Shopware vs PrestaShop
Shopware is a German open-core platform with tiered plans that start at EUR 600 a month and scale with gross merchandise value. PrestaShop is a French open-source shop you download for free or rent hosted from EUR 24 a month. The gap is mostly budget and scope: Shopware aims at complicated catalogues, PrestaShop at a store you can stand up and run cheaply.
Sebastiaan SmitsFounderVendors can pay for more visibility on this website, for example a higher place in a ranking or more room on a page. Commercial relationships can also affect which products we feature and how prominently. Every vendor link is marked the same, whatever the arrangement behind it. How that works.
Choose Shopware ifyou have a complicated catalogue with B2B and tax rules, a budget for an implementation partner, and you want an MIT-licensed core.
Choose PrestaShop ifyou want a low fixed monthly cost or a free self-hosted download, and you can vet modules and handle version upgrades yourself.
Shopware and PrestaShop side by side
| Shopware | PrestaShop | |
|---|---|---|
| Our ecommerce platform rank | #6 of 14 | #5 of 14 |
| Established in | Germany | France |
| List price, 4 November 2026 | Community Edition EUR 0; Rise from EUR 600 and Evolve from EUR 2,400 per month excl. VAT, based on GMV | Classic download free; Hosted EUR 29 per month, or EUR 24 per month billed annually (EUR 290 a year), excl. VAT |
| Free tier | Yes | Yes |
| Open source | Yes | Yes |
| Self-hostable | — | Yes |
| Built for | A complex European catalogue with B2B and tax rules to model | A European store that wants commerce as the core, self-hosted |
| Not for | A small store without a development budget | A team that cannot vet modules or manage upgrades |
Both are reviewed in full in our ecommerce platform ranking: Shopware and PrestaShop.
Where they differ
Shopware 1 · PrestaShop 2 · open 1- 01
What you pay each month
Shopware's Community Edition costs EUR 0, then Rise starts at EUR 600 and Evolve at EUR 2,400 a month excluding VAT, with pricing tied to GMV. PrestaShop's hosted offer is EUR 29 monthly or EUR 24 a month on an annual EUR 290 bill. For a modest store the difference is more than twenty-fold.
Edge: PrestaShop
- 02
The free tier and its ceiling
Both let you start without a licence fee. Shopware's Community Edition carries a fair usage rule: once linked shops pass EUR 1 million GMV over 365 days, a paid plan is required. PrestaShop's downloadable Classic edition states no such revenue threshold on the page we read.
Edge: PrestaShop
- 03
Source code and licence
Shopware 6's core repository on GitHub is released under the MIT License. PrestaShop's core is under OSL-3.0 and its modules under AFL-3.0. Both publish their code, but MIT is the more permissive of the two, which matters if you plan to build proprietary extensions.
Edge: Shopware
- 04
Hosting choices and support
Shopware offers SaaS, PaaS or self-hosting, with Rise adding direct support and Evolve phone access, though no hosting country is named. PrestaShop's hosted plan gives 50 GB of storage through Gandi and support six days a week by email, chat or phone. Shopware offers more deployment routes; PrestaShop is simpler to understand.
Depends on the buyer
When neither fits
If you want a shop as a plugin on an existing WordPress site, or a German platform with a different footprint, neither is the obvious fit. WooCommerce and OXID eShop are the two alternatives to check in our ecommerce ranking.
Shopware or PrestaShop: questions
3 answersIs Shopware free?
The Community Edition is free with community support, but a paid plan is required once linked shops exceed EUR 1 million GMV in 365 days. B2B Components come with Evolve, from EUR 2,400 a month.
What does PrestaShop hosted cost?
EUR 29 per month excluding VAT on a monthly plan, or EUR 24 per month billed annually as EUR 290 a year, with a 14-day trial.
Which company is based where?
Our data lists Shopware as Germany (shopware AG, Schoeppingen) and PrestaShop as France (PrestaShop SA, Paris). Neither legal notice names a parent company.
Sources
Checked 4 November 2026- Shopware pricing: Community Edition, Rise and Evolve starting prices, GMV basis, EUR 1 million fair usage threshold, support levels.
- Shopware Cloud page: SaaS, PaaS and self-hosted options, no named hosting country.
- Shopware core repository: MIT License.
- Shopware legal notice: shopware AG in Schoeppingen, Germany, no parent named.
- PrestaShop hosted offer: EUR 29 monthly, EUR 24 annual (EUR 290), 14-day trial, 50 GB via Gandi, support six days a week.
- PrestaShop licence file: core OSL-3.0, modules AFL-3.0.
- PrestaShop legal notice: PrestaShop SA, Paris, France, no parent named.