What s-cart is, its key e-commerce features, technology stack, and why it is free and open source, based on the project's own documentation.
Category
Ecommerce
Pricing
Free and open source, self-hosted, from Free
Verified
Not yet
Last updated
July 19, 2026
Founded
2019
Web AppAPIOpen SourceSelf-Hosted
Overview
s-cart is a free, open-source e-commerce platform built on the Laravel PHP framework and distributed as part of the broader GP247 open-source ecosystem. It is designed to give individuals, small businesses, developers, and students a self-hosted way to run an online store, with the project's stated mission being to stay efficient and friendly for everyone rather than gated behind licensing fees.
Key Features
s-cart provides a full storefront and shopping cart experience with product, order, and customer management, plus multi-store, multi-language, multi-currency, and multi-supplier support for more complex catalog needs. It includes CMS tools for pages and news, an extensible plugin system for payments, shipping, and tax, role-based admin permissions with audit logging, and a secured API for mobile or third-party integrations.
Pricing
s-cart is entirely free and open source, with no commercial license, subscription, or vendor support fee. Users self-host the software on their own infrastructure, deploying via traditional installation or Docker, and rely on community documentation and GitHub for support rather than a paid vendor relationship.
Key Features
Multi-store and multi-currency support — Run multiple storefronts with different currencies and languages from a single s-cart installation.
Product and inventory management — Manage sale price, cost price, promotional pricing, stock quantity, multiple images, and custom attributes per product.
Order and customer management — Track orders end to end and manage customer profiles including multiple shipping addresses.
CMS capabilities — Built-in content management for categories, news posts, and static pages alongside the storefront.
Extensible plugin architecture — Payment gateways, shipping methods, discount rules, and tax calculation are handled through a modular plugin system.
Role-based admin permissions — Admin accounts can be scoped with granular roles and permissions, with audit logging for accountability.
Secured API access — A secured API layer supports building mobile apps or third-party integrations on top of the platform.
Reporting and exports — Built-in reporting includes charts and statistics, with export options to CSV and PDF.
Pros & Cons
Pros
Completely free and open source with no licensing cost
Built on the well-established Laravel PHP framework
Multi-store, multi-language, and multi-currency support built in
Extensible plugin architecture for payments, shipping, and tax
Includes CMS features alongside core e-commerce functionality
Active GitHub presence with releases distributed via Packagist and SourceForge
Cons
Self-hosted only, requiring server management and technical setup
No official managed hosting or vendor support contract
Smaller plugin and theme ecosystem compared to platforms like WooCommerce or Shopify
Documentation and community support size not comparable to larger commercial platforms
Requires PHP and Laravel expertise to customize or troubleshoot effectively
No disclosed company or funding behind the project, so long-term maintenance depends on community contributors
Pricing
Open Source Free N/A, self-hosted open source
Frequently Asked Questions
What is s-cart
s-cart is a free, open-source e-commerce platform built on the Laravel PHP framework for running self-hosted online stores.
Is s-cart free to use
Yes, s-cart is completely free and open source with no licensing or subscription cost.
What technology does s-cart use
s-cart is built on Laravel, with its current stable branch using Laravel 13.x and Tailwind CSS 4, organized in an HMVC plugin architecture.
Does s-cart support multiple languages and currencies
Yes, s-cart includes built-in multi-language and multi-currency support for running international storefronts.
Can s-cart run multiple stores
Yes, s-cart supports multi-store functionality, letting one installation power more than one storefront.
How do I install s-cart
s-cart can be installed traditionally on a server with PHP and Laravel, or deployed using Docker.
Does s-cart have an API
Yes, s-cart includes a secured API layer for building mobile apps or third-party integrations.
Who maintains s-cart
s-cart is maintained as a community open-source project under the GP247 ecosystem, distributed via GitHub, Packagist, and SourceForge.