Shopware
Open-source e-commerce platform for ambitious brands — a German alternative to Shopify.
Overview
Shopware is a Schöppingen, Germany-based European company building e-commerce and open source software since 2000. As an EU-headquartered provider, Shopware operates under GDPR and is outside the reach of the US CLOUD Act, making it a privacy-friendly alternative to Shopify for European teams.
Why European teams pick Shopware
Teams in Europe pick Shopware when they want a e-commerce provider that bills in EUR, supports their local data-protection officer requirements, and keeps customer data under Germany law, operating since 2000. Compared with Shopify, Shopware avoids cross-border data transfers under Schrems II and the US CLOUD Act, which is often the deciding factor for European procurement and legal teams.
See more EU e-commerce tools or browse other startups from Germany.
About
Shopware is a German open-source e-commerce platform founded in Schöppingen in 2000, used by over 100,000 merchants across Europe including many mid-market and enterprise retailers in Germany, Austria, and Switzerland. It offers a headless commerce architecture with a powerful rule-based promotion engine, Flow Builder for no-code automation, and a rich extension ecosystem. Shopware 6 (current version) is built on PHP/Symfony with a Vue.js storefront and supports PWA and headless deployment patterns. It can be self-hosted on any EU server (Community Edition is free and open-source) or used as Shopware Cloud hosted in Germany. It is the reference EU e-commerce platform for mid-market German-speaking merchants.
Details
- Founded
- 2000
- Headquarters
- Schöppingen, Germany
Categories
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Frequently asked questions
What is Shopware?
Shopware is a German open-source e-commerce platform founded in Schöppingen in 2000, used by over 100,000 merchants across Europe including many mid-market and enterprise retailers in Germany, Austria, and Switzerland. It offers a headless commerce architecture with a powerful rule-based promotion engine, Flow Builder for no-code automation, and a rich extension ecosystem. Shopware 6 (current version) is built on PHP/Symfony with a Vue.js storefront and supports PWA and headless deployment patterns. It can be self-hosted on any EU server (Community Edition is free and open-source) or used as Shopware Cloud hosted in Germany. It is the reference EU e-commerce platform for mid-market German-speaking merchants.
What does Shopware do?
Shopware is open-source e-commerce platform for ambitious brands — a german alternative to shopify. It is listed under e-commerce and open source on EU Alts because its core functionality serves teams looking for a European e-commerce tool with EU data residency, typically as a switch away from Shopify.
Is Shopware a good European e-commerce alternative?
Shopware is a fit for European businesses evaluating e-commerce options where data residency and GDPR alignment matter — typical buyers include EU-based SaaS teams, public-sector projects, regulated industries (healthcare, finance, legal), and any organisation that needs to demonstrate that customer data does not leave the EU. It also overlaps with open source use cases.
Is Shopware GDPR compliant?
Shopware is headquartered in Schöppingen, Germany and falls under EU jurisdiction, so it processes user data under the GDPR by default. Customer data processing is supervised by Germany's data protection authority, the Bundesbeauftragte für den Datenschutz und die Informationsfreiheit (BfDI). Because the company is not US-incorporated, it is not subject to the US CLOUD Act — meaning US authorities cannot compel Shopware to disclose customer data the way they can with Shopify. For European buyers, that often simplifies DPIA paperwork and standard contractual clauses.
How do teams switch from Shopify to Shopware?
Most teams move to Shopware from Shopify because they want EU data residency without giving up the core e-commerce workflow. Shopware's Germany base means a single jurisdiction for both the company and (typically) its hosting infrastructure, so you can drop Schrems II transfer impact assessments for this part of your stack. Plan the migration in stages: export your data from the US incumbent, pilot Shopware with a small team, then move the rest once the integration coverage you need is confirmed.
Where is Shopware based?
Shopware is headquartered in Schöppingen, Germany. The company was founded in 2000. Its main website is https://www.shopware.com.