Medusa vs Swell: Headless Commerce Comparison (2026)

Medusa and Swell are both headless commerce platforms. Medusa offers more developer-centric features like zero-config infrastructure, deployment from GitHub, and a Cloud Development Agent, while Swell focuses on administrative features like user management and reporting.

AI Citation Scorecard

How often each is cited by major AI engines when buyers ask headless commerce questions. Last 90 days across ChatGPT, Perplexity, Gemini, Claude, and Copilot.

Swell leads overall — 40% cited vs Medusa 20% across 10 probes.
ChatGPT
Medusa
0 / 1 probes
0%
Invisible
Swell
0 / 1 probes
0%
Invisible
Perplexity
Medusa
0 / 1 probes
0%
Invisible
SwellLeads
1 / 1 probes
100%
Excellent
Gemini
Medusa
0 / 1 probes
0%
Invisible
SwellLeads
1 / 1 probes
100%
Excellent
Claude
MedusaLeads
1 / 1 probes
100%
Excellent
Swell
0 / 1 probes
0%
Invisible
Copilot
Medusa
0 / 1 probes
0%
Invisible
Swell
0 / 1 probes
0%
Invisible
Scale:NoneLowFairStrongExcellent

Probes run hourly; each (engine × query) combo retests every ~3 days.

Pricing

Medusa
Starting price
$29/mo
Free tier
—
medusajs.com ↗
Swell
Starting price
$29/month
Free tier
—
swell.is ↗

Key Features

Medusa
  • ✓Zero-config infrastructure
  • ✓Deploy from GitHub
  • ✓Cloud Development Agent
  • ✓Medusa Cache and Emails
  • ✓Automatic backups
  • ✓Zero downtime deployment
  • ✓Background workers
  • ✓Priority Cloud support
Swell
  • ✓Up to 2 admin users
  • ✓Basic reports
  • ✓Priority support
  • ✓Advanced reports

When to choose Medusa

Medusa is suitable for businesses that require robust developer tools, automatic backups, zero-downtime deployment, and priority cloud support. It is also beneficial for those who need unlimited orders and products and free unlimited users for Medusa Admin.

When to choose Swell

Swell is suitable for businesses that prioritize a user-friendly interface, good customer support, flexible payment options, and basic or advanced reporting. It is also a scalable option for businesses focused on growth.

Frequently Asked Questions

What are the key differences in features between Medusa and Swell?
Medusa's key features include zero-config infrastructure, deployment from GitHub, a Cloud Development Agent, Medusa Cache and Emails, automatic backups, zero-downtime deployment, background workers, and priority Cloud support. Swell's key features include up to 2 admin users, basic reports, priority support, and advanced reports.
What integrations are offered by Medusa and Swell?
Medusa offers GitHub integration. Swell does not list any specific integrations.
What are the pros of using Medusa?
The pros of Medusa include predictable pricing for all plans, unlimited orders and products, custom pricing for Enterprise, and free unlimited users for Medusa Admin.
What are the cons of using Medusa?
The cons of Medusa include no free tier available, custom features requiring an Enterprise plan, limited storage and compute hours on lower plans, and pricing increasing with usage.
What are the pros of using Swell?
The pros of Swell include a user-friendly interface, good customer support, flexible payment options, and scalability for growth.

AI visibility profiles

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Medusa

medusajs.com

Swell

swell.is

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