Magento 1 vs Magento 2
Adobe has ended support for Magento 1. x on June 30, 2020. Many Magento store owners are still running on the outdated Magento 1 versions.
Magento 2 is an upgrade to Magento 1. It includes new technologies, security patches, and features.
Magento 2 comes with more advantages as compared to Magento 1. It supports the latest ecommerce innovations to enhance merchant and user experience.
Magento 1 vs Magento 2: Key Differences
1. Architecture and Technology Stack
Technology Stack Evolution
From Legacy to Leading-Edge: 12 Game-Changing Technologies
Magento 1
Magento 2 ENHANCED
Key Performance Gains
The architecture of Magento 2 is based on PHP 7.
Additionally, Magento 2 supports
- HTML5
- MySQL Percona 5.6, and greater
- Zend Framework 1 and 2
Magento 2 has the latest technologies that are not available in Magento 1.
These include:
- NGINX: Accelerates content, application delivery and improves security.
- Varnish: Web application accelerator.
- Composer: Manage Magento components and their dependencies.
- Symfony: Speeds up Magento 2 development by evading repetitive coding tasks.
- Redis: Supports full page caching and sessions out of the box.
Technology differences:
| Magento 1 | Magento 2 |
|---|---|
| Apache 2.x | Apache 2.2 / 2.4 |
| Nginx 1.7 or greater | |
| PHP 5.2.x – 5.5.x | PHP 5.6.x / 7.0.2 / 7.0.6 |
| MySQL | MySQL / MySQL Percona 5.6.x or greater |
| Varnish 3.x / 4.x | |
| Redis 2.x / 3.x or Memcached 1.4.x | |
| Solr (Only for EE) | Solr 4.x |
| HTML | HTML5 |
| JQuery (In latest themes) | JQuery |
| RequireJS / Knockout.js | |
| Zend Framework 1 | Zend Framework 1 / 2 |
| Symfony | |
| Composer | |
| PSR – 0 / 1 / 2 / 3 / 4 |
2.Performance
Performance That Transforms Business
Magento 2 delivers revolutionary speed improvements that directly impact conversion rates and revenue
Every second of checkout delay reduces conversions by up to 7%. Magento 2's 38% faster checkout could increase revenue by 10-15% for high-volume stores, while the 50x traffic capacity ensures you never lose sales due to site crashes during peak periods.
Magento 1 has average page load speeds of over two seconds. The loading time in Magento 2 is faster. It is integrated with Varnish Cache to reduce server load.
Magento 2 loads home, category, and product pages in less than 1.5 seconds. Checkout is 38% faster. It can process up to 39% more orders within an hour.
Magento 2 can handle 10 million page views within an hour. The older version would stop at two hundred thousand.
Magento 2 has added a built-in module for clearing cache. Previously, you had to use a third-party extension.
Magento 2 offers tools for image optimization on the server rather than manually.
Note: Your choice of hosting has a huge impact on ecommerce store performance.
3. Security
From Vulnerable to Vault
7 Enterprise-Grade Security Features That Make Magento 2 PCI-Compliant and Hacker-Resistant
XSS Protection
Prevents code injection attacks that could compromise customer data.
Security Scan Tool
Identifies vulnerabilities before hackers can exploit them.
Admin Protection
Multiple layers of admin access security to prevent unauthorized access.
Password Management
Enforced complexity and rotation policies for stronger credentials.
Critical Business Risk
Staying on Magento 1 represents an unacceptable business risk. With missing security patches and no support, your store is vulnerable to:
- Data breaches affecting customer trust (43% of attacks target small businesses)
- Compliance fines up to $500,000 per incident
- Loss of credit card processing privileges
- Permanent reputation damage
Magento 1 has missing security patches and is not PCI compliant. Magento 2 has robust security and stability.
It supports features such as:
- Two-factor authentication
- SHA-256 (Secure Hash Algorithm 256).
- Admin access protection
- Security Scan tool
- Enhanced password management
- Flexible file system & permissions
Magento 2 Commerce edition is PCI DSS Level 1-compliant. The store is also protected against cross-site scripting (XSS) attacks.
Magento 2 releases security patches to secure your store. You can also outsource server-side security to your hosting provider.
4. Dashboard
Command Center Revolution
How Magento 2's 4x Faster Admin Panel Saves $50,000+ Annually
Product Creation Speed
Save 3+ hours daily on catalog management, translating to significant labor cost savings
Real-Time Dashboard
Comprehensive business intelligence replacing $200-500/month in analytics tools
Bulk Operations
Complete bulk imports in minutes instead of hours for large catalogs
Training Time Reduction
User-friendly interface reduces onboarding from weeks to days
Comprehensive Dashboard Intelligence
$50,000+
Annual Savings in Operational Costs
3 Hours
Daily Time Savings per Team
Magento 1 admin panel has limited features and is not easy to use.
The admin panel of Magento 2 is user friendly and interactive. It enables you to find information quickly and navigate menus efficiently. Creating products in the admin panel is 4x faster product import capabilities.
Magento 2 has a comprehensive dashboard.
It displays:
- The latest orders
- Average orders
- Lifetime sales
- Top search keywords
- Income tax
- Bestsellers
5. File structure
In Magento 2, all files are placed directly under the “app” structure, except for config.xml.
The new file structure lets you easily access all templates, layouts, and javascript, CSS files. It gives Magento developers more opportunities to customize without changing site functionality.
6. Search Engine Optimization
Magento 2 has better SEO as compared to Magento 1.
It has notable features, such as:
- Duplicate Content The Magento 2 ecommerce platform provides a Canonical tag. It prevents problems caused by identical content appearing on multiple URLs.
-
Rich Snippets The Rich snippet makes your Magento 2 store and its products show up on the search results It enables users to quickly identify specifics about your products and website.
-
Meta Tags Magento 2 enables you to add meta tags on individual pages and products.
-
Mobile Friendly Magento 2 interface is optimized for tablets and mobile. It contributes to the higher ranking of your website in search engines.
7. Extensions
Magento 1 has extension conflicts. Two or more extensions try to rewrite the same functionality.
Magento 2, plugins allow code to overlap with core code rather than override it. New extensions can be installed and updated easily at a low cost.
8. Cost
The Hidden 30K Question
Why Magento 2's Higher Price Tag Actually Saves Money
| Edition | Magento 1 | Magento 2 | Value Proposition |
|---|---|---|---|
| Open Source | FREE | FREE | NO LICENSING COST |
| Commerce Edition | 18K /year |
22K
/year
+22%
|
INCLUDES FEATURES |
| Commerce Cloud | Not Available |
44K
/year
NEW
|
ALL INCLUSIVE |
Critical Hidden Costs for Magento 1
- Security Patches: 5K-15K per critical vulnerability (4-6 annually = 30K+ per year)
- Emergency Support: Premium rates for unsupported platform issues
- Compliance Risk: PCI DSS violations due to end-of-life status
- Opportunity Cost: Missing modern features and integrations
Support Coverage by Edition
Community Only
Forums & documentation
Business Hours
Professional support team
24/7 Dedicated
Priority response & SLA
3-Year Total Cost of Ownership
Magento 1 Commerce
- License: 54K (3 years)
- Security: 90K+ (custom patches)
- Emergency support costs
Magento 2 Commerce
- License: 66K (3 years)
- Security: Included
- Professional support included
Financial Decision Points
- Magento Open Source
Magento 1 & 2 are free to download.
- Magento Commerce
Magento 1 CE License cost (starts at): $18,000/year
Note: You cannot secure Magento 1 store without paying development cost for custom patches.
Magento 2 CE license cost (starts at): $22,000/year. The fee increases as per your annual gross income.
- Magento 2 Commerce Cloud
Pricing begins at - $44,000 per year.
Estimate Magento ecommerce site cost for your business.
9. Customer Support
Magento does not provide support or security patches for Magento 1 since 30th June 2020.
With Magento 2, the level of customer support depends on the version you use.
- Magento Open Source does not come with customer support.
- Magento 2 Commerce Edition has features for account management and customer support.
- Magento Commerce Cloud offers 24/7 dedicated customer support.
Why Should You Migrate to Magento 2?
It is important to always update software to the latest version. In addition to security fixes, software updates include new features.
The latest version of Magento 2 introduces support for PHP 8.1. It comes with enhanced B2B & B2C features and headless support. This release includes almost 250 quality fixes and enhancements.
You can follow this tutorial to Migrate to Magento 2.
