Software · head to head
Magento vs Printful
The short version
- Each has a real cost: Magento magento Open Source is available under the OSL v3 license as a free self-hosted edition, but Adobe sells a separate proprietary Adobe Commerce edition with additional B2B, page builder and cloud features not included in the open source code; Printful the Growth plan is $24.99 a month and only becomes free once a store reaches $12,000 a year in sales
- They diverge on capability: Magento covers Multi-store management, Printful covers Print on demand.
Where they differ
Only the attributes on which Magento and Printful actually diverge.
Identical on both: starting price (Free), free tier (Yes), platforms (Web), user rating (Not yet rated), category (Unknown).
What each one covers
Drawn from each product's published feature list. An absence here means we hold no record of it - not that the product lacks it.
Only in Magento
- Multi-store management
- Advanced product catalog
- Customer segmentation
- Order management system
- Inventory management
- Progressive Web App
- GraphQL API
- Security & compliance
Only in Printful
- Print on demand
- Custom products
- Dropshipping
- Automated fulfillment
- Quality control
- Inventory sync
- Bulk orders
- Designer tool
What people use each for
The jobs each tool is most often brought in to do.
Magento
No use cases recorded yet. See the Magento review.
Printful
- Print on demand fulfilment for apparel and merchandisenot Magento
- Attaching a fulfilment backend to an existing online storenot Magento
Where each one falls short
Documented limitations, not opinions. Every one is a constraint you would hit in normal use.
Magento
- Magento Open Source is available under the OSL v3 license as a free self-hosted edition, but Adobe sells a separate proprietary Adobe Commerce edition with additional B2B, page builder and cloud features not included in the open source code
Printful
- The Growth plan is $24.99 a month and only becomes free once a store reaches $12,000 a year in sales
- Product discounts of up to 33% are tied to that paid plan, so the lowest unit costs are unavailable to small sellers
- The free plan allows one sample order a month, capped at 3 items
- Shipping and taxes are calculated separately from the quoted product price
Pricing, plan by plan
Magento
Free- Magento Open SourceFree
- Unlimited products
- Multiple storefronts
- Advanced marketing
- Adobe Commerce$20000/year
- All Open Source features
- 24/7 enterprise support
- Managed cloud hosting
Printful
Free- FreeFree
- Unlimited integrations
- Basic dashboard
- Order fulfillment
Which should you pick?
Choose Magento if
- You need multi-store management.
- You want to start without paying.
- You also want advanced product catalog.
Choose Printful if
- You need print on demand.
- You want to start without paying.
- You also want custom products.
Questions people ask
- Is Magento or Printful better?
- Neither clearly leads. Magento starts at Free and Printful at Free, and user ratings are close enough to be indistinguishable. Choose on capability and platform support.
- Which is cheaper, Magento or Printful?
- Magento starts at Free and Printful at Free.
- Does Magento or Printful run on more platforms?
- Both run on Web, so platform support will not decide this one for you.
- Can I use Magento for free?
- Both have a free tier, so you can try either at no cost before committing.
- What can Magento do that Printful cannot?
- Magento covers Multi-store management, Advanced product catalog, Customer segmentation, Order management system. Printful covers Print on demand, Custom products, Dropshipping, Automated fulfillment.