Shopify Headless Commerce: Is It a Good Choice in 2024

Online businesses are rapidly transforming with the latest innovations and new techniques. Shopify has recently introduced its winter ‘24 edition and announced the upgraded version of its headless commerce. Today, we will discover about headless commerce and how you can build your headless store with the guidance of Shopify experts. 

Before diving into Shopify’s headless solution it is important to understand the difference between traditional and Hedless commerce.

What is Headless Commerce?

Headless commerce is a solution to independent the front-end and back-end from each other. This partition provides immense flexibility to customize the website and make it more user-friendly. Headless architecture improves the speed of your website and enhances the overall look and feel. Many big brands have migrated to headless e-commerce due to its exceptional capabilities.

How is Headless Commerce Different from Traditional Commerce?

The traditional architecture of eCommerce is firmly made to handle both the front end and back end from a single platform. It decreases the flexibility and customization opportunities for businesses because the modification of one part will require changes in other sections of the website. For a deep understanding of your current eCommerce platform about headless services, check our comparison blog between popular headless eCommerce solutions. 

Now let’s understand What Shopify Headless Commerce is and how it is different from other Headless solutions.

What is Shopify Headless Commerce?

Shopify’s headless commerce solution, Headless Shopify, is the company’s headless version. Furthermore, it allows companies to have a personalized front-end while continuing with the back-end of Shopify, including reliable e-commerce benefits and integrations.

In other words, this means that enterprises can create a brand new front end for their customers with the ease of the Shopify backend.

What are the Benefits of Headless Shopify?

Shopify Headless comes with several benefits for small to established brands. Following are some key benefits of Headless Shopify:

More Flexibility and Customization Options

By using a decoupled front-end system, businesses gain increased control over both the design and functionality of the website. This gives an opportunity for a personalized touch to the customers. It includes the customization of home pages, product pages, and more importantly checkout pages.

Additionally, Businesses can incorporate this-party solutions to optimize the UI and UX. It allows the integration of custom-developed storefronts with Shopify’s back end.

Seamless API Integrations With Custom Storefronts

Shopify allows seamless integration between custom-developed storefronts in any language or framework with Shopify’s backend. Furthermore, with the help of Shopify’s backend, businesses can integrate with external apps and services to improve their online retailer functions. 

However, Shopify allows API integration for headless solutions but it is are very complex and technical task. It requires immense knowledge of API integration and platform requirements, so it is best to hire Shopify development company for hassle-free integration

Improved User Experience & Website Speed

Shopify’s headless helps to decrease the burden by decoupling the front end from the back end. Thus, businesses gain an opportunity to optimize the performance of websites by improving core web vitals. It helps to enhance the user experience by increasing the loading speed of webpages. Unlike traditional commerce, it utilizes API calls to load the webpages and other media file content instantly. 

Future-Proofing Solution

One of the latest technology trends involves the headless commerce concept. Furthermore, with the recent development of headless Shopify, now businesses can prevent future hindrances to their e-commerce platform and include advanced functionality.

How to Setup a Shopify Headless Website?

There are two different methods to set up a Headless Shopify store:

Building with APIs:

This is the traditional headless setup, offering maximum flexibility and control. You essentially connect your front-end application directly to Shopify’s back-end using APIs (Application Programming Interfaces). Here’s what it involves:

• Choosing the right API: Depending on your needs, you can leverage the Storefront API for core shop data, Admin API for managing tasks, GraphQL API for complex data queries, or even other specialized APIs like Inventory or Fulfillment.
• Front-end development: You have complete freedom to choose your preferred front-end technologies (React, Vue, Angular, etc.) and build your storefront from scratch. This approach requires strong development skills and an understanding of API integrations.
• Data management: You’ll handle data fetching, caching, and manipulation within your front-end application, requiring more development effort but offering complete control.
• Security: Implementing robust security measures for authentication and authorization is crucial, as you’re directly accessing Shopify’s data.

Building with Hydrogen

Shopify’s Hydrogen framework offers a faster and more structured approach to headless development.  It’s essentially a pre-built solution with numerous benefits:

• Rapid development: Leverage Hydrogen’s pre-built components, data fetching tools, and routing functionalities to quickly build your storefront.
• Simplified workflows: Hydrogen handles many essential tasks, reducing development complexity and time.
• Integration with Oxygen: Seamlessly deploy your Hydrogen storefront on Shopify’s Oxygen hosting platform, benefitting from serverless functions, CDNs, and automatic scaling.
• Focus on design and customization: Spend less time on infrastructure and more time on crafting your unique storefront experience.

How Much Does Shopify Headless Commerce Cost?

Additionally, the cost of headless Shopify can be different due to many factors, including the complexity of the project and the level of the developers’ skills. Nevertheless, there are several main cost factors to take into account when determining a budget for a headless Shopify project.

Shopify Hydrogen

Shopify Hydrogen is a new service from Shopify, it helps businesses create their own personal and unique Shopify storefront. Businesses are currently being invited to try out the features of this revolutionary tool, which is still in the beta phase. In this regard, it is important to note that since Shopify Hydrogen matures, its pricing model can change in the future.

Shopify Plus

Shopify has specifically created the Shopify Plus edition for large-scale growing businesses. Furthermore, this higher profile of Shopify includes a diverse collection of advanced features and functionalities that are critical in helping headless commerce, enabling businesses to efficiently separate the front end from the back-end of their online shop to enjoy greater flexibility and personalization.

The base pricing of Shopify Plus is $2,000 a month.

However, one should note that the final cost can vary significantly from one business to another depending on their requirements.

Development Costs

The development cost of developing a headless store in Shopify is very based on the specific requirements of your business. It is crucial to consult with the best Shopify development company to get the exact quote for your development cost. 

Who Should Use Headless Shopify?

Moreover, Headless Shopify is a powerful and flexible solution that can be beneficial for various types of businesses. Here are some examples of businesses that can benefit from using Headless Shopify:

Large-scale enterprises: Headless Shopify is well-suited for large-scale businesses that have complex requirements and demands. It allows them to effectively decouple the front-end and back-end of their online store, providing enhanced flexibility and customization options.

Growing businesses: Businesses that are experiencing growth and have outgrown their existing eCommerce solution can benefit from Headless Shopify. It offers scalability and adaptability, allowing businesses to easily expand their online presence and meet escalating demands.

Businesses with unique design requirements: If your business has specific design requirements and you want to create a unique and personalized front-end experience for your customers, Headless Shopify can be a great choice. It gives you more control over the design and functionality of your website, allowing for a more personalized and seamless customer experience.

Sum-Up

If you’re considering headless Shopify for your e-commerce business, be sure to carefully consider the costs and hire a skilled Shopify developer to bring your vision to life. Headless Shopify can help your business stay ahead of the curve and achieve e-commerce success in 2024 and beyond.