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E-Commerce · head to head

Medusa vs Wise Business

Medusa logo

Medusa

E-Commerce

Open source Shopify alternative

From
$29/month
Rated
-
Full reviewWebsite
Wise Business logo

Wise Business

Accounting

The smart way to send and receive business payments

From
$29/month
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; Wise Business opening a Wise Business account in the UK carries a one off setup fee of 50 GBP
  • They diverge on capability: Medusa covers Open source, Wise Business covers Multi-currency accounts.

Where they differ

Only the attributes on which Medusa and Wise Business actually diverge.

Attributes where Medusa and Wise Business differ
AttributeMedusaWise Business
Pricing modelsubscriptionusage-based
PlatformsWebWeb, Ios, Android, Api
CategoryE-CommerceAccounting
Founded20202011

Identical on both: starting price ($29/month), free tier (No), user rating (Not yet rated).

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 Wise Business

  • Multi-currency accounts
  • International transfers
  • Batch payments
  • API access
  • Team management
  • Xero
  • QuickBooks
  • Various

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 Wise Business
  • Running a self hosted or managed commerce API with a custom storefrontnot Wise Business

Wise Business

  • Holding and converting multiple currencies as a businessnot Medusa
  • Paying international suppliers and contractors at the mid market ratenot Medusa
  • Receiving payments into local currency account details in several countriesnot 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

Wise Business

  • Opening a Wise Business account in the UK carries a one off setup fee of 50 GBP
  • Volume discounts on transfers start only above 20,000 GBP equivalent sent per month

Pricing, plan by plan

Medusa

$29/month
  • Develop$29/month
    • Base cloud hosting
    • Commerce features included
    • No GMV-tax
  • Launch$99/month
    • Enhanced features
    • No GMV-tax
  • Scale$299/month
    • Advanced features
    • No GMV-tax
  • Enterprise$null/custom
    • Custom configuration

Wise Business

$29/month
  • StandardFree
    • Multi-currency account
    • Real exchange rate
    • Batch payments

Which should you pick?

Choose Medusa if

  • You need open source.
  • You also want modular architecture.
Medusa review

Choose Wise Business if

  • You need multi-currency accounts.
  • You work on Web, Ios, Android, Api.
  • You also want international transfers.
Wise Business review

Questions people ask

Is Medusa or Wise Business better?
Neither clearly leads. Medusa starts at $29/month and Wise Business at $29/month, and user ratings are close enough to be indistinguishable. Choose on capability and platform support.
Which is cheaper, Medusa or Wise Business?
Medusa starts at $29/month and Wise Business at $29/month.
Does Medusa or Wise Business run on more platforms?
Medusa runs on Web. Wise Business runs on Web, Ios, Android, Api.
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 Wise Business is typically brought in for.
What can Medusa do that Wise Business cannot?
Medusa covers Open source, Modular architecture, Multi-region support, Plugin system. Wise Business covers Multi-currency accounts, International transfers, Batch payments, API access.

Answered from the vendors’ own pages

Medusa: What does Medusa charge for additional team members?

Additional seats on the Medusa Cloud development platform cost $30 per seat per month. Unlimited users can access the Medusa Admin Dashboard at no additional cost for commerce operations.

Source
Wise Business: How fast are international transfers with Wise Business?

Wise Business offers fast global payments with 70% arriving in 20 seconds and 95% arriving in under 24 hours. You can also pay up to 1,000 contacts in a single batch transfer.

Source
Medusa: Are there usage-based charges beyond the base Medusa plan price?

Yes. Beyond base plan costs, Medusa charges for edge request overages at $0.30 per 1M requests, email overages at $0.70 per 1,000 emails, data transfer at $0.125 per GB, and database storage at $0.50 per GB-month.

Source
Wise Business: Does Wise Business offer volume discounts?

Yes, volume discounts are available on monthly transfers over 20,000 GBP or equivalent.

Source
Medusa: Can I cancel my Medusa subscription at any time?

Yes, users can cancel their Medusa subscription anytime. Plans are billed monthly in advance, with flex usage charges from the previous month added to the next invoice.

Source
Wise Business: How does Wise Business keep funds secure?

Wise customers move over AED60 billion monthly with systems built to keep funds safe. The company runs over 7 million daily fraud checks (80 per second), keeps funds diversified with secure financial institutions, and offers 24/7 customer support.

Source
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