PrestaShop vs Zen Cart (2026): which should you pick?
As of Nov 13, 2026, PrestaShop grades higher than Zen Cart: 2.4 against 2.0 out of 4.0.
Checked Oct 18, 2026 and Nov 13, 2026 · graded Oct 18, 2026 and Nov 13, 2026 by ToolGPA
PrestaShop grades higher on ease of use and platforms. They get the same grade on value for money, the free plan and features.
Price, platforms and features side by side. The table says where each price was read and when.
PrestaShop
Open-source ecommerce software, free to self-host or sold hosted
Which one is for you
Pick PrestaShop if
- Fits if you want to own your store's code and data outright
- Works for developers building custom stores, or sellers in Europe who want VAT and GDPR tools hosted
Look elsewhere if
- Skip it if you've never set up a website, as PrestaShop says it takes technical knowledge
- Watch out: the free Classic version still needs hosting, a domain and any paid modules, with no costs given
- Watch out: the 14-day Hosted trial takes payment details at sign-up, and prices are in euros before VAT
- Pricey if you need expert help, as paid support starts at €90 for an hour of analysis
- Not for you if you want a phone app to run the shop, as it's web only
Pick Zen Cart if
- Fits if you're comfortable installing PHP software and want a free cart
- Works for people who want the source code and don't mind forum support
Look elsewhere if
- Skip it if you want a hosted store that someone else keeps patched
- Not for you if you need paid support, as the pages list only community forums
- Watch out: the project's own guide tells owners to secure the site for PCI themselves
- Watch out: version 3.0 is in development, so the current release may differ from what we read
How we grade them
| 2.4GPAPrestaShopFair | 2.0GPAZen CartFair | |
|---|---|---|
| Value for money | CClassic is free, but you pay for hosting, a domain and any paid modules, and the listing has no figure for those. So we go on Hosted: €24 a month on yearly billing, in euros and before VAT (€29 monthly). That's the ordinary middle, and no PrestaShop fee on sales is listed. | CFree to download, but only free if you host it, which means paying for a server. That puts it in the middle. |
| Free plan and trial | BThe Classic software is free to download with unlimited products, and one person could run a shop on it for years. Hosting isn't free, though, and the 14-day Hosted trial takes payment details at sign-up. | BNo cap on the software and no ads, but hosting is on you and there's no hosted trial. |
| Features | CCheckout in 20 currencies across 190 countries, Google and social ads, eShip labels, Klaviyo email and SEO controls cover the basics. Past that you're adding from 3,200+ themes and modules, and the paid ones cost extra. | CA full-function cart with a PCI-certified version on offer. No built-in marketplace, subscriptions or headless side is listed. |
| Ease of use | CNo store rating on record. Hosted takes the server off your hands, but PrestaShop says installing and customizing a store takes some technical knowledge, and the free Classic route means running your own server. | DNo rating on record. You install it from a zip on your own server and look after it. |
| Platforms and integrations | BWeb only, but with PayPal, Stripe, Klarna, Klaviyo, Google, Facebook, Instagram and Hostinger, 3,200+ themes and modules, and open code you can change freely. No phone or desktop app. | CWeb only, with open code on GitHub. No apps and no integration list. |
| Best for | custom stores you own, especially in Europe | self-hosted PHP shops run by someone who likes to tinker |
The GPA is the average of the five grades: an A is 4 points, an F is none. The full reasons are on each tool's page: PrestaShop and Zen Cart. How we grade
Price against what you get
PrestaShop starts at about $26.81 a month and scores 2.3 out of 4 on features, ease of use and platforms. Zen Cart has no paid plan and scores 1.7.
PrestaShop scores higher, and starts $26.81 a month higher: the question is whether the extra is worth that to you. Of the other online store builders on the chart, 3 score higher than PrestaShop for less, and none scores higher than Zen Cart for less.
Features, ease of use and platforms, averaged
What paid plans start at, a month (each step along is roughly double) →
- The best score at each price
- Has a free plan
- No free plan
Where they differ
At a glance
| PrestaShop | Zen Cart | |
|---|---|---|
| Pricing | Free plan | Free |
| Starts at | €24 per month excl. VAT, billed annually (Hosted; €29 billed monthly) | Free |
| Free plan | Classic: the open-source PrestaShop software, free to download and run on your own hosting, with unlimited products. Hosting, a domain and paid modules cost extra. | None |
| Free trial | 14-day free trial of Hosted; payment details are taken at sign-up | None listed |
| Web | ||
| Made by | PrestaShop | Zen Cart |
| Price read from | prestashop.com | raw.githubusercontent.com |
| Checked | Oct 18, 2026 | Nov 13, 2026 |
Worth knowing
PrestaShop
- Classic is free to download, but hosting, a domain and any paid modules or themes cost extra; the offers page gives no figures for those costs.
- PrestaShop says installing and customizing a store takes some technical knowledge, especially to set it up on a server.
- Hosted is priced in euros excluding VAT, and its legal tools are built around European rules such as GDPR.
- Paid technical support is sold separately, from €90 for an hour of analysis and up to four hours of work.
Zen Cart
- You provide the web server, and the project's own guide tells owners to secure the site for PCI compliance themselves.
- Support is community-driven through forums, with no paid plan listed in the pages we read.
- The project's own site was behind a bot check when we read it, so details here come from its GitHub readme.
- Version 3.0 is in development, so the current release and upgrade path may differ from the pages we read.
Key features
PrestaShop
- Open-source store software
- Download PrestaShop free, install it on your own server and change any part of it, with unlimited physical and virtual products and product packs.
- PrestaShop Checkout with PayPal
- Take payments in 20 currencies across 190 countries, including PayPal installments, with Stripe, Klarna and other payment providers also offered.
- Google, Facebook and Instagram ads
- PrestaShop Marketing runs automated ads on Google networks, and PrestaShop Social syncs the catalog with Facebook and Instagram.
- Shipping and marketing automation
- eShip for PrestaShop prints labels and handles shipments, and PrestaShop Automation connects Klaviyo for targeted email campaigns.
- Marketplace and SEO tools
- Add from more than 3,200 themes and modules in the PrestaShop Marketplace, and manage custom URLs, meta tags, canonical URLs and redirects.
Zen Cart
- Full-function shopping cart
- The project describes Zen Cart as a full-function ecommerce application for a website, with storefront and admin back end.
- PA-DSS certified version
- The project says version 1.5.4 was PA-DSS certified, and later releases build on it with PHP 8 updates.
- Self-installed from a zip
- The install is a download, an upload to a web server and a browser-based setup that asks a few questions.
- Community support
- Free community-driven support runs on the project's forums, with an implementation guide and online documentation.
- Open code on GitHub
- Source code, issues and pull requests are public, and developers can fork the repository to contribute.
Plans
PrestaShop
Classic€0
Open-source PrestaShop 9 that you download and host yourself, with PrestaShop Checkout, ad tools, shipping and the Marketplace built in.
Hosted€24
per month excl. VAT, billed annually (€29 billed monthly)
Installed and hosted by PrestaShop, with automatic VAT calculation, GDPR and cookie tools, and support by email, chat or phone 6 days a week.
Zen Cart
Zen Cart$0
Free and open-source software that you download and install on your own server; hosting is your own cost.
Ways to pay less
PrestaShop
- Annual discount
Hosted billed annually saves 17%
The Hosted offer costs €290 a year excluding VAT, shown as €24 a month, against €29 a month without commitment.
Zen Cart
No public discounts listed.
Common questions
Which is cheaper, PrestaShop or Zen Cart?
As of Nov 13, 2026, Zen Cart is cheaper to start with: it is free, against about $26.81 a month for PrestaShop. PrestaShop starts at €24 per month excl. VAT, billed annually (Hosted; €29 billed monthly), and Zen Cart is free.
Which has a free plan, PrestaShop or Zen Cart?
As of Nov 13, 2026, both PrestaShop and Zen Cart have a free plan.
More comparisons
How this page was made
- The verdict at the top follows a fixed rule. When both tools are in the same category and either is in our top three for it, the verdict follows that ranking: the higher-placed tool is our pick. The top three weigh who each tool suits as well as its grades, so a pick can go against the GPA. Otherwise the page does not pick one and says which grades higher: the higher GPA first; on a tie, the one with a free plan, then the one that starts cheaper in dollars a month, counted the same way for both; if they are still level, what the choice depends on.
- The grades are our own, from each tool’s review or report card. The GPA is their average.
- Prices, plans and platforms come from each tool’s listing. The table above says where each price was read and when.
- The differences and the answers to the questions are worked out from those listings.