yes |
Yes |
No |
| One Page Checkout |
Yes |
No |
No |
No |
Yes |
No |
No |
| Multi-Lingual Support |
Yes |
Yes |
Yes |
Yes |
Yes |
Yes |
Yes |
| Multi-Currency Support |
Yes |
Yes |
Yes |
Yes |
Yes |
Yes |
Yes |
| Multi-Store Support |
Yes |
No |
No |
No |
Cost Extra |
No |
No |
| Web Hosting Requirements |
Shared Hosting |
Shared Hosting |
Shared Hosting |
Shared Hosting |
Shared Hosting |
Shared Hosting |
Shared Hosting |
| Our Overall Opinion from 1 - 10 |
10 |
6 |
8 |
8 |
8 |
8.5 |
7 |
Final Thoughts
A lot has changed in the shopping cart world in the last few years. People are now looking for a shopping cart that is mobile friendly for example, and that ties into a myriad of add-on services like Email marketing, CRM, and Accounting systems. After reviewing the current state of shopping carts we recomend Magento, Open Cart, PrestaShop, and Spree.
If you decide to go with an Oscommerce based shopping cart which we would recomend against as it is not well-maintained anymore, we recommend that you start with one of the loaded versions - Zencart, CRE Loaded, or OSCmax - in order to save you lots of money on installing additional modules to the plain Oscommerce version. You can then use your development money to put in your own custom modifications, design, etc. rather than installing all of the basics.
Do you need a Rental Software Shopping Cart? or a Magento Rental Booking System? Please visit our partner site Sales Igniter.
Santa Maria Web Developer: WordPress, E-Commerce, Laravel
