Will this clone Shopify checkout?

No. You get products, cart, and a checkout you build or take from the starter storefront. Themes, the app store, and Shopify Payments stay behind. Most teams move the catalog first.

Medusa or WooCommerce?

Medusa if you want a headless API and a React storefront. WooCommerce if the site is already WordPress. Saleor if the team is Python/GraphQL.

Stacks / Backend

Medium

Medusa / Saleor / WooCommerce

A store you host. Medusa is MIT headless commerce; Saleor is BSD-3 GraphQL commerce; WooCommerce is the GPL WordPress shop.

The problem

Shopify Basic is $29/month billed yearly, then card rates and the app store. You wanted products, checkout, and a cart you can move. Medusa's core is MIT (Enterprise Edition materials are a separate commercial license). Saleor is BSD-3-Clause. WooCommerce is the storefront if you already live in WordPress.

Replaces

Shopify

Replace Shopify

Estimated SaaS saved

$2,400

per year, small team, before lock-in

Start on Railway

n8n + Postgres for order workflows

Sponsor this stack Tip jar

Placeholder: Medusa (Node + Postgres + Redis) plus a storefront, or WooCommerce + MySQL. No one-click template in this repo yet — Start on Railway. Order automation can sit on /stacks/n8n-automation.

The stack

Medusa
MIT headless commerce (core; Enterprise Edition is separate)
Saleor
BSD-3-Clause GraphQL commerce
WooCommerce
GPL WordPress shop if you already have a CMS

Cost table

You stop paying	Typical / year	Self-host instead
Shopify Basic + apps (small store)	$2,400	Medusa + Postgres + your payment provider

Agent setup prompt

Replace Shopify with Medusa (preferred), Saleor, or WooCommerce.

- Medusa: Node API + Postgres + Redis + a storefront. Bind HTTP to 0.0.0.0:$PORT. Saleor is Docker + Postgres + Redis if the team is GraphQL-native. WooCommerce if the site is already WordPress.
- Wire Stripe or PayPal yourself — there is no Shopify Payments on this path. Do not invent a Medusa transaction fee; the SaaS bill you drop is the plan plus apps.
- Import the product CSV. Complete one test checkout. Lock the admin.
- Order → email / Slack can live on /stacks/n8n-automation. Write AGENT_PROMPT.md.

Also as markdown: /stacks/medusa-commerce.md

FAQ

Will this clone Shopify checkout?: No. You get products, cart, and a checkout you build or take from the starter storefront. Themes, the app store, and Shopify Payments stay behind. Most teams move the catalog first.
Medusa or WooCommerce?: Medusa if you want a headless API and a React storefront. WooCommerce if the site is already WordPress. Saleor if the team is Python/GraphQL.