Reviewers note that commercetools’ strength comes with a steeper learning curve and higher costs—both for implementation and ongoing development—while BigCommerce, although more constrained in certain deep customizations, tends to reduce initial development time and has more built-in tools and integrations.
BigCommerce
Feature-rich out of the box even on lower tiers
Good security and reliability
No transaction fees
Limited customization in design and layout
Some features are hidden, documentation or setup can be non-intuitive
Cost scaling / plan thresholds
What is BigCommerce
BigCommerce is an enterprise-capable SaaS ecommerce platform offering rich built-in commerce, SEO, and omnichannel tools that scale with growing businesses, though with some limitations in design flexibility and steep costs at higher tiers.
Usecases for BigCommerce
Growing businesses / mid-market merchants that need built-in features, solid reliability, and a platform that scales without changing stacks.
Commercetools
Microservices-based
Robust enterprise features
Flexible integration
Customization overhead
Less emphasis on content storytelling
Higher costs
What is Commercetools
commercetools is a cloud-native, headless commerce platform that delivers an API-first, microservices-based architecture for building modern, scalable ecommerce solutions. It’s designed to provide complete flexibility by decoupling the backend commerce engine from the frontend presentation layer, allowing companies to create custom digital experiences.
Usecases for Commercetools
Tailored for enterprises looking for a modular, cloud-native commerce platform for complex architectures.
Full
None
Partial
Integration
BigCommerce
Commercetools
Crystallize
Tech
Architecture
Open SaaS, monolithic with optional headless APIs
Microservices
Event based architecture with horizontal scaling
Cloud infrastructure
Google Cloud
GCP / AWS
AWS
API coverage
REST + GraphQL APIs (partial coverage)
REST / GraphQL
GraphQL
Built with
PHP/Node.js backend, GraphQL layer
JavaScript
TypeScript / GraphQL
Security features
PCI DSS Level 1, SSL, MFA, DDoS protection
OAuth2 / PCI DSS
TLS/SSL, DDoS protection, SOC2 compliance
Scalability
Maintenance
Managed
Managed
Customization level
Moderate: theming system + API integrations
Frontend integration
Stencil framework, Next.js & React supported via APIs
Flexible SDKs
Framework-agnostic
AI/Machine learning
Built-in AI product recommendations + third-party
Via extensions
Via third-party
Multitenancy
Book time with an expert to discuss your product universe
BOOK a personalized 1-on-1 demo today, and we’ll show you what makes Crystallize a powerful product story engine and if it is well-suited for your business.
Slack / Community / Dedicated account manager (Enterprise)
Documentation quality
Comprehensive docs, BigCommerce University
Detailed / Developer-focused
Comprehensive, well-organized
Additional resources
Webinars / Training / Growth services
API Documentation / Tutorials / Guides
Livestream videos / API Reference / Developer guides
Community
Community and forums
Large, active merchant community and forums
Growing and Active
Growing and Active (Slack)
Professional training
Certification programs
DISCLAIMER: The comparison pages on this website are based on publicly available information and are intended for informational purposes only. While we strive to provide accurate and up-to-date content , we make no representations or warranties regarding the completeness or accuracy of the information presented. Readers are advised to consult the official websites of the respective platforms for the most current details, as features and specifications are subject to change without notice.
Feature-rich out of the box even on lower tiers
Limited customization in design and layout
Partial
Integration
