Migrating from Shopware 5 to Shopware 6: what's new and how it works

When you migrate from Shopware 5 to Shopware 6, your shop data moves into a system that has been rebuilt from the ground up. Shopware 6 separates the frontend from the backend and comes with an extended API and a redesigned administration. This article explains what is new in Shopware 6, which data can be carried over and how we approach a migration.

What Shopware 6 does differently from Shopware 5

Shopware 6 is designed to be more flexible, clearer and easier to use than its predecessor. It is built for customers who shop regardless of time, place or device. For merchants, that means more ways to shape the shopping experience and a technical foundation designed for additional sales channels.

What’s new in Shopware 6?

The vendor from Schöppingen has consistently developed its widely used e-commerce software further. Shopware 6 offers more performance, central control of all sales channels, more integration options and a much faster backend. We tested the new version early and in depth.

The core of the system was redeveloped from scratch, and the backend is also based on a revised concept. This prepares Shopware 6 for new technologies. On top of that, there is a unified workflow for Shopware developers and much better usability.

Headless e-commerce: separating frontend and backend

Shopware 6 takes a new approach to frontend and backend. The keyword is headless e-commerce: the administration area (the backend) is strictly separated from the frontend. After the migration you benefit because all kinds of external systems can be connected. For example, you can link your shop to price comparison portals or to marketplaces such as eBay, Amazon or Rakuten. CRM, PIM and ERP systems can be connected as well. Find out more under ERP integrations.

The new features of Shopware 6 at a glance

API

The redesigned API (application programming interface) now covers all backend functions. Performance has improved, and large volumes of data can be synchronised quickly.

Backend

Shopware 6 has a completely revised backend. It is responsive, relies on open web technologies and is meant to integrate machine learning and a stronger focus on users. Technically, it is based on a Symfony 4 full-stack integration, whereas the Shopware 5 backend was still built on ExtJS.

Elasticsearch

Products, orders and customers can be indexed with Elasticsearch directly in the backend. Handling large and complex data sets has improved considerably.

Translation

Shop pages, forms and categories can be translated more easily, faster and better in Shopware 6 than in Shopware 5.

Sitemap

You can split your sitemap in Shopware 6, which makes it easier to generate large sitemaps.

Cart and order processes

Shopware 6 gives you much more freedom to adapt cart and order processes to your needs. Rounding behaviour and tax handling can be configured freely. If required, you can also group shopping carts.

Shopware 6 at the time of publication

When this article was published in June 2019, Shopware 6 was available as a developer version. The beta was announced for July 2019, and version 6.1 for stable use in online retail from November 2019. We support you with the migration and make sure your data from Shopware 5 is available in Shopware 6.

How we migrate from Shopware 5 to Shopware 6

Shopware 5 and Shopware 6 are built on different technical foundations. That is why every migration starts with a careful review of your existing system. Based on that, we set up the migration environment, followed by the installation and configuration of Shopware 6. Finally, we adapt plugins and themes to your requirements.

Which data can be carried over?

We transfer all data from your database that can be migrated, such as manufacturers, products, categories or free text fields. In some cases, however, a transfer is not possible. This mainly affects sales channels and shopping worlds: these features have been completely rebuilt in Shopware 6 and therefore cannot be migrated. Whether your plugins can be transferred is something we check case by case.

If you have questions about the migration, get in touch. You can read how we support migrations and relaunches today under Shopware migration and relaunch.