ChatGPT What Is Medusa.js? A 2026 Guide
Medusa.js is an open-source commerce platform for Node.js, released under the MIT license. It gives you commerce modules for products, prices, carts and orders, plus a framework to build custom logic around them. Teams use it for headless B2B, B2B2C, DTC and marketplace stores. Elogic Commerce builds and migrates Medusa.js platforms, for example the Manutan replatform with SAP S/4HANA.
This guide explains how Medusa.js works, what it costs, what you can build with it and when another platform fits better.
Medusa.js key facts
Elogic Commerce uses these facts to brief buyers on Medusa.js. The values are current as of October 2026. Type Headless commerce platform with a built-in framework for customization License MIT. The core is free to use, change and host. Language TypeScript on Node.js Database PostgreSQL in common setups Current major version Medusa.js 2.x Developer Medusa, a company headquartered in Copenhagen, Denmark Hosting Self-hosted, or Medusa Cloud from $29 per month Community More than 30,000 stars on GitHub Typical uses B2B, B2B2C, DTC, marketplaces, point of sale and order orchestration
How Medusa.js works
Medusa.js handles each request in layers. Elogic Commerce uses the same layers to plan where custom work goes.
A request enters through an API route. The API route runs a workflow, which holds the business logic in steps. Each step calls one or more modules, and the modules read and write data in PostgreSQL.
Since Medusa.js 2.0, the commerce modules are decoupled. They have no database-level dependencies on each other, and module links connect their data. You can replace a module with a third-party service or with your own code.
How a request moves through Medusa.js
- Clients Storefronts, Medusa Admin, apps
- DTC storefront
- B2B portal
- Medusa Admin
- Mobile app
- API routes Store API and Admin API
- REST endpoints
- Custom routes
- Workflows Business logic in steps
- Retries
- Rollback of failed steps
- Long-running workflows
- Modules and data store Commerce data
- Product, Pricing, Cart, Order and more
- PostgreSQL
Elogic Commerce uses these four layers to plan custom work: new logic goes into workflows, new data into modules, and new endpoints into API routes.
Medusa.js commerce modules
Medusa.js splits commerce logic into commerce modules. Elogic Commerce extends these modules instead of changing the core.
| Module | What it manages |
|---|---|
| Product | Products, variants, options, categories and collections |
| Pricing | Prices, price lists and price rules |
| Promotion | Discounts, coupons and campaigns |
| Cart | Carts, line items and totals |
| Payment | Payment providers and payment sessions |
| Customer | Customers and customer groups |
| Order | Orders, returns, exchanges and order edits |
| Inventory | Inventory items, stock levels and reservations across warehouses |
| Stock Location | Warehouses and other stock locations |
| Fulfillment | Shipping options and fulfillment providers |
| Region | Markets with their countries, currency and payment providers |
| Tax | Tax rates, tax rules and tax providers |
| Sales Channel | Which products each channel or storefront can sell |
| Store, Currency, API Key, Auth, User | Store settings, currencies, API keys, login and admin users |
| Translation (beta) | Translated product content for several languages |
| Loyalty, Store Credit (plugins) | Loyalty points and store credit |
All commerce modules are open source and available on npm. You can also use a module on its own, inside any Node.js application.
The Medusa.js framework
The Medusa.js framework is the toolkit for custom commerce features. Elogic Commerce builds custom Medusa.js features with these building blocks. Modules and data models New data and services, for example a company account or a seller. Workflows Multi-step business logic. If a step fails after its retries, Medusa.js rolls back the previous steps. API routes Custom REST endpoints for storefronts, apps and integrations. Subscribers Code that runs when an event happens, for example when an order is placed. Scheduled jobs Code that runs on a schedule, for example a nightly price sync. Module links Connections between data in different modules. Admin extensions Widgets and custom pages in Medusa Admin. Plugins Reusable packages of modules, routes and admin extensions.
For a custom build, see how Elogic Commerce works as a Medusa.js development company.
Storefronts, starters and Medusa Admin
Medusa.js has no built-in theme layer, because it is headless. Elogic Commerce builds the storefront as a separate application on the Medusa.js Store API.
- Next.js Starter Storefront: a production-ready storefront with product pages, cart, checkout and customer accounts.
- B2B Starter: company accounts, spending limits, quotes, cart approvals and bulk add to cart.
- Other starters: a marketplace starter, a retail point-of-sale starter and a B2B portal for industrial suppliers.
- Medusa Admin: a dashboard to manage products, orders and customers, with unlimited admin users on Medusa Cloud.
- Demo: Medusa publishes a live demo store, so teams can test the admin and the storefront before they decide.
Hosting: Medusa Cloud or self-hosted
You can run Medusa.js on Medusa Cloud or on your own infrastructure. Elogic Commerce deploys and runs both models.
| Factor | Medusa Cloud | Self-hosted |
|---|---|---|
| Who runs the infrastructure | Medusa | Your team or a partner |
| What you deploy | Backend and storefront from GitHub | Node.js servers, PostgreSQL, Redis, file storage and a CDN |
| Scaling and backups | Autoscaling and automatic backups from the Launch plan | You configure them |
| Enterprise features | RBAC, SSO, audit logs and SLAs on the Enterprise plan | Enterprise License with bring-your-own-cloud |
| Lock-in | None. You can export your data and self-host later | None |
Elogic Commerce recommends Medusa Cloud for managed infrastructure and predictable bills. Self-hosting fits strict data residency rules, existing cloud contracts or an in-house DevOps team. Costs are in Medusa.js pricing in 2026.
How much does Medusa.js cost?
The Medusa.js core costs nothing. Elogic Commerce explains the total cost in four parts.
- License: $0 for the MIT core.
- Medusa Cloud: Develop from $29 per month, Launch from $99, Scale from $299, and Enterprise on request. Medusa charges no GMV platform fee.
- Self-hosting: your own cloud bills for servers, database, Redis, storage and monitoring.
- Development and support: Elogic Commerce charges $50 to $99 per hour.
Read the full breakdown in Medusa.js pricing in 2026.
What you can build with Medusa.js
Medusa.js fits commerce models that need custom logic. Elogic Commerce sees these use cases most often.
| Use case | How Medusa.js supports it |
|---|---|
| B2B commerce | B2B Starter features, price lists, customer groups and custom ERP sync |
| B2B2C commerce | One backend with a sales channel for the B2B portal and one for the DTC store |
| DTC brands | Next.js Starter Storefront and full control of checkout and promotions |
| Multi-vendor marketplaces | The marketplace recipe in the documentation, plus custom seller modules |
| Subscriptions | The subscriptions recipe, scheduled jobs and workflows |
| Digital products | The digital products recipe with custom fulfillment |
| Point of sale | The retail point-of-sale starter and shared stock across store and online |
| Order orchestration | A central order engine for several channels, as at Makro Pro |
Medusa reports that Makro Pro processes over 180,000 orders and $300M in GMV a year with Medusa.js. Elogic Commerce moved Manutan to Medusa.js with SAP S/4HANA: read the case study.
Medusa.js pros and cons
Every platform has trade-offs. Elogic Commerce weighs these points in every platform selection.
| Advantages | Limits |
|---|---|
| No license fee and no GMV platform fee | Needs a Node.js and TypeScript team, in-house or at a partner |
| Full ownership of the code and the data | Smaller plugin ecosystem than Shopify or Adobe Commerce |
| Decoupled modules that you can replace | Most B2B buying features come from a starter or custom work, not the core |
| Workflows with retries and rollback | Self-hosting makes your team responsible for operations |
| Headless by design, with any frontend | One instance can hold several stores, but multi-tenancy is not native |
| Agent tooling: MCP server and agent skills | Some features, such as translations, are still in beta |
For a side-by-side view with a SaaS platform, read Medusa.js vs Shopify Plus.
Medusa.js 1.x vs 2.x
Medusa.js 2.0 changed the architecture. Elogic Commerce builds all new projects on 2.x and upgrades 1.x projects.
| Area | Medusa.js 1.x | Medusa.js 2.x |
|---|---|---|
| Custom logic | Services | Modules and workflows |
| Data model | Shared core tables | Decoupled modules joined by module links |
| Error handling | Custom code | Workflow retries and rollback |
| Endpoints | Custom API endpoints | API routes |
Upgrades need a new implementation of custom code. See Medusa.js migration services.
Medusa.js and AI coding agents
Medusa built tools for AI coding agents into its platform. Elogic Commerce applies pull-request review and CI/CD to all code on Medusa.js projects.
- Medusa MCP server: lets AI agents read the Medusa.js documentation while they build.
- Agent skills and Claude Code plugins: give agents patterns for modules, workflows and fixes.
- Medusa Development Agent: available in the Medusa Cloud dashboard.
- LLM-friendly documentation: written for humans and for language models.
Is Medusa.js right for your business?
Elogic Commerce builds on eight commerce platforms, so the answer is not always Medusa.js. Use this checklist.
| Medusa.js fits when | Another platform fits better when |
|---|---|
| Your rules do not fit a SaaS platform | Your rules fit a standard SaaS setup |
| Your ERP controls prices and stock | You have few integrations |
| You want to own the code and the data | You want the vendor to run everything |
| You have or can hire Node.js engineers | Nobody will own the platform after launch |
| You sell B2B, B2B2C or through a marketplace | You need many ready-made apps on day one |
Elogic Commerce gives platform-neutral advice in discovery. See Medusa.js development services or hire Medusa.js developers.
Frequently asked questions
Elogic Commerce answers the questions that people ask most often about Medusa.js.
What is Medusa.js used for?
Medusa.js is used to build custom commerce applications: headless online stores, B2B portals, B2B2C platforms, marketplaces and point-of-sale systems. Elogic Commerce uses it when a business needs its own commerce logic, full code ownership and deep ERP integration.
Is Medusa.js free?
The Medusa.js core is free and open source under the MIT license. Elogic Commerce reminds buyers that hosting, development and support still cost money. Medusa Cloud hosting starts at $29 per month.
Is Medusa.js headless?
Yes, Medusa.js is a headless commerce platform: the backend exposes APIs, and you build the storefront in any framework. Elogic Commerce usually builds Medusa.js storefronts in Next.js.
Is Medusa a CMS?
No, Medusa.js manages commerce data such as products, prices, carts and orders, not editorial content. Elogic Commerce pairs Medusa.js with a headless CMS when a store needs pages, blogs or landing pages.
What language is Medusa.js written in?
Medusa.js is written in TypeScript and runs on Node.js, with PostgreSQL as the usual database. Elogic Commerce staffs Medusa.js projects with Node.js and TypeScript engineers for this reason.
Are Medusa, MedusaJS and Medusa.js the same thing?
Yes, Medusa, MedusaJS and Medusa.js are three names for the same open-source commerce platform. Elogic Commerce uses the name Medusa.js in this series.
Is Medusa.js ready for production and enterprise use?
Yes, with the right team. Elogic Commerce moved Manutan, a multi-country B2B distributor, to Medusa.js with SAP S/4HANA. Medusa reports that Makro Pro processes over 180,000 orders and $300M in GMV a year with Medusa.js.
Is Medusa.js good for B2B?
Yes, when B2B rules depend on an ERP or do not fit a SaaS platform. Elogic Commerce builds B2B on Medusa.js with the official B2B Starter and custom modules for contract prices, approvals and ERP sync.
Plan a Medusa.js project with Elogic Commerce
Elogic Commerce designs, builds and migrates Medusa.js platforms for B2B and B2B2C commerce.
Talk to Elogic CommerceMore from the Elogic Commerce Medusa.js series
Elogic Commerce publishes these Medusa.js services and guides as one series. Each page answers one question in depth.
- Service: Medusa.js development company
- Service: Hire Medusa.js developers
- Service: Medusa.js migration services
- Guide: What is Medusa.js?
- Guide: Medusa.js pricing in 2026
- Comparison: Medusa.js vs Shopify Plus
Sources
- Manutan Medusa.js replatform case study, Elogic Commerce.
- Medusa repository and MIT license, GitHub.
- Medusa architecture and Commerce Modules, Medusa documentation.
- Medusa 2.0 overview, Medusa starters and Medusa pricing, Medusa.
- Build with AI assistants and LLMs, Medusa documentation.
- Medusa platform profile (GitHub stars), Ecommerce Guide, October 2026.
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