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Medusa vs Printful

Medusa logo

Medusa

Software

Open source Shopify alternative

From
Free
Rated
-
Full reviewWebsite
Printful logo

Printful

Software

Print on demand dropshipping service

From
Free
Rated
-
Full reviewWebsite

The short version

  • Each has a real cost: Medusa the managed cloud meters four separate resources: edge requests, emails, compute hours and database storage; 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: Medusa covers Open source, Printful covers Print on demand.

Where they differ

Only the attributes on which Medusa and Printful actually diverge.

Attributes where Medusa and Printful differ
AttributeMedusaPrintful
Pricing modelfreemiumtransaction
Founded20202013

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 Medusa

  • Open source
  • Modular architecture
  • Multi-region support
  • Plugin system
  • Admin dashboard
  • Order management
  • Inventory tracking
  • Payment integrations

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.

Medusa

  • Building a custom ecommerce backend on an open source headless platformnot Printful
  • Running a self hosted or managed commerce API with a custom storefrontnot Printful

Printful

  • Print on demand fulfilment for apparel and merchandisenot Medusa
  • Attaching a fulfilment backend to an existing online storenot Medusa

Where each one falls short

Documented limitations, not opinions. Every one is a constraint you would hit in normal use.

Medusa

  • The managed cloud meters four separate resources: edge requests, emails, compute hours and database storage
  • The Develop plan at $29 a month applies a hard limit of 1,000 emails, so it stops rather than bills
  • Compute hours are capped at 600 on Develop and 800 on Launch
  • Edge request overage is $0.3 per million and storage $0.5 per GB month above the plan allowance
  • Background workers and priority support require the Scale plan at $299 a month

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

Medusa

Free
  • Open SourceFree
    • Full source code
    • Self-hosted
    • Community support
  • Cloud$50/month
    • Managed hosting
    • Automatic updates
    • Priority support

Printful

Free
  • FreeFree
    • Unlimited integrations
    • Basic dashboard
    • Order fulfillment

Which should you pick?

Choose Medusa if

  • You need open source.
  • You want to start without paying.
  • You also want modular architecture.
Medusa review

Choose Printful if

  • You need print on demand.
  • You want to start without paying.
  • You also want custom products.
Printful review

Questions people ask

Is Medusa or Printful better?
Neither clearly leads. Medusa 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, Medusa or Printful?
Medusa starts at Free and Printful at Free.
Does Medusa or Printful run on more platforms?
Both run on Web, so platform support will not decide this one for you.
Can I use Medusa for free?
Both have a free tier, so you can try either at no cost before committing.
What is Medusa best used for?
Medusa is most often used for building a custom ecommerce backend on an open source headless platform, running a self hosted or managed commerce api with a custom storefront. Of those, building a custom ecommerce backend on an open source headless platform and running a self hosted or managed commerce api with a custom storefront are not what Printful is typically brought in for.
What can Medusa do that Printful cannot?
Medusa covers Open source, Modular architecture, Multi-region support, Plugin system. Printful covers Print on demand, Custom products, Dropshipping, Automated fulfillment.
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