Vendure vs Medusa(2026)
Vendure is better for teams that need typescript-first developer experience. Medusa is the stronger choice if open source and self-hostable. Vendure is open-source and Medusa is free.
Full feature breakdown, pricing details, and pros & cons below.
Affiliate disclosure: Some “Visit” links on this page are affiliate links. We may earn a commission if you sign up — at no extra cost to you. It does not affect our rankings or editorial coverage. Learn more.
Vendure
Vendure is an open source headless e-commerce framework built with TypeScript, NestJS, and GraphQL for developer-first commerce.
Visit VendureMedusa
Medusa is an open-source headless commerce engine that gives developers full control over their ecommerce stack.
Visit MedusaHow Do Vendure and Medusa Compare on Features?
| Feature | Vendure | Medusa |
|---|---|---|
| Pricing model | open-source | free |
| Starting price | Free | Free |
| TypeScript + NestJS | ✓ | — |
| GraphQL API | ✓ | — |
| Plugin system | ✓ | ✓ |
| Multi-channel | ✓ | — |
| Payment plugins | ✓ | — |
| Customizable | ✓ | — |
| Headless commerce | — | ✓ |
| REST + GraphQL APIs | — | ✓ |
| Multi-region | — | ✓ |
| Multi-currency | — | ✓ |
| Customizable workflows | — | ✓ |
Vendure Pros and Cons vs Medusa
V
Vendure
+TypeScript-first developer experience
+Highly extensible plugin system
+Modern stack (NestJS)
+Self-host free
−Steeper learning curve
−Smaller community than Medusa
−Self-hosting required
M
Medusa
+Open source and self-hostable
+Full developer control
+Node.js/TypeScript native
+No vendor lock-in
−Requires engineering resources
−Smaller ecosystem than Shopify
−No hosted option for free
Should You Use Vendure or Medusa?
Choose Vendure if…
- •TypeScript-first developer experience
- •Highly extensible plugin system
- •Modern stack (NestJS)
Choose Medusa if…
- •Open source and self-hostable
- •Full developer control
- •Node.js/TypeScript native