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Headless commerce platforms

The best headless commerce platforms in 2026, with payments compared.

The best-known headless commerce platforms are commercetools, Commerce Layer, Medusa, Saleor, Vendure, Elastic Path, Swell, BigCommerce, and Shopify with Hydrogen. Each one leaves card processing to a provider you connect, or sells it on top of a monthly plan. For a US business that wants card processing and automatic US sales tax inside the platform, Flint Pay comes first: no monthly fee, cards at 3.79% + 35¢ with Stripe’s processing included, automatic US sales tax as a 0.50% add-on on taxed payments, and the catalog, inventory, promotions, shipping, returns, subscriptions, and checkout in Flint’s commerce API.

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3.79% + 35¢ on cards · no monthly fee · free sandbox · no credit card

last reviewed 2026-10-15 · sources

01The alternatives

Headless commerce platforms, ranked for US businesses.

Flint first, because it is the only option here with card processing in the price and no monthly plan. Each line is a narrow fit, and every figure is from the vendor's own page, checked on the date under Sources.

  1. 01

    Flint Pay

    US businesses that want the commerce API, card processing, and automatic US sales tax in one hosted account.

    Starts at
    No monthly fee
    Payments
    Included, 3.79% + 35¢
    Sales tax
    Automatic US, 0.50% on taxed payments
  2. 02

    commercetools

    An enterprise commerce engine sold by contract.

    Starts at
    Quote only
    Payments
    Your PSP, through a Checkout add-on
  3. 03

    Commerce Layer

    A headless commerce API with a free developer plan and enterprise pricing above it.

    Starts at
    Free, 100 live orders a month
    Payments
    Your gateway, fees not included
  4. 04

    Medusa

    A TypeScript commerce framework you host yourself or on Medusa Cloud.

    Starts at
    Self-hosted, or Cloud from $29 a month
    Payments
    Your own Stripe account and webhook
  5. 05

    Saleor

    A GraphQL commerce API with a cloud plan priced by GMV band.

    Starts at
    Select, $1,599 a month
    Payments
    Stripe app, your own account
  6. 06

    Vendure

    A TypeScript and GraphQL framework you self-host; paid plans announced October 13, 2026, and Vendure Cloud is planned for Q1 2027.

    Starts at
    Core GPLv3, or €199 a month on a 12-month term
    Payments
    Stripe plugin and webhook you set up
  7. 07

    Elastic Path

    A composable platform sold on annual contracts.

    Starts at
    $49,500 a year, annual minimum
    Payments
    Your PSP
  8. 08

    Swell

    A hosted headless platform priced by plan, with a revenue ceiling on each.

    Starts at
    $29 a month billed yearly, $50,000 ceiling
    Payments
    Your own gateway
  9. 09

    BigCommerce

    A hosted store platform with a Next.js storefront, Catalyst; its June 2026 plans cap sales and upgrade you past the cap.

    Starts at
    $39 a month billed monthly, $30,000 TTM cap
    Payments
    Stripe and other listed providers, or 0.6% to 2% for others
  10. 10

    Shopify with Hydrogen

    Shopify's headless toolkit for the storefront; checkout stays on Shopify.

    Starts at
    $39 a month billed monthly, one headless storefront
    Payments
    Shopify Payments, or 0.2% to 2% for a third-party provider

02Side by side

What the other nine leave to you, and what Flint includes.

The left column summarizes the vendors' own pricing pages and docs, each linked under Sources. The Flint column is what a Flint account does, with the API name behind it.

Card processingThe other nine platforms: A processor you connect on commercetools, Commerce Layer, Medusa, Saleor, Vendure, Elastic Path, and Swell. BigCommerce charges 0.6% to 2% of order GMV, by plan, for a provider outside its embedded list, which includes Stripe. Shopify charges 0.2% to 2%, by plan, when a third-party provider takes the payment instead of Shopify Payments.Flint: Included. Stripe processes every card inside Flint's 3.79% + 35¢, and the payment runs on the order.POST /v1/orders/{order_id}/pay
Published starting priceThe other nine platforms: Quote only at commercetools; Commerce Layer free for 100 live orders a month, then a quote; $29 to $1,599 a month on the published plans; $49,500 a year at Elastic Path.Flint: No monthly fee. Unlimited seats and sandboxes, and every fee itemized per payment.GET /v1/balance-transactions
Automatic sales taxThe other nine platforms: Medusa, Saleor, Commerce Layer, and BigCommerce calculate automatic tax through a provider you connect or build, such as Avalara.Flint: Automatic US sales tax, calculated after discounts and connected once in the Dashboard. 0.50% on payments that carry tax.tax_money
HostingThe other nine platforms: Medusa and Vendure run on servers you operate; Medusa Cloud is a paid plan, and Vendure Cloud is planned for Q1 2027.Flint: Hosted. There is no server, database, or worker to run.POST /v1/orders
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How switching works

03How to choose

How do you choose a headless commerce platform?

Start with what the platform's price leaves out. Four questions separate the options above.

Is card processing part of the price? On most headless platforms it isn’t: you open an account with a processor, connect it, and pay its fees on top. On Flint, Stripe’s processing is inside one published rate.

Who calculates sales tax? Several platforms send tax to a provider you connect, with its own account and bill, or a module you build. Flint calculates US sales tax automatically after discounts.

Who runs the servers? Open-source frameworks put the deploys, upgrades, and database on your team. Flint is hosted.

What does the first month cost? Published floors range from a free developer plan to $49,500 a year, and some vendors publish no price. Flint has no monthly fee.

Medusa vs Saleor vs Vendure →Flint vs Medusa →Saleor alternatives →

04Included

What is in Flint's commerce API?

One hosted API and one dashboard behind any storefront. Each job below is a field or an endpoint, in the core card rate except automatic tax and subscriptions.

Products carry options and variants, plus categories, modifier sets, and bundles.

POST /v1/products

Stock is held per location when payment starts, committed on success, and released on failure.

held_quantity

Codes and automatic promotions stack by rules you set, with a preview call that shows the result first.

combines_with

Automatic US sales tax is calculated after discounts and recorded on every line item and charge.

tax_money

Checkout runs on your own pages with an embedded checkout session and Stripe Elements, or on the hosted page.

POST /v1/checkout-sessions

Shipping prices by region, goes free over a threshold, or switches to in-store pickup or scheduled local delivery.

POST /v1/delivery-methods

Returns run from a policy, with inspections, restocking fees, exchanges, and buyer self-serve.

POST /v1/return-policies

Subscriptions renew as orders, with trials, setup fees, dunning, and buyer pause and skip.

POST /v1/subscription-plans

The commerce API →Build a headless storefront →Flint for AI coding agents →

05Who Flint is for

Flint is built for US businesses with their own storefront or app.

If that describes you, everything above is running the day you create your account.

US businesses

Flint onboards businesses in the US, sells in USD, and pays out to your own bank account. Buyers can pay from anywhere with a card.

Any front end

Next.js, React Router, a mobile app, or any other client that calls your backend. Hosted checkout, payment links, and a buyer account are included.

Goods, services, and subscriptions

Orders that ship, get picked up, deliver locally, or fulfill as a download or a service, and subscriptions that renew as orders.

Developers and agents

A public OpenAPI spec, Node and PHP SDKs, a CLI, llms.txt, and MCP servers a coding agent can read.

06Switching

How do you start a headless store on Flint?

Your storefront calls your backend, and your backend calls Flint. Five calls take you from an empty sandbox to a fulfilled order.

  1. Create the catalog

    POST /v1/products

    Create each product with its options and variants, SKUs, and prices.

  2. Load stock by location

    POST /v1/inventory-items

    Create an inventory item for each tracked variant and set its stock at each location you ship or pick up from.

  3. Hold the cart as an order

    POST /v1/orders

    Create an open order from the buyer's cart; Flint prices each line from your catalog, applies promotions, and computes tax for the address.

  4. Check out

    POST /v1/checkout-sessions

    Create a checkout session and either send the buyer to the hosted checkout or render your own payment step with Stripe Elements.

  5. Fulfill from order.paid

    order.paid

    Run fulfillment from the order.paid webhook, test every flow in a sandbox with Stripe's test cards, then switch to live keys.

Read the headless storefront guide →

07Start

From a sandbox key to a paid test order in ten minutes.

Node

npm install @flintpay/node

CLI

npm install -g @flintpay/cli

Test keys are prefixed flint_test_ and bound to a sandbox with its own data, so nothing you try there touches live money. Pay with 4242 4242 4242 4242, any future expiry, any CVC.

Then read these

  1. 01
    The commerce APIOrders, catalog, tax, and payments in one API
  2. 02
    Medusa vs Saleor vs VendureThe open-source three, side by side
  3. 03
    Shopify Hydrogen alternatives
  4. 04
    BigCommerce alternatives
  5. 05
    Build a headless storefront
  6. 06
    Accept your first payment
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Sources

Where each claim comes from.

  • No published price; contact sales. Order-based pricing; payments through PSPs in the Checkout add-on. commercetools pricing

    commercetools.com · checked 2026-10-15

  • Developer plan free with 100 live orders a month; Enterprise by quote; gateway fees are not included. Commerce Layer pricing

    commercelayer.io · checked 2026-10-15

  • Tax through Avalara, Stripe Tax, TaxJar, or Vertex, or manual or external calculators. Commerce Layer docs: External tax calculators

    docs.commercelayer.io · checked 2026-10-15

  • Medusa Cloud Develop from $29 a month, Launch from $99, Scale from $299. Medusa pricing

    medusajs.com · checked 2026-10-15

  • The Stripe provider takes your Stripe API key and webhook secret and is enabled per region. Medusa docs: Stripe Module Provider

    docs.medusajs.com · checked 2026-10-15

  • Avalara is integrated by creating a custom module with its provider, workflows, and subscribers. Medusa docs: Integrate Avalara

    docs.medusajs.com · checked 2026-10-15

  • Select $1,599 a month up to $200,000 of monthly GMV. Saleor pricing

    saleor.io · checked 2026-10-15

  • Flat rates per country, or dynamic taxes through a tax app such as AvaTax. Saleor docs: Taxes

    docs.saleor.io · checked 2026-10-15

  • October 13, 2026: Starter €199, Growth €599, Scale €2,499 a month on 12-month terms; Core keeps GPLv3; Cloud in closed beta, with a full launch planned for Q1 2027. Vendure: Introducing Vendure plans

    vendure.io · checked 2026-10-15

  • The Stripe plugin needs a webhook, its signing secret, and your API key set up on a payment method. Vendure docs: Stripe plugin

    docs.vendure.io · checked 2026-10-15

  • Entry $49,500 a year for up to 15,000 orders or $5M GMV; annual minimum; any PSP with zero surcharge. Elastic Path pricing

    www.elasticpath.com · checked 2026-10-15

  • Starter $29 a month billed yearly, $50K revenue ceiling on a trailing 12 months, 2% above; gateways you integrate. Swell pricing

    www.swell.is · checked 2026-10-15

  • Core $39 a month billed monthly, up to $30K TTM GMV with automatic upgrades; Open Payment Provider Fee of 2% (Core), 1% (Growth), or 0.6% (Scale) of eligible order GMV, only for providers outside the Embedded Payment Provider list, which includes Stripe. BigCommerce pricing

    www.bigcommerce.com · checked 2026-10-15

  • Automatic tax through Avalara, Vertex, TaxJar, or TaxCloud, with an account at that provider. BigCommerce Help Center: Automatic Tax Setup

    support.bigcommerce.com · checked 2026-10-15

  • Basic $39 a month billed monthly with one headless storefront; Plus from $2,300 with 25; third-party transaction fees when not using Shopify Payments: 2% Basic, 1% Grow, 0.6% Advanced, 0.2% Plus. Shopify pricing (US)

    www.shopify.com · checked 2026-10-15

  • Hydrogen is Shopify's headless toolkit; checkout stays on Shopify. Shopify developer docs: Hydrogen

    shopify.dev · checked 2026-10-15

  • MIT License, except Enterprise Edition materials under a separate license. Medusa: LICENSE

    raw.githubusercontent.com · checked 2026-10-15

  • BSD 3-Clause License. Saleor: LICENSE

    raw.githubusercontent.com · checked 2026-10-15

  • Available under GPLv3 as Vendure Community Edition, or under a commercial license. Vendure: LICENSE

    raw.githubusercontent.com · checked 2026-10-15

last reviewed 2026-10-15 · corrections: Flint Help

FAQ

Questions people ask.

What is the best headless commerce platform?

For a US business that wants one API with payments and automatic US sales tax built in, Flint Pay: no monthly fee, cards at 3.79% + 35¢ with Stripe's processing included, automatic US sales tax as a 0.50% add-on on taxed payments, and the catalog, inventory, promotions, shipping, returns, subscriptions, and checkout behind the same API. commercetools and Elastic Path sell enterprise contracts, Medusa and Vendure are frameworks you host, and Saleor, Swell, BigCommerce, and Shopify charge a monthly plan.

Which headless commerce platforms include payments?

Flint includes card processing in its rate, 3.79% + 35¢, with no monthly plan. Shopify sells Shopify Payments on top of a monthly plan and charges 0.2% to 2%, by plan, when a third-party provider takes the payment instead. BigCommerce works with embedded providers, including Stripe, and charges 0.6% to 2% of order GMV, by plan, for a provider outside that list. commercetools, Commerce Layer, Medusa, Saleor, Vendure, Elastic Path, and Swell connect to a processor you bring and pay separately.

Which headless commerce platforms are open source?

Of the platforms above, Medusa publishes its code under the MIT license, except its Enterprise Edition materials; Saleor under the BSD 3-Clause license; and Vendure under GPLv3, with a commercial license on its paid plans. Each is a framework you run or pay to have hosted, and each connects to a payment processor and a tax engine you set up. Flint is a hosted service with Stripe processing included and automatic US sales tax as an add-on. Medusa vs Saleor vs Vendure

Is Flint a good alternative to Medusa, Saleor, or Vendure?

For a US business that would rather not run or connect a backend, yes. Medusa and Vendure are frameworks you host, and Saleor Cloud starts at $1,599 a month; all three connect to a processor and a tax engine you set up. Flint is hosted, with no monthly fee and Stripe processing included, and automatic US sales tax is a 0.50% add-on on taxed payments. Create an account from the website, or from the terminal with flint signup. Flint vs Medusa

How much do headless commerce platforms cost?

Published starting prices on October 15, 2026: Flint no monthly fee; Commerce Layer free for 100 live orders a month; Medusa Cloud from $29 a month; Swell from $29 a month billed yearly; BigCommerce Core and Shopify Basic $39 a month billed monthly; Vendure from €199 a month on a 12-month term; Saleor Cloud $1,599 a month; Elastic Path $49,500 a year; commercetools by quote. Except on Flint, card processing is paid on top.

Do I have to host a headless commerce platform myself?

Only some. Medusa and Vendure are frameworks you run on your own servers; Medusa Cloud is a paid hosting plan, and Vendure Cloud is planned for Q1 2027. Flint is hosted: your storefront and backend call its API, and there is no commerce server, database, or worker to run.

One commerce API, with the payment included.

Free sandbox, no credit card, no sales call. Create a product with variants, hold a cart as an order with tax, and pay it from your own page.

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Read the headless storefront guide

Or run npm install -g @flintpay/cli && flint signup to create your account and a sandbox key from the terminal. CLI guide

More comparisons · last reviewed 2026-10-15