A commercetools frontend is the customer-facing layer of a composable commerce stack. commercetools provides the backend with products, orders, and checkout; the frontend connects via the commercetools API (REST and GraphQL) and can be designed freely. Unlike monolithic platforms, a frontend for commercetools is always mandatory, not optional. It is where a composable headless frontend, delivered as Frontend as a Service, does its work.

commercetools continues to manage products, categories, prices, orders, stores, and customer groups. You use the Merchant Center API you know, without new workflows or training.

You have three options: build it yourself (custom Next.js or Nuxt), Frontastic (the frontend acquired by ct), or a Frontend Management Platform like Laioutr. Each option has pros and cons, which we spell out on this page.

No data duplication, no sync conflicts. Laioutr talks directly to the commercetools API (REST and GraphQL), including multi-project, multi-store, and customer-group support.

commercetools doesn't prescribe the frontend. That puts the question “which frontend strategy?" on the table for every composable project. Four options are established in the market. Here's where each one pays off.

Maximum control, maximum effort. You build everything yourself, deploy yourself, scale yourself. It requires a dedicated React or Vue team and a six- to twelve-month build phase. It makes sense if you see frontend engineering as a strategic core competency.

An open-source frontend framework, Vue stack, originally created for Magento, today multi-backend. An active community, but no direct support network in DACH. It makes sense if you have a Vue team and open source is strategically important.

The official frontend from commercetools after the Frontastic acquisition in 2021. Its own Studio builder, deeply integrated into the ct stack, enterprise pricing. It makes sense if you commit strategically 100 percent to commercetools and accept lock-in.

A Frontend Management Platform with a visual builder, 70+ components, EU hosting, and multi-backend support. Fastest time-to-launch, lowest learning curve, backend optionality for the future. It makes sense if you want to go live fast and keep your multi-backend options open.

Laioutr is built for commercetools setups that need to change fast and scale globally. From the multi-brand stack for brand portfolios to the B2B configurator frontend.

Multiple brands on a single commercetools instance with independent frontends, their own domains, their own brand identity. One component pool, multiple brand presences.

commercetools customer groups, prices, tiered pricing. Laioutr calls the ct API directly and renders customer-group-specific prices, assortments, and net terms. Configurators, volume discounts, approval flows.

One ct instance, many stores. Languages, currencies, layouts, and assortments can be controlled per store, compatible with the ct stores concept.

Auto configurators, industrial goods, customization workflows. Complex state-management logic is solved at the Laioutr component level, while ct API calls stay cleanly separated.

An existing Frontastic stack to be replaced, without touching the ct backend. Migration in phases, with a clear rollback plan.

A new commercetools project, a fresh start. With Laioutr themes and the UI library, this goes into production in weeks, instead of investing months in an in-house build.