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5 best headless eCommerce platforms for 2022

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The GoCardless content team comprises a group of subject-matter experts in multiple fields from across GoCardless. The authors and reviewers work in the sales, marketing, legal, and finance departments. All have in-depth knowledge and experience in various aspects of payment scheme technology and the operating rules applicable to each. The team holds expertise in the well-established payment schemes such as UK Direct Debit, the European SEPA scheme, and the US ACH scheme, as well as in schemes operating in Scandinavia, Australia, and New Zealand. See full bio

Last editedMar 20232 min read

eCommerce is estimated to make up around a quarter of all global retail shopping by 2025, and to compete in such a space, the platforms you use need to be able to adapt to changing trends and consumer needs. This is why we have seen such a rise in the adoption of headless eCommerce solutions in recent years.

Headless eCommerce refers to a system that separates the front and back end of an eCommerce platform, with the front end being what the customer sees and the back end being everything they don’t see. Whereas more traditional eCommerce solutions combine these two parts of the process for the sake of saving costs and convenience, headless solutions offer far greater flexibility.

This kind of flexibility can allow you to present a more customisable front end that can be changed without sacrificing the functionality of the back end. It also means you can use the same back end among several different front ends if you prefer to use different front ends for different delivery channels. It is the à la carte option of eCommerce systems.

But if you’re putting together your ideal headless eCommerce solution, what menu items are going to give your business the best shot at standing out from the competition and offering a seamless and unique customer experience? Here are the top 5 platforms that we believe can be used in any number of combinations to create the perfect headless eCommerce solution.

Shopify Plus

Arguably the most visible headless eCommerce platform of them all, Shopify is an incredibly stable platform that expanded into headless territory when it launched Shopify Plus in 2014. This offers complete creative control of Shopify’s incredibly flexible front end while allowing you to use whatever back end you desire. The sheer number of apps alone makes Shopify a major contender, and it’s a very user-friendly option for beginners too.

Swell

A US company that specialises in customer experience, the idea behind Swell was to create a more straightforward headless eCommerce solution with an API-first approach to back end management. If you are looking for a back end that operates like a front end with no plugins or coding required, Swell could very well be the back end solution for you. Its customer service, however, is quite limited.

Adobe Commerce

Originally known as Magento, this heavily customisable platform allows developers to create custom applications for their back end solutions. It is a very advanced system that requires a lot of trial and error and knowledge of how inventory management and payments work. The inventory management system with this solution is highly revered, which means it’s a very popular system among merchants with large inventories. It’s also famous for analytics, with advanced data visualisation included as standard.

BigCommerce

Used by both the B2B and B2C sectors, the BigCommerce system was designed for scaling businesses that want to grow at their own pace. It boasts a clean and simple interface and integrations with everything from WordPress to Stripe and eBay. It also has 24/7 customer service and a range of apps so you can customise the experience further.

Whichever platform you choose, shop around and do your research before investing in a final choice. But the beauty of a headless solution is that if you want to try another solution, you can do so without compromising the other end of the process. So don’t be afraid to experiment until you find the headless eCommerce solution that’s perfect for your business.

As a payment platform with both instant and recurring payment options, GoCardless is an ideal system to use with your ecommerce store to collect payments. GoCardless offers businesses a global payment solution based on bank-to-bank payment methods. We use Direct Debit and Open Banking to collect payments directly from your customer’s bank account.

By avoiding card payments, businesses benefit from more affordable fees, easy automation, and enhanced anti-fraud intelligence.

It’s easy to receive single transactions, for example on your invoices, website, or in emails, as well as collect payments on a recurring basis (like subscriptions, or membership fees.)

We can help

GoCardless is a global payments solution that helps you automate payment collection, cutting down on the amount of financial admin your team needs to deal with. Find out how GoCardless can help you with one-off or recurring payments.