Composable vs. Headless eCommerce – What’s the Difference?

Composable and headless eCommerce are buzzwords you’re bound to come across in the eCommerce space. While both of these architectural patterns involve decoupling certain components of your website, they each meet different business requirements.

If you’re planning on hiring eCommerce website development services any time soon, you should get familiar with these terms.

What is Headless eCommerce?

To understand headless architecture, you need to know about its predecessor.

In a traditional or “monolithic” platform, the frontend and backend are closely linked. That means you can’t change the customer-facing elements (user interface, product listings, etc.) without updating the technical functionality (shopping cart, checkout, etc.).

This makes the frontend presentation layer difficult to update and add new features to. Moreover, it’s time-consuming, labor-intensive, and worst of all, risky for your platform’s functionality.

In the fast-paced world of eCommerce, this could spell the end of your business.

But with headless architecture, these two systems are decoupled from one another. Instead, the frontend uses an application programming interface (API) to access data from the backend.

This leaves the frontend fully and easily customizable. It even allows developers to add multiple “heads” to a single underlying foundation.

Why Headless eCommerce

Many of the best eCommerce site frameworks out there are headless, and with good reason –

• More Customization – The frontend layer of your platform is how you engage your users. When you’re free to customize it without affecting the backend, you can tailor your UI to customer preferences.
• Omnichannel Integration – The use of APIs opens up the possibility of linking multiple sales channels to your platform’s backend. In practice, this allows you to track and manage the customer’s journey across your website, app, social media, and more.
• Better Performance – A headless website only needs to load the app shell (i.e., website structure) once. After the shell is cached, the backend can focus on returning dynamic content as the customer surfs other pages. As a result, headless eCommerce platforms load much faster.

What is Composable eCommerce?

In a sense, composable platforms are the next evolution of headless eCommerce.

More than just detaching the frontend, they break down all backend functions into independent components. This allows you to tailor your website to your userbase by selecting only best-of-breed components.

According to a 2023 EMARKETER report, 72% of eCommerce retailers have already switched to a composable website. That’s because composable commerce takes headless technology one step further by going fully MACH-based –

• Microservices – Rather than being inseparable, each building block of your backend is loosely coupled with the other. In composable architecture, prebuilt components called Packaged Business Capabilities (PBCs) take the place of microservices.
• API-First – APIs are what make microservices and headless platforms functional. These sets of protocols ensure independent components can still communicate with each other.
• Cloud-Native – This model hosts your software in a highly scalable cloud. So you can say goodbye to fixed storage, limited resources, and manual updates.
• Headless – By developing the backend separately from the frontend, your eCommerce platform can be a truly omnichannel experience.

The Advantages of Composable eCommerce

Composable platforms share the benefits of headless eCommerce but add a few more –

• Maximum Business Agility – Combining flexibility and scalability, composable components are the perfect way to keep up with the ever-changing eCommerce market.
• Efficient Upgrades – When the architecture of your platform is modular, you can swap out pieces of your backend like LEGO. Therefore, you won’t be stuck updating your entire backend just to change one tool in your tech stack.
• Reduced Vendor Lock-In – The modular design of composable platforms minimizes your dependence on specific platform vendors. You can instead pick and choose the best microservices from the most reputable providers.

Composable eCommerce vs. Headless eCommerce

So, it’s clear that both headless and composable architecture are faster, more customizable, and more scalable than traditional monoliths. The question is – which one should you choose?

Let’s take a look at them side by side.

Customization and Scalability

The modularity of composable platforms puts their customizability a cut above the rest. Plug-and-play PBCs allow you to select and upgrade individual components whenever your business requirements change. These websites are as scalable and agile as it gets.

Headless architecture doesn’t quite have the same level of flexibility. But you still have the freedom to modify the most important part of your website: the user experience. With a scalable frontend, you can tailor every touchpoint for a unique and accessible user journey.

In fact, Salesforce has found that headless eCommerce surges ahead of competitors in terms of business agility.

Integration Complexity

Composable and headless eCommerce platforms both use APIs to connect individual components.

But composable architecture has many more elements in play. PBC components are built with integration in mind, but it can be tricky to juggle multiple vendors and compatibilities.

On the other hand, headless architecture has limited integration capabilities beyond frontend channels. Any changes to the backend require skilled developers and a lot of time and resources.

Cost-Efficiency

With a composable platform, you pay for each component separately as you assemble your backend data structure. Your final tech stack is the result of your budget and business needs.

From the outset, headless eCommerce platforms may be a bit pricier because you’re paying for a complete, fleshed-out system. But in the long run, it’s a more stable and predictable investment.

Which One Should You Choose?

If you’re still unsure whether composable or headless eCommerce is the right fit for you, consider three make-or-break factors.

1) Business Needs

A composable platform is just what you need if long-term agility is a priority. This allows you to reflexively stay up to date on tech advancements in core backend services.

However, headless eCommerce is the ideal solution for businesses that don’t need that level of complexity. Instead, you can leave the all-in-one backend in capable hands while you focus on perfecting the user experience.

2) Development Resources

It takes a highly skilled team to assemble and integrate the many moving parts in a composable backend. If that kind of expertise isn’t already at your disposal, you’ll need to add it to your eCommerce development plan.

Or you could go with the comparatively straightforward process of setting up a headless platform. A prebuilt, fully integrated backend takes fewer resources to develop into a finished product.

3) Long-Term Maintenance

Updates and maintenance get complicated when you’re working with components from different vendors. Your team will need to plan around several different update cycles to keep things running smoothly.

Headless architecture may not have as many integrations, but you’ll still depend on your vendor for updates. So, you’ll need someone you can trust and communicate effectively with.

Ready to Create Your Next eCommerce Site?

Whether you’re sold on composable or headless eCommerce for your business, DPL is here to help you get started.

Take advantage of our team’s development expertise and knowledge of current eCommerce trends by filling out the form below. Let’s get your eCommerce venture underway!