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”Sylius” – a growing e-commerce platform: when to use it and when to avoid it?

The open-source e-commerce platform Sylius, built on the Symfony framework, has become increasingly popular in recent years among medium-sized and large businesses that have non-standard requirements for their online stores. Thanks to its flexibility and adaptability, Sylius has gained a strong position among technologically advanced teams and companies that require complex solutions. However, e-commerce experts warn that this platform is not suitable for everyone.
Ričardas Šmaižys, founder and owner of PrestaRock, can compare the advantages and disadvantages of Sylius with other e-commerce platforms. With over a decade of experience developing e-commerce solutions in Lithuania and abroad using PrestaShop, and having become an official Sylius framework partner last year as client needs grew, PrestaRock now has a trained developer team building e-commerce solutions with Sylius as well.

When you outgrow the standards

“No matter how good any e-commerce system is, it still fits certain specific needs better. The same applies to Sylius—it has undeniable strengths, but there are also cases where other e-commerce systems meet client needs more precisely,” shares the e-commerce solutions professional.
“If you don’t have deep e-commerce knowledge and want a simple online store with a small number of standard products and modest turnover—say up to one or a few million—it’s more reasonable to build the store using older, well-known platforms in Lithuania, such as PrestaShop, Magento, or OpenCart. Such a choice will be more rational, cheaper, faster to implement, and easier to maintain technically.”
However, Šmaižys emphasizes that many businesses in Lithuania have already outgrown these standard e-commerce systems. Sylius is particularly popular among large companies in Germany, France, Poland, and the Nordic countries – those that need a flexible, well-structured platform capable of professional ERP (Enterprise Resource Planning) and CRM (Customer Relationship Management) integrations or other system connections.
“In short, the simpler e-commerce systems are suitable for those developing fairly standard online stores that don’t require complex processes. But if your e-shop needs to manage operations tailored to your unique business—like handling large product catalogs (as in pharmacy chains) or high product return rates (as in fashion stores, up to 60%)—Sylius can be fully customized to fit your processes and challenges. It’s simply more rational for non-standard cases, where traditional systems may no longer be enough.”
Šmaižys adds a warning for those seeking e-commerce solutions:
“Sylius, which provides developers with a comfortable environment to create any kind of shopping experience—even in complex B2C or B2B models—requires an internal IT manager or team with programming skills, or else an outsourced development partner. Both options work well in practice.”

What do the creators of Sylius say?

Sylius was born in Poland in 2011 when Paweł Jędrzejewski was asked by relatives to build an online store. After analyzing existing e-commerce platforms, he found them unsatisfactory and started a project to help developers create online stores more efficiently.
“Today, Sylius offers unparalleled flexibility compared to other e-commerce platforms, giving businesses full control over their online stores without the limitations of traditional off-the-shelf systems, which often restrict customization due to outdated or rigid architecture,” explains Przemysław Połeć, Head of Strategic Partnerships at Sylius.
“Built with the PHP Symfony framework—used for large, high-security, and high-performance projects—Sylius ensures top-quality code, consistent API standards, and benefits from strong developer communities, making it exceptionally adaptable and easily integrable.”
According to Połeć, the platform’s modular architecture allows teams to work on independent modules and deploy them as one unit, reducing operational costs. This lightweight, component-based approach means companies can use only what they need. As a result, Sylius is equally suitable for small startups and large enterprises, adapting easily as businesses grow.
“Additionally, Sylius uses automated testing based on the Behavior-Driven Development (BDD) approach, helping companies detect issues before they affect customers while keeping teams focused on creating real business value,” says Połeć.
He adds that being open-source, Sylius allows companies to avoid license fees and freely modify, extend, or even develop proprietary solutions while maintaining full code ownership. The platform offers lifelong value with its free standard edition, as well as a flexible modular licensing system under Sylius Plus, where businesses pay only for the features they need.
However, Połeć—like Šmaižys—stresses that for businesses seeking simple, standard online stores, Sylius might simply be too powerful.

How is a Sylius partner selected?

Sylius has hundreds of partners worldwide helping companies build e-commerce solutions using its technology. According to Połeć, when choosing partners in different countries, Sylius looks for companies that are already recognized experts in their markets and demonstrate strong technical e-commerce development skills.
“We look for partners who deeply understand their local business environment and have proven experience delivering high-quality solutions to their clients,” Połeć explains.
“When evaluating PrestaRock, we recognized them as experienced PrestaShop experts with strong technical knowledge and a solid market position. We were impressed by their extensive experience building diverse e-commerce solutions and their team’s ability to understand complex architectures. We saw great potential in their accumulated expertise and believed the PrestaRock team could become successful Sylius specialists, capable of meeting the needs of Lithuanian businesses.”

What’s next for Sylius?

Połeć reveals that both Sylius Standard and Sylius Plus versions are being continuously improved.
The most significant upcoming addition for Sylius Standard will be a “template app”—a standardized pattern giving a strong advantage when creating headless commerce applications. Catalog management will also be enhanced with better configuration options for colors, sizes, and fonts, while a comprehensive Sylius user guide will make administration easier.
Sylius Plus will receive several advanced features requested by business clients, such as extended order editing, allowing modifications to already submitted orders—adding or removing products, adjusting quantities, applying discounts, or even manually changing prices.
It will also include AI support, enabling businesses to build their own AI-based personalization enhancements for a better shopping experience.