Magento Open Source vs Adobe Commerce: Which Version Do You Need?
Adobe rebranded Magento Commerce to Adobe Commerce in 2021, but the underlying platform is the same. The choice between Open Source (free) and Adobe Commerce (licensed) is one of the first and most consequential decisions in a Magento project.
| Feature | Magento Open Source | Adobe Commerce (Cloud) |
|---|---|---|
| Licence cost | Free (infrastructure cost only) | Annual licence based on GMV (approx. 200k–1M+ SEK/year) |
| Hosting | Self-managed (AWS, Azure, etc.) | Adobe-managed cloud (Fastly CDN included) |
| B2B module | Not included — requires third-party | Included: company accounts, shared catalogs, quotes, PunchOut, requisition lists |
| Page Builder | Not included | Included — drag-and-drop content editing |
| Content Staging | Not included | Included — schedule price rules, content, promotions |
| Adobe integrations | Custom work required | Native: Adobe Analytics, Adobe Target, Sensei AI |
| Support | Community only | Adobe enterprise support included |
| Best for | Mid-market merchants, tight budgets, high customisation | Large merchants, B2B complexity, procurement integration |
For most Swedish mid-market merchants (GMV under 100M SEK), Magento Open Source with Hyva Theme delivers excellent results at significantly lower cost. Adobe Commerce becomes compelling when you need the native B2B module, Content Staging, or tight Adobe Experience Cloud integration.
Hyva Theme: The Modern Standard for Magento 2
The legacy Luma theme that ships with Magento 2 is notoriously slow and difficult to customise. It was built on KnockoutJS — a framework that predates modern frontend development practices — and produces poor Core Web Vitals scores that directly harm both SEO and conversion rates.
Hyva Theme, released in 2021 and now the dominant choice for new Magento 2 projects, solves this by replacing the entire frontend stack with Alpine.js and Tailwind CSS. The results are dramatic:
- LCP (Largest Contentful Paint): Typically improves from 4–8 seconds on Luma to under 2 seconds on Hyva
- Total Blocking Time: Reduces by 80–95% — critical for INP and perceived responsiveness
- Page weight: Often 60–70% smaller JavaScript bundle
- Developer velocity: Significantly faster to build and customise — Tailwind utilities replace complex Less/CSS inheritance
For any new Magento 2 project starting today, Hyva is the right default choice. Dahlquist has implemented Hyva across multiple merchant categories — B2B, B2C and D2C — and consistently sees 2–5x performance improvements over Luma baseline.
Hyva vs Headless Magento
Headless Magento (using the GraphQL API with a React or Next.js frontend) offers maximum frontend flexibility but comes with significantly higher development cost, ongoing maintenance complexity and the need for SSR infrastructure. Hyva delivers 90% of the performance and flexibility of headless at a fraction of the cost. We recommend headless only when you have a specific UX requirement that Hyva genuinely cannot fulfil.
Common Magento Challenges — and How Experienced Developers Solve Them
Slow performance
Root cause is almost always misconfigured FPC (Varnish or built-in), unoptimised quote collection queries, too many extensions loading JS, or missing Redis configuration. Fix: profile first, then target the actual bottleneck — not a generic "performance optimisation" pass.
Extension conflicts
Magento's dependency system means extension conflicts are common. Signs: 500 errors after updates, broken checkout, missing functionality. Fix: audit extension code quality before purchase, use a staging environment for all extension updates, pin versions in composer.json.
ERP integration complexity
Business Central, SAP and Jeeves integrations require careful data mapping — especially for pricing, customer-specific discounts and inventory. The most common failure point is sync frequency design: too often creates load, too rarely creates data inconsistency. Design the right event-driven vs polling pattern for each data type.
Magento 1 to Magento 2 migration
M1 to M2 is a full re-implementation. Custom modules cannot be ported — they must be rebuilt. The data migration tool handles products, customers and orders but requires significant configuration. Budget 4–10 months. The biggest risk is underestimating custom logic that was in M1 extensions.
B2B module configuration
Adobe Commerce B2B has powerful features — company hierarchies, shared catalogs, quote negotiation, PunchOut — but configuration is complex. Shared catalog performance degrades significantly at high product counts if not indexed correctly. Quote workflows need careful UX design to match buyer expectations.
Upgrade and version management
Staying current with Magento 2.x security patches and major releases requires systematic dependency management. Extension compatibility is the primary blocker — one incompatible extension can block an entire upgrade. Dahlquist manages upgrades with staged testing, composer lock file discipline and a rollback plan for every release.
Magento ERP Integration: Business Central, SAP, Jeeves and More
ERP integration is where most Magento projects are won or lost. A well-designed integration makes the webshop a true extension of the business — orders flow automatically, stock is accurate in real-time, and customer pricing is always correct. A poorly designed integration creates a maintenance nightmare of manual corrections and data reconciliation.
Integration architecture patterns
- Direct API integration — Magento connects directly to the ERP's REST/SOAP API. Simple and low-latency, but creates tight coupling. Works well for ERPs with robust, well-documented APIs (Business Central, SAP).
- iPaaS middleware — A middleware platform (Boomi, MuleSoft, Make, Alumio) sits between Magento and the ERP, handling transformation, error management and retry logic. Recommended for complex integrations with high data volume or multiple systems.
- Custom integration service — A purpose-built microservice handles the integration logic. Maximum flexibility and performance, but requires ongoing maintenance.
ERP systems we integrate with Magento
Microsoft Dynamics 365 Business Central SAP S/4HANA SAP Business One Jeeves ERP Visma Business Fortnox Monitor G5 Pyramid
Magento Implementation Process at Dahlquist
Discovery and technical architecture
Define scope, integration map, data model, performance requirements and extension selection before writing code. Poor architecture decisions are the most expensive kind — they compound for the entire project lifetime.
Environment and DevOps setup
Configure local development (Docker/Warden), staging and production environments. Define the CI/CD pipeline, code review process, deployment workflow and rollback procedure. For Adobe Commerce Cloud, configure branch strategy, Fastly rules and environment variables.
Theme and frontend development
Implement Hyva Theme with custom design. We deliver responsive, accessible, Core Web Vitals-optimised frontend code reviewed against Magento coding standards.
Custom module and integration development
Build custom Magento modules for business logic that cannot be covered by extensions. Build and test ERP integration — data mapping, sync logic, error handling, retry mechanisms and monitoring.
Performance testing and Core Web Vitals review
Load testing, FPC verification, Lighthouse scoring and manual Core Web Vitals measurement before launch. Performance problems discovered after launch are far more expensive to fix than before.
Launch and hypercare
Controlled launch with rollback plan, real-time monitoring and rapid-response support. We do not disappear after go-live.
Frequently Asked Questions about Magento and Adobe Commerce
What is the difference between Magento Open Source and Adobe Commerce?
Magento Open Source is the free self-hosted version. Adobe Commerce is the enterprise edition — it adds B2B features (company accounts, shared catalogs, quotes, PunchOut), Content Staging, Page Builder and the option of Adobe-managed cloud hosting. Adobe Commerce requires an annual licence fee based on GMV.
What is Hyva Theme and should I use it?
Hyva is a modern Magento 2 frontend built with Alpine.js and Tailwind CSS that replaces the legacy Luma theme. It typically improves page load times 2–5x and dramatically reduces Total Blocking Time. For any new Magento 2 project, Hyva is the right default — it delivers near-headless performance at a fraction of the cost.
How much does a Magento implementation cost?
A mid-complexity Magento 2 implementation (Hyva theme, ERP integration, standard B2C features) typically costs 500,000–1,500,000 SEK. Adobe Commerce licence adds 200,000–1,000,000+ SEK per year. Complex B2B implementations with PunchOut and multi-store can exceed 2,000,000 SEK. We give honest estimates early — we have no interest in overselling scope.
How do I migrate from Magento 1 to Magento 2?
M1 to M2 is a full re-implementation — not an upgrade. The process: audit M1 customisations, select a new theme (Hyva), rebuild custom modules for M2 architecture, migrate data (products, customers, orders), rebuild ERP integrations, and run parallel testing before cutover. Budget 4–10 months depending on complexity.
Why is my Magento store slow?
Slow Magento stores are almost always caused by: misconfigured Varnish/FPC, unoptimised quote collection queries, too many JS-heavy extensions, or missing Redis configuration. Profile first to find the actual bottleneck — then target it specifically. Generic "performance optimisation" work without profiling is wasted effort.
Can Magento handle B2B e-commerce?
Yes — Adobe Commerce B2B is one of the strongest B2B e-commerce platforms available. It supports company accounts with multiple buyers, shared catalogs with customer-specific pricing, quote negotiation, PunchOut (cXML/OCI) for procurement systems, requisition lists and purchase order approval workflows. Magento Open Source can also support B2B with the right extension selection, though without the same depth of native features.