Magento and osCommerce
– a comparison between two e-commerce platforms

Martin Valera

Abstract

The thesis compares and evaluates open source e-commerce platforms Magento and osCommerce by constructing two similar web applications. osCommerce has been a trendsetter for the last decade whilst Magento is a relatively new, fast-growing platform devouring market-shares from its competitors. The evaluation is based on technical aspects, usability and functionality from a small-firm perspective.

Results indicate that Magento is a more powerful alternative from a technical standpoint based on stability and system architecture, however, some usability issues are identified as a cause of the extensive functionality. osCommerce is a less complex platform with some issues concerning primarily architecture and design but has a administration tool with a high level of usability.