FREE Open Source Ecommerce Platform

Own your store. Own your data. Scale your business on the platform that puts freedom first.

Get Started Now About Zen Cart

What does Open Source mean?

Why Choose Zen Cart

What's Included

It's FREE

No monthly costs, no hidden fees, nothing - download it and it's yours to use

PCI DSS Compliant

Designed to meet PA-DSS certification standards

Unparalleled Support

There are few questions that have not been answered already over the years

No restrictions

Unlimited categories/products, sales volumes and admin users

SEO Optimized

Excellent SEO results out of the box

Constant Development

Continuous updates - see Github

How It Works

Deploy your website in 10 minutes

Download the zip file from our official repository

Upload the file to your server

Follow the simple process to install the application on your server

Your site is ready for use. You can always add more plugins to extend functionality

The Zen Cart Advantage

Everything You Need, Built-In.

Stop paying for "apps" to do basic tasks. Zen Cart comes loaded with enterprise-grade features right out of the box, optimized for speed, accessibility, and total control.

Unlimited Growth: No limits on products, sales, or admin users.
B2B & Wholesale: Built-in group pricing and volume discounts.
Global Commerce: Native multi-language, multi-currency, and tax rules.
Marketing Engine: Coupons, vouchers, and sophisticated "Specials" logic.

Accessibility: Modern core meets the highest SEO standards.
PHP 8.x Optimized: High-performance code under active development.
Payment Ready: PayPal, Authorize.Net and Check/Money Order out of the box.
True Ownership: No monthly platform fees or "revenue tax."

Download Zen Cart

Limitless Extensibility

Tailor-Made with Free Plugins

Need more? The Zen Cart community provides thousands of free modules to customize your store's workflow, shipping, and marketing - no monthly "App Store" subscriptions required.

Modern Checkout: Conversion-optimized One-Page Checkout modules.
Global Payment Gateways: Native support for PayPal, Stripe, Zelle, Braintree and many more.
Full Logistics Integration: Real-time rates for DHL, FedEx, UPS, USPS, and Royal Mail.
Complex Inventory Control: The powerful Products Options Stock Manager (POSM) is now built-in for precise variant tracking.
Advanced Media: High-performance image management and automated thumbnail processing.

SEO Powerhouse: Structured Data (JSON-LD), XML Sitemaps, and SEO-friendly URLs.
Marketing Sync: Built-in connectors for Google Analytics and Google Merchant Center.
Abandoned Cart Recovery: Automated email campaigns to recapture lost revenue without monthly fees.
Data Mobility: Professional Import/Export tools for products, customers, and orders.
Global Compliance: EU VAT exemption modules and advanced sales reporting.

...and over 2,000+ more community-contributed plugins available for free.

The Open Source Choice

Ownership vs. Subscriptions

In a market saturated with "rented" storefronts, Zen Cart® stands as a bastion of true digital ownership.

Don't let your platform dictate your profit.

Why Zen Cart® Over Commercial Platforms?

There are dozens of open-source shopping cart programs available, but none come close to the options, features, and stability of Zen Cart®.

As for commercial SaaS ecommerce programs? Watch as their fees ramp up to match your sales! At some point, every growing business is forced to "jump ship" to avoid these revenue taxes. Why not start with an unrestricted solution from day one?

View Comparison

The Real Cost of Selling

Monthly License $0.00
Revenue Fees None
Core B2C and B2B Tools Included
Your Data 100% Private

System Requirements (v2.1+)

PHP 8.1 - 8.3+
Web Server Apache / Nginx
Database MySQL 5.7+ / MariaDB
Development Local (MAMP/XAMPP)

Getting Started

A standard Linux-based hosting solution (LAMP stack) is usually all you need. While many hosts offer "one-click" installers, we recommend a manual installation for production environments to ensure maximum security and customizability.

View Full Server Requirements

What our users say?